We almost capsized for America today. The USA vs Germany World Cup game was on at 11:00. That meant we had to make it to the Quad Cities area by then and find a place to watch the game. As we locked through lock #14 we asked a worker where a good place to go was. He gave us a few suggestions that were before lock #15. They were only 10 miles apart. We paddled up to a casino marina, but it was closed. After looking at our phones we found a bunch of riverside restaurants on the other side of the river so we pushed off and started paddling across. The current was much faster than we had noticed. As we made our way across we were being pushed too far down river, towards a weird rocky area that looked like it was just under the high water. When we realized we weren't going to get where we wanted we tried to cut through this area. Bad decision. The water was basically falling off some underwater embankment. It was basically a one foot waterfall. It was even making a surfable wave, which we hit and got surfed by. To our right was a large boulder which we were getting carried towards broadside. I kept yelling at Anders to paddle harder (not that he wasn't already) and I paddled hard as well while keeping us square to the wave. For a second I didn't think we were going to make it past the boulder. We both put our heads down, put everything we had into a few strokes and then looked to our right. The boulder was gone. I looked to my left and there it was, no longer a danger to us. There was, however, still danger present. There was one more large wave we had to navigate to get out of the rapid section and get back into the main channel. At this point I still had a tiny glimmer of hope we would make it through to the other side. As we paddled hard against the current and the wave, I finally relented. The current was much too strong and there was no way we were going to paddle up stream there. I told Anders to stop paddling then made sure we stayed square to the wave we were in and let it push us backwards into the main channel. It was the dumbest thing we have tried to do on this entire trip. Also, the most patriotic. Also, very exhilarating.
We decided to make it through lock #15 and then find a place to watch the game. As we locked through we again asked for suggestions on where to watch it. A man who was also a fan and almost called in sick to work in order to catch the game told us of a marina that was very near plenty of bars and restaurants. We went to that marina, tied up our canoe, and asked a man who was fishing what his suggestion would be. He said the Blue Cat Brew Pub. So we went there. It was very hard to not get a beer at a brew pub. I think this will be the last time we stop at a place with good beer when we are planning to be back on the water. The food was great though, I got a Reuben and Anders got a burger. And even though the USA lost 1-0 we advanced to the next round. USA!
We got back in the boat after our two hour patriotic break and set back out. We stopped at a site 18 miles outside of Muscatine and contemplated staying there. As it was only 3:00 though, Anders convinced me to paddle onward to Muscatine. We would be staying with our friends Ben and Sam for the weekend.
On our way there, we hit a storm. Lots of rain and some lightning. We jumped off the water and waited out the storm under the porch of a very welcoming woman and her mother. We chatted with them. Anders did most of the talking. He's good at that. The two women made sure that we knew the water was high. Yes, ladies, we know. We get told that every single day. We can also see it from the number of houses and islands that are halfway under water.
While being locked through lock #16 the lock worker told us that the dam might be closing soon due to high water and that, if that happens, we should just, "paddle like hell and shoot right under the dam." Really? He insisted it was the best option. I don't believe him. That seems incredibly dangerous and he seems like the type to mess with people for the hell of it. Also, I'm fairly certain there's a fine for doing that. Some research needs to be done. I'm thinking I would rather just portage though if the dams do close.
We made it Ben and Sam's around 7:30. Here we will stay until Sunday.
The blog is finally up to date! Woohoo!
USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA!
Friday, June 27, 2014
Day 28: Gerty the Birdy
We woke up at 7:30, sleeping in as far as river time goes. We're still not fully acclimated back to the river routine obviously. Today was much like yesterday, beautiful, until about 4:00 when the wind picked up a bit. I went swimming in the river for only the second time today but it felt great. It was mid 80's and with the lack of wind felt even warmer.
About midway through the day we saw something struggling to stay above the water. It was very small and I first thought it was a mouse or some other rodent. As we got closer though it was clearly a bird. We couldn't tell if had a broken wing or if it was just extremely tired and/or in shock. We paddled up to it and Anders picked it up on his paddle. The bird seemed very grateful as it just sat on the edge of the paddle and didn't seem the least bit scared to be so close to humans. Anders named it Gerty. I gave him the naming rights as the past six things I have named (fish for the wedding) all lived very short lives. We paddled Gerty over to shore. He sat there very calmly for the most part, only jumping/falling back in the water when gusts of wind came twice. Once when he fell in it seemed like he was swimming towards us to get back on the paddle. We eventually got him to shore and sat him on a log to dry off. I then gave him some crumbs from a peanut butter cracker and Anders found him a bug to eat. I do not believe he ate either gift. He did, however, look very curiously at us. As he started to dry off and come out of shock he seemed very aware that we had helped him. If this world were anything like the one in Disney's Malificent, I think we would have a little bird servant for the rest of the trip. Yes, I saw Malificent over the break. Yes, it was awesome. Yes, I wish we had a bird servant. He could fly ahead and scout camping sites for us. Since everything is currently under water, that would be extremely helpful.
One thing I forgot about the break, and don't feel very good about. The locks (Upper and Lower St. Anthony and Lock #11) were still closed due to high water. There are still seven miles of water we have yet to paddle. It's very hard to accept, but at least I know I will eventually paddle that section. Even if it takes awhile.
About midway through the day we saw something struggling to stay above the water. It was very small and I first thought it was a mouse or some other rodent. As we got closer though it was clearly a bird. We couldn't tell if had a broken wing or if it was just extremely tired and/or in shock. We paddled up to it and Anders picked it up on his paddle. The bird seemed very grateful as it just sat on the edge of the paddle and didn't seem the least bit scared to be so close to humans. Anders named it Gerty. I gave him the naming rights as the past six things I have named (fish for the wedding) all lived very short lives. We paddled Gerty over to shore. He sat there very calmly for the most part, only jumping/falling back in the water when gusts of wind came twice. Once when he fell in it seemed like he was swimming towards us to get back on the paddle. We eventually got him to shore and sat him on a log to dry off. I then gave him some crumbs from a peanut butter cracker and Anders found him a bug to eat. I do not believe he ate either gift. He did, however, look very curiously at us. As he started to dry off and come out of shock he seemed very aware that we had helped him. If this world were anything like the one in Disney's Malificent, I think we would have a little bird servant for the rest of the trip. Yes, I saw Malificent over the break. Yes, it was awesome. Yes, I wish we had a bird servant. He could fly ahead and scout camping sites for us. Since everything is currently under water, that would be extremely helpful.
One thing I forgot about the break, and don't feel very good about. The locks (Upper and Lower St. Anthony and Lock #11) were still closed due to high water. There are still seven miles of water we have yet to paddle. It's very hard to accept, but at least I know I will eventually paddle that section. Even if it takes awhile.
