TJ’s Canoe Rental

We had a breathtaking day on the river last year & Jan’s instructions on where to see all sorts of sights (including the pick up location) were great. We saw a bald eagle right where she said it would be and enjoyed a picnic on a little island she recommended. Be careful if you stop on the island because the current will push the back of the canoe forward and turn you over. One canoe in our group tipped but it was a lot of fun and a GREAT MEMORY. It was perfect for our group — dad’s & their daughters (ranging in age from 5 – 11). I just made my reservation for us at the end of September and hope we are lucky enough to have a wonderful day again.

I was there with my wife and four friends over the weekend. We arrive at their office and was greeted by a nice lady at the counter. We signed up for the 2 hour tour and began the trip down river and it was all fun. Now, the bad part. Our entire group (Group of 6) missed the pickup location because none of us could identify the pickup point on the map; there were no signs at the pickup location. We had to paddle upstream back to the pickup point and it was not an easy task. TJ’s sent a guy to come out and get us, we could tell he was not happy from his facial expression and didn’t say a word to us on the way back. Once back in the office, they charged us an additional $ 60 because we got back late, I paid up and didn’t argue since I was already tired from the trip and was happy the trip didn’t turn out worst.
I will avoid this place in the future and would tell my friends the same, there are definitely better place you can spend your money and still have a good time.

TJ’s canoe rentals are great. I used them twice this summer, once solo and another time with a friend. Both trips went smoothly and TJ’s picked us up at the final destination on time without worries. I see others missed the pick up spot but TJ’s gave us maps and explained everything, it was not difficult at all.
I camped in Castle Rock State park both times and their extremely low price $ 6.00 per night helped justify the rental fee of $ 60 for the canoe overnight (includes pickup).
I was amazed there were mosquitos everywhere but on the water and at the campground!
I love these smaller, family owned operations and will be going back again when i visit Illinois.
Here is a video link i made showing the trip. Ignore the skateboarding at the end unless you’re into that too! Oregon IL has a recently built skatepark i had to check out.

They didn’t have a clearly marked pick-​up location which everyone in our group of 7 missed. We had to paddle upstream to find the pick up spot and they charged us $ 125 for being late (after going through 2 storms). The lovely woman receptionist was very upset with our group even though they did not provide adequate information on the pick up spot. I would definitely pass on TJ’s next time…