Monday, June 28, 2010
warm up run
Kyle and I are going to do a warm up run on the Missouri River on Wednesday. Hope to put in at Kaw Point and paddle to Fort Osage. With the high water and fast current we may not have to paddle much but we need the seat time which will payoff when the big show starts.
Monday, May 24, 2010
KATY 257
Tom and I completed our ride of the KATY trail from Clinton to St. Charles this morning. It is actually 225 miles but we took a few food detours. I would have to say the bike ride was more demanding than the MR340. Tom says the MR340 was more demanding but his team did it in about 20 some fewer hours than we did. Our photo was taken where the KATY goes over the Auxvasse Creek near its mouth.
If you are interested in the KATY ride you can check out Tom's blog at: http://bigmuddyriver.wordpress.com/
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
first river trip of 2010
Kyle and I made our first run on the Missouri River Sunday. We covered 15 miles in about 2 hours and 20 minutes despite a strong wind out of the south. The river was up so the current was good. At one point we were moving at 11.3mph. We had the river to ourselves other than being buzzed by the Blue Angels.
Friday, April 2, 2010
2010 Test Run
Kyle and I took a quick test run on a local lake last night. All went very well. We were experiencing some strong winds here in northwest Missouri which added an additional element to our test run. We paddled out about a mile and then back. On the way back into the wind I broke my paddle. It was one of my bent shaft paddles so I hated to break it but it was better here than on the river. I had a spare so we were able to proceed on. We hope to get in a test run from St Joseph to Atchison, Ks in a few days to get in our first river run of this year.
Thursday, April 1, 2010
The Final Day
My hands showing 17 blisters and the GPS showing 339.8 miles.
Photo taken by Betty at the finish line, Chad, Russ and Jeff
If you are just beginning to read this blog it might make more sense if you began at the bottom or the older post.
The Final Day!
Just like the previous mornings we are up after about a 4 hour nap. Except, this morning there is a sense of urgency to get the canoe back on the water. We can smell the finish line and can anticipate the feeling of accomplishment that will overtake us as we make our final landing in about 60 miles. It’s hard to imagine that we have already traveled 280 miles on the Mighty Missouri River. Thanks to the excellent support of Jeff we were able to leave our tent and supplies behind knowing he would load them up and meet us in St. Charles.
I don’t remember the time when we launched from Washington but it was shortly after daybreak. We carried the canoe down to the rivers edge and slipped back into our routine of paddling always trying to stay in the best current to maximize our efforts. For breakfast we feasted on left over pizza. It was almost as good cold as it was when Terry delivered it to us at Mokane about 12 hours ago.
This is a scenic section of the river as well and we were able to take in the beauty of Mother Natures despite the Corps of Engineers handiwork. At this point I have become less alert and I don’t remember a lot of the details until we rounded the big bend in the River as we approached Washington, MO.
As soon as we cleared the bend we could see the bridge over the river and the marina and big landing area at Washington which was still about 3 or4 miles away which should take us about 50 minutes to reach. We didn’t anticipate the big wind that would be blowing upstream. The current was moving at about 4 mph here and the wind must have been blowing nearly 20mph. Had I known about this section of the river and how difficult it would have been to fight the wind these 3 or 4 miles I think I would have insisted that we proceed on instead of taking our nap in Herman last night.
Each time we took a break from paddling the breeze would catch our canoe turn it broadside to the wind and start sending us back towards Kansas City. We attempted to get as close to the bank as possible thinking there would be some protection from the wind there but we found that was not the case. We thought about getting out to tow the canoe but the bank was too steep and once we came along the rock levies the footing was too uncertain. So we just paddled and paddled and paddled. This was no doubt the most difficult 3 miles of the entire trip.
We could plainly see the bridge and boat ramp and it seemed to almost never change position. I can’t say for sure how long it took us to paddle that stretch of the river but once we arrived at the Washington boat ramp we took an unscheduled break. After landing the canoe we walked up to the visitors center and around the area just to get away from the water and wind for a few minutes. It’s just a few miles from Washington to Klondike, which is the last checkpoint before St. Charles, so we head back out on the river to check in at Klondike. As a rule there are food vendors at the check points but we were far enough behind that they were about sold out. We purchased warm Gatorade, peaches and a candy bar and put back in the current at 4pm for the final 28 mile dash for the Lewis and Clark boathouse.
This was the fastest segment of the river as well as the most populated area. We were beginning to see a lot of recreational boaters. We had seen a few along the way but far more were active here. We had one boater who must have thought it would be fun to play chicken with our canoe. He bore down on us in his 100 something horsepower speed boat turning away just ahead of our bow to be sure we got the entire benefit of his wake. Most boaters were courteous of our canoe but this guy needed to make up for something he was lacking with his big boat. I wish we would have had a bow piece (canon) like was on the Keelboat.
