New Bridge Signs Added for Paddler Safety

Bridge sign at Highways 58 and 33 in La Valle

by Beverly Vaillancourt

More and more kayakers and canoeists have been paddling the Baraboo River in the past two years. In an effort to make using the river safer and more user friendly in Sauk County, bridge identification signs were placed along the river in Sauk County late in 2022.

The new signs were a joint effort of Sauk County Emergency Management, Sauk County Highway Department the the Friends of the Baraboo River. The sign project was coordinated and planned by Emergency Management, led by director Jeff Jelinek. Noting the increased popularity of the Baraboo River, Jelinek saw the bridge signs as a way to make the river safer for paddlers and easier for emergency responders to locate any people in distress on the river.

Placing signs by the 28 highway and railroad bridges in Sauk County will give paddlers location markers they can refer to in case they should run into trouble. That in turn makes locating paddlers lost or otherwise in distress easier for the Sheriff’s Department, fire departments and medical emergency responders. 

The bridge sign project was sponsored by the Friends of the Baraboo River and planned and coordinated by Sauk County Emergency Management. The Sauk County Highway Department installed the signs.