Team Kruger Log
The Great Mississippi River Race for Rett Syndrome, May 2001
We are Going the Extra Mile..... The Extra 2,348 Miles to Find a Cure!
The Great Mississippi River Race for Rett Syndrome, May 2001
We are Going the Extra Mile..... The Extra 2,348 Miles to Find a Cure!
GREAT MISSISSIPPI RIVER RACE FOR RETT SYNDROME, 2001, By Robert Bradford
As Enhanced by Stan Hanson
May 4-29, 2001
Webmaster Mary Potter note: A "day" is 24 hours, starting on May 5, 2001 at 6 AM
May 4, 2001 Before Race
The night before the race, we met at the lodge on Lake Itasca where we were all introduced to the other racers. There were five teams in all: Team Amazon, Team Alaska, Team Rebel, Team Double Helix, and Team Kruger. The Rebels and the Alaskans were relay teams but the other three would be made up of two members in each team. All of the teams were using kayaks, except Team Kruger. On May 5, 2001, our team was the first to arrive at the site, but not without excitement! We had put all of our gear inside of our canoe the night before. We also put the spray skirts on for the race.
Day 1 May 5, 2001 6 AM to May 6, 2001, 6AM
On May 5, 2001, our team was the first to arrive at the site, but not without excitement! We had put all of our gear inside of our canoe the night before. We also put the spray skirts on for the race. All we had to do this morning, was to load the canoe on the car racks in an upright position so the gear wouldn't fall out. The trip was only three miles from our camp, so that wouldn't be a big deal. Thank goodness Kruger canoes are built tough. As we slowed to make the left turn to the parking lot, where the race was to start, the canoe shot off the roof and landed in front of the car. It hit the pavement with a loud crash! We pulled the canoe the rest of the way on the Heavy Duty Paddle Boy. There had been no damage to the canoe.
At the race starting site, we checked and re-checked all of our gear. It would be a half hour before any of the other competitors arrived. I made at least five trips to the woods for a bathroom break. Even though I had been careful to hydrate myself, I think it was just the excitement. I noticed Verlen appeared calm.
Spectators began to appear, some with daughters that had Rett Syndrome. Cameras were flashing and people were asking us questions, like how will you be able to go that long in a boat? I wasn't sure, but I knew Verlen had to know what it would take. We had talked a lot that spring about how we would have to pace ourselves. I had been mostly a racer, and Verlen had been both a racer and a voyager. As Verlen told me later, ''This isn't a race, it's survival!!"
It was almost race time. All of the teams were there, except Team Amazon. Clark Eid said it was time to draw straws to see how we would line up. The Mississippi is only about 12 feet wide at its beginning. It starts at Lake Itasca, where a small rock dam allows water to flow out of the northern end of the lake. I drew the third position for us. The bows of our watercrafts had to be touching the water at the start. Ten yards downstream there was a log across the river. It was only a foot above the water so our plan was to pull the canoe up out of the water and portage around the log as soon as the gun went off. Verlen and I had scouted at least six hours' worth of the Mississippi River during the previous four days. We knew exactly where we wanted to go in the first twenty miles. I knew we should try to get out in first place, if possible, but only if we didn't expend too much energy.
Our canoe was only 18 feet 6 inches. Most of the kayaks were over 21 feet. We would have an advantage for at least the first 30 miles of the race because of the tight, twisty nature of the river.
When Steve Landick started the race, no one seemed to be in a hurry. No one wanted to lead the race. We did, and it was time to make our move. Verlen would be in the back and I in the front. That would be our positions the entire race. We made the short portage and jumped back into the canoe ahead of the other teams. I remember turning to the race starter, Steve, and asking what we should do now. After all, we had drawn the number three position. Steve grinned and said, "This is a race, Bob!" As we turned the first corner, I turned to Verlen and said, "Are you having fun yet, Verlen?" He replied, "It doesn't get any better than this!" As the next 24 days would pass, I would ask that same question several times, and Verlen would give me the same response.
Our plan to break away seemed to work very well. We got to the culvert, which was only ten minutes downstream, and went through the tube. We had practiced this move several times prior and found it very fast. As we would approach the tube, I would sit on the floor, then grab the tube as we got there. I would then stop our movement long enough for Verlen to slide off his seat onto the floor. As it turned out, when I grabbed the culvert, it stopped us so suddenly that Verlen slid off the seat automatically. After reviewing the race videos, we saw that all of the other teams had to portage around the culvert.
During the first hour, we broke through three small beaver dams. The river also did several switchbacks through the cattails. More than once I would look over my shoulder to check for other teams. We would never see any for the first week.
After going under the Road 200 bridge, the river does not switchback as much. There was a dead tree ahead with a bald eagle sitting in it. I took the time to snap a picture. It would be the first of many eagles we would see in Minnesota.
We passed a guy in a white solo canoe at about mile marker 1330. It was a Kruger Sea Wind solo canoe. The guy had picked it up from Verlen a day earlier. He wished us luck and took our picture.
Our next obstacle was a tree down across the river. We had practiced this on a prior reconnaissance. I jumped out and pulled the canoe over the log, then got back in. This was faster than a portage around. Soon we came to the old wooden dam. It's at river mile 1339. The portage is on the left side and it's very rocky and rough. The dam was too dangerous to shoot through. It had some large rocks in the center, so we took the portages, but couldn't use the Heavy Duty Paddle Boy. The Heavy Duty Paddle
Boy is a set of wheels that attach to the canoe that was furnished to us by the Paddle Boy company. Thank you Zoe!!!!
