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August 2023 by Kelly Gandrud
Myself and sister-in-law did the three hour KAYAK trip on the upper kinni, Thur Aug 3 at 10:30a. It was a lovely day; only passed one other group doing the shorter route. We didn't even really have to paddle much. Just enjoyed the scenery. However, that did add 45 min to our end time. The current clipped along at a nice leisurely pace, handful of low level rapids (easy enough), some downed trees (nothing that fully blocked route) and a couple of manageable shallow spots. Lovely!We found the staff to be friendly, helpful and efficient especially our shuttle driver BRIAN (very nice young man). I think if you know what to expect (read the website info) and have an idea of what kayaking is, you should have a great day!
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July 2023 by Sara Martin
Such a fun day on the River! We were so impressed with how beautiful the scenery was. We noticed there was no trash which was refreshing! The 1 1/2 tour was the perfect amount of time. It was challenging in some areas but fun to navigate around. We were informed we would face a few challenges and had a lot of fun doing so! We left a message at 8:00 pm to set up reservation for the next day and had a call back at 8:00 am confirming. Great follow up and direction. Highly recommend!
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July 2023 by Marla Carmeli
First off, I would like to state that the experience of kayaking down the Kinnikinnick River was amazing and such a beautiful adventure. That said, the experience of dealing with Paige at the outfitting lodge was absolutely terrible. I’ve never met anyone that’s in a customer service role that has treated people so poorly and rudely in my life. Within a few minutes of arriving at the outfitting lodge, we were almost ready to turn around and end our excursion for the day. We arrived 10 minutes early and were harshly greeted for showing up early, and from there, it was constant condescending remarks of quote “as stated over the phone” and “read the fine print online.” My husband, parents, and grandma were new to kayaking and felt unsafe asking questions due to Paige’s snapback-rude passive-aggressive responses.I understand Paige’s tone and attitude towards our group may be from wanting to keep everyone safe. Still, instead, she created an unsafe environment and seriously needs a 101 course on how to communicate with other human beings respectfully.Hopefully, this was Paige having a bad day, and customers will have a better experience moving forward. But I would recommend anyone against coming here until these issues resolve.
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July 2023 by brian nanoff
had a great experience with this outfitter and the river itself today!saw 2 owls, 1 heron, turtles, baby geese and a wide variety of birds.they are accurate in their description of what to expect. there can be moments of leisure on the river, but as it goes, be prepared for anything!can’t wait to try another trip with kinni creek ?
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June 2023 by Megan Hunt
Would not recommend using this outfitter. Rather than use the public access to put in our kayaks, our group was dropped on the side of the road in an extremely narrow/steep area. Just a few minutes after getting in we found we were not able to get through without getting out and hauling our kayaks over the trees that had fallen.For people with some, but not a lot of experience river kayaking this was extremely challenging, some may even say unsafe.While we were warned about the down trees/conditions of the river, this part was very unexpected and could have been avoided had they dropped us off at the public access.Our group is excited to get back on the river, but will be seeking out a different outfitter in the future.
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May 2023 by H D Hughes
My second extended stay at Kinni Creek Lodge. Both times have been an absolutely wonderful experience. Clean cabin, secure, plenty of space, and a beautiful view of Kinni Creek. The back deck/patio area is great for relaxing and enjoying the wildlife. It is a short walk to town and the many walking paths. Thank you Paige, for another great experience.
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May 2023 by Tucker Lundquist
This was a good company to bring you out on the river. The river goes through town and this is a good place since they are literally on the shore of the Kinnickinnic river. They bring you up river so you don't have to walk and get to go down a good portion of the river. Price was not too bad and worth the adventure. The river has lots of places that has logs and rocks so be careful. The river is certainly not boring to go down.
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May 2023 by Jake Rector
Booked a 2hr instructional with Nick. Got some great tips and tricks for continuing to build my casting skills. The shop/outfitters wasn't open full time yet, as it is still early in the season, I didn't see a ton of options for fly fishing gear or flies, but that might improve during their more regular season.
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January 2023 by Caleb Sammons
Completely honest review of my experience. We started off by being 3 minutes late to the meet up spot. Heavily apologized, we drove from an hour away. First experience kayaking this river and it did not disappoint! So much fun! Exhausting but fun.Guy shuttling was VERY rude and disrespectful to us. If 3 minutes causes that level of disrespect, you should not be in business. I run a business myself and would never disrespect someone for that.We also had been given a kayak with a chair that had a screw missing. When we got back we were blamed for breaking it and again the guy was very aggressive and disrespectful about it instead of just talking to us.WE WERE BILLED AN ADDITIONAL $100 FOR A MISSING SCREW AND BEING 45 MINUTES LATE TO PICKUP.The river was VERY LOW- and were at least 5 or 6 trees down blocking the river we had to go through which tipped us and took up time. There was NO WAY we were able to get there in time. We hustled as much as we could and were treated very poorly because of it.Be aware. This is not a company to use if this is a common experience. I hope it is just an off day and they were stressed. Otherwise, very poor business.
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January 2023 by Elizabeth Meyer
I’ve recently completed the confluence 6 hour trip and it was great! The river was a bit low so we did get stuck a few times and encountered some downed trees, but we enjoy the river challenge! I’ve always have used Kinni Creek outfitters and will continue to do so- I have never had a bad experience! Being our trip had us landing in Prescott, they gave us good info about the river areas to keep an eye out for, navigation tips for kayaking the St. Croix and great communication on pick up plans/times. While I will probably never do the confluence trip again (being in the st Croix was not our favorite) I will be back to Kinni Creek Outfitters again to get back out in the Kinnickinnic!
