Day 35 - Last Day on the Water

Last Day on the Water

River Mile - 484

Today’s Distance - 28 miles

Total Distance - 875

We left our new favorite town Camanche this morning with the sun rising at our backs. We both thought, on a different trip, with no time constraints, it would have been fun to stay an extra day, go the the High School football game that Ray and Erins son was playing in. The join in the fun for the big Pig roast that the owners of the marina host every year. By that time, we would probably be the Mayors of the town!

The first 14 miles were pretty straight and we had to paddle in the main shipping channel. Luckily there was not much barge traffic. Our goal for the morning was to make it to the small town of Le Claire, IA which is 16 river miles from Camanche. 

Whenever we approach a town, the first thing we look for is clusters of patio umbrellas. Where there are umbrellas there is always food and cold drinks. Half a mile out we spotted our first umbrellas, then I say what I thought was an illusion.  Brick building that said Green Tree Brewery! We tied our boats off at the small floating dock and walked the couple of blocks to the brewery. We were there too early for the noon opening. So, we walked the Main Street looking for food options. There were several really cool little cafes and restaurants. Even a craft distillery! We settled on Blue Iguana Mexican Cantina. The food was good, with seating out on the patio overlooking the river.

After visiting the brewery, we walked back to our boats and REALLY didn’t feel very motivated. So, we both lay down on the dock and napped. Like a couple of river Hobos!

After locking through Lock & Dam 14, the river got a lot busier was we entered the Quad Cities. By the time we arrived at the Lindsay Park boat club we were both ready to get out of our boats. The marina manager who’s name is also Jeff was really helpful. He let us store our boats and gear in the locked and protected yacht club, gave us hotel and restaurant recommendations. All he asked in return was a positive comment on the marinas Facebook page. I told him I’d also give them a shout out on the Mississippi River Paddlers Facebook page. 

Today is my last day on the river this year. My five week sabbatical from work is over and I need to get back to making money.

Since this is my last day on the river, we decided to stay in a nice hotel. The Radisson was only a couple miles from the marina. We had dinner and some drinks, but didn’t really talk about my trip being over and Jon continuing alone for another week. I guess we just didn’t want that river life feeling to end. 

Day 35a - River Magic

As I mentioned in my previous day 34 post, we were blessed to be be allowed to set up our tents at the Marina. It gets better. 

While having dinner at Hide’s Inn, several people approached us to as us about our trip. Word of our arrival had spread through this little community. 

One couple, Ray and his wife Erin, offered us the use of their teardrop camper. At first we didn’t feel right accepting, but they were very persuasive. 

It’s a really cool little rig, cozy with a really comfortable bed. I slept like a king. 

Thank you to the town of Camanche for making us feel so welcomed. 

Day 34 - Take what the River Gives You

River Mile - 512

Today’s Distance - 14 miles 

Total Distance - 839

We launched from our swampy site at 7:20 am. It was even grosser than yesterday. Cold, muddy nasty water up to our thighs. Once in our boats, all that gunk came in with us. 

From our little horse shoe shaped Island, we had a big 7 mile open water paddle with 5 - 10 mph wind in our faces. This was just a hint of what the day would bring us. It took us two hours to make it to Lock & Dam 13. By the time we got there I was already feeling gassed. 

After we locked through, the wind picked up and was blowing directly into our faces.  Being low on the water has a way of magnifying temperature and wind speed. In today’s case, the 20 - 30 mph headwind felt like paddling into a hurricane. We were literally crawling along at 1 mph. Also, the wind blowing against the current made for whitewater conditions. 

Our goal was to get to Princeton IA, a 27 mile day. But, at 3:00 pm, after 7-1/2 hours of heavy paddling, we called it a day at Camanche IA, 18 miles for the day. We really busted our butts today with not that much to show for it. Sometimes you just have to take what the river gives you. 

We are camping at the Camanche Marina. The owner was kind enough to make an exception to their no camping policy. Our boats are tied to the dock, and our tents are set up on a nice grassy lawn, overlooking the river. As I look at it, there are still white caps and the wind is still howling. 

It’s good to be out of our boats, giving our shoulders a rest. 

Day 33 - Pirate Camp

River Mile - 526

Today’s Distance - 27 miles 

Total Distance - 815 miles 

It was hard getting out of bed this morning. It was 54 degrees and my sleeping bag was super warm and cozy. My first sight after leaving my tent was Jon heating up water for coffee. That always helps get me going. 

We decided to stay out of the main channel and weave our way through the braid of small islands that our friends at the Army Corps of Engineers have built for us. We did have one channel that was super sandy. We ended up having to jump out of our boats and walk them over the shallow spots. 

