Blog Archives

Day 26 (A New Years Eve that started in the fog)

12/31/2009

Daily stats
Start: 6:40 AM- Outside Greenville MS
Finish: 1:40 PM - On the river
Time: 7:00
Daily dist: 50 miles
Total dist: miles
Companions: None
Weather: Very thick fog delayed launch and slowed progress all morning. Things cleared and became very nice in the afternoon.

HAPPY NEW YEARS EVERYONE!
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Hey guess what… It’s raining. I think this is three nights in a row that I’ve had rain. I can’t complain though I pulled off the river early today to take advantage of sunshine and warm temps in order to spread out and get things dry. It felt good to get the dampness out of everything after yesterdays all day rain. This rain tonight is supposed to pass through by morning followed by a cold front that should bring dry conditions for the next several days. A dry cold front is good news to me, I’ll take cold and dry over warm and rainy any time.

I was prepped and ready to go nice and early this morning but a very heavy fog delayed my launch until I could at least see the fog rather than just bottomless darkness. When I finally did launch I had to navigate by staying within a hundred feet of shore to be sure I wasn’t drifting into the main channel. All was going well until I came to the inside of a bend and the shore line moved a half mile from the edge of the channel and a gauntlet of wing dams (at unknown depths) transected my course. The water is up fairly high but after running into a wing dam last week I’m a little gun shy.

Very thick fog this morning

Thankfully the first inside bend put me into an old cutoff channel which ran behind all the wing dams and far from any barge traffic. After about three miles of stress free travel the channel deposited me back into the main river channel. Still I was able to continue on by again following the shore line. After an hour of following the long route along the outside of every bend the fog lifted enough to allow me to see both sides of the river. I was lured away from shore in search of the buoy lines I like to follow then the wind shifted and in a matter of seconds a foggy trap closed in leaving me in mid channel with zero visibility. For the first time in this trip I fired up my GPS and along with a compass I did fly by wire navigation to follow the flooded edge of a towhead which put me safely at the edge of the channel and beyond the reach of wing dams jutting out from shore. I couldn’t see anything around me and had to put my trust in the GPS reinforced every so often by the sight of a buoy straining against its anchor chain on the edge of the channel.

The thick fog persisted until 10:30 when I was finally able to see both sides of the channel and far enough ahead to know what kind of barge traffic was on the river. Finally I was able to get up to speed and put on some miles. A gentle tail wind helped smooth out the river and I set a brisk pace to try to make up for the slow start.

The perfect sand beach for New Years Eve camp

My plan was to put in about 50 miles (shorter than I have been doing) and pull off the water early to have time to dry out. As I rounded the last bend I eyed a likely towhead in search of a nice sand bar to camp on and was rewarded by a perfect sunny, dry, and accessible spot… The perfect New Years Eve camp.

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Day 25 (A day in the rain - and a lesson in the river channel)

12/30/2009

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Daily stats
Start: 6:30 AM-
Finish: 2:30 PM - Outside Greenville MS
Time: 8:00
Daily dist: 67 miles
Total dist:729 miles
Companions: None
Weather: Off and on rain becoming steady rain after 2:00

I’m currently camped out on a grassy beach just above the highway 82 bridge just outside Greenville MS. I had a little drizzle this morning but got packed up and on the water before the rains really started. After off and on showers all day it decided to really pour about an hour before I got off the water. After setting up in the rain it has pretty much been raining all evening. The weather man promises a couple hours of sunshine tomorrow before more rain after sunset so I’m going to pull off the water a bit early to try to get dried out before I get all wet again.

A rainy day on the river.

I chose this spot because 67 miles is enough for one day and for it’s probable access to a cell phone connection. I wanted the cell connection because it would allow me to post a couple blogs as well as contact people further down stream to coordinate the next few days. Towns are few and far between down here so you don’t want to pass up access to civilization when it presents itself. As I’m nearing the gulf it’s time to think about gearing up for somewhat warmer weather and the likelihood of mosquitoes. Some of tonight’s duties included coordinating a couple gear drops into Baton Rogue which is my last pre-planned stopover before I enter the gulf.

If you were to look at the river channel just north of here on a map it would stand out as an unusually straight course relative to all the twists and turns in the river around it. That is due to the work of the Army Corps of Engineers who are responsible for maintaining a navigable channel for all the commercial traffic on the Mississippi. Before they started the process of channeling the river into it’s current route it meandered wildly from year to year and season to season all over the miles-wide flood plane that surrounds it. Stories are told of people long ago setting up a homestead on the west side of the river ending up living on the east side of the river when it decided to change course and cut a new channel.

On the lower Mississippi the Corps uses two main tools (among others) in controlling the river which include wing dams (or dikes) and shore revetment (reinforcement). - Up north locks and dams are used as well - Wing dams are simply long piles of rocks designed to deflect and direct the flow of the river toward the main channel. You find them most often on the inside of bends where the flow of the river tends to slow and build up sand bars known as Towheads. They show up on the river maps as long skinny lines spaced at intervals jutting out from shore much like the bony spines of a Bluegill’s dorsal fin. Shore revetment is simply piles of rocks set along a shore to try to prevent erosion. You’ve undoubtedly seen shore lines along many high traffic or moving water areas completely lined with rocks. Most often you’ll find revetment along the outside of a bend where the scouring force of the main river flow tends to eat away at the shore line. By concentrating the scouring power of the river into one main channel it has nowhere to go but down so in the main part of the river (especially in narrow sections) the river can be hundreds of feet deep. This conveniently reduces (almost eliminates) the need for dredging to keep the river deep enough for barge traffic. Of course all a paddler needs to worry about is the top six inches.

Army Corp of Engineers working on a dike

Barges full of rocks tor dikes

The straight section I paddled through today was created by actually digging out the bank to straighten the river past some very wild curves and bends. After going through the hairpin curves up around New Madrid where you paddle nearly 20 river miles to gain two miles in the direction you want to go, one wonders why the Corps haven’t straightened out the entire river so tow traffic wouldn’t have to travel so far. I have a sense there are several reasons besides the incredible cost of such a project. One is the fact that the curves in the river create a wider flood plane between the levy system that has been built to contain it during floods. If the river had been straightened the levys would undoubtedly have been pushed much closer to the river creating a much smaller flood plane thus less capable of containing flood water and more apt to overflow its banks. Another is the speed at which the river would flow if it was mostly straight. The curves act as natural brakes to slow the river a bit making it easier for upstream tow traffic to make headway. If straightened out tows would undoubtedly have to work much harder to move upstream. A indication of this I witnessed today when (for the first time) I saw tow boats teaming up and working together to move the rafts of barges upstream along the straight section I came through earlier.

They don't always get it right. This house belongs to my friend Elmore's family it used to be 100 yards from the river until the flow was directed toward this bank.

It’s interesting (actually a little confusing) to watch the Mississippi/state boundary weave back and forth across the current river on the map. Those borders were established along the old river channel as it existed before the Corps contained the river to where it is today. It’s not unusual to see an orphaned chunk of Arkansas surrounded by miles of Mississippi state land that could only be accessed from the Arkansas side after a long boat ride or an hours long drive to the nearest bridge

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Day 24

12/30/2009

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Daily stats
Start: 8:10 AM - Helena, AR
Finish: 3:30 PM - Smith Point (river feature) MS
Time: 7:20
Daily dist: 65
Total dist: 662 miles
Weather: Calm and cool

The Ikkuma didn't quite fit in Buddy's truck

Buddy and his son

This morning Buddy and his son came down to the warehouse at 7:00 AM sharp to help move me and my gear back to the boat landing. With my food bags now plump full to capacity it took a bit of fussy packing (and repacking) to get everything back into the Ikkuma. Once again a quick handshake farewell and pictures, (this time of me and the little Christmas tree my mother sent in the last food drop) and I was on the water again.

Me and the little Christmas tree. We never did take ours down till New Years anyway

With the late start (8:10 AM) I was not expecting to put on more than 50 miles today. However after just a few hours I had already surpassed the 30 mile mark and I started to wonder just exactly how fast I was going. So for the first time since St. Louis I dug out the GPS and fired it up. What I discovered was almost startling. Just floating in the current at rest I was moving 4 miles per hour. When I got straightened out and ran carefully in the main flow I was sustaining 8.5 miles per hour often spiking up to 9 mph. No wonder I was logging up the miles so fast this morning. Of course the slight tail wind blowing down stream helped too.

Actually after complaining about what an upstream wind can do on the river I must explain what a downstream wind can do. Instead of heaping the river up into waves as it does when it blows up stream, a down stream wind irons out the wrinkles in the water making it mirror smooth. It was in conditions like that which I spent most of the day. In addition I went four hours without a single bit of tow traffic. I was able to pick my line in the main current and just cruise. It was the best day of paddling yet. Everything just felt good with the boat and paddle and the miles flew by.

A beautiful day for paddling - I almost felt sorry for folks stuck at work :-)

Last night I spoke to John Ruskey from Quapaw Canoe company based in xxx with a Helena outpost as well. I had used the Helena location as a mail drop for my re-supply box. John was going to be running a tour in one of his multi paddler war canoes on the river today. Unfortunately he was putting in over 40 miles from where I started. We figured it couldn’t hurt to try to find each other during the day just in case so we did phone check-ins a couple times during the day. I caught John on the phone at 2:00 and for a moment with how fast I was going had hopes that I might be able to catch him but he was still another 20 miles ahead of me. Some other day for sure. What I did learn was that just 12 miles ahead of me he had seen some nice sand bars so I had a destination for the night.