Day 27: I love being back on the water
Even though the trip started more than 27 days ago, I have decided I'm not going to count the days spent off the river in my numbering. They were not technically river days and it is easier this way to more accurately track how long this trip is taking.
Yesterday was Mike's birthday, so of course we celebrated. Happy Birthday Mike! With that being said it should be of no surprise that we got on the water a lot later than we wanted to. When we finally did get on the water our two week break was quickly apparent. Both of us felt very unstable in the canoe. Despite the late start and our instability (we did quickly get comfortable again) we made it 28 miles and found a decent spot to set up camp just before dark. The site had tons of cacti on it which we both thought was strange. Cactus grow in Illinois?
The day was absolutely perfect weather wise. The sun was shining, there wasn't a cloud in the sky, and the wind was non-existent. It was easily the nicest day we've had on the river, and that's saying something; we've been very lucky with the weather so far. It felt amazing to finally be back on the water especially with the weather being so perfect. It was like the river was welcoming us back home.
Yesterday was Mike's birthday, so of course we celebrated. Happy Birthday Mike! With that being said it should be of no surprise that we got on the water a lot later than we wanted to. When we finally did get on the water our two week break was quickly apparent. Both of us felt very unstable in the canoe. Despite the late start and our instability (we did quickly get comfortable again) we made it 28 miles and found a decent spot to set up camp just before dark. The site had tons of cacti on it which we both thought was strange. Cactus grow in Illinois?
The day was absolutely perfect weather wise. The sun was shining, there wasn't a cloud in the sky, and the wind was non-existent. It was easily the nicest day we've had on the river, and that's saying something; we've been very lucky with the weather so far. It felt amazing to finally be back on the water especially with the weather being so perfect. It was like the river was welcoming us back home.
June 9th through 23rd: Dubuque downtime and a Wedding
It was extremely hard to sit around Dubuque for a week with not much to do. I visited Eagle Ridge (my employer before this trip), got a haircut, hung out with Mike, Blake, and Becca, and updated my blog a little bit. I also got to watch some of the World Cup which was nice.
On the 16th Becca and I drove up to Rush City for my sister's wedding which was on the 21st. While we were there we went canoeing and kayaking on the St. Croix, visited Taylor's Falls, and helped prep for the wedding.
The wedding was incredible. Shannon and Tim hosted it at their place which has a very large yard and plenty of space to accommodate the 200 or so people in attendance. It was really neat to see so much family and friends jumping in and helping get ready. We had a beautiful day for it as well which was a concern because it rained most of the days leading up and then also the day after.
We took Sunday to recover and then headed back down to Dubuque on Monday to finally get back on the water Tuesday. Although I greatly enjoyed taking time to be with friends and family, two weeks off from the trip was too much. I got way out of my daily river routine and probably gained about 10 pounds. Hopefully it's not too difficult to get back on the water!
On the 16th Becca and I drove up to Rush City for my sister's wedding which was on the 21st. While we were there we went canoeing and kayaking on the St. Croix, visited Taylor's Falls, and helped prep for the wedding.
The wedding was incredible. Shannon and Tim hosted it at their place which has a very large yard and plenty of space to accommodate the 200 or so people in attendance. It was really neat to see so much family and friends jumping in and helping get ready. We had a beautiful day for it as well which was a concern because it rained most of the days leading up and then also the day after.
We took Sunday to recover and then headed back down to Dubuque on Monday to finally get back on the water Tuesday. Although I greatly enjoyed taking time to be with friends and family, two weeks off from the trip was too much. I got way out of my daily river routine and probably gained about 10 pounds. Hopefully it's not too difficult to get back on the water!
Day 26: Dubuque!
We set out at 6:30, all the party goers from the night before were probably sound asleep. We made it to Finley's landing, a popular swimming and party beach, and ate lunch there. The beach was filthy. Tons of beer cans, water bottles, and all around garbage. People are awful. When we got to lock #11 we chatted with some people in other boats going through the lock. This was the first time we had the pleasure of locking through with other boats. They asked the normal questions everyone asks, but then we talked about Loras and the area a bit since we all had a background there. It was nice break from the normal conversation.
Mike met us at the river walk and we rigged up the boat to his roof. It had to look so weird. We then brought the boat to Becca's and kept it in her garage. There it will sit for about two weeks unfortunately as we decided before the trip we could be no further than Dubuque by June 21st. It was currently the 8th. The 21st is my sister's wedding and I'm pretty sure I need to attend that. We showered and got food at Salsa's.
Mike met us at the river walk and we rigged up the boat to his roof. It had to look so weird. We then brought the boat to Becca's and kept it in her garage. There it will sit for about two weeks unfortunately as we decided before the trip we could be no further than Dubuque by June 21st. It was currently the 8th. The 21st is my sister's wedding and I'm pretty sure I need to attend that. We showered and got food at Salsa's.
Day 25: Rain Finally
We woke up and got on the water right away as the weather was supposed to take a turn for the worse. Again we had to portage a lock and dam (#9) because of barge traffic. Hopefully this does not become the norm. The current also felt pretty weak. Or maybe we were being weak. Maybe we received too much pampering between family in Minneapolis and the Quillins in La Crosse.
As we came up on Bigley, IA we could see big storm clouds rolling in. We made a move for shore but were just a step behind. The skies opened up and we ended up putting up the tent in a rain storm. On an already flooded island no less. As the rain continued we could feel the tent bottom getting wet. Eventually it felt like we were on a water bed. I'm pretty sure the rain was draining down the outside of the tent and accumulating on top of the tarp between the tarp and the tent bottom. Everything was soaked.
Anders checked his phone for weather and it looked like it was going to clear up for a few hours. Thank goodness, because I did not want to stay on that flooded island. Especially with more rain on the way. We made it seven more miles to lock #10 and asked one of the lock workers if we could camp right alongside the dam. She said yes and that it was DNR property so we should be fine. As soon as camp was set up the skies again opened up. We retreated into a bar to grab burgers and watch the USA vs Nigeria friendly.
In the middle of the night (this was a Saturday) I heard some people talking outside of our tent. It went something like: "Is there really people camping there?"
"Yeah, they jumped out of their boat and just set up camp right in our backyard!"
Apparently the house right next to the dam was having a party. Although it probably was technically DNR property, it was also definitely someones backyard. They left it at that though and we slept just fine. A long day of paddling allows you to sleep through loud parties, thankfully.
As we came up on Bigley, IA we could see big storm clouds rolling in. We made a move for shore but were just a step behind. The skies opened up and we ended up putting up the tent in a rain storm. On an already flooded island no less. As the rain continued we could feel the tent bottom getting wet. Eventually it felt like we were on a water bed. I'm pretty sure the rain was draining down the outside of the tent and accumulating on top of the tarp between the tarp and the tent bottom. Everything was soaked.
