The kettle river is a tributary of the st. croix about an hour north of the twin cities. The lower section is a great beginner section, class I/II rapids with lots of room to maneuver. Take out is on the st. croix at the mouth of the snake river, I left my car there. The put in is either maple island or big eddy landings. I used the Matthew Lourey State Trail to get up to Big Eddy Landing. The trail is a multi use trail so expect a few atvs on part of it. The paddling was fun, flows were around 600cfs. I walked and it and probably could have made it a day trip. Biking would definitely be make it a day trip.