I pounded out those last 12 miles in just an hour and a half and set up camp on a beautiful sand bar on the southern edge of a big bend in the river pretty close to river mile 600 - 65 miles from where I started seven and a half hours before. I can’t wait to see what an early start and full day of paddling will bring.

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Day 23 (fishing with Junior and Jack)

12/29/2009

8 Comments

There are two Day 23 blog posts
check out the Day 23 (boat maintenance) post below

If you were watching the SPOT signals I sent today you would have been wondering what on earth I was doing bouncing all around on the St. Francis river just north of Helena AR. The answer is… fishing!

When I was riding around with Buddy yesterday I learned that his brother “Junior” does a bit of commercial fishing out on the river. It seemed that since I decided to stay an extra day to catch up on re-supply and boat tune up chores I figured it would be fun to see if I could tag along with Junior. Pat and Buddy checked in with Junior and got the thumbs up to go along for today’s morning run lifting nets. At 7:00 AM Buddy came by and picked me up to go meet up with his brother. Buddy warned me that the wind will cut right through you when you’re motoring around on a boat on a cold morning like today. So I was dressed in as many clothes as I could fit under my paddling pants and rain coat. Buddy also told me a couple stories about his brother flipping and sinking boats out on the river so, life jacket in hand, I was ready to go when Junior and his fishing partner Jack picked me up at a local diner.

As we drove a long twisty road toward the boat ramp I learned that instead of going on the Mississippi we were going to be working on the St. Francis river which, because of recent rains, was flowing fast which may make things interesting. The type of fish they expected to catch were catfish, buffalo, fat head carp, and various other rough fish. The catfish and buffalo were the main target the carp nothing more than a nusance. We arrived at the boat ramp and launched the boat only to discover that the motor was so cold that the grease in the lower unit was too stiff to let the motor turn over and start. After a few minutes of soaking in the marginally warmer river water and by spinning the prop by hand the motor finally started and we were on our way.

I asked what I could do to help and was politely told to “stay out of the way”. That was ok with me because it meant I could take a bunch of pictures and experiment with shooting video on my camera. I did have a go at gaffing a few fish later in the day but really Junior and Jack have been doing this together so long, and have such a refined system, that an extra person really wouldn’t be much more help.

Hey look I'm fishing

The way it works is Junior maneuvers the boat (by navigating with his GPS) over a net anchored to the river bottom. Jack would then toss a weighted grappling hook over the side of the boat and drag it on the bottom trying to hook the anchor rope of the net. Once the anchor rope was hooked the throw line was wrapped around an electric winch and the net was hauled up (via the grappling hook and anchor rope). Once the net reached the surface Jack would stop the winch and tie off the rope which would essentially anchor the boat via the net anchor. With the boat held in position Junior could come to the front of the boat and help heave the net into the boat to dump any fish that had been caught. They would then clear any leaves and sticks that had become lodged in the weave of the net then throw it back over the side. The fish were then sorted with catfish and buffalo kept in a holding box and carp thrown back into the river. When all goes well it’s a very smooth operation.

Grapling hook at end of winch arm holding anchor line

The winch used to haul up the nets

The guys did work a bit harder today because the fast flowing river pulled the grappling hook so fast down stream that it couldn’t reach the bottom. A few times two passes had to be made to get to the right position to get the hook to the bottom to find the anchor line of a trap. On a few occasions the grappling hook would miss the rope and find the weave of the net itself. If the net was damaged in such situations Junior would quickly repair the hole with a giant plastic tent stake sized ’needle’ like device. To make things easier next time, they were also picking up the nets that were in the faster flowing middle of the river and moving them to the reasonably slower water near the banks.

A net lifted to the surface pulled to its full length by the flow of the current

The nets themselves are really giant fish traps consisting of a 3-5 foot diameter tube of netting about 12 feet long held open by fiberglass rings spaced every three feet down its length. They look a little like giant vacuum cleaner tubes. One end of the net (the upstream end) tapers to a closed point to which the anchor rope is secured. The other end of the trap is nothing more than an open circle. Inside the outer tube of netting are two tipped cones of webbing pointing toward the top end of the trap. The way it works is the traps are anchored on about 50 feet of strong rope and the flow of the river is used to pull the anchor rope straight and to pull the rings apart thus expanding the net to its full length. The nets remain out throughout the season and are checked every other day or so and are moved as needed. Fish swimming upstream in the muddy dark waters of the river simply swim unknowingly into the trap. Once they squeeze pass the open narrow ends of the cones of webbing they are generally unable to find their way out of the relatively small opening. No bait is used you simply rely on he pea sized brains of the rough fish you’re pursuing to provide a willing victim. The traps are surprisingly effective and the guys caught over 200 pounds of sellable fish today and threw back at least as many unwanted carp. They both told of times in spring when the nets get so full you can hardly get them out of the water. They’ve been known to fill the boat to capacity by pulling only three nets.

The days catch a mix of Buffalo and Catfish

I was quite impressed by how tough these southern boys are. They wore nothing more than thin cotton work gloves on their hands which were quickly soaking wet in the 40 degree water. Physical activity helped keep them warm for sure, but as I gratefully donned the extra jacket they had given me, they went about their work with little concern for the sub freezing air temps blowing over their cold water soaked hands.

Jack

Junior

After three hours of finding, hauling, emptying, repairing, and relocating traps the work was done and we returned to the boat landing and headed into town to track down a buyer for the fish. It was supposed to be a gentleman that makes house calls selling fish to a list of private customers. He was very sick today and couldn’t make the drive into town so Junior contacted a local fish market that was interested in their catch. With 45 pounds of catfish at $.75 per pound and 145 pounds of Buffalo at $.35 per pound the days take was split three ways. One third to each man and the last third to cover the expenses of the boat, motor, and equipment. I was warned in jest by many people that I was lucky to not have ended up in some sort of trouble with those two and at the fish market they suggested I was lucky they didn’t try to charge me for the pleasure cruise on their boat.

Weighing in at the fish market

The fish market

It was a very interesting outing and I have a whole new respect for any non-farm raised catfish I ever eat again.

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Day 23 (boat maintenance)

12/28/2009

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After the fishing outing Pat (my Helena mom) stuffed me full of lunch, then took me into town to meet a couple local shop owners and then over to round up the re-supply package that my mother had sent down. After running errands Pat dropped me off at the building where I’m staying to get started on doing some touch up repairs on my boat.

When I hit the wing dam last week I’d gouged out two sections of gel coat on the front sides of my hull. In addition I detected slight signs of impact damage on the inside of one of the affected areas. I wanted to lay a layer of fiberglass on the inside as a preventative reinforcement of the impacted area then clear coat the gouges with resin to seal out water until I can get to a location where a proper gel coat repair can be done. It’s all really just preventative maintenance but I can’t fool around and risk water intrusion considering how much time this boat is going to be in the water over the next several months.

The ikkuma tented off to warm it up.

In order to do the repair I needed to get the boat up to at least 60 degrees so the resin would set up. To do this I placed the boat on top of an old table then put two borrowed electric space heaters beneath the boat and a work lamp inside the front hatch where I‘d be laying the glass patch. Next I laid my ground tarps over the boat essentially creating a tent over the heaters to hold the heat in. It worked like a charm and in a couple hours the repaired areas were almost completely set. I’ll let it cook for a while then unplug it before I go to bed.

Protecto Wrap covering gouged gel coat.

One thing I should mention is the temporary/emergency band aid fix I’d used before I could get back to civilization. What I used is a product called “Protecto Wrap” which is used to seal around windows in new construction. This very pliable and incredibly sticky product comes in 4” wide 25’ long rolls and can be found at most building centers up north for less than $12.00 per roll. You can cut it easily with a knife or scissors and to apply it you just peal the protective plastic off of one side and press it over the area you want to cover, exactly like a band aid. I had put these patches on up in Memphis and after two full days of paddling they were still fixed solidly to the hull of my boat. In fact I had to work hard to scrape the stuff off with a knife. I was just trying to keep water from contacting the intact but exposed Kevlar of my hull. I’m certain this product would work well to patch an actual puncture. Find some if you can I recommend it highly.

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Day 22 (arrival in Helena Arkansas)

12/27/2009

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Daily stats
Start: 6:30 AM - Tunica, MS
Finish: 11:30 AM - Helena, AR
Time: 5:00
Daily dist: 36
Total dist: 597 miles
Weather: NW breeze clear and cool

Somehow I thought the state of Mississippi would be a bit warmer. But apparently winter is winter wherever you go. I woke up a bit cold at about 3:30 this morning and managed to tough it out for an hour more rest. After that I ran through my morning routine of oatmeal and breaking camp and was on the water by 6:30 AM. The wind was already pushing ripples on the water before sunrise so I was happy to have an early start to avoid the big blows I’ve seen the last two days on the water. Luck was with me and I actually had a tail wind for a change and made great time on the way into Helena.

A quiet morning on the river

Helena Arkansas has been a spot on my map for a few months now, ever since a couple of friends, KC and Jole, from San Diego said they could set me up in their building if I wanted a place to stay when I came through. I had figured on blazing right on through from Saint Louis to here (stopping for water and food of course) but as you know I’ve had several adventures that had me stopped for a few days, long before I made it here. Because I’m still rested from all of the hospitality I’ve received up north, I had made plans to make my layover here as short as possible and just move on. That was until I was shown by my local hosts all there is to explore in this little town.

Shortly after a call from me, Pat and Buddy Wheeler came down to the boat ramp with their pickup truck to relocate me to the building where I’ll be staying the next two nights. A full nine feet of my kayak hanging out the back end of their truck was a sight to see as we drove the two blocks to the warehouse that houses my friends camper trailer. KC and Jole were a little vague about what exactly their ’building’ is until just a day or so ago. All I knew was that they were renovating some sort of building in town. I didn’t know what kind.

