WI River Outings
WI River Outings
4.5
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Monday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Tuesday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Wednesday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Thursday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Friday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Saturday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Sunday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Full view
About
Providing canoe,kayak and tube rentals on the Lower Wisconsin River out of Boscobel and Sauk City, Wisconsin. High quality, light weight canoes will gain you access to the sand bars in the middle of the river for lunch or camping based on the length of your trip. Come enjoy a 1-5 day paddle over 8-92 miles with us!
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Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.
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Joseph L
2 contributions
Aug 2020
I've used WRO twice before, and we are taking our third trip this weekend. It was a great experience both times.
WRO sent several informative emails leading up to our trip that were very helpful. WRO has videos you can watch explaining how to pack your canoe, what to expect, and sends you a pack list. After reading the emails WRO sent me and watching their videos, I new what to expect and didn't have many surprises.
The first two trips we dropped our gear off up river, I drove to WRO and parked the van at the launch, WRO shuttled me back to the drop in spot. It was nice having my vehicle waiting when we arrived at WRO. Once we finished the trip, we didn't have to deal with anyone, just packed up and left. This year we are starting in Boscobel and ending in Wyalusing state park. This time instead of having my van waiting for me at the end (3 days, two nights), we are getting picked up at 2pm in Wyalusing. I'm a little nervous that I'll be stressing about getting to the pickup stop in time, but to me it's all part of the preparation and planning of the trip, and the planning is something I enjoy.
When we took our second trip from Spring Green to Boscobel, we stopped in Muscoda so I could walk to the gas station to get more drinks. I was on my way back to the canoe and a WRO van pulled up and asked if I wanted a ride. It was Scott the owner whom I recognized right away from all his planning videos I watched. He didn't have to stop and offer a ride and I was thankful he did.
We love our trips on the Wisconsin river and plan to keep using WRO for years to come.
A tip for people taking their first river camping trip is learn how to stake down a tent on a sand bar. Our first trip all I had was the metal pin stakes that came with the tent and they were completely useless. The second trip I had sand stakes with threads that you screw into the sand. These were better than the metal pins but still not great. After doing some research, this year I plan on tying a rope to a piece of wood and burying it under the sand. I wonder how other people stake down their tents on the sandbars and wouldn't mind seeing more videos about it.
WRO sent several informative emails leading up to our trip that were very helpful. WRO has videos you can watch explaining how to pack your canoe, what to expect, and sends you a pack list. After reading the emails WRO sent me and watching their videos, I new what to expect and didn't have many surprises.
The first two trips we dropped our gear off up river, I drove to WRO and parked the van at the launch, WRO shuttled me back to the drop in spot. It was nice having my vehicle waiting when we arrived at WRO. Once we finished the trip, we didn't have to deal with anyone, just packed up and left. This year we are starting in Boscobel and ending in Wyalusing state park. This time instead of having my van waiting for me at the end (3 days, two nights), we are getting picked up at 2pm in Wyalusing. I'm a little nervous that I'll be stressing about getting to the pickup stop in time, but to me it's all part of the preparation and planning of the trip, and the planning is something I enjoy.
When we took our second trip from Spring Green to Boscobel, we stopped in Muscoda so I could walk to the gas station to get more drinks. I was on my way back to the canoe and a WRO van pulled up and asked if I wanted a ride. It was Scott the owner whom I recognized right away from all his planning videos I watched. He didn't have to stop and offer a ride and I was thankful he did.
We love our trips on the Wisconsin river and plan to keep using WRO for years to come.
A tip for people taking their first river camping trip is learn how to stake down a tent on a sand bar. Our first trip all I had was the metal pin stakes that came with the tent and they were completely useless. The second trip I had sand stakes with threads that you screw into the sand. These were better than the metal pins but still not great. After doing some research, this year I plan on tying a rope to a piece of wood and burying it under the sand. I wonder how other people stake down their tents on the sandbars and wouldn't mind seeing more videos about it.