Anders checked his phone for weather and it looked like it was going to clear up for a few hours. Thank goodness, because I did not want to stay on that flooded island. Especially with more rain on the way. We made it seven more miles to lock #10 and asked one of the lock workers if we could camp right alongside the dam. She said yes and that it was DNR property so we should be fine. As soon as camp was set up the skies again opened up. We retreated into a bar to grab burgers and watch the USA vs Nigeria friendly.
In the middle of the night (this was a Saturday) I heard some people talking outside of our tent. It went something like: "Is there really people camping there?"
"Yeah, they jumped out of their boat and just set up camp right in our backyard!"
Apparently the house right next to the dam was having a party. Although it probably was technically DNR property, it was also definitely someones backyard. They left it at that though and we slept just fine. A long day of paddling allows you to sleep through loud parties, thankfully.
Day 24: Bye Bye Minnesota
Mike Quillin made us breakfast and sent us on our way (thanks again!). We had a bit of a later start, but not too bad for staying off the river. Despite the late start and the wind, which was somewhat rough, we still managed to get 50 miles in. As the title suggests, we also left Minnesota and entered Iowa. She was a good state. Much too long though. It's a pretty big moral booster finally being finished with one state. Only 9 more to go!
Later in the day, maybe 7:30 or so, we were paddling around the river from bank to bank looking for a place to set up camp. The river was pretty flooded so all the islands were under water. Finally, a fishing boat came up to us. They could tell from our zig zag motion that we were looking for a site. They suggested we paddle under a railroad bridge then under a road bridge and take out at a boat landing and camp there. They knew the owner of the landing and said it would be alright. Their names were Coop and Joni and they let us know we were in Lynxville, WI. Joni gave us vanilla scented gnat spray and told us about a bar right up the street (which we visited briefly). We chatted with them while we made dinner, gave them our blog info, and said our goodbyes.
Later in the day, maybe 7:30 or so, we were paddling around the river from bank to bank looking for a place to set up camp. The river was pretty flooded so all the islands were under water. Finally, a fishing boat came up to us. They could tell from our zig zag motion that we were looking for a site. They suggested we paddle under a railroad bridge then under a road bridge and take out at a boat landing and camp there. They knew the owner of the landing and said it would be alright. Their names were Coop and Joni and they let us know we were in Lynxville, WI. Joni gave us vanilla scented gnat spray and told us about a bar right up the street (which we visited briefly). We chatted with them while we made dinner, gave them our blog info, and said our goodbyes.
Day 23: The Parents Quillin
The day started out somewhat disappointing. We hit a lock at a bad time, a barge was coming through, and we either had to wait 2 hours or portage around it. We decided to portage as we didn't think we could waste two hours. Turns out the barge probably only took off about 15 minutes after we finished portaging. All that work for a mere 15 minutes was pretty frustrating, but oh well, it was over.
When we started the trip our friend Kyle Quillin told us to let his parents know when we were going to be in the La Crosse area. We played phone tag with them most of the day and were thinking about setting up camp on one of the many sandbars in the La Crosse area when Mike Quillin told us to stay with them. We got our boat to a marina, talked to the dock worker, got permission to keep our canoe there, and started unloading stuff. Barb, Kyle's mom, came and picked up our gear. We then went back to their house, showered and went out to eat. Mike met us there a bit later as he had been at auctions and checking on his grocery stores in Iowa.
After a great dinner we went back to their house and sat in the garage conversating and smoking a cigar. Poppa Q loves his cigars. He also gave us a beer called Burton Batch from Dogfish Head. It was an oak aged IPA. Needless to say, it was high alcohol content and amazingly good. Lastly, Mike gave us two cigars to go so that we could smoke them on a beautiful day or as victory cigars for finishing. Right now we are leaning towards saving them as victory cigars in New Orleans. Either way, Poppa Q will be receiving a great picture later on.
The Quillins were amazingly hospitable people. We gave them very short notice that we were coming through La Crosse and gave them multiple outs on housing us for the night, but they still put us up and took good care of us. For that, Momma and Poppa Q, we thank you greatly.
When we started the trip our friend Kyle Quillin told us to let his parents know when we were going to be in the La Crosse area. We played phone tag with them most of the day and were thinking about setting up camp on one of the many sandbars in the La Crosse area when Mike Quillin told us to stay with them. We got our boat to a marina, talked to the dock worker, got permission to keep our canoe there, and started unloading stuff. Barb, Kyle's mom, came and picked up our gear. We then went back to their house, showered and went out to eat. Mike met us there a bit later as he had been at auctions and checking on his grocery stores in Iowa.
After a great dinner we went back to their house and sat in the garage conversating and smoking a cigar. Poppa Q loves his cigars. He also gave us a beer called Burton Batch from Dogfish Head. It was an oak aged IPA. Needless to say, it was high alcohol content and amazingly good. Lastly, Mike gave us two cigars to go so that we could smoke them on a beautiful day or as victory cigars for finishing. Right now we are leaning towards saving them as victory cigars in New Orleans. Either way, Poppa Q will be receiving a great picture later on.
The Quillins were amazingly hospitable people. We gave them very short notice that we were coming through La Crosse and gave them multiple outs on housing us for the night, but they still put us up and took good care of us. For that, Momma and Poppa Q, we thank you greatly.
Saturday, June 14, 2014
Day 22: Wabasha
The wind picked up overnight and we now had to fight it the rest of the way on the lake. It took forever to make the 14 miles to lunch in Wabasha. We stopped at a place called Slippery's right on the river and asked if we could leave our canoe there for awhile if we ate lunch there when we got back. They obliged so we took off to the library. We updated our blogs for a couple of hours and then went back to Slippery's. Apparently Grumpy Old Men was based in Wabasha and Slippery was the original name of the catfish in the movie. They had a few Grumpy Old Men themed things, including menu options, and even had the movie playing inside.
We made it 32 miles today to a sandbar in Minnieska, MN. It was gorgeous. We took panorama photos with our phones which will get posted eventually. We were still so full from Slippery's that we had a light dinner; protein bar for Anders and tuna on a tortilla for me.
We made it 32 miles today to a sandbar in Minnieska, MN. It was gorgeous. We took panorama photos with our phones which will get posted eventually. We were still so full from Slippery's that we had a light dinner; protein bar for Anders and tuna on a tortilla for me.
Day 21: Lake Pepin
We paddled through some gorgeous terrain today. High bluffs, wide river, and houses up so high they looked like doll houses. We stopped in Red Wing at a park and made lunch. People looked at us funny. Had they never seen homeless people before?