Look closely in the window you can see 9 feet of my boat hanging out

It turns out the building is a 30,000 square foot, three story warehouse located a stones throw from the levy in the historic district of town. KC and Jole purchased this essentially unwanted building and have been restoring it into a useable condition with apartments on the third floor, community room on the second, and eventually a restaurant on the first floor. The brick walls and absolutely massive structural timbers are something you just don’t see in buildings of this kind any more. Parked inside this huge building is a camper trailer which is where I’m staying. This large space is the perfect place for me to spread out and do some gear maintenance before continuing on. I did discover today that I did do a slight amount of structural damage to the boat when I hit the dike the other day so tomorrow I’m going to take the time to work on that.

My “hosts“, Pat and Buddy farm over 6000 (yes that’s Six Thousand) acres of crops on their farm just outside of town. I rode with Buddy all over their spread in his pickup truck learning all about farming operations in this region. On their land they grow a variety of crops ranging from soy beans to rice, cotton, and some wheat.

I was interested to learn about how rice is a huge crop in the area. It’s grown with the same flooded paddies that you envision in Asia only at a commercial scale. Buddy explained that rice plants can be grown on dry land but do require a lot of water to remain healthy. Flooding the fields serves two purposes. First it keeps the thirsty plants watered and second it acts as a sort of herb-aside by preventing other grass (weeds) from growing amongst the rice… genius really. To make the flooding easier the fields have been contoured to what is called “zero grade” meaning they have been scraped and molded to be perfectly flat and level. With no low or high spots it only takes a couple inches of water to keep the bottom of the plants covered. Of course the contour of the land does require some terracing but the individual graded paddies can be up to hundreds of acres. The way Buddies fields are set up he’s able to pump water into the highest field and through a system of dikes and gates control the flow of water down into the fields at lower elevations. The overall look of the land takes on a large patchwork of eerily flat fields delineated by ditches, dikes, and mounded access roads. Buddy rotates between crops to allow the land to rebound after feeding one type of plant for a couple years. He says that rice is great because its root structure and residual stalk left behind and burned after harvest do a great job of rebuilding the soil. Soy planted in a field after a couple years of rice often yields a good harvest.

Harvested rice field flooded to bring in ducks to hunt.

Farming at this scale is no small task and Buddy (and more his son he’ll tell you now days) employs several people and huge machinery to make it all happen. We stopped by his headquarters where he had a half dozen huge field working machines parked, each one valued at over a quarter million dollars new. Smartly Buddy has established a homestead for one of his crew right next door to keep an eye on the equipment. On another corner of the property a pair of grain towers have been built to house the better share of a seasons crop and again a home is being moved in to house a pair of watchful eyes to be sure the structures remain unmolested.

Riding with Buddy, who has lived most of the 76 years of his life right here in Helena, was an interesting experience. While we toured this massive ultra modern farming operation with zero grade fields worked by half million dollar auto-controlled sprayer machines. Buddy reminisced about the days when the huge fields were broken up into 40 acre homesteads worked by hand and horse by sharecroppers living in shotgun shacks scattered everywhere across the country side. We visited the swimming hole, in a small backwater of the river, where he (and hundreds of others) have been baptized, as well as a couple now empty corners of fields where a home he once lived in once stood. He brims with pride with the success of the farm he now runs yet saves a twinkling of nostalgia for what once was.

Riding with Buddy

Buddies wife Pat, I was warned by Jole, is a fireball. She instantly took to mothering me making sure I was comfortable and fed and even, to my embarrassment, doing my laundry while Buddy and I were out touring the farm. She is originally from the Mobile Alabama area and came to this area with Buddy after meeting him there. She, like Buddy, is a storehouse of information about the history of the area. She once worked for a touring company that serviced people that came off of the river boats that used to cruise up and down the river. Unlike the other river towns that would try to impress the tourists with southern fluff and antebellum homes, the Helena tour was an unpretentious taste of river town farming community life. The bus tour of the town included a “taste of the south” meal and a visit to the Baptist church to hear a real choir lift the roof. As Pat put it “You think you’ve heard a gospel choir when you see one on TV, but it’s nothing like the real thing!” Apparently the people loved it and often the Helena stop was the favorite of their river cruise. Sadly the days of multi day riverboat cruises are past the river boat companies having gone bankrupt well over a decade ago.

The loss of this sort of river traffic seems to be the last nail in the coffin for the vitality and commerce in many of the small river towns. Much like New Madrid, Helena is a hollow shell of what it once was. Driving the streets around town is eerie. Store front after store front lie empty and the streets (once full of cars and people every Saturday night in Buddy’s distant memory) are now stone quiet and devoid of almost any sign of life. It’s almost as though thirty years ago someone just turned off the town and it has sat waiting for people to return ever since. If ever some industry said “gosh I need a complete town that I could fill up with all of my work force and have everything that it needs already there” this would be the town. It’s all here…just empty and waiting.

Efforts have been made, in fact you can see that huge sums of money have been invested, in keeping this town from completely imploding, with murals on the levy wall, a blues fest ampa-theater, paved levy walkways and observation decks, even a state of the art slack water port on the river just outside of town. The building I’m in and the efforts of KC and Jole another example. All of it an investment in the future with hopes that industry and people will return. Buddy said that businesses have looked but with the school system and city government in understandably poor shape, would-be industry is afraid to move in. They fear that their managers and administrators would balk at the thought of moving their families here, which they probably would. Hence it’s a “chicken or egg” situation. The town can’t improve without industry and industry won’t come unless the town improves.

If you happen to know of a Boeing size manufacturer that needs a town to move into, please let them know about Helena.

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Day 21 (A day on the water with Elmore)

12/26/2009

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Daily stats
Start: 9:00 AM - Memphis, TN
Finish: 4:00 PM -Tunica MS
Time:7:00
Daily dist: 38
Total dist: 561 miles
Weather: Strong SW wind (made water rough)

Elmore and Martha at home - my hosts for Christmas

I was up late getting caught up on the blog but I really can’t use that as an excuse for wanting to stay in bed. I really couldn’t pry myself out because I didn’t want the warm Christmas glow to end. But, alas, the river was calling and today Elmore and I had plans to put in 35 miles together from Memphis to Tunica. With plans for Martha to drive to the take out to pick Elmore up, I had the welcome chance to paddle an empty boat while my gear rode down in the truck.

Me with Memphis pyramid in background. (photo by Martha Kelly)

We got on the water by 9:00 AM and Martha’s family came down to the marina to see us off. After the obligatory signing of my boat, and photographs, we slipped away from the dock and began our long slog into the wind. Thankfully it was to be a relatively short day because we both knew we’d be working into a head wind almost all day. One thing that’s understood on this river is that, if the wind is blowing, it will be blowing up stream. Just like two days before, the force of the wind worked against the flow of the river, opposing forces that lump the surface of the water into 2 to 3 foot short interval waves. For much of the day we pulled ourselves down stream trying in vain to hind from the wind along whatever shore looked most likely to provide shelter. It worked for a couple sections but much of the time we worked hard against the wind barely making headway any faster than the current would have pushed us on a calm day.

Elmore and me heading out (photo by Martha Kelly)

When a bend in the river did provide a quiet moment I had a chance to talk to Elmore such a welcome change from talking to myself. He also managed to get a few snap shots of me. Unfortunately those moments were fleeting and we both spent most of the day bouncing through the waves on the river like bronc riders at a rodeo which was fun in it’s own way.

Paddling with Elmore, for whom these are his local waters, gave me a chance to see h`ow he navigates the river. My strategies haven’t been too far off but, just the same, several times I’d have to play catch up while Elmore surged ahead of me by catching a current or avoiding an eddy that I just hadn’t seen. Matched against his river knowledge, racing stroke, and longer boat, I had my work cut out for me to keep up.

After six hours of paddling we landed at the Tunica boat ramp where Martha was waiting. I quickly loaded my boat, bit them farewell and headed back across the river to set up camp on a beautiful sand bar. I’m set up within sight of two casinos on the Mississippi State side, but across a half mile of fast flowing river I may as well be in a different country.

Me from Tunica boat ramp bridge. (photo by Martha Kelly)

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Day 20 (Christmas with new friends)

12/25/2009

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I hope the fact that i've been a day behing on my blogging reflects the fact that I've been kept quite busy with the activities of a very real Christmas with a wonderful family.

Elmore and Martha have taken me in and treated me like one of their own over the last two days. Today I got a walking tour of their neighborhood as Martha and I exercised their giant Grate Dane named Merlin.

Then it was on to her parents house for breakfast with her family as well as Elmore's mother. It was great company, fantastic conversation, and an amazing spread of food which included my first taste of grits which I really like.

From there we walked (everything is nice a close around here) back to Elmore and Martha's to prepare for Christmas Day dinner for a bunch of their friends. I took advantage of a quiet moment to call a bunch of my family to wish them a Merry Christmas. In all of that calling I learned that my good friend Paul had just asked his girlfriend to marry him which was great news, congratulations Paul and Stephanie. I wasn't much help in the kitchen but I did draw from my camp food larder some fudge and Christmas candy my mother had sent. The 150 river miles it had seen stoed in my boat didn't matter and it added nicely to the spread.

Well traveled fudge

I may have mentioned that Elmore and Martha are both artists. She does paintings and prints in a studio in the house and he carpentry in their back yard shop.

