2007 Journal
September 22, 2007
The gathering in Prairie du Chien brought eleven women together. We heard a heart wrenching story about a woman who is not allowed to hold her granddaughter very often and when she does for only fifteen minutes because the parents are reading a book that tells them that is what is good for babies. She struggles to be supportive of the parents but her heart aches. The women talked about what it means to be courageous in our society and what spirituality means to them. The gathering was concluded with Lynne, one of the participants playing her self made Native American flute, while I and Brenda (another participant) played drums.
Before we got on the water the day after the gathering we wandered around McGregor a bit. We stopped in to Shelly's shop the River Gypsy. She was at the gathering and we had to stop to see her place. It was a nice change to have some time to see from land one of the towns we were passing through.
Back on the water we traveled with a tail wind. We had some big water to cross and the wind pushed. At one point in the middle of the river we came to a wing dam that stuck up out of the water and it was packed with hundreds of Cormorants. As we approached they took flight and circled around us. The sky was full with these wonderful black birds circling us and then suddenly they seemed to dissipate. Shortly after the birds we approached a lock. We had been watching a barge head there and it beat us. We pulled up next to the lock and got out. We found Sherry on top talking with a couple of women who were traveling from Chicago. Lannie and Dorothy were delightful to talk with and shared their story of hope and survival of cancer. Lannie was just itching to join us on the water. We all got to watch the barge lock through. We were amazed that they only have a couple of feet clearance on either side.
Cis H. and Karen P. from St. Louis, Missouri joined us to paddle for a few days. They happened to join us when we are paddling long days. The first day brought us through a lock and past the town of Guttenburg. It is a picturesque town that defiantly has a German feel to the architecture. This is the first lock I remember having the town be right next to it, generally they are standing alone. At the end of the day we were greeted by a man in a pontoon with some friends. Len was teasing us that Sherry had headed home and that the turkey vultures circling overhead were waiting for us. He was quite funny.
Wednesday the weather looked like it could rain and we prepared for a tough day. The weather brought us a headwind and it remained cloudy. We were glad it was cloudy because when the clouds disappeared the last hour it was exceptionally hot. As the day preceded the wind changed directions as was gently pushing us into camp. After a long day of paddling that North wind is very welcome. Fall colors are beginning show on the cliffs. The deep greens have hints of yellow. The pelicans that we have been traveling with this entire time are diminishing in numbers. We still see them but not the hundreds we had been seeing.
On Thursday there were six of us out on the water when Gail and her daughter Lisa joined us for the day. On the way paddling through Dubuque Gail gave us a history lesson. She has lived here her entire life and considers herself a "river rat." We had a special treat that day as a result of staying on the Iowa side. We were looking for a spot for lunch when out on a tiny little point sat a table and four chairs. We pulled up and had lunch. Karen surprised us when she pulled out an umbrella to add to our décor. As we paddled we meet a man named David that was paddling up stream. He paddles upstream 60 miles every fall. When we asked him why he said it had to do with a woman, but did not say anything more.
Cis and Karen are still with us and hanging in pretty well as they keep right up with us. Friday was a very long day of paddling. When we arrived at the boat launch it seemed like it had been more than one day. We had paddled in primarily a head wind all day and it was hot. The heat and wind were taking a toll on all of us. We had started the day thinking it was only going to be 14 miles and realized it was going to be 19. Five more miles in that wind was disheartening. We took a short cut towards the end of the day through a slough that looked wide and open. Soon we were all walking because of a sand bar that stopped us short. We turned the corner around and island and saw 14 kayaks in the distance. One of them headed our way and asked if we were the Minnesota group. I said yes and he said he thought so by the graceful paddling strokes. He then told us that Sherry had told them our story and that he wanted to help us find the boat launch. Soon we were paddling among the group; it was a group out of Chicago called Moving Mountains. Some of the people in the kayaks had spinal chord injuries and kayaking was just part of their weekend. They were also going climbing and biking. It was an honor to be escorted by them to the landing.
Tonight is the gathering here in Savanna. There are already women coming in and camping here to join us. Pat from St. Louis, Missouri and Nancy's friend Donna from Appleton, Wisconsin surprised her when she walked into camp. Sherry left us this morning. We will miss her humor, her wisdom and all that she did for us. Gwyn joins us again this afternoon for the next two weeks. We are looking forward to her return.
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October 1, 2007
The Savanna gathering brought nine women together that cool clear evening. We heard stories of how overcoming alcoholism has enriched lives. We heard a story of a woman who became a widow much earlier than she had ever imagined when her husband died of cancer. She talked about how now she knows she can do anything from changing the oil on the tractor to anything else she needs to do take care of herself. After the gathering we sat around our camp and enjoyed more rich conversation.
