Saturday Mornings on Delavan Lake Belong to the Paddlers

Saturday mornings on Delavan Lake belong to the paddlers. Our guided one-hour kayak tours push off from the Lakefront Landing while the lake is still glass, before the boat traffic wakes up and the day gets loud; it is the quietest, prettiest hour Delavan Lake gives away all week, and we would rather you spend it on the water than reading about it.

Shaw Local News Network recently took the same morning paddle and wrote it up for readers across northern Illinois, calling Delavan Lake one of the area’s most beautiful. We are inclined to agree, though we would rather you decide for yourself from the seat of a kayak.

Everything You Need Is Waiting at the Water

You bring yourself, and we handle the rest. Every tour comes with a kayak, a paddle, a life jacket, and a short safety orientation before you launch (so nobody pushes off unsure of what they are doing). The whole thing runs about an hour, which is long enough to feel like you covered real ground and short enough that you are back on shore before the morning gets away from you.

Tours run $35 per person ($45 for a tandem kayak, which is the friendlier option if you would rather share a boat with a partner, a kid, or a nervous first-timer who wants company).

Built for First-Timers and Seasoned Paddlers Alike

Nobody gets left behind on these tours, and nobody gets bored either. Our guides read the group; they show newcomers how to hold a paddle and keep a straight line, and they leave the experienced paddlers alone to enjoy the water. Along the way, the guides share what they know about Delavan Lake. It is a tour, a lesson, and a slow morning outdoors, all folded into the same hour.

A Lake That Has Always Pulled People to the Water

Delavan Lake has been drawing guests to the water here for well over a century, and a kayak is just the latest way to answer that pull. Back in the 1880s, the steamship Peerless ran excursions from the landing at Lake Lawn; the owners eventually renamed the vessel Lake Lawn and kept the tradition going for decades. The property has always carried two miles of shoreline, which is a long way of saying that the lake was never a backdrop here. It was the point. Every stay has a story, and a fair number of them start at the shoreline, paddle in hand.

Make a Weekend of It

One good hour on the water tends to argue for a second day. If the tour leaves you wanting more of the lake, Lake Lawn Resort has the rest of the weekend covered: overnight accommodations a short walk from the shore, a full-service spa, golf, the marina, and dining at 1878 on the Lake, where you can trade paddling stories over dinner with the water still in view. Spend the morning on Delavan Lake and the afternoon doing nothing in particular; that is the whole idea.