Written July 27, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Christine C
Arlington Heights, Illinois, United States40 contributions
Sep 2021
Used them to shuttle for a trip from Sauk Prairie to Wyalusing. They were responsive and patient with my many questions in getting this setup. Shuttle was on time and efficient and they gave me VALUABLE info on river and camping conditions. The river was running high so the info was critical to having a safe and fun trip. I highly recommend them and will use their services again in the future.
Written September 3, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Bluenoser-Smith
1 contribution
Jul 2021
Without a doubt, the highlight of my experience was my proposal to my girlfriend (now fiancée)! WRO staff offered their best advice to make this possible. Thank you for a trip that we will never forget.
Constructive criticism: we both really like the morning for paddling, and although we selected your earliest time-slot for departure (10am), we unfortunately were not able to hit the water until 12:05pm. We would have enjoyed the first day a lot more if we were able to start earlier.
Constructive criticism: we both really like the morning for paddling, and although we selected your earliest time-slot for departure (10am), we unfortunately were not able to hit the water until 12:05pm. We would have enjoyed the first day a lot more if we were able to start earlier.
Written July 20, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Trista R
1 contribution
Aug 2023 • Couples
The trip was awesome but the service not so much. We booked way in advance and we were told we got a bundle of wood and we ordered seat backs plus we were told our car would be at the end. None of that occured. It was so disorganized and confusion when we started. No wood, No seat backs and our car was not at the end we had to leave it in their parking lot and get a ride back to it. I will plan another trip just won't use their services.
Written August 14, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Patty
1 contribution
Jul 2022
The river was awesome and our trip turned out great, but the service was poor. We arrived a few minutes late (our fault), but the shuttle hadn't left yet because the staff was still getting organized. Instead of letting us get on the shuttle, they still said that we couldn't because we had "missed the cutoff". This threw a wrench in our plan. Further, there was zero direction about which boats to take, where to get paddles, etc. It was as if they had got our payment so we were on our own.
Written July 31, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Rikk W
Rochester, MN1 contribution
Aug 2020
I may come back with a better review but they botched it with Covid. Told me to call back 2 weeks before we wanted to schedule our trip, planned around the date only to find out they could not accommodate us. It could have been handled better for sure.
Written August 4, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Bryan T
1 contribution
Jul 2016 • Friends
They’ve lost my business and the business of anyone I know (which includes some quite large annual canoe trips). I do not recommend working with this company because they do not work with you.
When I booked my trip with them the rep got most of my trip info wrong. I explained a couple times that it was a two day weekend trip from Friday to Sunday. When I arrived they had me marked for a Sunday to Friday trip. They took down my address and my email address incorrectly. After correcting those I was never emailed a receipt even after asking on the phone. I only received “your canoe trip is coming up” emails with solicitations for things I probably won’t need.
A few friends and I went on this one-weekend, two-night trip from the Sauk City location to Spring Green. The drop in was great as we got there late on Friday and, to be fair, a nice lady helped us check in and gave us some river advice after hours. We were told to be at the pickup site landing at 2 o’clock Sunday but we were given no information on what to look for when we got there. The canoe trip was fantastic and a perfect distance. We reached the final landing around 1:45pm to find a frenzy of about 30 canoes and kayaks from different companies all doing pickups at the same time. One guy in my party immediately went up to the road and asked the ten or so bus drivers one by one if they were from Wisconsin River Outings. Most of the busses were unmarked so we expected that one of these would be the one for us. Most of the busses turned out to be from Blackhawk with a couple from Wisconsin Canoe Co. None were from Wisconsin River Outings. My canoe, being bright yellow, should have stood out against all the red and silver ones that were there so we thought that somebody would come and find us and at least ask (they knew we didn’t rent canoes). I finally called around 2:15pm to ask where our transport was. They returned my call and informed me that the transport had left without us after waiting as long as they could and after scouring the beach and yelling for us. We would have to wait there until 5pm for the next bus to come by and then be charged $50 for their mistake.
We ended up hitching a ride with a nice group of independant canoers who were there for the whole fiasco. They mentioned that they had seen the bus come through and heard them “yell” for us. They told us that the yelling was not loud and it was done from the non-beach side of the bus where almost nobody would hear. They also said that the bus did leave well before 2pm but couldn’t say how long before.