Kitty and I paddled away from the boat launch north of Savanna with six women on shore wishing us well. It was not long and we saw four of them again on the shore in Savanna jumping up and down to get our attention. It was lunch time so we stopped and joined them at a local B&B where Gwyn had stayed the night before and had lunch with them and Kay the innkeeper. Kay joined us that evening at our campsite for a while as well. It was a long hot paddle but we were rewarded with many birds. Pelicans continue to be our constant companions, terns fly overhead and occasionally we get to see them dive into the water. The best sighting of the day was Sandhill Cranes that were out on a sandbar with some pelicans and seagulls. Gwyn has rejoined us as our car support for another two weeks and a friend of hers Pat will be traveling with us for a few days as well.
Then we woke to the sound of gun shots. It is hunting season in Iowa and there are many duck blinds along both sides of the river. To get out of the wind we turned into Beaver slough and found ourselves in the Clinton industrial area. It was not very pretty but a great relief from the wind and just about the only relief we had all day. It was 24 miles and at times the waves grew to 3 feet. The heat and wind took a toll. We finally pulled in to Cordova knowing we had beds and a hot shower tonight at the Leisure Inn. After dinner Nancy did a presentation at the Cordova Library about the trip. We had a great reception from everyone.
In the morning Barb H. from Ely surprised us and joined us for breakfast. Then Kitty and Nancy paddled across the river to meat up with Marsha and Joyce to paddle with. Both women had been at the gathering. They are 69 and 70 and just started kayaking on the Mississippi. They paddled with us for 5 miles and had lunch with us at Sneaky Pete's before we paddled on. We landed at camp where it was all set up. Barb H. was still with us and the five of us had dinner just as it started to rain. Umbrellas came from Pat's car, the RV next to us and an RV across from us. Everyone was taking care of us. It was early to bed.
As we left there was a barge in the lock across from camp. We pulled the boats and put in again on the down river side of the dam. It was not long and the barge passed us. As we paddled on through the Quad Cities we saw the barge parked and we passed it. We had 27 miles to go and the weather could not have been more perfect. We paddled past Walnut Gove and were surprised by the number of Black Walnuts floating in the water there. Then as we neared camp, about three miles out we saw the barge again gaining on us. We decided to try to beat it to camp and we did. In camp we found Gwyn and Pat relaxing. They made us an incredible dinner and then we headed to the dock to watch the sun go down on one side and the full moon rise on the other over a calm river.
The air was filled with the smell of baked goods the next day we paddled. We could not see where this aroma was coming from. But it stayed with us all day. We paddled through a narrow slough that was very peaceful. There were only the sounds of birds and crickets. The current was gentle and the woods on either side of us very lush. We lost track of time and then realized we had a gathering in the evening and we had to paddle on. Coming out of the lock just before Muscatine there were Pelicans bobbing in the water. We paddled out into that water and it was an exciting ride. The wind had changed while we were in the slough and it was whipping up into the lock wall. It was not long and we were on the shores of Muscatine and preparation for the gathering began.
We had a group of 22 women come for the gathering; some had driven two hours to get there. We heard many stories of gratitude for what life had brought them. There were tough stories too, but all were laced with hope. Again there were widows in the group who talked about learning what they could do as a result of their situation. It was an inspiring experience.
We left Muscatine and were greeted on the water by a couple of men who had read about us in the paper and wanted to wish us well. Then we were off and paddled on glassy water with a cool breeze. The current is strong here, even in the sloughs, which is where we spent most of our time. We had our lunch floating in the boats and traveled about a quarter mile while we ate. In the slough the fish were very active. They were jumping and what we think were Gars were coming to the surface creating splashes around us. Occasionally we would get to see their long skinny bodies as it broke the surface of the water. We ended the day paddling up a small length of the Iowa River to go around an island that was between us and our campsite. We came around the island and paddled down the river and landed on a large sandy beach. We were joined that evening by another Pat who camped next to us. She had tracked us down to this remote campsite to meet us because she could not come to the Muscatine gathering. During the night we had no trains to wake us, but the air was filled with the sounds of pelicans taking off from the water, deer trotting down the campground road, coyotes howling, dogs barking and various other birds and critters making their presence known.
In the morning we said goodbye to Pat who headed home today. She had added so much to our experience while she was with us. Then we were joined by Nancy G. who found us at the campground in hopes of paddling with us. The three of us hit the water and traveled in the backwaters for a while. Then when we got into the channel the wind had become so strong it was getting dangerous for us to be out there. It was very slow going to get across to the boat landing and each of us got at least one cold blast from a wave that came over the top of our boat. What was going to be a 22 mile paddle ended after only nine miles. While we waited for Gwyn to pick us up the wind was so strong at times it blew our water bottles off the picnic table we were sitting at. Nancy G. had not paddled the big river before. After her experience today we told her she had full bragging rights.