We always like to keep an eye out a place to get out and get lunch. The island of Sabula is a small town that the modern world has passed by. The “Business District“ is. Couple blocks of crumbling brick buildings. We tied off our boats at a boat landing and found a small cafe called Sandbar Grill. The building was not well marked, but the residents definitely knew about it. It was a typical small town diner, but the food was good, and they even had WiFi. 

Leaving Sabula with full bellies we paddled off. Our end point was a bit vague, there are no campsite areas around so we were going to have to find a remote place to camp. In looking at the maps, it looked like there were going to be plenty of options. As we progressed, there were huge Lilly pad fields, blocking us from any places to camp. We identified one last island that might work. We ended up having to blast through weeds to get to a spot just big enough for our two tents. 

Day 32 - That’s a lot of Miles!

River Mile - 553

Today’s Distance - 26 miles 

Total Distance - 788.9 miles 

We left our comfy cozy hotel this morning after a big breakfast at Tony Roma’s. Loading my boat on the marina dock was complicated. In getting my loaded boat the 3 feet from dock to water I snapped the rudder pully. I spent  20 minutes in my stomach working on fixing it, which I was finally able to do. Drama solved, we paddled out of the marina into the river. 

We met our first through paddler this morning. Stephan started at lake Itasca on July 7. He had quite the sting of hardship stories. Losing his tow behind kayak with all his gear on the first day to having his main kayak stolen just the day before we met him. He had just bought a cheap WalMart kayak that morning in Dubuque. 

Today was the first day in a long time where both the current and the wind were both helping us. A boat lunch in the shade of an overhanging tree gave us the fuel to paddle on. 

We got out of our boats to stretch in the town of Bellevue, IA. By this point the wind was gusting to 30 mph. Back on the water, we paddled another hour and half got us to Pleasant Creek campground. In speaking with the camp host, we learned that at the end of June the entire campground was 4 feet under water.  The water level had just dropped enough my last week Thursday for them to prepare to he camp so it could be open for Labor Day weekend. 

Jon made dinner while I gathered wood and prepared for our evening fire. We had a nice relaxing evening by the fire, drinking red wine from a box. Ahh, a good way to end the day.  In writing this, I noticed that we crossed the 800 mile mark. That’s a long way to go!

Day 31 - Land of Lincoln

River Mile - 579

Today’s Distance - 11 Miles

Total Distance - 762.9

Today’s weather forecast was for 60% of showers all day and night along with thunderstorm warnings and wind advisories for the afternoon. We packed up a gear and boats just as the rain was starting at 7:30 am. Off we paddled into the rain with Lock & Dam #11 in our sights, 7 miles down river. With a 5 mph headwind we were not going to be going more that 3 mph. 

As we approached the Dam, we noticed 6 bald eagles riding the thermals of the sandstone bluffs to the west. From that group, two of them broke off to the eagle matting plunge. Apparently the female was not into it and kept breaking out of the plunge and flying out.

Once we locked through, we paddled the 4 miles to the Port of Dubuque Marina where we planned on re-evaluating the weather and our options. All the sources we checked indicated thunderstorm warnings for the afternoon. So, to err on the side of caution, we elected to cut our day short at Dubuque, store our boats and most of our gear in the secure marina and get a room in the Grand Harbor hotel, a short walk from the marina. 

As we entered Dubuque, we also transitioned from Wisconsin on the east to Illinois. This marks the fourth state we have touched on our journey south. 

So we have had a mostly off river day, but one I’m glad we did. No sense risking a lightning strike.  We had a chance to visit 7 Hill Brewing Co for beer and a delicious BBQ Brisket. Jon had some work to do, so I also spent the afternoon walking around the city. DBQ as the marketers are calling it has a very Millennial friendly feel, but I’m not sure the Millennials have caught on. 

Tomorrow we will launch early from the Marina and get as far south as we can. Rain should be out of the forecast but we are expecting some headwinds. 

Day 30 - In your Face!

River Mile - 590

Today’s Distance - 26 miles

Total Distance - 751.9 miles 

We launched today at 7:45 am, said goodbye to Dad, Bonnie and Leslie. It sure was nice having someone new to talk to for a while. Jon and I know all our stories inside and out!

The weather was 5-10 mph winds from the south (in our faces) and temps in the upper 50’s to lower 60’s. The forecast also called for a 20% chance of showers. Well, over the next 9 hours we had 6 separate 15 minute or more showers. We should have bought lottery tickets, since we beat the odds by a lot. In the end, I think I’ll take this weather over the hot and stale weather we had last week. The hard part was the wind. It keeps increasing in strength all day and we ended up the last 5 miles paddling into 20 mph steady winds with 25 mph gusts. That really takes a lot out of you.

