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  1. #1

    Mississippi River Wing Dams

    Hello we are up exploring pool 7,8 and 9 this week and was wondering how do you know whether or not you can run across a wing dam? We keep seeing all these socks and stuff in some old river runs and see boats going and coming. Some you can tell are going around the ends and others they are just running over.

    Is there a way to tell?

  2. Member
    Join Date
    Nov 2011
    Location
    Shawano WI
    Posts
    577
    #2
    If you aren’t sure don’t run it. They are marked pretty well on gps, but I wouldn’t pull all my faith in that. I typically idle an area until I get familiar, mark a route in or out, then I’ll run it.

  3. Member
    Join Date
    Oct 2016
    Location
    Tomah Wisconsin
    Posts
    3,992
    #3
    Experience from either idling over it or using the TM to get over them
    Fish have fins, they swim

  4. #4
    Thanks that is what we have been doing. They worry me...lol The current flow is pretty fast making it kinda hard to test carefully. Talked to a local that was around us off and on and he was talking about watching the water. Swirls and ripples mean deep enough white water shallow and better go around.

  5. Member
    Join Date
    Oct 2016
    Location
    Tomah Wisconsin
    Posts
    3,992
    #5
    Quote Originally Posted by MJS34 View Post
    Thanks that is what we have been doing. They worry me...lol The current flow is pretty fast making it kinda hard to test carefully. Talked to a local that was around us off and on and he was talking about watching the water. Swirls and ripples mean deep enough white water shallow and better go around.
    Yeah. A lot of closing dams into secondary channels often times have an opening or two built into them for boat traffic. Can sometimes see them using google maps, otherwise its just reading the water where it looks different for a 10' stretch
    Fish have fins, they swim

  6. Member
    Join Date
    Sep 2015
    Location
    Wis
    Posts
    56
    #6
    I live on pool 8, been running and fishing these pools for 45 years. Each dam is different. Running over the wing dams comes with experience.
    Obviously you can run over any wing dam when the water is high. Now here in Lacrosse the river is dropping to lower levels meaning inexperienced
    boating better behave around wing dams / closing dams. Yes, you can still run over wing dams when the water is low but you better know what you
    are doing. Many skegs, many props and lower units get wrecked on wing dams, Wing dams are rocks and were put there for a reason, its up to you
    to know what you can and cannot do around them.

  7. #7
    Thanks for the responses. We made it through the week without issues and they started to make since in how and where they are set up by the end. The closing dams were the main ones bothering me a few are marked in the openings but most aren't. Was a good week and a real neat place.