Today started a little rough. I think we were starting to feel the effects of a lot of lake paddling. My hands hurt when I made a fist and every muscle in my shoulders and back was sore. Despite all this we managed to do 28 miles to Pokegama Dam Rec Area. We arrived around 5:30 as the park office was closing. We quickly asked if any sites were open as it looked pretty busy. There was one and the ranger said to grab it and fill out a site ticket and leave the money, $26, in the drop box. $26!? To camp?! We decided we would grab the ticket and fill it out and put it on our site post then wait and see if we actually had to pay. As we saw it we were just using this area to sleep and would be out of there by 6:30 the next morning. All the other "campers" there were in big gaudy motor homes using a million kilowatts of energy a minute. Long story short, we giggled as we hauled our gear back into the water and floated downstream the next day with $26 still in our pockets. Don't tell on us!
Update on the poison ivy. It still isn't better. I'm hoping the sun will dry it out or burn it off. That happens right?
Lastly, we met a cool guy named Jim at this site. His camper was one of the few that I could tolerate. He and his wife, Jeanette, were on a trip from Colorado to the Black Hills region, up into Canada, through this part of Minnesota, then East along the coast. They are retirees and have also hiked a 500 mile trail in Spain. They were doing a lot with their retirement. Jeanette said, "He plans the trips and I just follow." I could tell that wasn't completely true. Hopefully I'll be able to do trips like this when I retire.
Tuesday, May 27, 2014
Day 8: Poison Ivy
We couldn't shower and do laundry until 10:00 so we killed time by reading and fishing until then. When we did get to the showers though, oh my goodness was it amazing. So refreshing! Then we put our laundry in and sat and chatted with Katie. Anders tried convincing her to invest her time in the 10,000 hour rule. He was not successful.
We didn't actually get on the water until about 12:30 and then only did 19 miles to gambler's Point campsite. We had forgotten to eat lunch in all the excitement of showering and doing laundry so that made it a little tougher. As we snacked on granola bars and trail mix I looked down at my hands. They had been feeling a bit itchy. I figured it was just a mosquito bite but then remembered we had barely seen any mosquitos up to this point. It was Poison Ivy. A lot of it. The back of my right hand was completely covered and the back of my left was about half covered. Great. Good thing I know my weaknesses though. I packed a tube of medicated scrub in anticipation of this happening. I get it almost every summer. My guess is that while I was lost in the woods at Winnie I picked it up. That lake just couldn't let me leave unscathed.
We didn't actually get on the water until about 12:30 and then only did 19 miles to gambler's Point campsite. We had forgotten to eat lunch in all the excitement of showering and doing laundry so that made it a little tougher. As we snacked on granola bars and trail mix I looked down at my hands. They had been feeling a bit itchy. I figured it was just a mosquito bite but then remembered we had barely seen any mosquitos up to this point. It was Poison Ivy. A lot of it. The back of my right hand was completely covered and the back of my left was about half covered. Great. Good thing I know my weaknesses though. I packed a tube of medicated scrub in anticipation of this happening. I get it almost every summer. My guess is that while I was lost in the woods at Winnie I picked it up. That lake just couldn't let me leave unscathed.
Day 7: Windy Winnie
We woke up at 4:30 A.M. in order to try and beat the wind that was supposed to gradually pick up throughout the day. Winnie is such a big lake that slight breezes can gain momentum as they sweep across and cause whitecaps by the time they hit the middle. We were on the water by 5:20. I wore my headlamp and turned it to flash red so that other boats could see us if there were any other boats on the water at this ungodly hour. Although I did not yet wish to be awake and I knew the day would get a whole lot tougher and more stressful, it was very peaceful cruising along the shore of such a big lake. There were no other boats in sight and a thick fog was rolling over the crystal clear water. Our plan was to at least make it to Bena, eat breakfast, and see what the weather looked like from there.