Despite the arrogance of the boater we managed the wake very well. Most of the time my GPS was recording speeds of 8 to 10 mph thru this area of the river. We had the extra current from all of the other rivers and streams plus the adrenaline rush one experiences when a difficult challenge is about to be mastered.
Soon the I-70 Bridge over the Missouri River is in sight. About 82 hours ago we began this adventure 1 ½ hours behind schedule. Since we started 1 ½ hours behind schedule I figured the banquet at the finish line would be delayed by 1 ½ hours as well which meant we would arrive at the finish line in time for the banquet. I knew many of my DESC friends were cooking the meal and had great expectations for some exceedingly good food.
Once we were past the bridge and the casino the boat house was in full view and be began our approach for our final landing just as the sun was setting which seemed very appropriate. In anticipation of this moment I had put on my “round hat” which was part of my official 1804 dress blue uniform while doing the Lewis and Clark reenactment. Not only is the hat round but it has a bear fur strip about 3” wide that runs over the top of the hat from front to back and a deer tail mounted on the left side. So it is quite fancy and I thought it good to wear it as we landed at the Lewis and Clark boathouse.
As we approached the landing Chad asks “Pop what do you think”? I had quit thinking several hours ago so it was difficult for me to respond but I did manage to get out something like we are a great team and we work well together. We guided the canoe up on the beach there at the finish line to a modest round of applause from the few folks watching the best of the worst make their final landing.
The crew of “Itswoot” had been there for a day but they came down to the riverfront to congratulate us. We headed to the boathouse to chow down on some of that famous DESC bar-b-que but to our disappointment it was all gone. They didn’t delay the banquet 1 ½ hours like I had anticipated. So with empty stomachs we took a shower there at the boathouse, loaded our gear on my truck and went to the Trailhead and ate fish with the “Itswoot” crew and Jeff who had helped support both boats. It was a fitting end for the adventure.
Just like the previous mornings we are up after about a 4 hour nap. Except, this morning there is a sense of urgency to get the canoe back on the water. We can smell the finish line and can anticipate the feeling of accomplishment that will overtake us as we make our final landing in about 60 miles. It’s hard to imagine that we have already traveled 280 miles on the Mighty Missouri River. Thanks to the excellent support of Jeff we were able to leave our tent and supplies behind knowing he would load them up and meet us in St. Charles.
I don’t remember the time when we launched from Washington but it was shortly after daybreak. We carried the canoe down to the rivers edge and slipped back into our routine of paddling always trying to stay in the best current to maximize our efforts. For breakfast we feasted on left over pizza. It was almost as good cold as it was when Terry delivered it to us at Mokane about 12 hours ago.
This is a scenic section of the river as well and we were able to take in the beauty of Mother Natures despite the Corps of Engineers handiwork. At this point I have become less alert and I don’t remember a lot of the details until we rounded the big bend in the River as we approached Washington, MO.
As soon as we cleared the bend we could see the bridge over the river and the marina and big landing area at Washington which was still about 3 or4 miles away which should take us about 50 minutes to reach. We didn’t anticipate the big wind that would be blowing upstream. The current was moving at about 4 mph here and the wind must have been blowing nearly 20mph. Had I known about this section of the river and how difficult it would have been to fight the wind these 3 or 4 miles I think I would have insisted that we proceed on instead of taking our nap in Herman last night.
Each time we took a break from paddling the breeze would catch our canoe turn it broadside to the wind and start sending us back towards Kansas City. We attempted to get as close to the bank as possible thinking there would be some protection from the wind there but we found that was not the case. We thought about getting out to tow the canoe but the bank was too steep and once we came along the rock levies the footing was too uncertain. So we just paddled and paddled and paddled. This was no doubt the most difficult 3 miles of the entire trip.
We could plainly see the bridge and boat ramp and it seemed to almost never change position. I can’t say for sure how long it took us to paddle that stretch of the river but once we arrived at the Washington boat ramp we took an unscheduled break. After landing the canoe we walked up to the visitors center and around the area just to get away from the water and wind for a few minutes. It’s just a few miles from Washington to Klondike, which is the last checkpoint before St. Charles, so we head back out on the river to check in at Klondike. As a rule there are food vendors at the check points but we were far enough behind that they were about sold out. We purchased warm Gatorade, peaches and a candy bar and put back in the current at 4pm for the final 28 mile dash for the Lewis and Clark boathouse.