Shortly after Red Wing we hit Lake Pepin. We had heard a lot of stories about how rough and slow moving the water can get so we were not looking forward to it. Especially since we were hitting it mid day when the winds were usually at their worst. Much to our delight it was extremely calm and there was very little wind. The water was still pretty slow, but that's to be expected on such a big lake. We saw a lot of Asian Carp today. A lot of dead Asian Carp. We also saw a lot jumping though which was kind of neat. If only they weren't so destructive.
We stopped at a sandbar but there was a sign saying no camping and no campfires, two things we wanted to do there, so we kept going. Before we left though I found an egg in the water next to a downed tree. It smelled awful and was about the size of a baseball. After sending a picture to my family we decided it was probably a bald eagle egg. I wish I would have kept it and hollowed it out. That would have been an amazing souvenir. Just to reiterate, it was in the water and it smelled terrible, so it was rotten and I wasn't harming an unborn eagle. I wouldn't do that.
Finding a cheap site turned out to be an adventure tonight. We stopped at one place and found out it was $32. Outrageous! So we paddled clear across the lake to a site that was $14. Much better. Plus, it was right on the water so we didn't have to haul any gear like we would have had to at the other site. We did 45 miles today, but with paddling across the lake and getting lost briefly we did more like 50. It was pretty tough but we had hot dogs and chili, our favorite meal now, waiting for us at the end of the day to motivate us.
Shortly after Red Wing we hit Lake Pepin. We had heard a lot of stories about how rough and slow moving the water can get so we were not looking forward to it. Especially since we were hitting it mid day when the winds were usually at their worst. Much to our delight it was extremely calm and there was very little wind. The water was still pretty slow, but that's to be expected on such a big lake. We saw a lot of Asian Carp today. A lot of dead Asian Carp. We also saw a lot jumping though which was kind of neat. If only they weren't so destructive.
We stopped at a sandbar but there was a sign saying no camping and no campfires, two things we wanted to do there, so we kept going. Before we left though I found an egg in the water next to a downed tree. It smelled awful and was about the size of a baseball. After sending a picture to my family we decided it was probably a bald eagle egg. I wish I would have kept it and hollowed it out. That would have been an amazing souvenir. Just to reiterate, it was in the water and it smelled terrible, so it was rotten and I wasn't harming an unborn eagle. I wouldn't do that.
Finding a cheap site turned out to be an adventure tonight. We stopped at one place and found out it was $32. Outrageous! So we paddled clear across the lake to a site that was $14. Much better. Plus, it was right on the water so we didn't have to haul any gear like we would have had to at the other site. We did 45 miles today, but with paddling across the lake and getting lost briefly we did more like 50. It was pretty tough but we had hot dogs and chili, our favorite meal now, waiting for us at the end of the day to motivate us.
Day 20: Frustration
We had breakfast at my Grandparent's place and then put back in the water at Plymouth Avenue. My Grandpa stuck around and watched us pack. As we exited the small channel the boat ramp was in he yelled, "Turn left!" just to make sure we didn't start paddling upstream. He's a funny guy.
When we got to the dam at Upper St. Anthony Falls we learned some disheartening news. The lock, as well as the lower lock and lock #1, was closed to leisure boats when the water was above 30,000 CFS. The water was currently at 35,000 CFS. Worse news was that it wasn't going to be open for at least three days. Even worse news is that they closed it on Sunday. If we had continued on Saturday we could have paddled all three locks. With how it was we were going to have to skip seven miles of water or wait until the water went down. We chose the former.
We took all of our stuff out of the canoe at the dam, portaged it across the dam (which was actually pretty cool), and then loaded it in Dick's (an Army Corps. Employee) truck. Dick tried very hard to let us lock through. He asked the lockmaster three times just to make sure. We really appreciated it even though it didn't work out. He then went even further by offering to drive us to a landing just South of lock #1. As hard as it was to skip this water, there was really no other option. I definitely did not want to lose three or more days of paddling. Anders and I decided we'll have to meet there during the break for Shannon's wedding to paddle those seven miles. Like I said before, you can't say you paddled the entire river without actually paddling the ENTIRE river. Here's to hoping the water will be down enough to lock through in a couple weeks.
We thanked Dick and then continued on to an Island campsite. Anders saw his first snake. He was petrified.
When we got to the dam at Upper St. Anthony Falls we learned some disheartening news. The lock, as well as the lower lock and lock #1, was closed to leisure boats when the water was above 30,000 CFS. The water was currently at 35,000 CFS. Worse news was that it wasn't going to be open for at least three days. Even worse news is that they closed it on Sunday. If we had continued on Saturday we could have paddled all three locks. With how it was we were going to have to skip seven miles of water or wait until the water went down. We chose the former.
We took all of our stuff out of the canoe at the dam, portaged it across the dam (which was actually pretty cool), and then loaded it in Dick's (an Army Corps. Employee) truck. Dick tried very hard to let us lock through. He asked the lockmaster three times just to make sure. We really appreciated it even though it didn't work out. He then went even further by offering to drive us to a landing just South of lock #1. As hard as it was to skip this water, there was really no other option. I definitely did not want to lose three or more days of paddling. Anders and I decided we'll have to meet there during the break for Shannon's wedding to paddle those seven miles. Like I said before, you can't say you paddled the entire river without actually paddling the ENTIRE river. Here's to hoping the water will be down enough to lock through in a couple weeks.
We thanked Dick and then continued on to an Island campsite. Anders saw his first snake. He was petrified.
Day 19: A Break
We took our first intentional day off from paddling today. We went to Dick's Sporting Goods to get seat pads and a waterproof map holder. The seat pads have been suggested to us multiple times by multiple people, but I'm stubborn at times. At least that's what I'm told. Having finally caved though, they are amazing. A huge upgrade from sitting on aluminum all day.
We then restocked our food at Wal-Mart and went to my Grandparent's for dinner. My Uncle Dan, Uncle John, Aunt Amber, Uncle Scott, cousins Doug, Tommy, Hannah, and Emily, sister Shannon and her fiancé Tim, my Grandparents and Mom were all there. It was great occasion. It meant a lot that everybody showed up. Especially since it was such short notice. Anders reveled in talking to everybody. It was very relaxing and the food was incredible. Thank you everyone for showing up!
After the house cleared out Anders and I stayed up and packed our gear for the next day.
We then restocked our food at Wal-Mart and went to my Grandparent's for dinner. My Uncle Dan, Uncle John, Aunt Amber, Uncle Scott, cousins Doug, Tommy, Hannah, and Emily, sister Shannon and her fiancé Tim, my Grandparents and Mom were all there. It was great occasion. It meant a lot that everybody showed up. Especially since it was such short notice. Anders reveled in talking to everybody. It was very relaxing and the food was incredible. Thank you everyone for showing up!