Because the service I paid for was not carried out, I called the office and asked for a refund. They told me that their contract (which I never saw) had been fulfilled so there would be no refund. You would think that even as an attempt at customer retention they might give a partial refund but instead I was told that I was wrong and that I didn’t know what I was talking about.
All of these transport problems could be easily solved just by making the pickup time different than all the other companies. If they showed up at 2:30pm, they would have been the only bus there.
When I booked my trip with them the rep got most of my trip info wrong. I explained a couple times that it was a two day weekend trip from Friday to Sunday. When I arrived they had me marked for a Sunday to Friday trip. They took down my address and my email address incorrectly. After correcting those I was never emailed a receipt even after asking on the phone. I only received “your canoe trip is coming up” emails with solicitations for things I probably won’t need.
A few friends and I went on this one-weekend, two-night trip from the Sauk City location to Spring Green. The drop in was great as we got there late on Friday and, to be fair, a nice lady helped us check in and gave us some river advice after hours. We were told to be at the pickup site landing at 2 o’clock Sunday but we were given no information on what to look for when we got there. The canoe trip was fantastic and a perfect distance. We reached the final landing around 1:45pm to find a frenzy of about 30 canoes and kayaks from different companies all doing pickups at the same time. One guy in my party immediately went up to the road and asked the ten or so bus drivers one by one if they were from Wisconsin River Outings. Most of the busses were unmarked so we expected that one of these would be the one for us. Most of the busses turned out to be from Blackhawk with a couple from Wisconsin Canoe Co. None were from Wisconsin River Outings. My canoe, being bright yellow, should have stood out against all the red and silver ones that were there so we thought that somebody would come and find us and at least ask (they knew we didn’t rent canoes). I finally called around 2:15pm to ask where our transport was. They returned my call and informed me that the transport had left without us after waiting as long as they could and after scouring the beach and yelling for us. We would have to wait there until 5pm for the next bus to come by and then be charged $50 for their mistake.
We ended up hitching a ride with a nice group of independant canoers who were there for the whole fiasco. They mentioned that they had seen the bus come through and heard them “yell” for us. They told us that the yelling was not loud and it was done from the non-beach side of the bus where almost nobody would hear. They also said that the bus did leave well before 2pm but couldn’t say how long before.
Because the service I paid for was not carried out, I called the office and asked for a refund. They told me that their contract (which I never saw) had been fulfilled so there would be no refund. You would think that even as an attempt at customer retention they might give a partial refund but instead I was told that I was wrong and that I didn’t know what I was talking about.
All of these transport problems could be easily solved just by making the pickup time different than all the other companies. If they showed up at 2:30pm, they would have been the only bus there.
Written July 27, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
KAL
Chicago6 contributions
Jul 2016 • Family
We took the four hour canoe trip with our dog and another family with their two young girls. We knew there was going to be rain but the forecast called for it to stop after the first hour. It rained the entire time. None of that is the fault of the WI river Outings however think they could have been more helpful on our pick up. Our pick up time was 530p which allowed for a leisurely paddle down the river. Due to the rain our group and every other group was there a couple hours or more early. When we called to let them know they said they couldn't come until the scheduled time. I think that is horrible customer service to not have an alternate plan in place when situations like this arise. Instead about 20 of us were stuck waiting two hours in a mosquito infested landing dock in the pouring rain. We were already sopping wet and there was no shelter to even wait in for the ride. I'd also add that the older woman at front desk came across as very rude. Randy was very nice and great to the kids. Would not recommend unless you have alternative transportation.
Written July 23, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lacy W
Jacksonville, FL2 contributions
Jun 2015 • Friends
My group of friends has been canoeing with WRO for 9 years, and this was my 5th. They've recently been putting a lot of hard work into the business, and this was their best year! The new online checkout system can be improved but is a nice change, their facilities are improving, and the pickup bus was actually early! But each year the canoes are always ready to go and in great shape. Thanks for another great year, WRO!
Written July 5, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We can't beat long time customers, thank you for sharing your experience and we look forward to year 10!
Paddle On!