We ended our day at Mud Lake campground. A really nice place, with big sites, running water at each site, showers and a marina bar/restaurant right next door. 

The weather tomorrow looks a lot sketchier than today. Potential for rain and thunderstorms pretty much all day. We are going to paddle to Dubuque, see how the weather is looking and either paddle on or get off the water and get a hotel. I’ve already got a reservation at the marina to store our boats just in case.

Bonus Pics

Paddling Lake Mississippi 

The lovely burg of Waupeton, were we had lunch

My Walgreens taco in a can lunch

The car ferry at Cassville

Day 29 - The Dam Bar

River Mile - 615

Today’s Distance - 21 miles

Total Distance - 726.9 miles

After a delicious hot breakfast of omelets, Leslie, Dad and Bonnie helped us get our boats to the river for launch. We were looking forward to a short day of 22 miles, with empty boats, having left our gear in our families cars. 

The weather was really nice the first couple hours. Temps in the high 50’s with a light breeze coming from the southeast. Leaving Prairie du Chien, we wound our way through the lattice work of small islands from our hotel to the main shipping channel. As with many mornings this past 7 days, there were quite a few fisherman out. Most were very courteous, but there are alway a few that are just plain Dicks about boating around paddlers.

Dad had brought me a printed set of Army Corp maps for the river to replace my pdf version that I had been using on my phone. Man, what a difference the paper maps made!

About 16 miles in we caught up to the first of two barges that would ultimately stand between us and the lock through at Lock & Dam 10. You never feel so small as when you are paddling next to one of these 3 story high, 1,200 foot long monsters. Once we got to within 2 miles of the Dam, we caught our second barge, the Titletown USA, a tug we had met coming up river several days ago. He got to the lock about 10 minutes before us and as a result we had to portage out. 

Thankfully, Dad, Bonnie and Leslie were standing by to help us get our gear and boats from the river back to our hotels. The riverfront in Guttenberg is really well done. Lots of park benches for watching the barges lock through along with picnic areas and scenic overlook spots. 

Many of the businesses have Dam themes. There is the Dam Bar, with serves Dam Burgers, The Dam AirBNB with a view of the barges locking though the dam.

The view from our hotel really shows the river valley. It was fun to be able to see the area we paddled from a completely different perspective. 

Dad, Bonnie and I did our own think this afternoon while Jon and Leslie did theirs. We had a fun relaxing day and then met for dinner at Bootleggers grill and pub. Food was good, atmosphere was fun too. 

Day 28 - We are Family

River Mile - 636

Today’s Distance - 15 miles 

Total Distance - 705.9miles 

We left our lovely hotel in Hoochieville for the 3 mile paddle to Lock & Dam #9. It was clear and sunny with a light wind in our faces. Our big motivation today was family. Jon’s wife Leslie drove 8 ours from Bloomington IN and Dad and Bonnie drove down from Milwaukee. More on that in a minute. 

We noticed that the leaves were already starting to change color here. That’s when it really sunk in that we have been on the river for 28 days, 4 weeks. I wonder what it’s like at the headwaters?

We landed at the take out in Prairie du Chien, WI at noon and had all of our boats and gear to the hotel by 1:00 pm. The River District Hotel is really nice. They even had a secure garage to store our boats. 

A Shower and laundry were the first order of business. We also had a chance to do a food re-supply. I spent the afternoon repacking the food into single serving bags. 

Dad and Bonnie arrived at 6:30 pm and Leslie arrived about 20 minutes later. It was fun reconnecting with loved ones. Dinner was fun with lots of stories and laughter. Tomorrow we have a 21 mile day to get to Gutenberg. 

Day 27 - Is this Heaven? No, it’s Iowa

River Mile - 651

Daily Distance - 27 miles 

Total Distance - 690.0 miles 

Today we launched in foggy conditions. We paddled for an hour in these conditions, in some cases with no visible reference point. Jon is really good at navigating in difficult conditions. In this case, he said, listen for the sound of cars on the road. The route we want takes us along the road. Sure enough, after 5-10 minutes of paddling blind, but listing to traffic, the fog cleared enough to see the tree line, right were we needed to be. Also, as we emerged from the fog, we realized we had crossed over into Iowa. On que, a fishing boat appeared out of the clearing fog. Just like Field of Dreams.