After the house cleared out Anders and I stayed up and packed our gear for the next day.
Day 18: Civilization
The forecast for the day was rain and thunderstorms starting around 2:00 P.M. We woke up, threw our stuff in the boat, and snacked on the water. We wanted to make it to the Plymouth Avenue bridge, about 35 miles, before the weather turned. We took very few breaks and paddled pretty hard, but we made it. My Mom met us there and as we were throwing the last of the gear in the back of the truck it started raining. Perfect timing. It was very cool paddling into a big city. We could see the skyline for miles before we got there. It was also the most boat traffic we had seen all trip.
We went to Smashburger, Starbucks, and the liquor store and then went to my Grandparent's house to shower up. My Mom then left and we went to our friend Charlie's place for a night on the town. We ate like we hadn't seen food in a year.
We went to Smashburger, Starbucks, and the liquor store and then went to my Grandparent's house to shower up. My Mom then left and we went to our friend Charlie's place for a night on the town. We ate like we hadn't seen food in a year.
Day 17: Sauk Rapids
The plan today was two dam portages within the first 15 miles then continue on to Monticello, about 28 miles after the second dam. We paddled 9 miles to the first dam, had another pretty long portage, and got back in our boats and paddled towards Sauk Rapids.
I had read a little bit about these rapids, but nobody ever made that big of a deal about them. They were barely even mentioned in most of the research I did. The other guys we were with said they could be up to class 3, but I was still skeptic. As we paddled closer, however, I could tell that they were indeed rapids and not "rapids" like everything else up to this point. We slowed down to try and find the safest line (it would have been smarter to pull off to the side and scout them), but we really couldn't see too much. The entire river looked pretty choppy. The other three boats went ahead of us and all took different lines. We sat back a bit and watched to see whose looked safer. Josh was going through sideways, a big no-no, and had yet to flip so we figured we would be safe going down the right way. The first section was big, we took on some water, but it wasn't overly scary. I briefly worried about flipping since I didn't have any experience in rapids this big in a canoe, but I just focused on keeping us squared up to the waves and we were fine. After this section though I looked to the right and there were more rapids. Quite a bit bigger too. We had no time to scout for the best line in this section. We were already in it. We skirted one wave, hit the brunt of another, took on more water, repeat. Holes and waves were everywhere. While trying to avoid one hole we would end up paddling straight for another. At one point we were trying to get to the side of a pretty significant wave when Anders finally said, "We're not making it. Square up!" So we did. Anders, sitting in the front of the canoe, described it as being thrust into a three foot wall of water. After the front of the boat hit the wave it made its way to the back, lifting the front and slamming it down back into the water. It was incredibly fun. Also terrifying. I would briefly think about our course of action if we were to capsize, but quickly realized I could only focus on keeping us squared up to the waves. At least I knew all of our supplies (minus rain gear and few other small things) were securely strapped in.
At one point in this second section I scanned the water ahead of us to make sure Alex, Gus, and Josh were still upright. I couldn't say for sure, but it looked like Josh had capsized and was swimming next to his canoe. I said to Anders, "I think Josh is down!"
He yelled back, "I know, I told you that a minute ago!"
It was too loud. I didn't even hear him.
With the adrenaline coursing through us we hit wave after wave and continued to take on water. No matter how hard we paddled we couldn't get completely out of most the waves. We skirted a lot and hit the brunt of a lot but we finally made it out into calmer water. We were in calmer water, however we were still not in the clear. We had about 6-8 inches of water in the canoe adding weight and making it extremely unstable. My first reaction was to get to shore as quickly as possible to bail all the water out, but Josh had capsized and all of his gear was slowly floating away. We grabbed one of his bags which had to weigh 60 pounds since it was soaking wet and paddled it closer to shore. Anders had to just hold on to it. It was too heavy to lift into the boat and I was afraid if we tried it would flip us. We dropped it off next to Alex who slowly nudged it all the way to shore and went back out into the middle of the river to gather more stuff. Gus had picked up Josh's paddles already. He put them in our canoe and set out to grab more stuff as well. We picked up water bottles, sunscreen, bug spray, tires to the portage cart, etc. Gus continued on to a boat landing across the river while Anders and I went back to shore so we could give Josh his paddles. Anders stayed and used our water pump to slowly rid the canoe of it's newfound weight while I walked along the shoreline to bring Josh some of his things.
Eventually we all made it to the landing Gus was at to return all of Josh's gear and talk about how incredibly fun, nerve racking, and adrenaline pumping the rapids were. Also how lucky we were that we were all together. While going through the rapids we at least knew that if we flipped we had help on the other side. That made the situation a lot less intimidating. If we weren't there Josh still would have his boat and he would have made it to shore just fine, but there's a pretty good chance a lot of his gear would be dam fodder three miles later. His trip would have taken a major setback. Luckily, his biggest loss of the day was his cell phone.
Shortly after the rapid excitement we had another portage. At this point we said our goodbyes to Josh, Gus, and Alex. They were going to try and track down a phone for Josh and get some food. We still had the goal of making it to Monticello so we could make it to the Twin Cities the next day. We gave Gus our numbers and set off. It was fun paddling with other people. Hopefully we'll meet back up down the river.
We ended up making it to Monticello a little before 8:00. There was another campsite seven miles downriver that we decided we could make before dark so we grabbed some Dominos and got back on the water. We kicked out those seven miles in 50 minutes. We paddled hard. We set up camp, scarfed down our pizzas, and passed out. Hard.
I had read a little bit about these rapids, but nobody ever made that big of a deal about them. They were barely even mentioned in most of the research I did. The other guys we were with said they could be up to class 3, but I was still skeptic. As we paddled closer, however, I could tell that they were indeed rapids and not "rapids" like everything else up to this point. We slowed down to try and find the safest line (it would have been smarter to pull off to the side and scout them), but we really couldn't see too much. The entire river looked pretty choppy. The other three boats went ahead of us and all took different lines. We sat back a bit and watched to see whose looked safer. Josh was going through sideways, a big no-no, and had yet to flip so we figured we would be safe going down the right way. The first section was big, we took on some water, but it wasn't overly scary. I briefly worried about flipping since I didn't have any experience in rapids this big in a canoe, but I just focused on keeping us squared up to the waves and we were fine. After this section though I looked to the right and there were more rapids. Quite a bit bigger too. We had no time to scout for the best line in this section. We were already in it. We skirted one wave, hit the brunt of another, took on more water, repeat. Holes and waves were everywhere. While trying to avoid one hole we would end up paddling straight for another. At one point we were trying to get to the side of a pretty significant wave when Anders finally said, "We're not making it. Square up!" So we did. Anders, sitting in the front of the canoe, described it as being thrust into a three foot wall of water. After the front of the boat hit the wave it made its way to the back, lifting the front and slamming it down back into the water. It was incredibly fun. Also terrifying. I would briefly think about our course of action if we were to capsize, but quickly realized I could only focus on keeping us squared up to the waves. At least I knew all of our supplies (minus rain gear and few other small things) were securely strapped in.
