Day 18 - Here Comes the Rain Again

Pirate Camp / Near Elk River

River Mile - 883

Today’s distance - 32.5 miles

Total distance - 4658.9 miles

Early Morning 

We were in the river by 8:00 am this morning, after a brief rain shower that was perfectly timed to get our tents wet just before we packed them. Overall pack up was uneventful. 

My paddling partner

The river definitely seems to be flowing faster today which is really nice for making time.  This is the section of the river I paddled last year, but to be honest, there was a lot that was different. the water level was down about 2 feet, which meant that we had many for fun little category 1 rapids to paddle through. 

We knew we wanted to get as many miles in today as possible, so that we would have fewer to get to the Twin Cities, where loved ones await. 

We approached Elk River around 3:30 pm, and had our eyes set on a spot at River Mile 875. There were thunder storms projected for later in the afternoon and we paddled hard to get to our destination before the storm hit. Unfortunately the storm forced us off the water at mile 881. Jon found us a flat spot just off the river where we scrambled it get our tents set up, tossed our remaining gear in and then dove in ourselves. This was just after 4:00 pm so we spent a couple hours hunkered down in our tents, watching the weather radar and waiting for the storm to pass.

Around 6:15 I headed out to check on my boat, that was pulled up on shore and tied off to a tree. With the exception of an inch of water in the cockpit, all was in good shape.

We had a nice weather window of 2 hours and now it’s looking pretty dark to the west. We were able to make dinner and get our gear better organized. 

Tomorrow, I sleep in my own bed! Can’t wait to see Christina and Nik. 

Today’s Learnings 

• When Jon Wunrow says it’s time to get off the water....get off the water NOW!!
• Pirate camping can be fun
• Everything is better with Whiskey