Gwyn took us to Lou H.'s cabin on the river just north of Burlington, Iowa, where we were supposed to have landed. We enjoyed a bug free evening. Lou made us a fabulous dinner and invited three of her friends to join us. We had a great time talking about Burlington and they shared some of the stories from their lives. The bed felt particularly good. It was only nine miles of paddling, but they were tough.
A humorous note: Kitty and Nancy have been counting plastic palm trees along the way. It started when Kitty spotted one on shore and we found it entertaining. We are not up to 22 plastic palm trees, one real dead one and one real live one.
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October 6, 2007
We gave our car support Gwyn a special treat by having her get a chance to get on the water. Kitty took over the role of car support for the day and Gwyn and Nancy headed out. The weather was windy right away but not real bad until later. We passed a barge and tug boat wrecking yard and paddled into a barge that was half sunk in the water. Later in the day we paddled into a small slough to get out of the wind and waves. They are fun to ride, but exhausting. The slough was full of turtles, birds and duck blinds. At the end of the slough where we thought we were about to join the main water again we ran out of water. We sloshed through mud and over 200 ft. of sand to connect back with the water. We ended up cutting the day short because the waves in the big channel were just not safe. Back at camp the evening brought a thunderstorm with high winds that rattled our tents.
Morning brought more high wind and big waves and the threat of rain so we decided to not get on the water today. We had only big water to cross and no opportunities to get out of the wind and few opportunities to get off the water if we needed to where our car support could get to us. Instead we drove down to Nauvoo, IL and did some sight seeing. There is a big beautiful Mormon Temple in Nauvoo and near it a sculpture garden dedicated to women. The bronze statues were impressive as were the flowers around them. The Gathering in Fort Madison Iowa brought 17 women together. We heard about what it means to be courageous, the importance of being your authentic self and how important it is to appreciate each day, and dare to be different.
Yet another day of high wind and it is getting old. It wears on our stamina and our mood. At lunch we decided to float on the downwind side of a peninsula and as we departed a water snake decided to pay us a visit. It headed right for Nancy's kayak and with coaxing she got it to go under instead of in. And then Nancy and Kitty paddled away quickly. It was a 25 mile day and we pulled out after 15 miles. The weather was turning again and thunder storms with lightning were moving in. To pull out we followed a creek entering the river until we found a highway, pulled off and called Gwyn. That evening we were joined by Cathy E. from St. Louis, MO. After the heavy rain passed a paddle boat cruised past us up the river with all her lights shining.
We woke to a clear sky and calm water. Kitty and Nancy started off the day and Cathy joined them for the last 8 miles and for her first venture through a lock. The water coming out of the lock was more turbulent than usual, which was rather exciting for Cathy. We got to travel in the backwaters for the most part and spotted many duck blinds. We are becoming experts in duck blind construction options. They range from basic wood with lattice, to pontoon boats, to three boat garages complete with duck boat door openers. They are covered in grass, tree branches, cat tails and some are just painted. In some places there are so many close together it is amazing no one shoots anyone else across the slough.
Another day of calm water and our spirits are up. We paddled 14 miles into Quincy, IL. It was a relaxing calm day paddling so Nancy, Kitty and Cathy took their time and spent some time just letting the current carry them. It was another day of back waters. However, the backwater chutes are just about as wide as the main channel in this part of the river. It is difficult to find a place to get out for a break as the banks are a 3 to 4 feet high mud bank. The sand bars that were a regular part of the river are now a rare treat so boat ramps are our best option for taking a break.
The morning was calm but high winds threatened so we were on the water by 7:30. Cathy, Nancy and Kitty started out the day. We paddled past Quincy, IL and into lock 21. We had to wait to go into the lock because a dredge was coming through. When we got in the lock attendant told us there was another one waiting just outside the down river gates. He said we should just paddle past him on the starboard side. When the gates opened the dredge took up the entire width of the lock. There was a small space, approx. 20 ft across, between it and the lock wall for us to pass. It was exhilarating to say the least. Luckily the dam was not releasing much water so we were able to go out from the boat and paddle past it safely. The winds never did kick up and we were grateful because we had 20 miles to cover. Gwyn and Kitty traded places for the last section of our paddle giving Gwyn one last time on the water before she heads home tomorrow and Nancy H. from Ely becomes our car support.