Martha's paintings shown in their front room gallery

One of Elmore's beautiful (and comfortable) chairs

Always up to checking out a workshop I requested a tour of Elmore's work space. It turned out to be a carpenter/kayaker's dream place with a perfect mix of tools on the floor and kayaks in the rafters.

Elmore in his shop

'wildwater' racing canoe hung above the band saw

As we talked I learned of Elmore's involvement in paddlesports starting young he's done it all from competition slalom in white water to surfskis on the Mississippi. While touring his shop I discovered this link to my home town where Elmore spent many a day weaving around gates.

It was a fantastic day that finished with a full belly in front of a warm fire talking to a great group of new friends. I'll never be able to thank Elmore and Martha enough for taking me in over this special holiday.

4 Comments

Day 19 (A hard run to Memphis on Christmas Eve)

12/24/2009

1 Comment

Daily stats
Start: 7:00 AM - 35 miles north of Memphis, TN
Finish: 1:30 PM -Memphis, TN
Time:6:30
Daily dist: 35
Total dist: 523 miles
Weather: Hard rain and strong wind

I woke to the sound of a hard rain driving against the roof of my tent. I only had 35 miles to paddle today so I wasn’t in a huge hurry to break camp and get on the water so I took my time wrapping up the bits of gear in the tent. After my morning routine ran itself out I the rain had not let up so I had no choice but to pull down in the rain and get on the water. I slithered into my mostly wet thermal layers and donned my paddling clothes to protect me from the rain as I loaded my boat. The last step was to strike the tent and stuff it’s soaked bundle in the front hold of the kayak as well. Then I was off.

My camp site selection below a large clay bluff served its purpose in protecting me from the 15 to 20 mile per hour winds that had developed over night. The draw back was the constant bombardment of mud balls I could hear falling off the cliff face into the bushes a hundred yards behind me. As I eased into the river and rounded the first bend I was greeted with a blast of wind which was to be a precursor of what I was to experience for the rest of the day.

Still smiling early in the day

I’ve been sea kayaking for about ten years now almost all of that time on the ocean. In that time I’ve paddled quite a few great places in a wide variety of conditions. None of that compared to the pounding I took on the river in that kind of wind. For the initiated please picture San Francisco’s Yellow Bluff tide race on a big day with the 2-3 foot short period bouncing waves… that went on for miles. Next add driving rain, 20 mph winds with gusts half as much more, a hard driving current, 40 degree water, a boat loaded with camping gear, barge traffic, wing dams, and an already tired body from a night camping in the rain. It wasn’t constant, thank heaven, only where a curve in the river put the wind blowing straight up stream or where a wing dam would push me out of the lee and into the chaos out in the main channel.

I’d been warned about what can happen when the wind blows straight up stream. I thought I’d seen something yesterday but it paled in comparison to what I dealt with today. As my kayak crested a wave it would hover for a second before driving into the next sending the bow under a cascade of ice cold water that would wash over my deck. Thankfully the boat rides high enough that it would shed most of the water off to the sides as it raced toward me but often enough a curl of water would smash into my chest and splash my face. All the while the force of the driving wind and rain threatened to tear the paddle from my hand and slowed my progress, even with the current, to only what I could pull with all my might. From time to time I’d spot a flat spot in the wicked water ahead and my first thought was always “thank god a break” but those flat spots were created by water flowing over (and being pushed up by) wing dams. The momentary reprieve the upwelling provided from the roller coaster ride gave me just enough time to gain as much speed as I could to try to pierce through the chaos of swirling eddies, now mixed with wind waves, that lie just down stream. Even when I wasn’t heading straight on into the wind and waves the beam wind was so strong I found myself literally leaning into the wind to keep from getting blown over the other way. I was grateful for every ounce of training I’ve had and so very happy with how my boat and gear performed in those conditions. I never felt threatened just frustrated with my slow torturous progress down stream. It was all jus something to be dealt with. It did take its toll and if it wasn’t for the thought of friends waiting to pick me up down stream I know I would have sought refuge on shore and set up camp in the rain to wait it out.

A bit worn out afer a long day

My arrival in Memphis (photo by Elmore Holmes)

Words can hardly describe how grateful I was to see Elmore waiting in the rain on the dock to take me home and dry me out. Probably the best Christmas present I could have received. I’d just met Elmore last Saturday when JJ drove me to Memphis looking for replacement gear. I had borrowed a life jacket which of course I didn’t need. He and his wife Martha offered the invite to stay with them if I came through over Christmas and that’s exactly how it worked out.

After hanging up my gear in their basement and taking a wonderfully hot shower I got dressed in my “street clothes” and went to Christmas Eve services with Martha. I don’t know if it was from the trials of late or the stress of the day but I must say that the Idlewild Church in Memphis and the service last night were the most beautiful I’ve ever seen. All day long to settle my nerves I sang Silent Night out loud to myself, (me alone in a little yellow kayak in the wind torn waters of an upset river.) Call me over emotional if you will, (and I’m not even all that religious) but when the choir and congregation filled the church with the sounds of that song last night I had tears in my eyes.

A Christmas Eve i will never forget.

Idlewild Church

1 Comment

Day 18 (First day in the rain - trying to make miles)

12/23/2009

14 Comments

Daily stats
Start: 6:30 AM - South of Caruthersville, MO
Finish: 3:40 PM - 35 miles north of Memphis, TN
Time: 9:10:00
Daily dist: 65
Total dist: 488 miles
Weather: Rainy breezy and warm (50s)

I woke to the sound of rain drops splatting against the roof of my tent. As much as I wanted to curl deeper into my sleeping bag I knew it was time to get moving. My goal for the day was to get within striking distance of Memphis where I will be hooking up with Elmore Holmes and his wife Martha for Christmas.

There are storms and big winds predicted for tomorrow so I knew that in order to make it happen I’d have to get as close as possible today to shorten the potential slog tomorrow. People have warned me time and time again about the wind being a huge factor on this river. Today I learned first hand that they weren’t kidding. Because of it’s width there aren’t many places to hide from the wind on this river. If you get caught in a bend where the wind is blowing against the current it doesn’t take long before you encounter 1-2 foot waves stacked up by the opposing forces.

I spent most of the day running from bank to bank trying to stay out of the wind. My normal strategy of cutting corners and drawing the straightest line as possible took a back seat to trying to get out of the constant blow. I had another reason to not cut corners as well. Early this morning I took a side channel made passable by flood waters as a short cut on the inside of a bend. One dike was shown on the map which didn’t concern me as I’ve gone over dozens in the last several days. Even as I neared the dike and could hear the sound of rushing water I was not concerned. Often on the main channel water flowing over a dike makes plenty of noise but is very deep. This one was louder than normal so I even recorded it on my camera.

It wasn’t until I was right on top of it did I realize that this dike was a bit shallower than others and the sound I could hear was a bony (rocky) class two rapid. All I could do was clinch my cheeks and grimace as my loaded boat went over the lip. I thought I’d get lucky until the boat hit up front with a scraping thud. I immediately pulled out to survey the damages and discovered to significant gouges in the boat’s gel coat on both sides about five feet from the bow. I squeezed and poked and it seems as though I got lucky and only did cosmetic damage. Still this one is down to the fiber so it will have to be sealed until a more permanent gel coat repair can be done. I just need a dry day to do it. With that experience in mind I tested the waters on another chute further on then heard the same rushing water sound so I turned on my heals and paddled back up stream to get back in the main river. I think from now on my use of side channels is going to be limited as well as running over dikes. The river has dropped over two feet since Cairo and things are starting to get boney (shallow).

On rainy days the tent becomes a drying rack for my clothes

It only 'looks' like I'm cooking in my tent. That would be wrong

Of course as I started the day in a little bit of rain I finished it in a downpour. Seems how there’d be no chance of drying things outside in the remaining sunshine of the day I paddled a little longer to get a few more miles behind me. Right now I have all my (always wet) clothes hung from lines on the ceiling of the tent. As the water drains to the end of a sleeve or leg I use my camp towel to squeeze it out before it drips on the floor. One should only imagine the (not experience) the smells associated with being nested under the wet clothes one has been sweating in for the last two days. I have a rule written in my list of personal camp rules that states “Rule #4 - Your clothes stink…there is no need to smell them.” In a set up like this I have no choice. Still, any amount of water I can squeeze out of my layers tonight will make that much easier to put back on in the morning. I’m seriously contemplating wearing my camp layers under my paddling clothes tomorrow but, if I don’t make Memphis I wouldn’t want to endure a night without something warm and dry to put on at the end of a long day on the water.

Me in the tent with clothes hung to dry. Watch out that pant leg is about to drip

14 Comments

Day 17 (back home on the water)

12/22/2009

21 Comments

Daily stats
Start: 8:03 AM - New Madrid, MO
Finish: 3:34 PM - South of Caruthersville, MO
Time: 7:30:52
Daily dist: 50
Total dist: 423 miles
Weather: Start in around 30 with a high in the mid-50s. cloudy.

As I sit here wrapped up in my sleeping bag gorging myself on the Christmas candy my mother sent down, I can’t really say I’m roughing it. I had almost settled for a brambly muddy shore to land on this afternoon until my eye caught the glint of sand on an island a few miles further on. An extra half hour of paddling took me off the water late but I ended up on a nice piece of real estate high and dry for the night, ready for the rain in the forecast.

The morning started off great with the better half of New Madrid coming to the water to see me off. Dave towed my boat and gear on his trailer right back to where I pulled out last Friday. He and Captain Chris suggested I launch from the town boat ramp but I had to refuse explaining that would have violated my only rule for this trip (no downstream help). I know it sounds silly but it matters to me.