Scott
Written July 6, 2015
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Ferd C
Chicago, IL2 contributions
Aug 2019
1. No parking at the landing, we were required to park at the shop when we arrived. Not a big deal, but this may matter to some. Cars were stacked, there's the potential to be trapped in. Park by the ropes if the below doesn’t persuade you to run!
2. No garbage dumpster at the landing, and according to the staff, you're supposed to take your trash with you when you leave. That’s right. With you out of Boscobel. All the way home. I was told that I could use their trashcan but the owner wouldn't be happy about it. So I drove 3 hours with trash in my trunk.
3. Atrocious head winds on the second day. Wife, myself and the kids spent 3 hours paddling to only cover a mile and BOY were we exhausted. Called "WI River Outing" for a hand here's what I heard across 5 calls in 5 hours:
o "It was your decision to go out there"
o "You have a paddle and a boat, you are not stranded" – Technically, sure but
not really in my case. I have kids.
o "We have one guy on a boat recusing people, and he does it as a favor, sir" –
Huh? This one had me dumbfounded. So I guess dial 911 when this guy is out of
town?
o "You are third in line but there's just one guy and he has a small fishing boat" –
Was third for 5 hours. Could have pulled me out while the others play hide-n-seek
with him.
o "You have to be patient and STOP CALLING SIR" – If they said call back in 1
hour, I called in an hour. Apparently that’s being impatient.
o "It's your responsibility to check the weather" – I did. Said sunny and no winds.
o "You knew you were bringing kids before going out there, sir. Now you have to
be patient" – She’s likely winning mother of the year with that.
4. They have just one guy and he's not an employee that can retrieve individuals that need a hand.
5. They are unable to provide adequate times for pickups and if you follow-up when they ask, they're annoyed.
6. The woman was highly contentious on the phone and clearly annoyed by my phone calls.
7. When we made it to the landing (without the rescue, long story there), I had to jump in their van for a ride back to my car, the staff seated in front was talking through the day’s events and (not knowing that I was the caller from earlier) said my name and said I was "unappreciative" then laughed.
No empathy whatsoever to the fact we had little children and we were unable to make significant progress. After waiting 5 hours for a rescue, the conditions lightened up enough for us to slowly make it out of there. If I never see Boscobel or “WI River Outing” again, it’ll be too soon.
2. No garbage dumpster at the landing, and according to the staff, you're supposed to take your trash with you when you leave. That’s right. With you out of Boscobel. All the way home. I was told that I could use their trashcan but the owner wouldn't be happy about it. So I drove 3 hours with trash in my trunk.
3. Atrocious head winds on the second day. Wife, myself and the kids spent 3 hours paddling to only cover a mile and BOY were we exhausted. Called "WI River Outing" for a hand here's what I heard across 5 calls in 5 hours:
o "It was your decision to go out there"
o "You have a paddle and a boat, you are not stranded" – Technically, sure but
not really in my case. I have kids.
o "We have one guy on a boat recusing people, and he does it as a favor, sir" –
Huh? This one had me dumbfounded. So I guess dial 911 when this guy is out of
town?
o "You are third in line but there's just one guy and he has a small fishing boat" –
Was third for 5 hours. Could have pulled me out while the others play hide-n-seek
with him.
o "You have to be patient and STOP CALLING SIR" – If they said call back in 1
hour, I called in an hour. Apparently that’s being impatient.
o "It's your responsibility to check the weather" – I did. Said sunny and no winds.
o "You knew you were bringing kids before going out there, sir. Now you have to
be patient" – She’s likely winning mother of the year with that.
4. They have just one guy and he's not an employee that can retrieve individuals that need a hand.
5. They are unable to provide adequate times for pickups and if you follow-up when they ask, they're annoyed.
6. The woman was highly contentious on the phone and clearly annoyed by my phone calls.
7. When we made it to the landing (without the rescue, long story there), I had to jump in their van for a ride back to my car, the staff seated in front was talking through the day’s events and (not knowing that I was the caller from earlier) said my name and said I was "unappreciative" then laughed.