At one point in this second section I scanned the water ahead of us to make sure Alex, Gus, and Josh were still upright. I couldn't say for sure, but it looked like Josh had capsized and was swimming next to his canoe. I said to Anders, "I think Josh is down!"
He yelled back, "I know, I told you that a minute ago!"
It was too loud. I didn't even hear him.
With the adrenaline coursing through us we hit wave after wave and continued to take on water. No matter how hard we paddled we couldn't get completely out of most the waves. We skirted a lot and hit the brunt of a lot but we finally made it out into calmer water. We were in calmer water, however we were still not in the clear. We had about 6-8 inches of water in the canoe adding weight and making it extremely unstable. My first reaction was to get to shore as quickly as possible to bail all the water out, but Josh had capsized and all of his gear was slowly floating away. We grabbed one of his bags which had to weigh 60 pounds since it was soaking wet and paddled it closer to shore. Anders had to just hold on to it. It was too heavy to lift into the boat and I was afraid if we tried it would flip us. We dropped it off next to Alex who slowly nudged it all the way to shore and went back out into the middle of the river to gather more stuff. Gus had picked up Josh's paddles already. He put them in our canoe and set out to grab more stuff as well. We picked up water bottles, sunscreen, bug spray, tires to the portage cart, etc. Gus continued on to a boat landing across the river while Anders and I went back to shore so we could give Josh his paddles. Anders stayed and used our water pump to slowly rid the canoe of it's newfound weight while I walked along the shoreline to bring Josh some of his things.
Eventually we all made it to the landing Gus was at to return all of Josh's gear and talk about how incredibly fun, nerve racking, and adrenaline pumping the rapids were. Also how lucky we were that we were all together. While going through the rapids we at least knew that if we flipped we had help on the other side. That made the situation a lot less intimidating. If we weren't there Josh still would have his boat and he would have made it to shore just fine, but there's a pretty good chance a lot of his gear would be dam fodder three miles later. His trip would have taken a major setback. Luckily, his biggest loss of the day was his cell phone.
Shortly after the rapid excitement we had another portage. At this point we said our goodbyes to Josh, Gus, and Alex. They were going to try and track down a phone for Josh and get some food. We still had the goal of making it to Monticello so we could make it to the Twin Cities the next day. We gave Gus our numbers and set off. It was fun paddling with other people. Hopefully we'll meet back up down the river.
We ended up making it to Monticello a little before 8:00. There was another campsite seven miles downriver that we decided we could make before dark so we grabbed some Dominos and got back on the water. We kicked out those seven miles in 50 minutes. We paddled hard. We set up camp, scarfed down our pizzas, and passed out. Hard.
Wednesday, June 4, 2014
Day 16: Portages
We continued with Josh, Alex, and Gus today. We did 51 miles with two tough portages. The second one was insanely hard and way longer than the advertised 300 yards. Figure it out MN DNR. It was also up and down two railroad grades and across a creek with a narrow bridge. We had to haul all of our gear along these obstacles while walking through a fog of mosquitoes. Multiple times I had to drop the load I was carrying in order to swat the blood suckers away. Portaging with other people made for a quicker transition in the long run, but it was probably more tiring. Rather than completely emptying our canoe like we had been doing for long portages, we left a lot of stuff in it and just put in on Josh's portage wheels. It was still hard and we couldn't use the wheels the whole time with the railroad grades and the bridge. Plus, Alex and Gus leave their kayaks fully loaded when they portage. We helped with one of them and it was extremely heavy. Those two guys are much stronger than us. Especially Alex. He is seriously the strongest man I have ever met. Hopefully he doesn't read this. He dragged our canoe out of the water by himself further than Anders and I could have done together. He played football (O-Line) for awhile at North Dakota so I guess that makes sense.
Tonight was the most tired I have been this whole trip but it feels amazing. Although it was hard it was also very rewarding. Lots of miles, two hard portages, and good company make for a great day.
The mosquitoes continue to be an issue. We ate our dinner, pinto beans, baked beans, corn, and white rice tortillas, in the tent in order to escape them.
Tonight was the most tired I have been this whole trip but it feels amazing. Although it was hard it was also very rewarding. Lots of miles, two hard portages, and good company make for a great day.
The mosquitoes continue to be an issue. We ate our dinner, pinto beans, baked beans, corn, and white rice tortillas, in the tent in order to escape them.
Day 15: River Companions Continued
We paddled all day with Josh, Alex, and Gus. It made for a great day that absolutely flew by. We did 44 miles and it seemed so much easier than the previous day. Conversation really makes the time fly. We talked a little bit about our differing experiences in the upper section of the river. Gus and Alex hit Cass Lake on a windy day and said it was awful. We hit it on a perfect day and wasn't bad at all. Josh did Winnie in the middle of the night, straight across, and got off at 10:30 P.M. He was offered a beer when he finally finished and rightfully accepted it. They had been putting in a lot more miles than Anders and I. I don't remember exactly when they put in the water in Itasca, but it was a couple days after us and had already caught up to us.
We went through some beautiful terrain today right before Brainerd. It's easy to see why so many people have cabins here. The only thing I couldn't handle is the winters. And maybe the mosquitoes. They're pretty awful.
Poison Ivy Update: Drenching it in sunscreen has helped immensely. It looks to finally be receding.
We went through some beautiful terrain today right before Brainerd. It's easy to see why so many people have cabins here. The only thing I couldn't handle is the winters. And maybe the mosquitoes. They're pretty awful.
Poison Ivy Update: Drenching it in sunscreen has helped immensely. It looks to finally be receding.
Day 14: River Companions
We finally spent an entire day on the river today and felt amazing. 7:30 A.M. to about 8:00 P.M. with 45 glorious miles in between. We even stopped in Aitkin at the library Uncle Dave suggested to blog for a little bit.
Towards the end of our day we saw two kayaks and a solo canoe pulled off on the shore. The three people on shore yelled over to us and asked how far we were going which is a very common question when people see how much gear we are hauling.
Anders yelled, "The Gulf!"
A man on shore yelled back, "Us too! Where are you camping tonight?"
Anders, "Lone Pine!"
The man, "Us too! We'll see you there!"