Everyone watched in awe (me included) as three full bags of gear disappeared into the hatches of the Ikkuma. With water bottles topped off and a full bag of Christmas candy it was a bit of a squeeze and one lucky kid got a bottle of soda that I just couldn’t quite fit in.

After a few pictures, a big hug to Cheryl for my mom, and many good byes I launched into a thick morning fog.

The day was fairly routine minus the first half hour. The fog was pea soup thick and I could only see a few boat lengths in any direction. I wanted to miss a side chute past the town grain elevator docks so I steered into the channel and ran with the flow. After a few minutes of paddling I came slowly upon a buoy that was leaning the wrong way in the current. As I paddled very slowly up to it more than a moment past while my mind worked to comprehend that I was on an up stream treadmill facing the wrong way on the wrong side of the river. In minutes from pushing off I’d managed to paddle a giant loop in the fog. As I tried to convince myself that the Mississippi does indeed know which way to go, I heard a low hiss and looked up to see a five barge wide tow on it’s way up stream with me in its path. A shot of adrenaline had me out of the channel in no time but with a little less room than I like between me and a tow. Shaken but not stirred I decided that keeping close to the shore line would be the smart way to go until I could see more than tree tops in the mist.

This was a notable day in that it was the first that I didn’t have to wear my pogies (mittens) for even a minute. I also went without the dry suit for the first time in this trip donning instead the Kokatat Tec Tour paddling jacket and paddling pants that my mom had sent down as replacements for the stolen dry suit. I was in heaven being able to open up the collar and ventilate the jacket when I got warm, so much more comfortable than being sealed up in the dry suit all day.

21 Comments

I will be back on the water in an hour

12/22/2009

27 Comments

I don't know how much internet acces I'm going to have over the next couple days. So I wanted to let everyone know that my bags are packed and in a few minutes David White, one of my friends here in New Madrid, is going to give me a ride to the water and send me on my way.

My plan is to try to hit it hard and get to Helena AK by sometime Christmas day. However I'm running right into two days of rain and strong wind so I may end up short. I've had a couple offers to stay with folks in Memphis so if I don't make it that's probably where I'll stay.

Right now I'm a little troubled trying to figure out what should be done with all of the generous donations that were given with the thought of paying to have all my gear replaced. With my stuff turning up yesterday, I'm back on my feet and geared up better than ever, and am no longer in need of any kind. There is a very good record of what everybody donated. If you'd prefer I keep it for the rest of the trip, I thank you as it will make things a bit more comfortable. If you'd like the money back so you can send it elsewhere just let me know and we'll get it to you. Please let me know either eay so I can put my mind at ease.

For everyone waiting for "the rest of the story" from some of my tales please hang in there I'm trying to find time to get it all down.

If you don't hear from me have a very Merry Christmas

Jake

27 Comments

My stuff has been found!

12/21/2009

31 Comments

Just a few hours ago the New Madrid Police department with the efforts of the Chief Mc Ferren, Captain Chris Henry, and others, my gear was found and returned to the police department. All items are accounted for minus two hats, my shaving kit, and my mug. I’ll be spending the rest of today getting everything sorted and ready to launch back on the river tomorrow morning.

Cheif McFerren

Captain Chris Henry

Thank you again everyone for going through such great efforts to keep me and this trip moving. I have come in contact with so many great people in the last couple days that, despite the terrible thing that occurred, my faith in what is good about mankind has been reinforced at its core.

Me in police car (front seat)

I have learned a valuable lesson about keeping myself and my gear safe on this trip. More importantly, with the amazing outpouring of support I’ve received during this whole episode, I have been forced to pause and look hard at the lines that exist in our society and realized how blessed I am to be where I am in this world. Steeling is not right, yet I know those that took from me are not very well off due to problems that are, (and are not) of their creation. Steeling doesn’t make you richer at any level, it only hurts others. Yet, I never suffered for anything over the last few days. In fact I’ve been taken care of by the locals better than I take care of myself. All the while those who stole from me remained in the low place where they came with little hope of ever moving on. For all the help and care I’ve been given (that I didn’t really earn) thinking of those who are truly in need, I feel embarrassed. In this season of giving many people reached out to me in ways that I will always remember. To all of you I can only say thank you as I’ve been put back together better than new. If I can ask just one more favor please look close to home and find someone truly in need and see if you can’t help them too.

The river is waiting.

31 Comments

Day 14 (putting it all back together)

12/20/2009

32 Comments

First of all, thank you everyone for the tremendous outpouring of support that you’ve provided over the last two days. I fear I just don’t have time to thank each and every one of you personally so please understand that I appreciate everything that everyone has done for me. I couldn’t do it without you. With all the support you’ve given this whole episode is quickly turning into a bump in the road and learning experience that will make the rest of the trip safer and run all the more smoothly.

Christmas tree near the New Madrid observation deck

---- On report of my day yesterday, Day 14 ----

The day was spent trying to put myself and this trip back on track. The town of New Madrid (largely through the efforts of Cheryl and David White) has rallied to help me get re-equipped and back on the water.

Me with David at his Main Street Market

Cheryl is a remarkable woman who seems to have the power to move mountains with a simple call from her cell phone. When I discovered the theft Friday night David’s phone number was the only I had, due to the fact that he had just given me his business card when I visited his store for supplies. In shock, and not sure what to do, I called David and explained my situation. While on the phone with David I could hear Cheryl in the background calling the police on her cell. Not 911, not the station phone number, rather their direct personal cell phone numbers... Cheryl is a good person to know.

After years of working as a school teacher, and now by running a string of community health clinics in the area, as well as coordinating charitable organizations, Cheryl is connected. You might say she has her finger on the pulse of the town, I believe she is the source of the pulse of the town. It is in one of her (free to the community, funded by grants) health clubs that I am now catching up on my e-mails and blog posts. It is also here that I stayed Friday night after all the excitement, and where I’m keeping my boat and gear.

One more call from Cheryl landed me a driver named JJ (I don’t know his full name, I’m not sure he has one). JJ was scheduled to arrive at 8:00 AM with a company (health clinic) van to drive me down to Memphis to track down the gear I need. After only two hours of sleep, I woke to sideways sleet and rain outside and a few moments later, right on schedule, JJ arrived.

JJ is an interesting gentleman. About 5’-9” lanky, dark hair, scruffy goatee, high strung, completely likeable, and a little on the talkative side. Actually the only time I needed to speak was when he paused long enough to light a cigarette. JJ is the sort that knows everybody in town and, by his stories, seems to have done enough living in his 39 years to fill the lives of two men. He worked for a long time in the restaurant industry cooking and managing different establishments, then moved into the insurance billing field, and now into (self taught) computer technician duties. As much as I could ascertain, JJ seems now to be working for a few different people simultaneously, for his aunt’s catering business as a cook, Cheryl as a computer technician, and yesterday as my personal driver.

JJ My driver for the day

I had JJ for the day as his only stipulation was to be back in time for his weekly Saturday night poker game, which kicks off around 9:00 PM. JJ’s main hobby seems to revolve around gambling, either on the many Casino boats along the river or card games at friend’s homes. While we weaved around 18 wheelers on the interstate, and between puffs on his cigarette, JJ provided me with a running commentary about the local industry, punctuated by the location of every river town that has a casino boat.

I learned that the local economy is buoyed up mostly by farming (cotton, beans, and rice) as well as a large aluminum plant and power plant right outside of town. The river, the original source of the towns existence, growth, and prosperity, (now hidden on the back side of the levee) seems to have moved out of the average person’s consciousness. It’s twists and turns, boils, floods, and temperament a thing of low lying fear. The big muddy river that once went to New Madrid now just goes by.

New Madrid from the levy

On the way to Memphis I called Elmore Holmes a gentleman that lives there and does a lot of paddling on the Mississippi all year. I found his web site last summer while I was putting together my plans for this trip and I have been harassing poor Elmore for information about the river ever since. Elmore suggested I check out Outdoors Inc. the local outdoor gear supplier to track down the gear I needed. After a quick car tour through downtown (did you know Memphis has street cars?) we found the store and worked with a knowledgeable kid named Brandon (younger than me anyway) to find all the gear I needed.

One very important piece of my new kit came by way of a suggestion from Mike Boren at Aqua Adventures. It’s a wire mesh expandable and lockable bag that is designed to go around a backpacking pack then lock to a pole or tree. Mike suggested that when I get to a town I simply place my things in the duffel bags I already carry then secure those within one of these wire mesh cages. Mike is lucky he wasn’t right here because I my have kissed him full on the lips. That is the solution!

The pack lock in action

After a bit more running around JJ and I doubled back to Elmore’s house so I could finally meet the man I’ve been e-mailing for months, and to borrow a PFD that I could use until a replacement comes in from out west. Elmore and his wife are great (I’m so sorry but I forgot her name). Both are artists in their trade, she does paintings and tile prints and he wood working when he’s not in his boat. We were greeted at the door by their four and a half foot tall Great Dane named Merlin (who doesn‘t like hats by the way). With not much time to visit Elmore filled me in on what he knew of the river in his area and we laid plans to hook up on the river as I passed through if the timing works out.

Next we were back on the highway with a brief stop at a truck stop for dinner on our way back to New Madrid. While I listened to JJ talk I struggled to keep up with my half of the conversation while I watched tail lights blur and the effects of too little sleep the night before worked me over. Once back in town we met up with David White who had a box for me that contained a replacement sleeping bag and jacket from North Face that my friend Haley had on its way within minutes of my desperate call Friday night.

