Iowa | Central Iowa
South Raccoon River
South Raccoon River Access to Van Meter Access
Check current paddling conditions for this South Raccoon River route, including water level, recent gauge trend, weather, and route details.
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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
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Today by hour
Short-route forecast
Checking the next several hours.
Quick facts
Plan
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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 from the Dallas County South Raccoon River Access near Redfield and paddle the South Raccoon to Van Meter before the lower Raccoon greenbelt route begins. The direct Van Meter gauge controls the score, with the conservative floor set at the route-specific 150 cfs minimum.
Put-in
South Raccoon River Access / Redfield corridorOpen mapDallas County describes the South Raccoon River Access as a small gravel carry-down access south of Redfield near the F-60 corridor. Confirm the signed access and parking before unloading.
Take-out
Van Meter AccessOpen mapVan Meter Access is the required take-out for this route. Continuing to Walnut Woods is a separate lower-Raccoon route with additional ledge and urban-water hazards.
Pulling access map tiles. Usually under 5 seconds.
Access caveats and watch for
Access caveats
- Dallas County describes the South Raccoon River Access as a small gravel carry-down access south of Redfield near the F-60 corridor. Confirm the signed access and parking before unloading.
- Van Meter Access is the required take-out for this route. Continuing to Walnut Woods is a separate lower-Raccoon route with additional ledge and urban-water hazards.
- Pleasant Valley and Earlham Bridge are useful official corridor names for shortening or bailout planning, but the default app route uses Redfield-to-Van Meter endpoints.
- Most banks are private outside public access points. Do not assume sandbars, farm banks, or bridge rights-of-way are legal stops.
Watch for
- Shallow riffles and dragging below about 150 cfs on the Van Meter gauge.
- Fast current, fewer recovery eddies, wood, and harder bridge approaches above about 2,500 cfs on the Van Meter gauge.
- Sweepers, logjams, strainers, fishing lines, confluence currents, and rapidly changing water after thunderstorms.
- Commerce Ledges and downstream dam corridors are not part of this route; take out at Van Meter as planned.
Route gallery
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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 | South Raccoon River at Redfield, IA |
| Discharge | Checking |
| Gauge height | 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 | 150 cfs to 2,500 cfs |
| Low threshold | 150 cfs |
| High threshold | 2,500 cfs |
| Data confidence behind the range | Local route guidance |
| Gauge observed | Checking |
| Paddle Today updated | Checking |
| Main source behind this score | CanWePaddle South Raccoon River Redfield-to-Van-Meter estimated range |
| 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.
- Public put-in supportSouth Raccoon River Access south of Redfield
Dallas County says the South Raccoon River Access is south of Redfield just off F-60 before the confluence, with a small carry-down gravel-pad access.
- Official corridor supportMiddle/South Raccoon River Water Trail
Travel Iowa describes the Middle/South Raccoon River Water Trail as two water trails in one with routes through Redfield and Van Meter, while the Iowa DNR guide documents the Redfield-area access chain and intermediate-skill riffle/sweeper context.
- Published range150 to 2,500 cfs
CanWePaddle publishes a route-specific estimated runnable range of 150 to 2,500 cfs for South Raccoon River Redfield to Van Meter using USGS 05484000.
- Current gauge check150 cfs / 2.57 ft
USGS Water Services returned South Raccoon River at Redfield values of 150 cfs and 2.57 ft at 2026-07-22 18:45 CDT.
- Take-out supportVan Meter Access
Van Meter is an existing app-vetted public Raccoon access and the start of the downstream Van-Meter-to-Walnut-Woods card; this route ends there rather than extending into the Commerce Ledges and Water Works dam boundary.
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
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Reports
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Quick answers
South Raccoon River paddling FAQ
What water level is good for paddling South Raccoon River?
Paddle Today watches South Raccoon River at Redfield, IA and treats 150 cfs to 2,500 cfs as the target band for this route, with weather and recent trend included in the final score.
Where does this South Raccoon River route start and end?
This route starts at South Raccoon River Access / Redfield corridor and ends at Van Meter Access, about About 13 mi on the water.
Is this South Raccoon River route good for beginners?
This is listed as a moderate route. Expect more planning than an easy float, and use the live score, route notes, and source links before committing.
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