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January 2023 by Blane Woods
I have used Kinni Creek lodge in the past when kayaking the Kinnickinnic River. Previously they had a younger gentleman working their that was knowledgeable, friendly and had a great experience.This time was completely different. I went with a group of friends and met at the tennis courts as instructed online. The guy who met us there was immediately rude to us. Using profanity and complaining about other customers from the day before. He dropped the kayaks off far from the trailhead leading down to the river when there was a clear area to do so much closer. When I asked about river conditions and how long it would take to get to the exit point we were told approximately 3 hrs.The river was low which lead to us having to walk the kayaks several times. We were 15 minutes late. When loading the kayaks he accused us of breaking the seat. We treated all the equipment respectfully and none of us were aware that the seat is broken. Some wear and tear should be expected for kayaks used daily and putting immediate blame on your customers is strange.On the shuttle ride back there were several others in the shuttle and I asked when they put in. They said they started at 10:00 and it took them until 2:30. He charged them $100 late fee and made them wait until 4:30 to bring them back to their vehicle when he had plenty of time to bring them back before our 4:00 pickup time. I felt really bad for them.Once we were back to the parking lot he demanded $100 from me for being late. I don’t carry much cash on me anymore so asked if I could pay with a card. That’s when he started getting angry and rude and demanded I go to an atm and he would follow me. This made me feel uncomfortable.After that I said I had no problem paying the late fee with cash but felt more comfortable paying the owner of the lodge directly as I felt he would pocket the money. He finally did get the owner Aige on the phone and she was able to to take a card over the phone. (He told me they had no way of taking a card.)Stay away if you are looking for a kayak shuttle service. There are many others out there that are more professional, friendly, and knowledgeable.
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January 2023 by niki merbler
I’m sad to say I was extremely disappointed in this company. This was my first time using their service, and it will absolutely be my last.If you’re looking to kayak on this river, absolutely do it. It’s beautiful and a fun adventure. But I would recommend looking elsewhere for rentals.The employee who we met at the designated parking lot was immediately rude and disrespectful. He was condescending when we asked questions and mentioned there were things we weren’t aware of (such as arriving 15 minutes early). One of my biggest struggles here is that you have to select a pick up time. Which makes sense. However, when we tried to ask about the water conditions, average time for other groups, the route, etc, it was as if he was upset that we were asking him questions about the service he was there to provide. He was adamant that the water was NOT low, even though we specifically asked, insisted groups took 3 hours, then proceeded to speak poorly of other customers and previous employees. We ended up selecting a time that gave us four hours to give ourselves a buffer, and that was NOT enough time. I understand they cannot know all of the conditions all the time. But the water was SO low that we repeatedly had to stop, get out, and drag out canoes. There were multiple fallen trees that blocked the entire river. And all of the other groups on the water took similar times. He could not be bothered to answer our questions, and when he did, gave incorrect information. We were 15 minutes past the arrival window and were charged $100 for the late fee.For the fee? He was even worse. They only take cash. But we didn’t have that much. We calmly asked for multiple solutions (I.e credit card, do they have an atm, can we pay at the lodge). He was rude, and refused and said he’d have to follow us to an atm. We weren’t comfortable with that and said we would go pay the owner. He said he had to follow us there. We went our car, put our stuff away, got ready to go. He stalked back up, and very angrily said he had better things to do than wait around for us and try to get money. He had his boss on the phone who DID allow us to pay by credit card. Which was previously stated wasn’t allowed. The river was wonderful but the service was terrible. One of the worst costumer service experiences I’ve had, which is very disappointing to say the least.
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July 2022 by Jennifer C.
My family and I have only used KCLO for kayaking, and we've NEVER been disappointed! The Kinni is a breathtakingly gorgeous river - the rapids (mild) and obstacles (relatively infrequent) make for an exciting experience. Every trip feels new, and you look forward to what's around the bend! My sister and I just did the Confluence trip, and honestly, the hardest part was on the St. Croix...no current, and for us, it's more fun to see wildlife than people. :). (I've never before heard the "whoosh-whoosh" of a hawk's wings as it flies overhead, but on the Kinni, you DO!). The kayaks are no-frills, but sturdy, safe, and easy enough to portage. Falling in/getting dumped at some point should be an expectation, so if you don't have a dry bag and waterproof phone case, that's your own fault! Outfitters are friendly, honest people - I don't think they have a huge staff, but we still get timely return calls (even when we're on the river!).
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January 2022 by Maria Asteriadou
We had a great time staying at the lodge!We were visiting Minneapolis to celebrate my daughter’s birthday, who lives there and we decided to rent something near the river.The lodge was extremely comfortable, everyone had their own bedroom and bathroom, the beds were great to sleep on and the kitchen and living area were very well equipped! There was a patio with a grill and outdoor table and chairs with a great view of the river! Our host was very nice (we were late checking in and she left the key for us) and she was very helpful with anything we needed.A great experience! We will definitely go back!Highly recommended!
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January 2022 by Kurt Nikkanen
We booked the lodge for our three night family getaway and had a wonderful time. Cozy, clean and full of character, the house had every amenity and met our needs perfectly. Kayaking on the river was a welcome bonus (we were all beginners, and John went over and above to ensure a positive first experience). Would do it again in a heartbeat.
