River guideIowa and Minnesota

Cedar River

Plan a paddle across 5 paddle areas. Compare distance, difficulty, and today’s conditions before choosing your stretch.

25mapped trips
0.3–14 midistance range
Easy · Hard · Moderatedifficulty options

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The Cedar River curves past wooded banks beneath a dramatic sky in George Wyth Memorial State Park, Iowa.
Cedar River at George Wyth Memorial State ParkPhoto by TheCatalyst31 · CC BY-SA 4.0
Route calls
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Choose your stretch

Pick a distance first. Conditions update with your selection.

Showing all 25 trips.

Your tripChain Lakes / Palo to Ellis HarborAbout 14 mi · About 4.5–6.5 hr · moderate
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Cedar River paddle planning

What to verify before you commit.

Water levels

These Cedar River routes use 6 gauge references depending on the stretch.

Route options

Compare 25 scored routes across Cedar Rapids Area, Cedar Valley, North Central Iowa, North Iowa, Southern Minnesota. Open a route page for put-in, take-out, distance, source confidence, and access notes.

Difficulty

Cedar River routes here are marked easy and hard and moderate, so choose the stretch that fits your group and conditions.

Cedar River paddling FAQ

Where can I paddle the Cedar River?

Paddle Today tracks 25 Cedar River routes across Cedar Rapids Area, Cedar Valley, North Central Iowa, North Iowa, Southern Minnesota. Compare the route cards on this page, then open an individual route for put-in, take-out, distance, and access notes.

How should I check Cedar River water levels?

Start with the route score and gauge notes for the stretch you plan to paddle. This hub includes routes watched with 6 gauges or gauge references, and each route page explains its own target range or low-water floor.

Which Cedar River route is best today?

Use the live route cards above to compare today's Paddle Today scores. The best stretch can change with water level, recent trend, weather, access, and route difficulty.