Recreational use, user characteristics, and user perceptions were measured on three rivers in Michigan: the Red Cedar, the Au Sable and the Jordan Rivers. The data were gathered by means of a mailed questionnaire, using a population sample obtained on-site at the three rivers. The majority of users on all three rivers had not participated in any recreational activity at 'their' river more than one to four times during the calendar year preceding the time they answered the questionnaire. This study investigates the recreational behavior of the users of three distinct types of recreational rivers. This research should give some idea of the effect of location, latent and ongoing recreation activity opportunities, use conditions and general environmental conditions on behavior and perceptions.