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Minnesota | St. Cloud Area
Sauk River
Frogtown Park to Heims Mill
Check current paddling conditions for this Sauk River route, including water level, recent gauge trend, weather, and route details.
Route snapshot
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Today
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Start with the verdict, current conditions, route plan, and quick facts before you commit to the drive.
Today's conditions
Gauge
Recent trend
Checking preferred range.
Checking trend.
Gauge source
--Checking timestampMN DNR provides the current paddling level here, but not chart-ready recent samples.
Weather
Best window today
Checking weather.
Today by hour
Short-route forecast
Checking the next several hours.
Quick facts
Plan
Dial in the shuttle, distance, and access.
Use this section once the route looks viable and you need to turn it into an actual trip plan.
Access plan
Access, shuttle, and map
Launch at Frogtown Park and finish at Heims Mill for the full lower Sauk route into the Mississippi confluence corridor. This is the additive card to choose when you want to carry the lower river past Eagle and Miller all the way through the final mouth section.
Put-in
Frogtown Park canoe landingOpen mapFrogtown launches below the Cold Spring dam area, so make sure you are using the signed downstream canoe landing rather than any upstream obstruction-adjacent spot.
Take-out
Heims Mill Canoe AccessOpen mapHeims Mill is the intended finish and the final 2.5 miles before it carry the DNR-signaled Class I-II mouth section, so identify the take-out before launching and do not drift toward the Mississippi confluence by accident.
Pulling access map tiles. Usually under 5 seconds.
Access caveats and watch for
Access caveats
- Frogtown launches below the Cold Spring dam area, so make sure you are using the signed downstream canoe landing rather than any upstream obstruction-adjacent spot.
- Heims Mill is the intended finish and the final 2.5 miles before it carry the DNR-signaled Class I-II mouth section, so identify the take-out before launching and do not drift toward the Mississippi confluence by accident.
- Rockville County Park is the cleanest intentional overnight split because it is the documented watercraft-campsite stop on this corridor.
Watch for
- Longer-day fatigue and changing weather on an otherwise easy river.
- Vegetation, shallow riffles, and slower current when the St. Martin gauge slides toward 14 ft.
- Fresh wood, strainers, and the boulder-filled Class I-II finish in the final miles before Heims Mill.
Route gallery
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Photos help show what the access looks like and what the route actually feels like on the water.
Sources
Check the data behind today's call.
Use this section when the page shows stale data, limited confidence, or a call you want to verify before driving.
Why this scoreToday's data confidence is checking
Data confidence mostly comes down to three things: how direct the gauge is, how clear the range is, and how fresh the data is.
- Checking data confidence notes.
- Checking data confidence cautions.
OutlookTomorrow and weekend
This is a cautious early look. If the data is too thin, we leave it out.
Waiting on forecast.
Waiting on forecast.
Data behind the scoreGauge, thresholds, and timing
These are the live readings and threshold notes behind today's score.
| Gauge site | Sauk River nr St. Martin, CR12 |
| Gauge height | Checking |
| Discharge | Checking |
| 24h trend | Checking |
| 24h change | Checking |
| Current band | Checking |
| Rain last 24h | Checking |
| Rain last 72h | Checking |
| Air temp | Checking |
| Water temp | Checking |
| Wind | Checking |
| Gusts | Checking |
| Rain timing | Checking |
| Target band | 15.00 ft to 17.00 ft |
| Low threshold | 14.00 ft |
| High threshold | 20.00 ft |
| Data confidence 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 Sauk River near St. Martin |
| Gauge source | Checking |
| Weather source | Checking |
| Rainfall source | Checking |
NotesWhat to know before you go
These notes cover the access details, route quirks, and source caveats most likely to matter once you get there.
- Current level15.01 ft at 8:00 AM
MN DNR listed the St. Martin gauge at 15.01 ft on July 16, 2026, which lands in the official Medium band.
- DNR bands14 / 15 / 17 / 20 ft
MN DNR interprets the St. Martin gauge as Scrapable below 14 ft, Low from 14 to 15, Medium from 15 to 17, High from 17 to 20, and Very High above 20.
- Route shape21.8 river miles
MN DNR Map 2 places Frogtown Park at river mile 21.8 and Heims Mill at river mile 0.0.
- Camping supportMid-route Rockville watercraft campsite
Rockville County Park sits along this corridor and Stearns County documents a watercraft campsite there, which gives this longer lower-Sauk route a defensible overnight split or bailout.
- Access supportOfficial city and county endpoints
Cold Spring says Frogtown Park has a canoe landing on the Sauk, and Stearns County documents Heims Mill as carry-in access to the Sauk and Mississippi rivers.
Verify it yourselfCheck the source links
Use these links to double-check the gauge, route details, and access notes before you head out.
Paddler reports
Recent notes from paddlers
A few quick notes from people who were on this route recently.
Reports
Photos, paddler notes, and updates.
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Quick answers
Sauk River paddling FAQ
What water level is good for paddling Sauk River?
Paddle Today watches Sauk River nr St. Martin, CR12 and treats 15.00 ft to 17.00 ft as the target band for this route, with weather and recent trend included in the final score.
Where does this Sauk River route start and end?
This route starts at Frogtown Park canoe landing and ends at Heims Mill Canoe Access, about 21.8 mi on the water.
Is this Sauk River route good for beginners?
This is listed as an easy route, but conditions still matter. Check today's score, water level, weather, and access notes before you go.
Flag a change
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Access, hazards, wood, and shuttle details change. Send a quick correction if something looks off.