We made it to Bena extremely quick, stashed our canoe in some weeds on shore, and walked to breakfast at a nice little diner which had extraordinary coffee (it was almost definitely Folger's, but it really did taste amazing). After eating and using the flusher toilets, a luxury at this point, we made our way back to the canoe. The weather was still great so we pushed off for Tamarack point. We hugged the shore not wanting to get stuck in 6 miles of open water if the wind were to pick up and made it to Tamarack by 1:00, much too early to set up camp. We wanted to be done with Winnie today and get it over with.
We rounded the point and started an open water cross to the portage just to the left of the dam. As we paddled forward we could feel the wind slowly picking up and the waves slowly getting bigger. We were aiming for the portage to the left of the dam, but the wind and waves were pushing us too far left. About halfway across we accepted that all we could do was keep square to the waves coming from behind us and paddle wherever they pushed us. If we were to try and turn right to where the portage was, we almost certainly would have been caught sideways in a trough and either taken on water or capsized. Even though the waves were hitting our narrow side every once in awhile it did get very rocky. My right hand wasn't feeling very strong so I had to stay on the left the entire time in order to feel confident I had control over the boat. The wind would push us off kilter one way, then back the other, then back the original way so I was constantly throwing in wide sweeping strokes and J strokes in order to keep completely straight. We even got surfed a couple of times. A wave would come from behind us, pick us up, carry us forward for a few yards, and then drop us back in the trough behind it. It would have been immensely fun if it weren't for the fact we were in the middle of a lake that still had snow/ice on some banks.
We finally made it to shore tired and mentally drained, but exuberant. Winnie was almost defeated. Now we just had to figure out where we were in relation to the dam so we could get to our campsite on the other side. We beached the canoe and trudged up a steep hillside. About 200 yards after the hill was a boat ramp. The only probably was that it was still on the wrong side of the dam. Looks like we'll be making two portages today rather than the one. We made four trips a piece, put back in the water, and paddled about 300 hundred yards to the dam and what should have been our only portage.
Winnie was finished!
Sun burnt, exhausted, and a little bit frustrated, we debated weather or not to try and make it to the next free site about 5 miles away. Nope, we were way too tired. Also, it might be time for some luxury. There was a lodge right across the dam and they looked like they had beer. We set up camp, took a swig of our "Winnie Whiskey" which we bought just for this occasion on the first day of the trip, and headed over to the lodge. We met Katie who just finished her sophomore year of college in the cities. She poured us a beer and we entertained her. I guess Anders mainly entertained her. That guy can talk. She then poured us another beer and another beer and another beer and probably a couple more beers. Then we got a pizza. It was frozen but it was delicious. Katie even asked the owner if we could shower and do laundry the next day after she learned it had been a week since we showered. She could probably smell us. He obliged. We finished up our last beers and made plans to come back the next day to get clean.
We made it to Bena extremely quick, stashed our canoe in some weeds on shore, and walked to breakfast at a nice little diner which had extraordinary coffee (it was almost definitely Folger's, but it really did taste amazing). After eating and using the flusher toilets, a luxury at this point, we made our way back to the canoe. The weather was still great so we pushed off for Tamarack point. We hugged the shore not wanting to get stuck in 6 miles of open water if the wind were to pick up and made it to Tamarack by 1:00, much too early to set up camp. We wanted to be done with Winnie today and get it over with.
We rounded the point and started an open water cross to the portage just to the left of the dam. As we paddled forward we could feel the wind slowly picking up and the waves slowly getting bigger. We were aiming for the portage to the left of the dam, but the wind and waves were pushing us too far left. About halfway across we accepted that all we could do was keep square to the waves coming from behind us and paddle wherever they pushed us. If we were to try and turn right to where the portage was, we almost certainly would have been caught sideways in a trough and either taken on water or capsized. Even though the waves were hitting our narrow side every once in awhile it did get very rocky. My right hand wasn't feeling very strong so I had to stay on the left the entire time in order to feel confident I had control over the boat. The wind would push us off kilter one way, then back the other, then back the original way so I was constantly throwing in wide sweeping strokes and J strokes in order to keep completely straight. We even got surfed a couple of times. A wave would come from behind us, pick us up, carry us forward for a few yards, and then drop us back in the trough behind it. It would have been immensely fun if it weren't for the fact we were in the middle of a lake that still had snow/ice on some banks.