We were excited. Not only were we going to have neighbors to talk to, but they were neighbors that had the same plan as us. Also, neighbors that we could chat about the upper section with. We pulled into camp and found out the kayakers just met the solo canoer yesterday. They started at different times and just happened to run into each other in Jacobson. After meeting and talking they decided they would paddle together until the Twin Cities. Alex and Gus, the kayakers, were from Duluth and Josh, the solo canoeist, was from Winona. Josh was in the Marines and is now doing this trip to raise awareness for PTSD. Alex and Gus recently graduated college and are kind of doing the trip as a last hurrah before the real world.
We have decided that we'll paddle with them tomorrow for sure and then possibly all the way to the Cities. They want to get there by Saturday which would require a lot of high mileage days. The past two days they paddled over a hundred miles. I'm jealous.
Towards the end of our day we saw two kayaks and a solo canoe pulled off on the shore. The three people on shore yelled over to us and asked how far we were going which is a very common question when people see how much gear we are hauling.
Anders yelled, "The Gulf!"
A man on shore yelled back, "Us too! Where are you camping tonight?"
Anders, "Lone Pine!"
The man, "Us too! We'll see you there!"
We were excited. Not only were we going to have neighbors to talk to, but they were neighbors that had the same plan as us. Also, neighbors that we could chat about the upper section with. We pulled into camp and found out the kayakers just met the solo canoer yesterday. They started at different times and just happened to run into each other in Jacobson. After meeting and talking they decided they would paddle together until the Twin Cities. Alex and Gus, the kayakers, were from Duluth and Josh, the solo canoeist, was from Winona. Josh was in the Marines and is now doing this trip to raise awareness for PTSD. Alex and Gus recently graduated college and are kind of doing the trip as a last hurrah before the real world.
We have decided that we'll paddle with them tomorrow for sure and then possibly all the way to the Cities. They want to get there by Saturday which would require a lot of high mileage days. The past two days they paddled over a hundred miles. I'm jealous.
Day 13: Back at it
Despite the beer and staying up later than I am used to I woke up around 6:00 A.M. With a headache of course. Good thing we don't have to jump right back on the river today. When Anders and my Mom woke up we made coffee and breakfast burritos. We're getting spoiled I know. We showered at the campsite and then gathered all our gear to continue back on the water. We said goodbye to Mom and pushed off.
Beth and Dave gave us a whole bunch of cookies yesterday. I probably ate a thousand of them today. They are delicious. When my Mom asked a few days ago what we wanted her to bring us we said hot dogs, beer, breakfast burrito fixings, and twizzlers. I had been craving twizzlers for two days for some reason. She brought all of those things and then some. Rather than bringing a normal sized bag of twizzlers though, she buys the 2 pound gigantic bag that screams twizzler addiction. In order to take some of the weight out of the canoe I decided to eat about a pound of them today.
We passed two kids canoeing today with a homemade mast. Their plan was to go from Jacobson to the Iowa border. They were barely paddling and not moving very fast. Anders thinks they were high. I tend to agree. If we see them again we'll make sure to offer them some twizzlers. I think they would appreciate that.
Our campsite tonight is at the confluence of the Mississippi and Willow River. As the Willow flows in you can distinctly see the difference in water color. Even the rate of flow is different. They run side by side for a couple hundred yards and look like two different rivers.
Beth and Dave gave us a whole bunch of cookies yesterday. I probably ate a thousand of them today. They are delicious. When my Mom asked a few days ago what we wanted her to bring us we said hot dogs, beer, breakfast burrito fixings, and twizzlers. I had been craving twizzlers for two days for some reason. She brought all of those things and then some. Rather than bringing a normal sized bag of twizzlers though, she buys the 2 pound gigantic bag that screams twizzler addiction. In order to take some of the weight out of the canoe I decided to eat about a pound of them today.
We passed two kids canoeing today with a homemade mast. Their plan was to go from Jacobson to the Iowa border. They were barely paddling and not moving very fast. Anders thinks they were high. I tend to agree. If we see them again we'll make sure to offer them some twizzlers. I think they would appreciate that.
Our campsite tonight is at the confluence of the Mississippi and Willow River. As the Willow flows in you can distinctly see the difference in water color. Even the rate of flow is different. They run side by side for a couple hundred yards and look like two different rivers.
Day 12: Company
Motivated by company, beer, and hot dogs we paddled 24 miles by 1:30 to Big Sandy Rec Area. We were very tired, but it would all be worth it later on. Since we paddled so quickly and the current pushed us quite a bit we had time to kill before my Mom and Aunt Beth and Uncle Dave were set to arrive. I went on a walk to tour the campground and Anders immediately began frantically writing down a story idea he came up with while paddling. If he ever writes a best seller, I'll assume this is where it started.
My Mom arrived first. We dove into the chips and Top the Tater (SO DELICIOUS) and cracked open our first good beer of the trip. It was great. Thanks Mom. Beth and Dave then arrived with more beer and margaritas which they kept cool in a travel growler. They were extremely refreshing.
After responsibly consuming a few beverages we went to Zorbaz for some food. They had good beer on tap, Surly Furious, and the food menu looked decent as well. The only problem was that all the "s" in the menu and pretty much the entire restaurant were changed to "z." It was incredibly frustrating trying to read the menu. Then of course everybody started reading it and saying the "z." That got old fast. But then I started doing it and it was fun. Then it got old again. I'm assuming our waitress' name was Ashley and not the "Azhley" that was printed on her nametag. I could be wrong though. People name their kids weird things nowadays.
It was really nice to spend some time with family and get a pampered a little bit. It was also nice to chat with people who were excited and interested in the trip. Dave kept pulling out maps looking at the next couple of days and also the delta to see what we should do when we get down there. He even did some research and informed us that the Aitkin library is just seven blocks from the river. This was his way of saying, "Hey guys, update your blogs!" I'm glad to know that people are actually enjoying reading them.
My Mom arrived first. We dove into the chips and Top the Tater (SO DELICIOUS) and cracked open our first good beer of the trip. It was great. Thanks Mom. Beth and Dave then arrived with more beer and margaritas which they kept cool in a travel growler. They were extremely refreshing.
After responsibly consuming a few beverages we went to Zorbaz for some food. They had good beer on tap, Surly Furious, and the food menu looked decent as well. The only problem was that all the "s" in the menu and pretty much the entire restaurant were changed to "z." It was incredibly frustrating trying to read the menu. Then of course everybody started reading it and saying the "z." That got old fast. But then I started doing it and it was fun. Then it got old again. I'm assuming our waitress' name was Ashley and not the "Azhley" that was printed on her nametag. I could be wrong though. People name their kids weird things nowadays.
It was really nice to spend some time with family and get a pampered a little bit. It was also nice to chat with people who were excited and interested in the trip. Dave kept pulling out maps looking at the next couple of days and also the delta to see what we should do when we get down there. He even did some research and informed us that the Aitkin library is just seven blocks from the river. This was his way of saying, "Hey guys, update your blogs!" I'm glad to know that people are actually enjoying reading them.
