Day 45: Pros and Cons

Traveling in a group has its pros and cons.


Pros: We had been cutting through large bends in the river, cutting off distance, but also leaving the swift current of the main channel.  Josh and Aleks always stayed in the channel which seemed to be the right move.  More people to talk to.  They insist on very rarely getting out of the boat, because you're still moving if you just float.  Also, it takes a long time to get to shore or an island when the river is this wide and the current so strong.  It makes sense and we definitely covered some ground today: 79 miles.


Cons: They take about a half hour longer than us to pack up camp.  My legs go insane sitting in the boat for so long.  Today we got out twice over a twelve hour period.  It starts to feel less like OUR trip.


The floating is very peaceful, but it's hard to just sit there.  Today I felt like it was O.K. for the most part.  It was a beautiful day.  Very little wind and perfect temperature.  There was a point today in which you couldn't see as far as the river went, it was that straight for that long.


There are moments of complete bliss on this trip where I realize all that I gave up and all that I am getting in return.  In these moments a big goofy smile materializes on my face.  It happened twice today.