We finally made it to shore tired and mentally drained, but exuberant. Winnie was almost defeated. Now we just had to figure out where we were in relation to the dam so we could get to our campsite on the other side. We beached the canoe and trudged up a steep hillside. About 200 yards after the hill was a boat ramp. The only probably was that it was still on the wrong side of the dam. Looks like we'll be making two portages today rather than the one. We made four trips a piece, put back in the water, and paddled about 300 hundred yards to the dam and what should have been our only portage.
Winnie was finished!
Sun burnt, exhausted, and a little bit frustrated, we debated weather or not to try and make it to the next free site about 5 miles away. Nope, we were way too tired. Also, it might be time for some luxury. There was a lodge right across the dam and they looked like they had beer. We set up camp, took a swig of our "Winnie Whiskey" which we bought just for this occasion on the first day of the trip, and headed over to the lodge. We met Katie who just finished her sophomore year of college in the cities. She poured us a beer and we entertained her. I guess Anders mainly entertained her. That guy can talk. She then poured us another beer and another beer and another beer and probably a couple more beers. Then we got a pizza. It was frozen but it was delicious. Katie even asked the owner if we could shower and do laundry the next day after she learned it had been a week since we showered. She could probably smell us. He obliged. We finished up our last beers and made plans to come back the next day to get clean.
Monday, May 26, 2014
Friday, May 23, 2014
Day 6: Waiting
We woke up at our normal time of about 6:00 or 6:30 and the waves on the lake already looked too big to try and make it anywhere. We decided to wait it out and possibly make it to Bena around sunset if the weather calmed down.
With this decision made, I used the break as an opportunity to treat myself to some coffee out of the French press Shannon gave me (thanks Shannon!). While sipping coffee, and gaining energy, I decided to gather up my fishing supplies and take a hike to a nearby lake my Dad had said would be good fishing, Sugar Lake. What I thought would be a short hike turned into a 5 hour trudge fest in which I only got about an hour of fishing in. It started out easy enough hiking through West Winnie Campground but it quickly turned into marshland and thick woods. I followed the shore of Winnie to the shore of Sugar Lake and then further down the shore to a place where there weren't an abundance of weeds. Throughout this two hour hike I saw an eagle nest, plenty of eagles, and also bear poop. At least I think it was bear poop. It was green and there was a lot of it. I briefly thought, "Hey, maybe I should have brought the bear mace." But all is well. I saw no bears.
After an hour of unsuccessful fishing I took out my phone and brought up my map app. There was a road less than a half mile from where I was at! I opened my compass app, because I didn't think to bring the real compass, and used to find the direction I should go. I got immensely lost. I couldn't go in a straight line because of all the downed trees and marshes so I had to keep pulling out the compass app which seemed to tell me a new direction every time. On top of this, my phone was low on battery at about 20%. I finally found a forestry road, although not the one on the map, and followed it until it turned left which was not the direction I wanted to go. I went that way anyway. It dead ended, I saw a porcupine, I turned around. I took out the compass again and found south towards the campsite. Feeling a little bit worried, I marched directly south into the woods determined to stay walking in a straight line no matter what was in my way. Luckily for me, a forest road was directly in front of me! After another mile or so thought the woods I saw pavement. Pavement! Such a glorious thing. It almost certainly leads somewhere. Unlike forest roads that dead end for no reason. This pavement led to West Winnie Campground. Alas, I was home! Extremely exhausted I made it back to camp where anders was not the least bit worried about me.
Day 6 complete. 0 river miles, but still quite the adventure.