We spent Friday evening with Mary Hyde a delightful woman who is 92 and still lives on her ranch here in Missouri. She told us she likes to go out and ride her Gator around the property. She took us out to dinner with her friend Mildred to Ma Ma Mia's where we all ate way too much. We are looking forward to the Hannibal gathering tomorrow, but are very sad to see Gwyn leave us, she has added more to the trip than we can express.
As for our palm tree count - palm trees along the river seem to have dried up but we are still watching for them. What we are seeing is a lot of pelican statues and are counting the bad ones. Our definition of a bad one is statue that no self respecting pelican would claim. Generally they are cartoonish in nature and have burnt orange beaks and feet. The bad pelican count stands at 11. Palm trees stand at 22.
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October 14, 2007
Before we left Mary's she showed us her gator that had just come back from being tuned up. Then it was off to Hannibal to look around at Mark Twain's birthplace. Soon it was time for the gathering. Kathy, who had paddled with us, shared her courageous and inspiring story of coming through breast cancer and as a result transforming her life. Betsy (who traveled all the way from Ohio) and Virginia shared that they have been best friends since the 5th grade. They were both a treat. There were 14 women at that gathering.
We headed out from Hannibal and found that the bluffs had moved closer to the river again. As we arrived at Lock 22 a barge was coming out. We were instructed to wait in the auxiliary lock, so we relaxed next to Sir Richard, a tug boat that was parked there (no one on board). We waited for the churning from the tug that just left to abate while the lock attendant blew the horn at us twice. We headed around the wall into the lock only to see another barge waiting on the other side of the down river gate. The attendant said we would have 100 yards so it would be fine. When the gate opened we had 100 yards to the barge but maybe 30 feet from the end of the wall to a cement barge tie off. We went for it. I cut across the opening paddling hard. I hit a current swirling around the end of the wall and it spun me in the direction of the cement pillar. Adrenaline set in and I paddled fast and just missed getting pulled into the current around the pillar. That was the scariest experience so far. Kitty watched where I went and avoided those spots and come through a little better.
The next day when we approached the lock we were both gun shy. We did not see any barges and approached with caution. The gate opened and the water was calm. We peered over the top of the down river gate and saw no barge. The gate opened and we were thrilled to see calm water for as far as we could see. We stopped in Clarksville for lunch and had a really good day paddling. In one of the smaller sloughs we paddled in I saw the same snake that had been coming at my kayak before. I chased it at a distance and took photos. I learned it was a broad banded water snake that is not poisonous.
The next morning we woke to calm water again. The swallows that had lined the power lines swarmed out onto the water with us. It was a 30 mile day that felt rather leisurely. The current has picked up a great deal and we are moving much faster. We ended the day in a motel and had pizza for dinner.
We paddled into Grafton after a short day. It was nice to have a quiet paddle and we arrived in plenty of time to set up for the gathering. There were eight women at this gathering. Bonnie was the elder and told us about the exotic game refuge that she runs not far from here. She was funny and shared a few animal stories. There was a lot of talk about the effects of the flood of '92 on people in the area and how they overcame it. Pere Marquette State Park is where the gathering was, and where we camped. It was the best campsite we have had. We were on the top of a ridge.
We paddled out of Grafton with 8 women in seven boats. It was a relaxing day for Kitty and I and a great way to wind down the trip. We had a wonderful lunch combining food that we all brought. Kitty and I shared our dried fruit with the others and they were surprised how good home made dried fruit can taste. Heather, my paddling partner from the first trip had sent us a big care package of fruit. We had a day of flying carp experiences which had us all laughing.
Our last paddling day went by extremely fast. The current was so fast we did ten miles in an hour and a half. The crew that was going to greet us missed us because we came in an hour sooner than expected. After a photo session we headed for lunch and later Kitty and Nancy were roasted at a dinner party by Cis.
Saturday we had the opportunity to go to Bonnie D.'s home. She has an exotic animal refuge. We got to meet Drayas a baboon who has a pet ferret she loves dearly. We also meet a cougar, llama, dwarf horses and a variety of other animals. Bonnie was full of stories about her animal family. Then we held the final gathering. Twenty eight women attended. There was a lot of conversation about being authentic, parenting and stepping outside of your comfort zone to live a full life.
The final palm tree count is 31 plastic, 1 real live one and one real dead one. The bad pelican statue count held at 11.
We head home with full hearts, heads and physically feeling strong. We will drive along the river on the way to help ease our way back into life on land and enjoy what fall colors we can on the way as they will be gone when we get home. Thank you all who have traveled with us in spirit and carried us in your hearts and prayers while we traveled.
Mii Gwitch (Thank you).
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