This was the fastest segment of the river as well as the most populated area. We were beginning to see a lot of recreational boaters. We had seen a few along the way but far more were active here. We had one boater who must have thought it would be fun to play chicken with our canoe. He bore down on us in his 100 something horsepower speed boat turning away just ahead of our bow to be sure we got the entire benefit of his wake. Most boaters were courteous of our canoe but this guy needed to make up for something he was lacking with his big boat. I wish we would have had a bow piece (canon) like was on the Keelboat.
Despite the arrogance of the boater we managed the wake very well. Most of the time my GPS was recording speeds of 8 to 10 mph thru this area of the river. We had the extra current from all of the other rivers and streams plus the adrenaline rush one experiences when a difficult challenge is about to be mastered.
Soon the I-70 Bridge over the Missouri River is in sight. About 82 hours ago we began this adventure 1 ½ hours behind schedule. Since we started 1 ½ hours behind schedule I figured the banquet at the finish line would be delayed by 1 ½ hours as well which meant we would arrive at the finish line in time for the banquet. I knew many of my DESC friends were cooking the meal and had great expectations for some exceedingly good food.
Once we were past the bridge and the casino the boat house was in full view and be began our approach for our final landing just as the sun was setting which seemed very appropriate. In anticipation of this moment I had put on my “round hat” which was part of my official 1804 dress blue uniform while doing the Lewis and Clark reenactment. Not only is the hat round but it has a bear fur strip about 3” wide that runs over the top of the hat from front to back and a deer tail mounted on the left side. So it is quite fancy and I thought it good to wear it as we landed at the Lewis and Clark boathouse.
As we approached the landing Chad asks “Pop what do you think”? I had quit thinking several hours ago so it was difficult for me to respond but I did manage to get out something like we are a great team and we work well together. We guided the canoe up on the beach there at the finish line to a modest round of applause from the few folks watching the best of the worst make their final landing.
The crew of “Itswoot” had been there for a day but they came down to the riverfront to congratulate us. We headed to the boathouse to chow down on some of that famous DESC bar-b-que but to our disappointment it was all gone. They didn’t delay the banquet 1 ½ hours like I had anticipated. So with empty stomachs we took a shower there at the boathouse, loaded our gear on my truck and went to the Trailhead and ate fish with the “Itswoot” crew and Jeff who had helped support both boats. It was a fitting end for the adventure.
Friday, March 12, 2010
Heave Ho Herman
PART 3
As we continued down river into the darkness we had pretty much fallen into a routine which propelled us on to our goal of St. Charles . Tonight our goal was Herman and as we paddled out of Callaway County one of the old jodies from our river travels with the Discovery Expedition of St. Charles came to mind:
Oh the Callaway women ain’t got no combs
Haul away, haul away
They comb their hair with catfish bones.
And we’re bound away to Louisiana.
Of course we were bound for Herman at the time so we gave a Heave Ho and made some of the best time we had since beginning the journey. We also came to the realization that no one had passed us since we left Glasgow which seemed like a long time ago and that we were passing every canoe in sight. Granted the fastest were so far ahead of us that some were actually done by now and others were so far ahead we would never see them until we reached to final destination but at this point we were the best of the worst. This trend continued for the rest of the journey.
A couple of times during the night we caught up with others who were traveling by moonlight. It is a common practice to band together during darkness to help each other identify any possible dangers as a group. For Chad and I the pace was too slow and every time we caught up with a group we would become impatient and take off on our own.
This may have been my favorite segment of the trip. We knew we were going to finish and now what had began as a race had evolved into an adventure. There are 300 some million souls in the United States of America and we were part of a very small elite group out on the Missouri River in a tiny boat communing with nature in all of her glory while the rest of America was sleeping. It was very quiet except for the occasional splash of one of our paddles or a low flying aircraft. It was one of those moments when if talking became necessary one would talk in whispers (or at least those that hear well would). With Chad, now a father of a son and a daughter to soon make her appearance we had conservations as equals dad to dad not as father and son about the hopes we had for our children. We also talked about our spiritually and beliefs. No doubt, in any other environment conversations we would have never had.
Even when we were in the darkest part of the river we could still see anything that seemed out of place on the water but we were having difficulty finding the channel markers which are reflective and show up very well when a spot light is pointed at them. However, our light was loosing its charge and we were limited to using it only for brief moments until it eventually died. Even without the light we managed to navigate very well by referring to the GPS.
Soon we could see the bridge over the Missouri River at Herman and from landing there with the Discovery Expedition I knew the Herman checkpoint would be just past the bridge. We made our landing at the Herman boat ramp at 1:41am and found our tent which Jeff had set up for us and we lay down there next to the train tracks to take a nap in spite of the trains. Our plan was to be back on the river before daylight for the final dash. If I would have known what the next day had in store for us I might have passed on the nap at Herman and insisted that we proceed on into the night.