With this decision made, I used the break as an opportunity to treat myself to some coffee out of the French press Shannon gave me (thanks Shannon!). While sipping coffee, and gaining energy, I decided to gather up my fishing supplies and take a hike to a nearby lake my Dad had said would be good fishing, Sugar Lake. What I thought would be a short hike turned into a 5 hour trudge fest in which I only got about an hour of fishing in. It started out easy enough hiking through West Winnie Campground but it quickly turned into marshland and thick woods. I followed the shore of Winnie to the shore of Sugar Lake and then further down the shore to a place where there weren't an abundance of weeds. Throughout this two hour hike I saw an eagle nest, plenty of eagles, and also bear poop. At least I think it was bear poop. It was green and there was a lot of it. I briefly thought, "Hey, maybe I should have brought the bear mace." But all is well. I saw no bears.
After an hour of unsuccessful fishing I took out my phone and brought up my map app. There was a road less than a half mile from where I was at! I opened my compass app, because I didn't think to bring the real compass, and used to find the direction I should go. I got immensely lost. I couldn't go in a straight line because of all the downed trees and marshes so I had to keep pulling out the compass app which seemed to tell me a new direction every time. On top of this, my phone was low on battery at about 20%. I finally found a forestry road, although not the one on the map, and followed it until it turned left which was not the direction I wanted to go. I went that way anyway. It dead ended, I saw a porcupine, I turned around. I took out the compass again and found south towards the campsite. Feeling a little bit worried, I marched directly south into the woods determined to stay walking in a straight line no matter what was in my way. Luckily for me, a forest road was directly in front of me! After another mile or so thought the woods I saw pavement. Pavement! Such a glorious thing. It almost certainly leads somewhere. Unlike forest roads that dead end for no reason. This pavement led to West Winnie Campground. Alas, I was home! Extremely exhausted I made it back to camp where anders was not the least bit worried about me.
Day 6 complete. 0 river miles, but still quite the adventure.
Day 5: 30 miles
Up to this point I think we had gone about 60 miles for the trip. We did 30 or so today. We did 13 before lunch, another 16 across some lakes including Cass Lake by 2:00 and then planned on paddling another 7 miles to a site in the marshes between Cass Lake and Winnie. It was another beautiful day until we got into the marshes. That's when the wind picked up, the sun ducked behind the clouds, and we were struggling to find where the main channel went. The marshes upriver (the ones everybody warned us about) hadn't given us too much trouble, but when we hit this section flashes of Phil's story of getting lost kept running through my mind. We were fairly certain we were in the main channel and we knew that the site was on our right, but with how spread out the river was through wetlands we really couldn't tell where we were on the map. Finally, we saw the site through the tall weeds. The only problem was we couldn't get there. We rounded a corner thinking we would find a channel. No luck. We rounded another corner. No luck. This went on for about 4 or 5 corners when we finally decided we would go back, find the thinnest section of weeds, and bulldoze the canoe through it to the other side. On this mission we finally found a narrow (it was seriously just as wide as the canoe) opening with water running through it. We slid through and finally made it to the site. Now the only problem was that the site was overrun with garbage and didn't look like a very appetizing place to stay. It was 5:45, but we decided to continue 5 miles to the banks of Winnie hoping for a better site. We were rewarded with an amazing site right on the shore a couple hundred feet away from West Winnie Campground (we definitely took advantage of their nicer bathrooms).
There we camped, on the banks of our most dreaded nemesis to date.
There we camped, on the banks of our most dreaded nemesis to date.
Day 4: Bemidji
After only three days in the wilderness with just each other to talk to it was nice to get a little human interaction in Bemidji. After the library we went to a little café, got lunch and a coffee, and then went to an army surplus type store to get more socks and a really nifty and simple can opener. Before we had been using our multi-tool to slice open the cans. It worked, but this is much much better.
