See all 9 routes on Red Lake River
Minnesota | Northwest Minnesota
Red Lake RiverSportsman's Park to Huot Park
Official MN DNR Red Lake River day trip starting at the Red Lake Falls Sportsman's Park campground and finishing at Huot Park. The route has a direct corridor gauge, manageable rapids, and built-in camping at the put-in.
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Route location
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Route overview
Trip details
Access rules, camping and seasonal notes.
Permits, camping and season
Access and shuttle
Put in at Sportsman's Park and take out at Huot Park for MN DNR's 13.5-mile Red Lake River trip. The corridor is generally manageable, but paddlers should be comfortable maneuvering around boulders and riffles.
Access map
Put-in
Sportsman's Park trailer accessSportsman's Park sits at the Red Lake Falls confluence area and is better treated as a developed campground/access complex than a minimalist bridge landing.
Take-out
Huot Park trailer accessHuot Park is the planned finish. Do not continue farther downstream unless you have separately checked dam locations and exit options.
Road shuttle
Use a Red Lake Falls-area shuttle from Sportsman's Park to Huot Park. Camping at the put-in makes it practical to stage vehicles the night before and launch early.
Additional access notes
- This route shares a watershed with Red Lake Reservation upstream, but this specific trip starts downstream in public access water-trail country.
More route and safety guidance
- Know the downstream Red Lake Falls and Thief River Falls dam context before extending the day beyond the planned Huot Park take-out.
- Wood and debris can gather around outside bends after storms even though this is not presented as a whitewater segment.
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Photos and recent reports
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Sources and methodology
Review source dates and published guidance below. We have not inspected this trip in person.
Why this scoreData reliability: checking
This rating reflects whether the gauge measures this part of the river, whether published water-level guidance is available, and how recently the data was updated.
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Data behind the scoreWater levels, published guidance and update times
These readings and published water-level limits help explain today’s score.
| Gauge site | Red Lake River nr Red Lake Falls, CR13 |
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| Preferred range | 8.00 ft to 11.00 ft |
| Low threshold | 5.00 ft |
| High threshold | 15.00 ft |
| Evidence strength behind the range | Official data source |
| Gauge observed | Checking |
| Paddle Today updated | Checking |
| Main source behind this score | MN DNR river-level interpretation bands for Red Lake River near Red Lake Falls / County Road 13 |
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NotesPublished evidence and verification notes
These notes cover the access details, route quirks, and source caveats most likely to matter once you get there.
- DNR bands5 / 8-11 / 15 ft
MN DNR interprets site 180 as Scrapable below 5 ft, Low from 5 to 8, Medium from 8 to 11, High from 11 to 15, and Very High above 15.
- Recommended trip13.5 river miles
MN DNR recommends Sportsman's Park to Huot Park as a day trip and says paddlers should be comfortable maneuvering around boulders, riffles, and rapids.
- Map supportSportsman's Park RM 93.0 to Huot Park RM 79.5
DNR Map 2 places Sportsman's Park trailer access at river mile 93.0, the direct gauge near Voyageur's View / County Road 13 at river mile 93.9, and Huot Park trailer access at river mile 79.5.
- Camping supportCampsites and drinking water at Sportsman's Park
The DNR map explicitly says Sportsman's Park has campsites and drinking water, which makes it one of the cleaner camp-before-you-launch options in the Minnesota inventory.
Verify it yourselfCheck the source links
Use these links to double-check the gauge, route details, and access notes before you head out.
Other routes nearby
More on Red Lake River
All 9Nearby routes within 75 miles
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