No empathy whatsoever to the fact we had little children and we were unable to make significant progress. After waiting 5 hours for a rescue, the conditions lightened up enough for us to slowly make it out of there. If I never see Boscobel or “WI River Outing” again, it’ll be too soon.
Written August 22, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Ferdinand,
Just so those seeing this review can get some context: Early on a Sunday morning, around 5 AM a storm front came through SW WI. There was about an hour of high winds and rain. After the storm went through it remained breezy until about noon and then died down. There were some customers who had their boats blown into the water and then floated away.
You'll see that some of the details of the trip have changed above from the emailed response provided to Ferdinand a week ago. I will let our previous reviews and the response below be our final word regarding this trip.
This is the email response WRO send to Ferdinand when he shared some of the info above.
Thank you for taking the time to respond to our survey request. These surveys help us address issues that we might not even realize are issues.
I’m glad you were able to reschedule your trip after the weather we had in July.
I want to start off with information that’s in the description of this trip and I believe is also in the email confirmation:
A word about the weather: This is an outdoor activity and unfortunately we don’t have control over the weather, and if we did we’d probably end up screwing it up long-term anyway. Our goal at WRO is to do everything we can to get you on the water on the day your trip is scheduled because we know how difficult it is for most folks to reschedule their trip. We’ve found that 90% of weather is between the ears, if you believe you’re going to have a horrible time because the weather isn’t perfect in your opinion…you ARE going to have a horrible time. Many of us have become so used to climate and environment control that we’ve forgotten what it’s like to surrender to what we’re dealt. And by the way, the remaining 10% of weather…it’s about bringing the quality gear you need, like rain gear. Surrender to the river and surrender to the weather, it’s almost impossible to really control either.
This is also part of the Gear List: This is a wilderness experience; the Wisconsin River is NOT Six Flags. It’s important you approach your trip in the correct frame of mind. Keep in mind; most people are on the river for 24 hours. There’s no need to over pack and you don’t need “the kitchen sink.” The objective is NOT to see how much you can bring…but how little and still meet your needs.
As mentioned by both Jill and Michele on Sunday morning, we had parties on the river that were without boats…blown away…not available to paddle…caught in trees. They were the priority. As I understand it you had approximately a 15 minute paddle to get to the boat landing. It may have been windy first thing after the storm moved through, but with patience the wind did die and you were able to paddle into the boat landing. I’m not sure what you hoped to accomplish by making hourly, and then every 15 minute, phone calls to hurry a process that was going to take time. In our 17 years we’ve never maintained a boat, and don’t intend to. And just so you know, one more call letting us know you decided to get back in your canoes would have been helpful since someone did go look for you but you had already finished your trip.
I understand that you also had an issue with a discussion about weather with one of the ladies at some point prior to your trip. I’m not sure how to address that. There are apps, websites, local news video and an entire channel devoted to the weather. We can only give the information we have available regarding weather conditions…and can’t be held responsible when they are not accurate. I’m hoping you weren’t suggesting that we knew exactly how Sunday morning would go and decided to put you out anyway.
Your issue with the boat spinning around in the wind was due to needing more weight to the front of the boat, I’ve counselled both ladies on this for the future. The other option is what you ended up doing…wait for the wind to die to down.
Finally, I assume that you don’t do many outdoor activities. Many federal, state and county parks have gone to pack-in, pack-out principles (Leave-No-Trace). If you brought something in, you need to take it out. This has been done for a couple reasons, for many places - it’s the right thing to do and it’s a cost cutting effort by governments. The City of Boscobel runs the boat landing and they decided about 5 years ago to pull trash cans for some of those reasons in addition to others. We could do a better job of sharing this information with our customers, as I understand it, when one of my staff explained that you needed to take your trash with you…you left it anyway.
I’m disappointed your first trip with WRO wasn’t what you thought it would be. My hope is that we get to see you on the river again now that you’ve got a trip under your belt. These trips are great experiences for kids and there seem to be few chances to provide these kinds of experiences.
Written September 1, 2019
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
No questions have been asked about this experience
WI River Outings - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)
WI River Outings Information
Excellent Reviews | 149 |
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Very Good Reviews | 29 |
WI River Outings Photos | 118 |