David escorted me to an apartment on main street where it was another call from Cheryl that put me in the spare bedroom of Gary Harris to stay until I can move on. Gary is the town’s one and only dentist who actually lives about five hours away and keeps the apartment here. In this very poor community it’s Cheryl and her clinic that have convinced Gary to travel so far from his family to provide one of the services this town needs. Gary took it upon himself to go out and round up breakfast food so I would feel at home. Upon his return we chatted for a bit as I totally lost the fight to fatigue and finally turned in for the night.

--------- -----------

On the technical side - All things considered the trip is coming back together very quickly. Which is good because winter is still nipping at my heals and I need to get south. My mom is sending down a box from Wisconsin containing my backpacking tent, spray skirt, and paddling jacket that will enable me to resume the trip. The paddling jacket a Kokatat TecTour is what I had planned on using once the ice-water winter leg of this trip was over. I’m making the carefully calculated decision to forgo a replacement dry suit and just switch over to the Tec Tour and paddling pants a bit sooner than planned. The tent will be a bit of a squeeze on the cold nights that still lie ahead but it will work in the short term until a replacement can be sent ahead of me from North Face. I must say that of all the assistance that I’ve gotten with gear (after Aqua Adventures) Haley and North Face have gone above and beyond whle helping me out. The skirt is a full neoprene Snap Dragon which is replacing the “Glacier Breathable” tube version I’d been using up to this point. With the long hours in the cockpit (day after day) a breathable tunnel is important to allow the wicking layers I’m wearing to move moisture away from my body. I’m going to go with the neoprene tunnel and look for a replacement if I have any trouble with discomfort along the way. With holiday shipping volume things may be slow to come but if all goes well I should be back on the water by Tuesday or Wednesday at the latest.

32 Comments

Day 13 (A significant set back)

12/18/2009

41 Comments

Much of my gear has been stolen.

Hello everyone,

I regret to inform you that sometime yesterday afternoon (Friday Dec. 18th) while I was in town charging batteries and gathering water and supplies, a very large portion of my camping equipment as well as vital paddling gear was stolen from the bank where I was planning to set up camp that evening. I still have my boat, paddles, and electronics (which I took into town to charge) but most of the rest is gone.

Right now I’m being aided by two amazing residents of New Madrid Missouri, David and Cheryl White while the better half of the local police force is working hard to recover my belongings. David and Cheryl have set me up with a place to stay for a few days while my old replacement gear is being sent in from home. I’ve already made calls to two some of my sponsors and North Face and Kokatat are working on sending in what they can.

The fact remains that a large amount of gear is going to need to be purchased outright.  A list of most of what was taken can be found below but I’m sure my memory is missing a few small items.

I guess my trip is on hold indefinitely while replacement gear can be found. In the mean time please pray that the lead the police are pursuing might lead them to my gear. Also if you know anybody (or know anybody who knows anybody) that lives in the Southeast corner of Missouri in or around the New Madrid area please tell them to be on the lookout for high-tech camping and paddling gear that you wouldn’t normally find in a local duck hunter’s blind or fisherman’s truck.

I need your help in spreading the word about this in hopes of finding that gear.

Instead of focusing on the couple of bad people who may have done this, instead I’d like to make note of the many good residents of this town that have already stepped up to help me through this situation.
            Thank you everybody for all your support.

Jake

              Please stay tuned.

                   -----------------------------

From what I can remember this is what was taken.

1) Kokatat - Dry Suit                           Blue
2) Kokatat - MS Fit PFD                     Orange
    - (with knife in clip on font)
3) Kokatat - Knee length boots            Black
    - (neoprene bottoms and grey vinyl “legs”)

4) Snap Dragon - Spray Skirt
    - Neoprene deck and grey vinyl tunnel

5) North Face - Minibus 32 Tent
    - Green rain fly grey main body
6) North Face - Sleeping bag                green/grey
7) North Face - Synthetic fill jacket       Blue/grey -    - Size Medium
8) North Face - Wind stopper hat         Black fleece
    - size XL

9) MSR - Whisperlite cook stove
    - Folding wire legs in black stuff sack
10) MSR - Cook kettles
    - Alloy Teflon coated
11) MSR - Fuel bottle                          Red
    - aluminum bottle (small)
12) MSR - spoon
    - Alloy aluminum - grey

13) Expend - Sleeping mat
      - Orange/grey w/ built in pump

14) Brunton - battery lantern
      - Small backpacker size lantern runs on AA

15) Stanley - Mug/Bowl nesting combo

16) Sea to Summit
      - Various sizes of compression dry sacks
         and regular dry sacks "big river version"

17) Misc - Red/metallic tarp
18) Misc - Small bag of toilet items
19) Misc - Off brand MP3 player
20) Misc - Knit wool full gloves and fingerless
               glove/mitten combo
21) Misc - Leather wide brimmed hat
22) Misc - Sunglasses with Chums floating retainer
23) Misc - Knit hat made by a friend -
               grey with red stripe

Daily stats
Start: 6:37 AM - Just south of the Mississippi - Ohio River confluence
Finish: 1:51 PM - New Madrid, MO
Time: 7:13:20
Daily dist: 55 miles
Total dist: 373 miles
Weather: Start in around 30 with a high in the mid-40s. Cloudy and calm.

41 Comments

Day 12

12/17/2009

6 Comments

Daily stats
Start: 6:35 AM - Cape Girardeau, MO
Finish: 2:35 PM - Just south of the Mississippi - Ohio River confluence
Time: 8:18:16
Daily dist: 57 miles
Total dist: 318 miles
Weather: Start around 30 with a high in the mid-40s. Clear and calm.

Early start and a nice sunrise

Today ran the risk of becoming the first of what I’m sure will be many routine days. That was, however, until I turned the corner at Cairo IL (pronounced Kay-row) and saw what happens when the rain swollen Ohio river adds it’s flow to the mix. The rive down here is huge, it’s stunning.

The river is HUGE down here

Up to this point I could change sides of the river whenever I chose to. After it took me twenty minutes to paddle from the Missouri side to the Kentucky side, I realized that from now on the bank I choose to paddle is going to be a weighty decision. Having all this high water means that I’ll be able to cut corners over what would normally be sand bars. The trouble is that the lack of sand bars is going to make finding camping spots much more interesting. Right now I’m set up on the edge of a hay field just up from the first shore access I could find for the last three miles.

Judging from the scolding splashing I’m hearing on the river I believe I may have chosen a beaver’s access point. The last time I heard that noise was when my friend Neil and I put ourselves in a similar spot and ended up with angry beavers dragging branches past our tent all night long.

The day went well and I paddled nearly 60 miles. I did decide, whatever the mileage, my limit is 8 hours on the water. Any more than that and I start to fall apart.

The flood plain is noticeably wider down there so I know my web access is going to be hit and miss. I asked Neil to please at least post my daily stats which he’s been calculating off my SPOT hits every day. That way you all can at least see the progress I’ve made.

6 Comments

Day 11 (and day 10 fill in)

12/16/2009

6 Comments

Daily stats
Start: 7:00 AM- 4 miles above Grand Tower IL
Finish: 11:30 AM - Cape Girardeau MO
Time: 4:30
Daily dist: 34 miles - 24 miles gained over yesterday (long story)
Total dist: aprox. 210 miles
Companions: Brent in the morning the solo on the water
Weather: Clear with slight SE breeze - cold
Notes: I don't have time right now to explain the ten mile loss in mileage. Just know that it was one hell of a night. I'll try to write it up tonight when I have more time.

Hi everyone. I'm currently in Cape Girardeau MO doing some laundry, eating two foot long subs, and charging up my batteries. I hadn't intended to stop but when I saw the super easy access from river to down town I couldn't pass it up. I started the day in Brent's house boat and was very happy to have totally warm and dry clothes to put on, still I could smell them from across the room. I also took advantage of the house boat heater and warmed up my boots (luxury for sure).

I got a nice early start out of the house boat and pushed hard to make up the ten miles I lost last night. I made great time and like I said when I saw the easy take out I couldn't pass it up.

It's fun watching the ice form

My plan now is to push hard to try to get to Helena AR by Christmas. I'll have to stop one more time for water but with today's break I should be ready to make a good go of it.

Day 10 fill in

That was my good friend Neil that posted the last blog for me. Like he said I didn't have much of a net connection from the houseboat yesterday. What I'm going to do is post what I had written yesterday while I was waiting for Brent to arrive at his house boat. The story of what happended after he arrived would be a stand alone chapter in a book. Or a book all in its own which is the only way to explain how I ended up loosing ten of the 30 miles I gained yesterday. The problem is that I have to get back on the river soon, so it will have to wait.

-- My arrival at the house boat --

Somehow I got the numbers wrong when I looked at the maps last night. I thought it would be 40 miles from where I camped to Brent’s house boat but instead it was only 30. With a brisk north wind pushing me along with the current I made it here faster than I might have imagined. I guess I should fill you in on who exactly Brent is. He is the other son of Gary and Keeke Pregracke. Remember the Pregrackes are the folks that took us in and thawed us out up in Moline IL last week. I learned from his dad that Brent is a commercial fisherman who prys a living out of the Mississippi. Gary thought I might like a place to warm up when I passed through so he called Brent to see if he wouldn’t mind some company for a night. I’m not one to pass up a night up off the cold ground, so here I am.

With Gary’s aid I had sketched directions to the boat house on my charts it is about three miles below Grand Tower IL just up the Big Muddy River on the Illinois side. Aside from almost blowing right by, I didn’t have any problem finding the place. It’s the only boat around for miles. Brent and I had been playing phone tag since yesterday so we’d never really talked. When I arrived nobody was home so I tied up and cautiously heaved myself up four feet onto the deck of the boat. If ever someone asks me if there is any real need to be able to stand up in a kayak (other than to show off) I’m going to say absolutely.