The weather was finally gorgeous today which was a huge moral boost. We finally got to wear our river hats to keep the sun off us a bit. We did 13 miles and set up camp at Island Point, a site that overlooks the river and has remote road access. When we got there a tent was already set up and some people were fishing. They left shortly after we arrived but the tent was still there. A couple minutes later some people came through, ran into the woods, grabbed a case of beer they had hidden, put it in the tent, and then came over to introduce themselves. They were mainly students at Bemidji. They were putting a couple canoes and kayaks in the water about a mile upriver, floating down, and then partying there. We had neighbors for the night.
Our neighbors were really nice people. They gave us each a beer which we happily accepted and then we exchanged stories about our experiences on the section of the river we had just come from. A couple of them had quite a bit of paddling experience so it was nice to hear what they thought of not only our trip, but also other places they wanted to paddle. One of the guys, Eric, really wants to paddle as much of the Yukon in Alaska and Canada as possible. I think that might be too cold for me, but it sounds like an amazing place. Another guy, Phil, got so lost in the wetland area once that he ended up paddling all night, getting out at the wrong bridge, setting up camp, and awoke to a landowner pointing a gun at him threatening to call the cops. His reaction, "Call the cops. A warm jail cell sounds pretty nice right about now." Awhile after this incident he saw somebody else come out of the river looking like they had gone through a similar experience. They had, and Phil helped them with whatever they needed to get back on their way. I'm extremely happy we didn't run into any trouble like this.
A couple of the guys that were there climbed a tree on the bank we were on and took some incredible pictures. If you guys read this could you get in touch and send those to us? I wish I were brave enough to have gone up there myself. Overall it was a great day. We got a bit of rest in terms of paddling, got some good food, and met some awesome people.
The weather was finally gorgeous today which was a huge moral boost. We finally got to wear our river hats to keep the sun off us a bit. We did 13 miles and set up camp at Island Point, a site that overlooks the river and has remote road access. When we got there a tent was already set up and some people were fishing. They left shortly after we arrived but the tent was still there. A couple minutes later some people came through, ran into the woods, grabbed a case of beer they had hidden, put it in the tent, and then came over to introduce themselves. They were mainly students at Bemidji. They were putting a couple canoes and kayaks in the water about a mile upriver, floating down, and then partying there. We had neighbors for the night.
Our neighbors were really nice people. They gave us each a beer which we happily accepted and then we exchanged stories about our experiences on the section of the river we had just come from. A couple of them had quite a bit of paddling experience so it was nice to hear what they thought of not only our trip, but also other places they wanted to paddle. One of the guys, Eric, really wants to paddle as much of the Yukon in Alaska and Canada as possible. I think that might be too cold for me, but it sounds like an amazing place. Another guy, Phil, got so lost in the wetland area once that he ended up paddling all night, getting out at the wrong bridge, setting up camp, and awoke to a landowner pointing a gun at him threatening to call the cops. His reaction, "Call the cops. A warm jail cell sounds pretty nice right about now." Awhile after this incident he saw somebody else come out of the river looking like they had gone through a similar experience. They had, and Phil helped them with whatever they needed to get back on their way. I'm extremely happy we didn't run into any trouble like this.
A couple of the guys that were there climbed a tree on the bank we were on and took some incredible pictures. If you guys read this could you get in touch and send those to us? I wish I were brave enough to have gone up there myself. Overall it was a great day. We got a bit of rest in terms of paddling, got some good food, and met some awesome people.
Saturday, May 17, 2014
Day 3: Wetland Labrynth
We managed to sleep in until 8:20 today. Too late, but with how many miles we put in yesterday i guess it's OK. We took our time packing and eating breakfast and were on the water around 10:00. We planned on eating lunch at a camp called Iron Bridge about seven miles away. To my surprise, and delight, we made it there in two hours. Pretty good time for two fatigued guys after a 28 mile day. We continued on for 11 more miles, pretty short day. Six hours and 18 miles.