When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee.... Isaiah 43:2a KJV
As we continued down river into the darkness we had pretty much fallen into a routine which propelled us on to our goal of St. Charles . Tonight our goal was Herman and as we paddled out of Callaway County one of the old jodies from our river travels with the Discovery Expedition of St. Charles came to mind:
Oh the Callaway women ain’t got no combs
Haul away, haul away
They comb their hair with catfish bones.
And we’re bound away to Louisiana.
Of course we were bound for Herman at the time so we gave a Heave Ho and made some of the best time we had since beginning the journey. We also came to the realization that no one had passed us since we left Glasgow which seemed like a long time ago and that we were passing every canoe in sight. Granted the fastest were so far ahead of us that some were actually done by now and others were so far ahead we would never see them until we reached to final destination but at this point we were the best of the worst. This trend continued for the rest of the journey.
A couple of times during the night we caught up with others who were traveling by moonlight. It is a common practice to band together during darkness to help each other identify any possible dangers as a group. For Chad and I the pace was too slow and every time we caught up with a group we would become impatient and take off on our own.
This may have been my favorite segment of the trip. We knew we were going to finish and now what had began as a race had evolved into an adventure. There are 300 some million souls in the United States of America and we were part of a very small elite group out on the Missouri River in a tiny boat communing with nature in all of her glory while the rest of America was sleeping. It was very quiet except for the occasional splash of one of our paddles or a low flying aircraft. It was one of those moments when if talking became necessary one would talk in whispers (or at least those that hear well would). With Chad, now a father of a son and a daughter to soon make her appearance we had conservations as equals dad to dad not as father and son about the hopes we had for our children. We also talked about our spiritually and beliefs. No doubt, in any other environment conversations we would have never had.
Even when we were in the darkest part of the river we could still see anything that seemed out of place on the water but we were having difficulty finding the channel markers which are reflective and show up very well when a spot light is pointed at them. However, our light was loosing its charge and we were limited to using it only for brief moments until it eventually died. Even without the light we managed to navigate very well by referring to the GPS.
Soon we could see the bridge over the Missouri River at Herman and from landing there with the Discovery Expedition I knew the Herman checkpoint would be just past the bridge. We made our landing at the Herman boat ramp at 1:41am and found our tent which Jeff had set up for us and we lay down there next to the train tracks to take a nap in spite of the trains. Our plan was to be back on the river before daylight for the final dash. If I would have known what the next day had in store for us I might have passed on the nap at Herman and insisted that we proceed on into the night.
When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee.... Isaiah 43:2a KJV
Monday, March 8, 2010
Homecoming
Part 2
We departed Coopers Landing approximately 49 hours after beginning this adventure. At this point we had traveled 197 miles down the 19th century “highway to the mountains”. When we left Coopers we were definitely a different crew than the one that left Kaw point a couple of days ago. We were much more comfortable with the canoe, we had a rhythm going with our paddle strokes and I was figuring out how to guide the canoe by shifting my weight.
We were about to enter the boundary waters of The Kingdom of Callaway so we needed to be at our peek for the good of the Kingdom. I’m not exactly sure where we entered the waters of Callaway County but somewhere between Coopers and Jefferson City we made the transition. The water was pretty calm and it was becoming more scenic once we got away from the levies along the river. I’m sure we passed some scenic areas above this point but more than likely it was after dark.
As we approached Jefferson City we came upon a sand bar where we took a little break to get out and stretch our legs and take a leak. It’s a pleasure to stand up and take a leak after doing so while sitting in the canoe being careful to direct the flow into a container. Its like they say, “It’s the simple pleasures one misses”. With the water just a few inches deep it gives the appearance of walking on water as we drag the canoe to higher ground of the sand bar. We also met a sand barge in this area and instead to pulling to shore we just rode out the wake. The wake was mild and we managed it quite well. I’m confident a couple of days ago we would have swamped.
We arrived at Jefferson City at about 3:10. In 2005 when we were returning the Lewis and Clark Keelboat back to St. Louis we spent a night camped on the Keelboat at this exact spot. That night was a particularly cool night and the river rose about 3 feet during the night. At Jeff City, Casey, my son & Chad ’s brother who was the other survivor of terrifying trip on the Auxvasse Creek years ago, was waiting for us with his mother with fresh food. I can’t remember exactly what it was but it sure hit the spot. As usual we stretched our legs refilled our water jugs and cooler but this time we were walking on the good earth of Callaway County with a panoramic view of the state capitol across the river.
