Mile 200.5 - 200.5-197.5 RBD Maple Island

200.5-197.5 RBD Maple Island

Three Mile archipelago of forested Islands along the right bank (Missouri side) of the main channel. Possible forest camping throughout, but the only sand is found along the bottom end below RBD199, and then only at low water. Fleeting area: barges are often tied up to shore top end along main channel (east side of island). Watch for towboat activity as these are “cut loose” and added to bigger tows headed up river or down. Top end Maple Island opens up at 11MPG. The side channels and back channel are well open to shallow draft canoes and kayaks around 6MPG (but watch for rocks), with gentle flow at 8MPG and strong flow at 12MPG.

Maple Island abounds with young vine-draped forests full of willows and cottonwoods, and other trees more common to the Upper Mississippi like ash, sliver maple, and alders. Canoeing is the best way to get close to birds and wildlife. Put in at the boat ramp and follow the back channels as much as possible to quietly approach white pelicans and other waders that migrate through this area, and songbirds in their season. Pileated woodpecker are common in Spring/Summer months, and occasionally bald eagle. When the river freezes over in cold winters the turbulent waters below the dam create a bald eagle free-for-all. Winter-hardened paddlers will witness flurries of eagles fishing these waters that never freeze while fishermen pull in the catch from the bank. If you are brave enough to venture forth in the winter, be sure to wear a wetsuit or drysuit, and prepare yourself accordingly for emergency exit. Our recommendation: Expert paddlers only in wintertime, capable of self rescue in cold water situations.

Unfortunately Maple Island is located opposite the noisy conflagration of the Alton/Wood River Industrial reach and your visit will be accompanied by 24 hour whining, grinding, wheezing, and whooshing factories churning out petroleum products and making electricity. It’s okay for a picnic, or maybe an emergency overnight. But otherwise, you will want to avoid this hellish cancer hole and look for more peaceful camping not far downstream on Duck Island, Chouteau or Mosenthein. Maple Island is included in the Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary, and is the southernmost island of the Upper Mississippi Conservation Area.

Paddling downstream along Maple island:

Big Muddy Mike Clark: “For paddlers wishing to begin a trip at the start of the Middle Mississippi, the Maple Island Access directly adjacent to and on the downstream side of the lock and dam is a great one. The boat ramp is located within the Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary and is on the Missouri side of the river. The strong and chaotic flows coming through the dam do not affect the put in since the boat ramp is situated in a cut out protected by a large rip rap wall. Entering the river from this cut out is a fitting first experience to the free flowing river. The chaotic flows created by the mass of water coming through the gates grab your boat and bounce it, sending tremors reverberating through the hull. Thus, giving the first time experience a bit of the “pucker effect” until you are turned downstream and moving outside of a large eddy along what is the top end of Maple Island. Just 100 yards downstream, the first opportunity to get off of the main channel and explore the wonders of the back channel of a Middle Mississippi island presents itself. A channel opens up at a 90 degree angle to the River and paddlers are able to turn into a magic bird land kingdom where in Spring and Fall seasons, the great migration of birds can be witnessed. In the winter, American Bald Eagles by the dozens come at sunset to roost in the cottonwoods, and silver maples of Maple Island along the channel and are easily viewed during the day time fishing in the unfrozen waters below the dam. This channel runs for 4 miles along the braided land form called Maple Island. This back channel has two cutouts to return to the main channel, and there are two low water dams which are only a concern in the low water flows. Low water flows can also cause this channel to dry up about 2 miles down. It is a great happy hour of paddling to put in paddle down and return back to the boat ramp. It is also a great circumnavigation trip, whereby you can paddle down the main channel and take one of the downstream cutouts into the back channel and its low flows allowing for a return to the ramp.” (Big Muddy Mike)

Maple Island and back channel are protected by Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary, 3,700 acres of wetlands adjacent to the Melvin Price Lock & Dam. Sites within the Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary include Ellis Bay, the Teal Pond, the Native Prairie Restoration Project, and a 300-acre prairie-marsh complex. The area offers visitors the opportunity to view large numbers of resident and migratory waterfowl and shorebirds, as well as other wildlife that live in the wetlands. The Audubon Center is located in the Sanctuary and provides exhibits, spotting scopes, picnic tables and other facilities.

The Nat’l Audubon Society Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary has over 8.5 miles of trails with platforms and bird blinds. Explore on your own or take a scheduled guided tour with an naturalist. The trails bring you through prairies, marshes, and bottomland forest habitats, and provide great viewing opportunities for the great variety of birds that live in or migrate through this unique area.

The Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary is listed on the National Audubon Society's Great River Birding Trail which reports that snipe, yellowlegs and American Golden-plovers can be seen on the marsh mudflats, while white gulls and waterfowl swim and feed along the river and in Ellis Bay. Thousands of American White Pelicans, Canvasback, Redhead, Ring-necked Ducks and Lesser Scaup migrate through here, along with sea ducks such as Bufflehead and Common Goldeneye. Also watch for Northern Harriers and Short-Eared Owls. During the coldest part of the winter when the river freezes over, American Bald Eagles line the banks just below the dam, taking advantage of the open water and upwelling currents. These are some of the largest wintering concentrations of bald eagles in the contiguous 48 states are found along the Mississippi and Illinois rivers. The eagles usually begin to arrive in October and stay until early spring. Several adult eagle pairs remain throughout the year to nest and raise young near the river. Rare Glaucous, Thayer's, Iceland, or Lesser-backed Gulls may also be present.

Other birds seen within Riverlands includeTrumpeter Swan, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Purple Martin, Northern Parula, Wood Duck, Belted Kingfisher, Barn Swallow, Fox Sparrow, Great Blue Heron, Red-headed Woodpecker, Black-capped Chickadee, Dark-eyed Junco, Turkey Vulture, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Tufted Titmouse, Northern Cardinal, Red-tailed Hawk, Hairy Woodpecker, White-breasted Nuthatch, Indigo Bunting, Killdeer, Northern Flicker, Carolina Wren, Red-winged Blackbird, Spotted Sandpiper, American Kestrel, American Robin, Eastern Meadowlark, Ring-billed Gull, Great Crested Flycatcher, Prothonotary Warbler, Brown-headed Cowbird, Rock Pigeon, Red-eyed Vireo, Common Yellowthroat, Baltimore Oriole, Eurasian Collared-Dove, American Crow, American Redstart, American Goldfinch, and Mourning Dove.

Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary: 301 Riverlands Way, West Alton, MO 63386, phone: 636-899-0090, Hours: Open seven days a week from 8 a.m. - 4 p.m. except for major holidays. For more information please visit: http://riverlands.audubon.org