The river has changed a lot. We started in a narrow stream running through the woods where we went through rapids and barged through beaver dams. The river then opened up into a large curvy wetland with dead ends, swamps, and lakes. Then came another forest, then people's backyards, then more forests and more wetlands. The majority of today was wetlands. There would be a strong current then it would open up into a lake where we couldn't tell what way to go. A good tip we learned from reading accounts of other people's trips was to look at the grass on the river bottom. Whatever way it was bent was the way the current was going. This helped immensely as often times the wind was pushing the surface water upstream. We had to look to the bottom to make sure we were still going the right way.
Right now we are in a library in Bemidji (Thank you Bemidji public library!). We are taking it easy today with only 13 miles. Time for some real food and maybe some coffee (mmmmmm). The caffeine withdrawals have been rough. Headaches everyday.
Sorry there aren't pictures. We forgot the camera in the canoe. Eventually they will get posted.
Hope everyone is doing great. I miss you all!
-Sean
The river has changed a lot. We started in a narrow stream running through the woods where we went through rapids and barged through beaver dams. The river then opened up into a large curvy wetland with dead ends, swamps, and lakes. Then came another forest, then people's backyards, then more forests and more wetlands. The majority of today was wetlands. There would be a strong current then it would open up into a lake where we couldn't tell what way to go. A good tip we learned from reading accounts of other people's trips was to look at the grass on the river bottom. Whatever way it was bent was the way the current was going. This helped immensely as often times the wind was pushing the surface water upstream. We had to look to the bottom to make sure we were still going the right way.
Right now we are in a library in Bemidji (Thank you Bemidji public library!). We are taking it easy today with only 13 miles. Time for some real food and maybe some coffee (mmmmmm). The caffeine withdrawals have been rough. Headaches everyday.
Sorry there aren't pictures. We forgot the camera in the canoe. Eventually they will get posted.
Hope everyone is doing great. I miss you all!
-Sean
Day 2: Progress
We woke up at 6:00. It felt amazing to wake up so early without an alarm and be wide awake right away. It was still very chilly so we immediately started putting on the layers. Two pairs of socks, muck boots, pants, rain pants, under armour, long sleeve t-shirt, sweatshirt, rain jacket, life jacket (which is way more of an insulator than I thought it would be), hat, bandanna, and gloves. We ate a quick breakfast of granola bars and packed up our camp. We were on the water by 7:00. We had our first portage a couple miles downriver and that went just fine. What didn't go fine was all the brush hanging over the sides of the river. We would come to a turn, get pushed by the current into the brush, and duck to get through it while branches and twigs broke on our heads, bodies, and canoe. There was so much wood in the boat it looked like we were trying to gather fire wood on the way down the river. In one of these instances I lost grip of my paddle. I'm sure Anders will go deeper into detail about this ordeal. Long story short, it took us about an hour to finally get it back out of the water. I felt dumb.
We made 28 miles this day from 6 am to 7 pm. I would call that a good day of paddling and a good way to make up for yesterday's 5 miles. We were only expecting to do 26 miles, but we got lost. I'll make sure to look at the map a little closer from now on. The camp we stayed at, Pine Point, was beautiful though so I have no regrets. It was on a bank overlooking the winding river behind us and giving us a glimpse of what lay ahead of us the next day. The river runs through mainly marsh land up here so there are many different channels that divert from the main one and eventually snake back in to the current. It can get pretty hard to decide where the best place to go is, but I think we did alright.
It's still hard to fathom what we're attempting, and we have a long way to go, but when I really think about it, it is truly amazing. Times will get tough, but right now I am happy.
We made 28 miles this day from 6 am to 7 pm. I would call that a good day of paddling and a good way to make up for yesterday's 5 miles. We were only expecting to do 26 miles, but we got lost. I'll make sure to look at the map a little closer from now on. The camp we stayed at, Pine Point, was beautiful though so I have no regrets. It was on a bank overlooking the winding river behind us and giving us a glimpse of what lay ahead of us the next day. The river runs through mainly marsh land up here so there are many different channels that divert from the main one and eventually snake back in to the current. It can get pretty hard to decide where the best place to go is, but I think we did alright.
