A regional organization of amateur paddle-sports enthusiasts
A regional organization of amateur paddle-sports enthusiasts
2007 and 2008 Club Trip Schedule
Past club schedules have included trips on several waterways - the Sangamon River, Sugar Creek in IN, the Sugar River, Middle Fork of the Vermilion, the Pecatonica River, the Fox River, the Wabash River in IN, the Illinois River, the Current River in MO, and more. Please note that our club has several different scheduled year round trips/events and you can find out more about them by JOINING the club or clicking here for a list of upcoming trips. If you have any questions about the club, please contact Tim White, the club's president.
Club History
In the early 1960s, a group of Caterpillar employees began posting
notices of their canoe trips on the company bulletin boards. Their popular paddling events
soon drew enthusiasts from surrounding counties and the organizers began to charge 25 cents a
trip for paddlers to obtain announcements of future events. The group incorporated as the
Mackinaw Canoe Club of Central Illinois in March of 1976.
Today, there are about 150 members of the Club from central Illinois and
neighboring states.
We sponsor 30 or more trips every year, some in association with other
groups such as the Prairie State Canoeists and the Illinois Paddling Council. Trips usually
begin on New Year’s Day, continue through the August heat and into December. There
are trips of a few hours, full-day paddles, and long weekend excursions with overnight
camping or other lodging. Club members and their families and guests paddle canoes and
kayaks on whitewater and quiet water. Some members paddle hundreds of miles a year while
others come for one or two trips or for special events. In addition to planned trips, members
also call or e-mail each other for pick-up trips. We have a contingent of poling enthusiasts
as well as whitewater buffs who travel to other states for the best thrill. One of our
popular social paddles is the moonlight cruise in late summer.
In addition to the Mackinaw--several members have paddled the entire length
of this river--club trips have been planned on Kickapoo Creek, the Vermillion (Illinois River
basin), the Mazon, the Kankakee, the Middle Fork of the Vermillion (Wabash basin), the Rock,
the Spoon, Bureau Creek, Salt Creek, Sugar Creek, Rook’s Creek, the Fox, the Kishwaukee,
the Cache and many others. Out-of-state trips have included the Big Pine Creek in Indiana, the
Buffalo River in Arkansas, the Current and Jack’s Fork in Missouri, the Wolf in Wisconsin,
the Ocoee in Tennessee. the Upper Missouri River in Montana, and the Youghiogheny in
Pennsylvania.
In addition to trips, the Club sponsors classes and clinics in canoe and kayak operation and safety. The kayak sessions in February and March, now held at the RiverPlex Center in Peoria, have helped kayakers learn to maneuver and roll kayaks for nearly a decade. More recently, we have offered day-long clinics in canoe and kayak operation and safety on local lakes in the summertime. We have members available to teach classes for individuals or organizations.
The Club assisted in the formation of the Central Illinois Chapter of the
Illinois Paddling Council. In 2003, we became affiliated with the American Canoe Association
as a Paddle America Club. In addition, individual Club members are active in other groups
dedicated to the promotion of paddle sports and related issues. In recent years, the Club
has organized river clean-ups and has assisted in monitoring waste containers at put-in and
take-out sites.