Brent's houseboat on the Big Muddy river

Once on the boat I tried to let myself in as Gary had described but had no luck with the door. I tried Brent one more time on his cell and finally got through. He told me the door had been fussy lately so if I couldn’t get in through there to try a window. I checked every window all the way around the boat until I found one small window that entered the main “kitchen” area that wasn’t locked. So I stripped out of my paddling clothes and squeezed through the narrow window, over the sink, and into the boat house. The entire time I only hoped that I did have the right place and that nobody else would see some crazy man wearing only long johns breaking into some body’s boat house.

Once inside I was able to get the door open then set about the task of getting my gear out of my kayak. I discovered a motor mount platform at the rear of the boat where I cautiously balanced above the swiftly flowing and icy cold Big Muddy river while I dug out the essentials I’d need for the night.

The boathouse itself is not exactly a flag ship. Some would say it’s rustic, others that it’s in need of a woman’s touch (a woman other than the inflatable in the corner that is). What it is, is warm, dry, and out of the wind which is all right with me. It feels good to sit in a soft chair in the warm sun and rest a bit.

Warm and happy in the house boat

My paddling clothes are spread out and drying on the back deck and my next step is to make something to eat. Brent is due back in a couple hours so I’ll finally get to meet him then. With my boat mostly all packed I should be able to get on the water very early tomorrow morning refreshed and ready to go.

6 Comments

Day 10

12/15/2009

4 Comments

Daily stats
Start: 7:34 AM- Just south of Chester, IL
Finish: 1:23 PM - Grand Tower, IL
Time: 5:49
Daily dist: 30 miles
Total dist: 228 miles
Notes: Jake is unable to get internet.

Hi all! Jake has hunkered down for the day near Grand Tower, Illinois in a rustic houseboat (courtesy of a contact and follower or the portage project - I'm assuming it's Brent Pregracke?). Unfortunately, he is out of internet range and about out of cell range and cell phone power so he won’t be blogging until tomorrow.

He did want to report that he’s calling it early today. He said he will probably “stretch for about an hour” and give his body a chance to rest. He’s already enjoying being out of the cold and the wind and is enjoying an early dinner (late lunch?) on a sunny and enclosed patio.

Keep up the great work, Jake!

4 Comments

Day 9 (50 miles with time to dry out)

12/14/2009

9 Comments

Daily stats
Start: 7:15 AM- Kimmswick Missouri Illinois
Finish: 2:30 PM - Illinois
Time: 7:15
Daily dist: 50 miles
Total dist: 199 miles
Companions: None
Weather: Overcast in morning becoming clear in the afternoon - chilly
Notes: My first day starting from a tent - took time to dry things out

I’m writing this blog inside my tent wrapped up in my sleeping bag. It’s a bit chilly tonight and I’m a bit worn out after putting in my first full uninterrupted day of paddling that yielded 50 miles down the river.

I started the day by slithering into barely warm thermals that were still wet from the previous day of paddling. I decided that I’d rather give up ten miles of progress if it meant having at least somewhat dryer clothes to put on in the morning. With that in mind I knew I’d need to be off the water by no later than 3:00 if I was to have time to dry things out. I also wanted to see what it would take to log 50 miles on the river so I pulled hard all day to see what sort of progress I could make.

Drying everyting out

Once I hit the beach I strung up a line and laid out every bit of gear and clothing I have to try to chase away the dampness that has invaded every nook and cranny.

Fifty miles do-able but an earlier start would make it a bit more humane and still leave time at the end of the day to set up camp and sort things out before dark. I’m going to see if I can streamline my morning routine to get on the water a half hour earlier. I need the daylight more in the afternoon than the morning.

Tomorrow my plan is to try to find Brent Pregracke who is the other son of Gary and Keeke Pregracke who we stayed with up in Moline last week. Brent is a commercial fisherman on the river and lives in a house boat about forty miles from here.

9 Comments

Day 8 (Two locks and free flowing river at last)

12/13/2009

4 Comments

Daily stats

Start: 7:30 AM- Alton Illinois
Finish: 3:30 PM - Kimmswick Missouri
Time: 8:00
Daily dist: 44 miles
Total dist: 149 miles
Companions: None
Weather: Overcast in morning becoming clear in the afternoon - warm
Notes: My first go at locking through a lock. Passed the St. Louis arch at about noon.

Yesterday I traded a few miles of downstream progress in order to sleep in comfort but the payoff of starting the day fresh and ready was worth it.

Dave's sailboat in morning light

Alton bridge from marina

Today I had my first experience of locking through on two different locks which was intimidating yet thrilling. The sheer size of the lock doors and walls made me feel like a flea on a St. Bernard’s back. The sight of a kayak in December was a bit of a surprise as one of the lock operators exclaimed “You’ve got to be kidding!“ when I pulled the rope to signal that I was there to lock through. Once I was clear of the second lock I was finally on the free flowing Mississippi and I could feel the pull of the current taking me south. I stopped to take some pictures at the marker where the Missouri and Mississippi rivers meet and sort of regretted the decision because the bank was soft mud into which I sank up to my knees.

Huge lock gates in Lock number 27 the last on the river

Just after noon I passed the famous St. Louis arch and made great time as the clouds cleared and I set up my first camp on the shores of the Mississippi.

First camp on Mississippi

4 Comments

Day 7 (A short day, but back on the water at last)

12/12/2009

13 Comments

Daily Stats
Start: 10:10 AM- Gafton Illinois
Finish: 3:00 PM - Alton marina - Alton Illinois
Time: 4:50
Daily dist: 15 miles
Total dist: 105 miles
Companions: Jason Cummings
Weather: Overcast with drizzle becoming steady rain after dark
Notes: David Diederich met us at the put in and offered his sailboat to stay in. Thank you so much Dave!

As I write this the wind is driving a cold rain that is pushing across the area in a fast moving weather system. All day long I paddled in and out of rain showers thinking that it was going to be a long cold night camping in these conditions. Thankfully, I’m not out there. Instead I’m warm and dry inside a cozy heated sail boat.

Me with David Diederich

At the put in this morning in Grafton Illinois we were met by David Diederich who is a local paddler and general river enthusiast. David showed up at the put in with a huge banner that said “Good Luck Jake” as well as printed charts highlighted to show key landmarks in the area. Two of those landmarks included the location of his cabin on an island a few miles above Alton or his small but heated and cozy sail boat in the Alton marina along with an invite to stay at either if the necessity should arise.

Sign that Dave made

It was a bit of an ordeal to get all of my gear loaded into the Ikkuma for the very first time. Loading all the gear in a kayak for a long trip always seems to go through an evolution. On the first go it’s a tedious pack and re-pack process where you end up all but standing on the hatch covers to get everything in the overstuffed hatches. The second time around you fill little nooks and crannies you missed the first time and gain a little more room and everything starts to fit. A few more times and everything seems to have a place and you can load up and get underway almost with room to spare in a timely manner. Today was the “stand on the hatches” stage of boat packing and it took quite a while for me to be ready to launch. So it was that finally at 10:10 AM I pushed off from shore and was underway once again.

As luck would have it, just as I launched a local paddler, Jason Cummings, paddled up in the beautiful strip built kayak he built himself. Jason paddled with me for the first five miles back to a boat ramp near the town of Portage Des Sioux where he put in earlier this morning. As he noticed as we paddled along he did a bit of a Portage to Portage paddle of his own.

Jason Cummings

After leaving Jason off at the landing I burned twenty minutes fussing with my camera which had just decided to start taking green pictures again which is a problem it had earlier this summer. It was a problem I needed to have sorted out before I passed St. Louis by completely as it would be the last chance to go into down to get a replacement camera if, god forbid, it was necessary. The wind was a factor today as it blew directly upstream cancelling out any help the flowing river would give. Because of that, it was a bit slower go than I expected and I crawled the sixteen miles to Alton in about four hours. I stopped at a park on the south shore opposite town to eat lunch and take one more try at fixing the camera. Luck was with me and the camera finally quit taking photos that make everybody look green.

My daily plan now is to pull off the river by 3:00 to allow enough time to set up a comfortable camp before dark. It was 2:00 and I was about two miles above the first lock which meant that by the time I got done with that I wouldn’t have much more time to paddle before it was time to set up camp. The red circle showing the location of the cozy heated sail boat was just across the river so in the sputtery cold rain I decided to trade 4 or 5 miles of down river progress for a warm night out of the rain. With the cold rain sputtering against the deck of the boat I know that was one of the best decisions I’ve made on this trip so far. And once again I’ll be eternally thankful for the kindness and generosity provided me by almost total strangers.

Warm and dry inside Dave's sailboat

Tomorrow I’ll be getting a nice early start and will have the new experience of locking through two different locks before I get to the free flowing river and paddle past down town St. Louis. With luck my camera will keep taking good pictures and my blog won’t include photos of a green tinted arch.

13 Comments

Internet access may be hit and miss for a couple weeks

12/12/2009

4 Comments

So far I've been in populated areas with good cell coverage which means my internet uplink has had a good signal. South of St. Louis towns are fewer and far between so I'm anticipating that there will be days where I don't get coverage. In addition I won't be able to charge my batteries every day so I'm going to be in power saver mode with my cell phone off all day and computer use limited to just an hour or so every day. I'll be posting what I can then filling in the gaps when I get back to civilization.

Thank you to all of you that have been so supportive of this trip.

Stay tuned.

4 Comments

Day 6 (open water at last)

12/11/2009

2 Comments

Today we woke in East Moline and said fare well to the Pregreckes, loaded up the truck, and headed south on our run to St. Louis.

