Today was fairly boring but nice. We slept in and basically lounged in sun room at the front of Mikes house, it was great. We spent the da y playing cards catching up on some much needed rest and that's about it. Around 5pm the rain had subsided enough to outside and get a fire started with the dry wood we had collected the day before. Once a proper coal base was established Mike set about chopping away at the various ingredients he used to make a soup/stew that was awesome. We talked for a bit then all went to bed. Tomorrow we will be paddling through St.Louis.
Day 59: Back on the river
Today we headed back to the Chain of Rocks to set up to paddle through St.Louis Harbor. When we arrived at the chain a group of fishermen hanging out having lunch and a few drinks. When they saw our stuff they asked if we were running the chain t which we promptly responded no. We explained that we had started at the source of the Mississippi and we're headed to the Gulf of Mexico. The were astonished and thought that was amazing. Thier names were Sergei, Misha, and Tyler. We talked about everything from fishing to children. They were very nice and man-a-live were they enthusiastic! When we started to load our canoe in the cold rough waters below the chain Misha came down wearing is waiters and held the boat for us so we didn't have to get wet or freeze our feet. Once loaded Dave plotted a route across the enormous eddy we were in past the large swirling eddy line and over to the right side of the river. As we paddled away Misha was shouting wordsnof encouragment along with "Look at them go, just like Louis and Clark!" When paddling through the St. Louis harbor you have to stay on the right side. The reason for this is that the barge Captains expect that a paddler, if they know they are headed down river, will be on that side thanks to years of work between Big Muddy Mike and the barges. We braced for a melee of boats and barges, waves and wind. However as we paddled into St. Louis Harbor we were very suprised. Yes there were a higher concentration of barges and yes the waves from those barges were more varied but all in all it was simple. Every time we saw a barge ahead we would announce over the radio our location in the harbor and route of travel. By the end of the day we paddled 41 miles and made it to Plattin Rock Boat club where we camped for free and met Patrick. Also check out tyis sweet video of us paddling through St. Louis and doing our best National Lampoon re-inactment! https://youtu.be/bHn9LjfA1bQ
Today was a great day to paddle. The weather was cool but not cold, no wind and we were both feeling great. Our goal was to paddle 43 miles to Chester to set up for a short paddle tomorrow to meet up with Friends in Grand Tower, IL. The miles went quickly and by a little before 4pm we had made it to Chester, IL the home of Popeye. We had been there before when we lived in Carbondale and were excited to get a picture near the statue. The problem was that the statue of Popeye was atop a small hill before the bridge. Sadly we couldn't find a safe place to stash our boat and the hill was too steep to walk up. We paddled a bit further down stream before stopping on an enormous sand bar just past Chester.
Day 61:
This morning we woke up early, paddled quick and by 1230 made it 26 miles to Grand Tower where we had planned to meet our good friend Jack Wides and Alex Holmes. We were headed ti a campground called Devils Backbone Campground. Jack arrived at the same time we did. He offered to drive his car down on the beach to help us load up our stuff and although Amanda and I were both hesitant we agreed. As Jack drove onto the sand things appeared to be going well and then it happened. Jack in his kindness hearted attempted to get as close to the water as he could to shorten our walk had gotten his car stuck. Every time the car moved the front tires sank deeper. Luckily the campground manager owned a tractor and after waiting about 45 minutes for him to get there Jacks car was pulled up to the road and we finished unpacking our gear. After Alex arrived (shortly before the car was pulled out) we went to Bottoms Up, a bar in Jacob, IL. We ordered fried chicken and it was amazing! Not amazing because we haven't had it in so long, it was seriously the best fried chicken ever made. Anyway we ate till we were stuffed then we made our way over to Murphysboro for trivia night at a cool little bar that Alex frequented. After discovering we were terrible at trivia but having a blast anyway, we headed back to camp and hit the sack.
Day 62
We slept in today because we were up till midnight yesterday. We enjoyed some instant chocolate chip muffins, although they didn't look at all like muffins. The day started with very heavy barge traffic and ended 35 miles later just past Cape Girardeau on a rocky sand bar. We had some amazing beans and rice tonight, first time on the trip suprisingly. Thanks Jack for the bean flakes, you da man!
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