Day 11: Mosquitos
We paddled 35 miles today, a personal record. We had an easy 12-13 before lunch, then 9 more to a campground to get water, then 12 more to Willow Wood canoe campsite. We did this in order to get to Big Sandy Dam Rec Area to camp with my Mom, Aunt Beth, and Uncle Dave the next night.
My poison Ivy hasn't gotten much better. It turns out the sun won't actually burn it off. Who knew? I also started to boil up on my right shoulder. Too much sun! I had to put a shirt on for the rest of the day.
In the past two days the river has really started to open up and flow faster. It is still nothing like the mile wide behemoth it will become, but it's fun to see it get wider every day.
Tonight was the first night the mosquitos were really really bad. They were only marginally annoying before, but now we are both doused in bug spray and that doesn't even seem to be working.
Looking forward to some company and good beer tomorrow.
My poison Ivy hasn't gotten much better. It turns out the sun won't actually burn it off. Who knew? I also started to boil up on my right shoulder. Too much sun! I had to put a shirt on for the rest of the day.
In the past two days the river has really started to open up and flow faster. It is still nothing like the mile wide behemoth it will become, but it's fun to see it get wider every day.
Tonight was the first night the mosquitos were really really bad. They were only marginally annoying before, but now we are both doused in bug spray and that doesn't even seem to be working.
Looking forward to some company and good beer tomorrow.
Day 10: Frank's Backyard
As we paddle away from the RV "campground" we heard a "Bon Voyage!" yelled at us from shore. It was Jim. Thanks Jim.
We arrived at the next portage spot, Blandin Paper Company, and couldn't quite tell where the portage was. We could see the dam and we knew we had to go to the right, but all we could see were houses. We didn't want to pull up in somebody's backyard and unpack all our gear. We saw a man riding a peddle catamaran and he pointed us to somebody's backyard with a sign posted. Turns out it was his backyard and the sign posted was the portage route. The man peddled up to the shore with us, got out, and started chatting with us. His name was Frank. Frank's house has waterfront property, but technically the city and Blandin own the shoreline so he gets some of the benefits of being right on the water (like owning awesome peddle catamarans) without paying waterfront property taxes. His backyard is technically a street, but it's grass. On the map it's even labeled as a street. It was weird, but all I know is I'm happy that Frank is the one living there. He almost immediately offered us coffee, which I gladly accepted, and then chatted a little bit with us about our trip. He then let us leave our stuff on his lawn while we went into town to visit the library, get food, and groceries.
When we got back there was a boy about 12 years old fishing. His name was Peyton and he LOVED fishing. It was also pretty apparent he was a big fan of Frank. "Hey Frank, can I use a minnow? Hey Frank, remember that time you caught that big northern? Hey Frank, I lost a lure." Frank complied with most of his wishes and nodded patiently. Peyton was a much better fisherman than me. He caught two northerns in the short time we stayed to chat.
The reason the portage was hard to find, we later learned from Frank, was that most people don't use it. There was a sign at the last dam that we half read that talked about a shuttle service from that dam to the other side of the Blandin dam. The shuttle service skips 3-4 miles of beautiful river and one beautiful man's house. Even if we would have read it fully I don't think we would have taken advantage of it. After all, you can't really say you paddled the entire Mississippi if you skip 3-4 miles right? Frank did offer to drive our stuff over to the put in, but completely understood that we wanted "the experience," as he called it, of doing as much of this trip as possible without motor transportation. It was a pretty long portage but absolutely worth it. On our last trip of hauling stuff to the put in we said goodbye to Frank and thanked him for letting us leave our stuff there. Peyton then caught another fish. Way to rub it in kid.
We only paddled 20 miles today. It was a gorgeous day. The sun was shining, there was very little wind, and the paddling just seemed easy. We got to camp and realized someone really cares about the campsite we were at. There was a wood rack with a shingled roof, a bench made of of logs, and a bear proof locker. The bear proof locker worried Anders. He thinks that's a sign that bears come. Inside the locker was a note from the future. It said, "Thank you- Doug somethingorother" and was dated 5-24-14. Today is 5-23-14. I wish I could ask Future Doug about the future.
We arrived at the next portage spot, Blandin Paper Company, and couldn't quite tell where the portage was. We could see the dam and we knew we had to go to the right, but all we could see were houses. We didn't want to pull up in somebody's backyard and unpack all our gear. We saw a man riding a peddle catamaran and he pointed us to somebody's backyard with a sign posted. Turns out it was his backyard and the sign posted was the portage route. The man peddled up to the shore with us, got out, and started chatting with us. His name was Frank. Frank's house has waterfront property, but technically the city and Blandin own the shoreline so he gets some of the benefits of being right on the water (like owning awesome peddle catamarans) without paying waterfront property taxes. His backyard is technically a street, but it's grass. On the map it's even labeled as a street. It was weird, but all I know is I'm happy that Frank is the one living there. He almost immediately offered us coffee, which I gladly accepted, and then chatted a little bit with us about our trip. He then let us leave our stuff on his lawn while we went into town to visit the library, get food, and groceries.
When we got back there was a boy about 12 years old fishing. His name was Peyton and he LOVED fishing. It was also pretty apparent he was a big fan of Frank. "Hey Frank, can I use a minnow? Hey Frank, remember that time you caught that big northern? Hey Frank, I lost a lure." Frank complied with most of his wishes and nodded patiently. Peyton was a much better fisherman than me. He caught two northerns in the short time we stayed to chat.
The reason the portage was hard to find, we later learned from Frank, was that most people don't use it. There was a sign at the last dam that we half read that talked about a shuttle service from that dam to the other side of the Blandin dam. The shuttle service skips 3-4 miles of beautiful river and one beautiful man's house. Even if we would have read it fully I don't think we would have taken advantage of it. After all, you can't really say you paddled the entire Mississippi if you skip 3-4 miles right? Frank did offer to drive our stuff over to the put in, but completely understood that we wanted "the experience," as he called it, of doing as much of this trip as possible without motor transportation. It was a pretty long portage but absolutely worth it. On our last trip of hauling stuff to the put in we said goodbye to Frank and thanked him for letting us leave our stuff there. Peyton then caught another fish. Way to rub it in kid.
We only paddled 20 miles today. It was a gorgeous day. The sun was shining, there was very little wind, and the paddling just seemed easy. We got to camp and realized someone really cares about the campsite we were at. There was a wood rack with a shingled roof, a bench made of of logs, and a bear proof locker. The bear proof locker worried Anders. He thinks that's a sign that bears come. Inside the locker was a note from the future. It said, "Thank you- Doug somethingorother" and was dated 5-24-14. Today is 5-23-14. I wish I could ask Future Doug about the future.
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