How “navigable” are these two rivers if I would access them from their mouths with a small tiller boat? Also, were would the best/closest place to launch my boat be? I suppose I’d need a WI license to fish the Chippewa? I was just thinking of doing a little exploring this summer for a change of pace.
The Chip is pretty shallow with holes here and there, if you wanted to navigate it now you could cruise from the Mississippi all the way to Eau Claire! its rising above flood stage! Believe it or not I’ve landed my 16′ Fishawk at Hobbs ice center in Eau Claire and taken it up river to the city garage area. Sure it was high water but knowing what I know now this is nuts. I’ve taken the same trip in normal flow times with a 12′ john boat and I had to get out a push my boat over rocky areas. Your best bet is get a go-devil or an air boat.
On the lower Chippewa you can launch in Durand and navigate up to nine mile island with little or no problem.
My folks have a place on the Chippewa River in Ojibwa and we float down stream a lot. It would be difficult to run with a motor, shallow in spots and very rocky. Great fishing for smallies, northerns and it is a class A muskie water. Last summer my brother and I landed a 40″ muskie in a canoe fishing for smallies with pretty light tackle. That would have won us the 10 grand on one of those video shows easily. 
Look for the deeper holes with grass and little cuts were the water slows and you will catch something.
I floated the Chip from Durand to the Miss last summer when the water was low. Used a 14 jon. didn’t get to use the motor too much. Ran the trolling motor battery dead. Once past town a couple of miles, fishing was for the most part pretty bad until got close to the Miss. Had to get out and push a couple of times.
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