15 miles in, we landed at the town of Lansing, IA at the Shep’s Riverside bar and grill for lunch and to get out of the sun for a couple hours. We had a beer and lunch while we charged out phones and started preparations for tomorrows arrival in Prairie du Chein, WI. 

The river today was more of the Lake Mississippi, but with fewer man made islands. We knew it was going to be difficult finding an island to camp on. There were a pair of islands 25 miles into our day, but when we got there they were really more like swamps.  The little town of Lynxville, Wi showed up on our maps, and indicated there was a trailer park / campground. We paddled into their “Harbor” better than Genoa’s but still not sure how a motor boat could get in there. We inquired about camping, it’s $30 a night, or the biggest Motel room is open for $60...Well that was a no brainer!

We settled in, showered and rested. Tonight we will eat at the motel bar, Hoochie’s 2. The Packer pre-season game will be on so we are looking forward to that.

Day 26 - Lake Mississippi

River Mile - 678

Daily Distance - 28 miles 

Total Distance - 663.9 miles 

Our east facing camp was bathed in sunshine as we packed up our boats for a 7:30am launch. For the first time the entire trip it felt hot right away. We paddled four miles to Lock and Dam #7. There were no barges in front of us so we passed right through. 

With a 10 mph wind at our back, we made pretty good time today. We stopped at 17 miles and got out of our boats at a tiny marina in Brownsville MN. Each lunch or goal is to our do each other in creative ways of making our Tortilla lunch seem less boring. Mine was Jalapeño tuna with Chex mix and a drizzle of honey. Jons was plain tuna with a cheese stick and Chex mix. I know I’m biased, but mine was better. 

The river since Wabasha has been in effect a very wide lake with many man made islands. These islands are the bye product of dredging sand from the bottom of the channel. The US Army Corp of Engineers job is to maintain a 9 foot deep shipping channel for barge transportation as well as running the lock and dam system on the river.  From a paddling standpoint, in this section it feels more like you are paddling Mississippi Lake.  

We had one final Lock and Dam #8 at river mile 680. Just prior to the Dam is the small town of Genoa WI. We knew there were a few small pubs there and planned to have dinner before locking through and finding a campsite. To get to town you need to paddle under the train tracks to “Genoa Harbor”. See the picture below for the awesomeness that is Genoa Harbor.  

We walked the quarter mile into town and picked the Big River Pub and Grill from the three pubs we had to choose from. Jon and I quickly became mini celebrities when bar patrons found out we were paddling the river from Itasca. We hung out and charged our phones, had a beer, and food. The owner was great, super friendly. We each had the daily special, split an order of wings, a beer and a coke. Our total was $14 each!

Once we locked through #8, we paddled 1.5 miles to a great island site and set up camp. 

No cell service last night

All is well. Crossed into Iowa at 8:30am today 

Day 25 - Wind and Weathering

River Mile - 706

Today’s Distance - 26 Miles 

Total Distance - 635.9 Miles 

Launched from our spot in Fountain City at 7:50. You can tell Fall is coming, it’s definitely cooler in the morning. We locked through Lock and Dam 5a after a five mile paddle. 

A few miles later we approached the river town of Winona, MN. I yelled out to Jon “What would you do if we found a coffee shop on the river front?” He yelled back “Stop for Coffee!” So we did in fact find a place, docked our boats and had a great cup of coffee and a Quiche at the Acoustic Cafe. 

Around 12:30 we were approaching an oncoming barge when out of the northeast the wind came up and white caps formed on the now black river. Trying to keep from swamping our boats while at the same time, staying out of the way of the oncoming barge. We were able to clear the barge and find a calm area in the lea of any island. We spotted a trailer campground a half mile down the river. We pulled off, just intending to check the radar and put our spray skirts on. Radar looked a little sketchy, so we hung out for half an hour eating tortillas with PB and Honey. When the storm looked like it was going to miss us we got back in our boats, putting our rain jackets on just in case. We weren’t even out of the dock area and the rain started. 400 yards later we were paddling into a driving rain and 25 mph wind. 

This continued for almost an hour, during which time we maybe made it  a mile. Then, the rain stopped, then the wind stopped, then shifted to being at our back, than stopped, the sun came up and it was dead calm at hot, with a heat index of 95. Psycho weather for sure.

After locking through Lock and Dam #6,  we were really hot and thirsty. We paddled past a small bait shop that advertised ice, bait and cold drinks.   We walked into a scene from Grumpy Old Men with the bar lined with old timers in their 70’s drinking beer and shooting the crap. We were going to get a cold soda, but they had a wall cooler with some great beer. Before we knew it we were having beer and pizza! Early dinner works for me.