Me, Keeke, and Gary

As we drove we slowly watched the snow amounts change from half a foot to a dusting then finally to nothing at all. Every time we crossed a bridge we looked down studying how much ice was on the water below. It really wasn’t until we reached the outskirts of St Louis that we found the completely open water we came for.

Of course what is a visit to St. Louis without a ride to the top of the famous Gateway Arch. So we ran directly to the Westward Expansion Museum and caught a bumpy elevator/tram ride to the top of the arch. I had been here once before seven years ago when I was moving to California. Then I took in the view of the surrounding city in broad daylight. This time we were running late, and because we had to wait for the maintenance crew to fix a problem with the elevator system, we ended up in the observation area well after dark. After seeing the view at both times I definitely recommend going up after sunset. The view with the city lights was incredible. After grabbing a couple pictures we rode back down and headed out to what should be my last motel room for quite a while.

Me and my parents in one of the arch elevator cars

At the top of the arch

The view from the top

My water bags are filled, gear is packed, and I’m ready to get some rest before waking early to head up to Grafton IL where the Illinois River meets the Mississippi. There I will finally get back on the water to resume this trip.

2 Comments

Day 5 (Regrouping with our amazing hosts)

12/10/2009

5 Comments

Hello from East Moline Illinois (across the river from Davenport) in the Quad Cities area. Today we experienced the most gracious offering of very real and true hospitality I’ve ever witnessed.

After breaking camp at the Sands motel in Boscobel Wisconsin this morning we drove south in search of open water and better weather. The plan was to re-group with Tammy Becker at the Living Lands and Waters headquarters in East Moline. As it turned out we ended up staying in the guest room of Gary and Keekee Pregracke who are the parents of the founder of Living Lands and Waters, Chad Pregracke. In essence these two kind hearted souls opened up their home to three complete strangers who’s only connection was the river that not only flows past but pretty much is their back yard. Visiting and stayingwith such amazing and warm hearted people was just what we needed to get re-centered on this trip and ready to continue on with the new plan. After being the recipient of so much kindness I can only hope that I’ll be able to pay it forward some way, some time, in the future.

River completely frozen in Dubuque

As luck would have it, the river here is only slightly less frozen than up stream in Dubuque. The main channel is still open but for most of the way the shore is blocked by hundreds of feet of newly formed ice. I’ve finally accepted that it was a gamble to try to sneak out of the north before winter set in, and that I missed the weather window by five days and got caught in a very big way. Now that we have no choice but to jump further south, I need to make sure we jump far enough to be sure I don’t get caught again. So, after much deliberation, we’ve decided to push further south all the way to the St. Louis area before getting back on the water. Starting Saturday the weather is looking very favorable for at least the next ten days. In that time I should be far enough south that nothing but the most freak winter storm could stop me cold like this last one has. I’ll have an even bigger gap to fill next fall but already can’t wait to return here to say hi again to such amazing people.

5 Comments

Day 4 (Time for plan B)

12/9/2009

16 Comments

I knew all along that starting a trip like this on the Wisconsin river in December would put me precariously close to winter freeze up and real winter weather. However, because of the way things worked out with other things going on in my life, December was the earliest I could start. I could have launched further south (as any sane person would do, and my mother suggested) but my dream has always been to paddle from Portage all the way back to Portage. My stubborn streak wouldn’t waver from that idea and so it was that I launched from Portage on that beautiful sunny winter day just last Sunday.

The first day was pretty much the sort of weather I expected and planned for. Day two brought some snow but was not a surprise this time of year. By day three when I launched in falling snow and ended the day in a driving snow storm, I was grateful to have my parents shadowing me as a support crew… Then the hammer fell.

Over night we watched the small town of Boscobel Wisconsin go from early December with snow to late January-like blizzard conditions. Six inches of snow had fallen over night with strong winds with sub zero temperatures (and dangerously low wind chills) to follow. I had based my planning on the historical average temperatures and the memory of only wishing for a white Christmas this time of year. Call me naive if you will but this weather was a surprise.

As we sat in our motel room this morning it was obvious that the thought of getting back on the water was out for today. Not that I couldn’t have paddled, our main concern was that my parents wouldn’t be able to get to me with the truck later in the day. Take outs are far and few between down here and tend to be on back roads that are the last to be plowed open. With paddling out for the day we turned our attention to the weather and to figuring out what our plan of action would be for the next few days.

Snowy highway

What it boiled down to was this. We’d wait another day for the temperatures to go up to something more reasonable than the minus 11 wind chills that were predicted for tomorrow. Then, if the river was still unfrozen I would resume paddling with plans to finally reach the Mississippi and finally turn south. If the river was frozen then we’d be forced to head south to find open water to resume paddling. With this plan in place we anxiously watched the weather channel and reports of how hard Iowa and points south of here were being hit by this storm. The reality remained that even if the river wasn’t frozen, and I could continue from here, I would still be firmly in full on deep-winter conditions when my parents head back home six days from now. The idea of just cutting our losses and heading south was in the back ground until we drove to the river to have a look, what we saw there removed all doubt that it would be wise to do just that. People have paddled in worse conditions (remember it was Eskimos that invented the sport) but I believe it would be irresponsible to paddle solo in a river choked with slushy ice packs in wind chills at or below zero. This trip is supposed to be an adventure not a death defying stunt.

Rafts of snow and ice

The sign says it all

Here is where luck and good timing come into play. Doug Klapper is the gentleman that joined me the first day to escort me out of town on a stand up paddleboard. I enjoyed his company and conversation for the first few miles of this trip. While we talked he mentioned that he knew some folks on the Mississippi that might be a good source of information and I asked him to please direct them to my web site. A day later Tammy Becker e-mailed me offering up a meal, shower, and warm bed to sleep in when I made it to the Quad cities area around Davenport Iowa. She said that if I needed help with anything to just let her know. It turns out that Tammy’s boyfriend is Chad Pregracke. Chad started Living Lands & Waters, a nationally-renowned river cleanup organization (when he was just 23 years old). Tammy, Chad, and their crew have 4 barges, one with a house on it and we travel up and down the Mississippi, Ohio, Illinois and other rivers collecting debris off the shorelines and islands for about 9 months out of the year. Check out their website if you have the chance what they‘re doing is incredible: www.livinglandsandwaters.org

I figured that if there is anybody that would be a good source of info to figure out my next steps. While I was writing an e-mail to beg for information from her, Tammy was writing a follow up e-mail wondering how I was doing with this big storm. Long story short we have come up with plan B. Tomorrow while the winds are driving temperatures to a point that can freeze exposed flesh, we’ll be driving south a couple hundred miles to rendezvous with Tammy and Chad. Once there, we’ll spend a day tracking down a couple bits of gear that will make my life easier then re-group and get back on the water. There is still a lot of snow on the ground down there but, the thought is that with my parents following me for a few more days, I’ll finally be far enough south to not have to worry about any more storms like this. Knock on wood.

This decision has not come easy to me as the continuity of the trip has always been intriguing to me. At the same time I’ve also been a bit disappointed that, it being winter, I wouldn’t be able to meet as many people on the water during the first leg of this trip - I haven’t seen a soul since Doug the first day… go figure - By jumping south now it leaves a gap in the loop that will need to be filled. Next October after I make it back to Portage I intend to come right back to Boscobel do just that. Perhaps then I will be able to convince some of the local paddlers in the area to join me for a beautiful week long trip to enjoy the fall colors as we float down the river to Davenport.

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Day 26 (A New Years Eve that started in the fog)

HAPPY NEW YEARS EVERYONE!
.

Day 25 (A day in the rain - and a lesson in the river channel)

Day 24

Day 23 (fishing with Junior and Jack)

There are two Day 23 blog posts
check out the Day 23 (boat maintenance) post below

Day 23 (boat maintenance)

Day 22 (arrival in Helena Arkansas)

Day 21 (A day on the water with Elmore)

Day 20 (Christmas with new friends)

Day 19 (A hard run to Memphis on Christmas Eve)

Day 18 (First day in the rain - trying to make miles)

Day 17 (back home on the water)

I will be back on the water in an hour

If you don't hear from me have a very Merry Christmas

Jake

My stuff has been found!

Day 14 (putting it all back together)

Day 13 (A significant set back)

Much of my gear has been stolen.

Day 12

Day 11 (and day 10 fill in)

Day 10 fill in

-- My arrival at the house boat --

Day 10

Day 9 (50 miles with time to dry out)

Day 8 (Two locks and free flowing river at last)

Day 7 (A short day, but back on the water at last)

Internet access may be hit and miss for a couple weeks

Day 6 (open water at last)

Day 5 (Regrouping with our amazing hosts)

Day 4 (Time for plan B)

Best of the Blog
Freezing temps, theives, pepper spray, manatees, gators, & tornados.
Get up to date by reading blog highlights from the trip so far.

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HAPPY NEW YEARS EVERYONE!.

There are two Day 23 blog posts check out the Day 23 (boat maintenance) post below

If you don't hear from me have a very Merry ChristmasJake

Much of my gear has been stolen.

Day 10 fill in

-- My arrival at the house boat --

Author

SPONSORSAqua Adventures Seda KayakKokatatWernerNorth FaceSnap DragonNigel Foster DesignsSeal LineMSR.

Categories

Archives

HAPPY NEW YEARS EVERYONE!
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There are two Day 23 blog posts
check out the Day 23 (boat maintenance) post below

If you don't hear from me have a very Merry Christmas

Jake

SPONSORS

Aqua Adventures

Seda Kayak

Kokatat

Werner

North Face

Snap Dragon

Nigel Foster Designs

Seal Line

MSR

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