It's still hard to fathom what we're attempting, and we have a long way to go, but when I really think about it, it is truly amazing. Times will get tough, but right now I am happy.
Day 1: Getting Started
The trip kind of started with a thud. We got a late start and didn't make it to Lake Itasca until 1:30. With this being the headwaters of the Nation's most important river there was an abundance of educational and historical information. And since we were about to embark on trying to canoe the entire length of this river it only seemed right to take some time, look around, and get to know the river a little better. After all, we'll be spending ALOT of time together from here on out.
After our brief history lesson, we went back to the truck to start hauling our canoe and supplies to the put in. Before we could do this, however, a man pulled up alongside us in his car. He had been taking pictures by the lake earlier with a really nice camera. He asked what we were up to and where we were going. Turns out he was a reporter for the Star Tribune doing a story about the area. He took our names, where we were from, and then took Anders' phone number and email address. He then proceeded to take our picture at the put in and I believe he was taking video as we passed underneath him on a bridge. So maybe we'll be in the news!
With our late start, meeting the Star Tribune guy, and how long it took us to load the canoe the first time we only ended up paddling 5 miles the first day. Kind of disappointing, but at least we've started!
Oh yeah, it snowed. Multiple times.
After our brief history lesson, we went back to the truck to start hauling our canoe and supplies to the put in. Before we could do this, however, a man pulled up alongside us in his car. He had been taking pictures by the lake earlier with a really nice camera. He asked what we were up to and where we were going. Turns out he was a reporter for the Star Tribune doing a story about the area. He took our names, where we were from, and then took Anders' phone number and email address. He then proceeded to take our picture at the put in and I believe he was taking video as we passed underneath him on a bridge. So maybe we'll be in the news!
With our late start, meeting the Star Tribune guy, and how long it took us to load the canoe the first time we only ended up paddling 5 miles the first day. Kind of disappointing, but at least we've started!
Oh yeah, it snowed. Multiple times.
Wednesday, May 14, 2014
Leaving Today!
After four years of dreaming, a year of consciously saving money, and about 6 months of actively planning and studying I'm embarking on a canoe trip down the Mississippi River. It was at the very table I am writing this from that I first brought the idea up to my parents four years ago. I was griping about how I felt trapped with student loans and couldn't afford to do anything adventurous or fun. Their reactions:
Mom, "If you really want to do something, you'll find a way to do it."
Dad, "Plan the plan and follow the plan."
Alright, I'll admit I'm not positive this is exactly what was said (it was four years ago after all), but my mom's reaction was very close to this and my dad says that line every other day. Point of the story is that they were very supportive even though I'm sure they never thought it was actually going to happen. For that, mom and dad, I thank you. You two are amazing.
Another person I would like to thank is Anders Carlson. He's accompanying me on this 2,300 mile adventure from Lake Itasca to New Orleans. Two and a half months is a long time to spend alone so I'm very happy he has decided to join me.
This was going to be longer, but our internet wasn't cooperating last night and I was experiencing some writer's block. Hopefully future posts will be longer. If you want to read Anders' report it can be found here http://mississippiriverblog.blogspot.com/ . He's an English major.
Until next time!
Mom, "If you really want to do something, you'll find a way to do it."
Dad, "Plan the plan and follow the plan."
Alright, I'll admit I'm not positive this is exactly what was said (it was four years ago after all), but my mom's reaction was very close to this and my dad says that line every other day. Point of the story is that they were very supportive even though I'm sure they never thought it was actually going to happen. For that, mom and dad, I thank you. You two are amazing.
Another person I would like to thank is Anders Carlson. He's accompanying me on this 2,300 mile adventure from Lake Itasca to New Orleans. Two and a half months is a long time to spend alone so I'm very happy he has decided to join me.
This was going to be longer, but our internet wasn't cooperating last night and I was experiencing some writer's block. Hopefully future posts will be longer. If you want to read Anders' report it can be found here http://mississippiriverblog.blogspot.com/ . He's an English major.
Until next time!
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