Another 2 hours of paddled brought us to this really cool island site. A sandy beach with sand dunes and a little cove. We cooled off swimming in the river then settled into a relaxing evening. 

Day 24 - Hurry up and Wait

River Mile - 722

Today’s Distance - 38 Miles 

Total Distance - 619.9 Miles 

Great nights sleep last night. Temps cooled into the lower 50’s.  I had a really hard time getting out of my sleeping bag this morning. It was chilly and damp outside. Packed up a wet camp again this morning. It was very foggy, which I didn’t think much about until we got our boats to the river. Gray fog, gray water, no visible landmarks. After packing up our boats and consulting the maps, we decided to follow the shore on the right and go slow. When we were just a half a mile in, the fog cleared and it was a beautiful morning, sunny with a slight breeze.

We had about 7 miles to Lock & Dam 4. As we approached, we saw an 8 barge two moored off to the side. Just when we thought we might be able to beat it to the Lock, the tug fired up an we had to wait, and wait. After 90 minutes floating in our boats, we got the green light to paddle into the lock. While waiting, we ate, read, told stories and drifted around.  

Once through Lock #4, we spent hours paddling in the main shopping channel. We saw a few fishing boats, and one other small barge, but for the most part, it was a peaceful, but very warm day.

25 miles into our day, we approached Lock #5. Sure as shit, there was the same barge that held us up at #4. Again we had to wait, This time only about an hour. Still, by this time we were itching to get through and arrive in Fountain CIty, WI where cousin Hanna and her boyfriend Hunter were planning to meet us for dinner. Those last 5 miles, were difficult to focus on. All we wanted was beer

The town of Fountain City is very quaint, testled between the bluffed and the river it looks straight out of a postcard

. 

After checking to to the Fountain Motel we got our tents set up so they could dry.There is a little Irish Pub, the Monarch a mile north of our hote. They had really good food. The owner was also our server. They brew their own beer. They also make their own sausage. The bar was first opened in 1894 and is one of the oldest pubs in the state of Wisconsin.  

Day 23 - Do these Waves make my Boat look Small?!

River Mile - 760.5

Today’s Distance - 17.5

Trip Distance - 581.9

Woke up this morning to a very wet camp. It rained from midnight to 4:00 am but thankfully the wind did not get too crazy. It was one of those mornings where everything was wet. Packing wet gear on a wet morning in a wet boat is not one of the more glamorous parts of this type of trip.

For the first time in 23 days, I was in my boat before Jon. The last thing we discussed before launching was, “do you think we need our spray skirts?” Of course, we both agreed, no we’ll be fine. We can always put them on if we need them. More to come on that.

We paddled out on a very gloomy, foggy morning. Based on the weather forecast, the winds at our backs, I thought it was shaping up to be a good day and way better than yesterday. About a mile in, we knew that all the things we thought, were not going to be our reality. Even with the wind at our back, the waves were chasing us down. To try and stay near the shore we needed to paddle almost broad side. Well, that was not working at all. Next thing I know, Jon is putting on his life jacket, that is when I knew this shit was getting real. Remember the whole, “we won’t need our spray skirts” conversation? We’ll we sure did need them! 

We selected a point to aim for that we thought was a mile away. There we would put on our spray skirts and all would be well. Funny thing, it took us 90 minutes to get to the point. So, either it was way further than a mile, or we were making really slow time.

We did make the point, don our skirts and set back out. The conditions however, did not improve. In fact they continued to get worse. We were tempted on many occasions, to get off the water. All we kept thinking was, stopping now means we will have to finish Pepin tomorrow. In the end, we agreed “Let’s finish this and get on to the next part of the river” As we continued, the wind gusts got stronger and the swells continued to grow. 2 foot swells, turned into 3 foot swells and eventually 4 feet. At one point, Jon said that when I was in the trough, all he could see was my head. Crazy!!

We originally were planning to get to Alma, WI for the end of the day but with the strain of keeping out boats upright in the big water, we knew that was not going to happen. We set our sights on Wabasha, 7 miles shorter than Alma. 

Finally arriving in Wabasha, we found a camp site just a block from the landing and less than a block from Slippery’s bar and grill, made famous in the Grumpy Old Men movies. 

My friends Pam and Wayne Benbow came down with a cooler of beer to visit with us. Both the visit and the beer were much appreciated.  

As I write this, we are sitting at the bar at Slippery’s listening to Mississippi delta blues, watching football, eating Gumbo and charging our electronics. What a great way to end a challenging but fulfilling day on the river.

Today’s Learnings

• When Jon Wunrow has his spray skirt AND his life jacket on, buckle up. It’s gonna get wild!