We heard from the folks manning the checkpoint there would be a huge asphalt barge coming up in a little while so we put back into the river to get a few miles in before the beast appeared. We did make it few miles when we saw the barge approaching so we pulled in on a island and let her pass. It did churn up the water quite a bit but once it was past we set of again. There was still some rebound wakes on the water but they didn’t pose a problem for us. We planned to take a break at Mokane which is about 20 miles below Jeff City . Mokane would be our last chance to resupply before Herman which was about 50 miles downstream.
My brother, Terry, operates “Wright Brothers Store” in Calwood which is about 15 miles from Mokane so I called in an order on my cell phone for one of their famous pizzas, Gatorade and ice to be delivered to the Mokane boat ramp at about 8pm. I’m not sure he believed me when I told him Chad and I would be arriving there by canoe but he was there with the pizza and drinks. We had a nice visit with Terry and his wife while eating the pizza. This was our last stop in the Kingdom. We iced down our cooler and packed up the left over pizza for later and slid “My Dianna” back into the murky waters of the Missouri and resumed our paddle strokes. Just as it was getting dark we passed the mouth of the Auxvasse Creek and with a solemn nod to her we passed into our 3rd night on the peaceful Missouri River.
For this is what the LORD says: I will extend peace to her like a river...Isaiah 66:12a
To be continued.
We departed Coopers Landing approximately 49 hours after beginning this adventure. At this point we had traveled 197 miles down the 19th century “highway to the mountains”. When we left Coopers we were definitely a different crew than the one that left Kaw point a couple of days ago. We were much more comfortable with the canoe, we had a rhythm going with our paddle strokes and I was figuring out how to guide the canoe by shifting my weight.
We were about to enter the boundary waters of The Kingdom of Callaway so we needed to be at our peek for the good of the Kingdom. I’m not exactly sure where we entered the waters of Callaway County but somewhere between Coopers and Jefferson City we made the transition. The water was pretty calm and it was becoming more scenic once we got away from the levies along the river. I’m sure we passed some scenic areas above this point but more than likely it was after dark.
As we approached Jefferson City we came upon a sand bar where we took a little break to get out and stretch our legs and take a leak. It’s a pleasure to stand up and take a leak after doing so while sitting in the canoe being careful to direct the flow into a container. Its like they say, “It’s the simple pleasures one misses”. With the water just a few inches deep it gives the appearance of walking on water as we drag the canoe to higher ground of the sand bar. We also met a sand barge in this area and instead to pulling to shore we just rode out the wake. The wake was mild and we managed it quite well. I’m confident a couple of days ago we would have swamped.
We arrived at Jefferson City at about 3:10. In 2005 when we were returning the Lewis and Clark Keelboat back to St. Louis we spent a night camped on the Keelboat at this exact spot. That night was a particularly cool night and the river rose about 3 feet during the night. At Jeff City, Casey, my son & Chad ’s brother who was the other survivor of terrifying trip on the Auxvasse Creek years ago, was waiting for us with his mother with fresh food. I can’t remember exactly what it was but it sure hit the spot. As usual we stretched our legs refilled our water jugs and cooler but this time we were walking on the good earth of Callaway County with a panoramic view of the state capitol across the river.
We heard from the folks manning the checkpoint there would be a huge asphalt barge coming up in a little while so we put back into the river to get a few miles in before the beast appeared. We did make it few miles when we saw the barge approaching so we pulled in on a island and let her pass. It did churn up the water quite a bit but once it was past we set of again. There was still some rebound wakes on the water but they didn’t pose a problem for us. We planned to take a break at Mokane which is about 20 miles below Jeff City . Mokane would be our last chance to resupply before Herman which was about 50 miles downstream.
My brother, Terry, operates “Wright Brothers Store” in Calwood which is about 15 miles from Mokane so I called in an order on my cell phone for one of their famous pizzas, Gatorade and ice to be delivered to the Mokane boat ramp at about 8pm. I’m not sure he believed me when I told him Chad and I would be arriving there by canoe but he was there with the pizza and drinks. We had a nice visit with Terry and his wife while eating the pizza. This was our last stop in the Kingdom. We iced down our cooler and packed up the left over pizza for later and slid “My Dianna” back into the murky waters of the Missouri and resumed our paddle strokes. Just as it was getting dark we passed the mouth of the Auxvasse Creek and with a solemn nod to her we passed into our 3rd night on the peaceful Missouri River.
For this is what the LORD says: I will extend peace to her like a river...Isaiah 66:12a
To be continued.
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Yellowstone River & Dougouts
2009 MR 340 team