We had to dodge a lot of rocks in the next stretch. Some we couldn't and just hit. We arrived at County Road 2, river mile 1336 in a time faster than our scouting time three days earlier. We had to make sure we were not paddling too hard. About 15 minutes past Road 2, we came to a split in the river. I asked Verlen if we should go right or left. He said he didn't remember this. It had only been 17 years prior to his when Verlen had paddled this section. It appeared that the left fork had more flow, so we picked it. After three bends, the river forked again. We took another left, then it forked again. Now there was room for concern. The river was only four feet wide and the brush was very thick. So thick that I had to get out and pull Verlen through. Now we were in big trouble. At the start of the race, we had broken one of our two headlights off the bow. I had broken the mount at the culvert, and it was hanging by its wires. Now I broke the other one on the brush, and it, too, was hanging from its wires. We would need duct tape at the next feed stop.
After a lot of mud and brush, we broke back into what seemed to be the main part of the river. So much for keeping our feet dry and the inside of the canoe clean!
We arrived at County Road 40, and I remember seeing a Minnesota Canoe Club member standing on the bridge. Because of the tangle that we had just paddled through, I asked him if any of the other teams were ahead of us. He said, "No." Then I told him that we weren't sure if we had gone through the right way. He looked at his watch and said, "You must have done something right!"
The next difficult area was Rice Lake at river mile 1307. The Canoe Club, according to Clark, had put some markers up to guide the racers through Rice Lake. The river opened up and cattails were everywhere. You couldn't just follow the tree line. Several times I stood up in the bow in order to check our course. I'm sure that the kayakers didn't have this luxury. A couple times, we had to back out of a dead end. More than once we had to stop the canoe and check the river bottom to see which
direction the weeds were bending in what current there was.
As you leave the Rice Lake area, it is very tricky. We were watching the tree line and missed the outlet on the right. Once in the river channel again, we saw a lot of flooding conditions and the wind picked up.
When we arrived at Lake Irving, river mile marker 1286, we were getting a side wind. This made the crossing of Lake Irving difficult. I also got a little mixed up on the location of the passage to Lake Bemidji, but Verlen knew. He had been monitoring his map and compass and really knows how to use them. When we arrived at the north side of Lake Irving, we met our support team. Our team captain was Stan Hanson, and he had some bad news. The support boat, required for Lake Bemidji, would not run.
The good news was that they had permission for us to go alone if we followed the right shore around. We were running ahead of schedule. The portage at the dam went well.
The next spot of concern was at the north end of Wolf Lake. The lake is full of cattails and several openings that dead end. As we exited Wolf Lake, we saw a powerboat coming our way. It was Captain Stan, and he had the boat running. They had to have the engine tuned up in the last town. We went along with Stan to the bridge on County Road 8. Stan picked up Jon Young for the trip across Cass Lake. Chuck Hasenkamp was pulling the trailer to the dam. Mick Wood had canceled a trip to Ely to help a couple more days pulling the boat trailer.
As we started to cross Cass Lake, it began to rain. The temperature began to drop, the wind came up, and the sun went down. Water temperature was 45 degrees! Our support boat was off to the right about 30 yards. They had been closer, but kept getting tangled in weeds. At 11 PM we were about 2-1/2 miles from Knutsun Dam, when our 16' powerboat came along side. Stan said they had been taking on water from the high waves and the bilge pump couldn't keep up. They had to go to the closest shore, which was on our left.
This was no time to take chances, so we headed for the north shore. Stan picked out a house that had lights on. When we got to the shore, Verlen and J also started having trouble. The waves were cresting even higher in the shallow water. When I got out, I got soaked, too. The support boat almost sank. The people from the house ran out on the dock to see what was going on. It was Wes Kinneberg, J.D. Gard, David Warner, and David Belino. They thought we were nuts, and in so many "colorful" words told us so. We couldn't totally disagree. When they found out about the race, they helped us out. They had been in the garage celebrating a birthday. We went in the garage taking our dry bags with us. Once in the garage, I discovered it was not heated. We were all wet and Jon was shivering badly. He was suffering from hypothermia as were we all. I gave him my dry jacket from the dry bag. After that, I realized that I had begun to shake also. I stripped my wet clothes off and when I did so, someone ran over with a blanket. Verlen just sat in the corner, half asleep with a grin on his face. He was loving every bit of this! They fed us some Sloppy Joes, birthday cake, and hot coffee. They also drove Captain Stan to the dam so he could get Chuck and Mick and our trailer. Once they got back, we jumped into the trailer and slept 'til dawn.
Day 2 May 6, 2001 Sunday 6 AM to May 7, 2001 6 AM
The paddle to the dam in the dawn on May 5th was a piece of cake. We portaged on the left, because it was only a few feet of grassy area. We arrived at the opening of Lake Winnibigoshish. The wind was blowing hard and the wind chill was very cold. You could see the waves stacking up. The lake is wide enough that you can't see across. We ate lunch on the left bank of the river at the opening to Lake "Winnie".
We needed to decide what to do -- stay put, or go without a support boat and stay on the southern shore all the way. This last choice would make the 14-mile trip more like 23 miles. On the other hand, if we stayed put, it could get worse. Verlen, in his trip 17 years ago, had spent part of the night in a camper at this point because of high wind and snow. We opted to paddle the south shore and the support crew would follow along the west shore as much as possible then meet us at the dam.
When we got all the way around to Tamarack Point, we not only had wind, but also a cold, driving rain. We cut across the bay heading for the dam. When we reached the dam, it stopped raining. We loaded the canoe on the Heavy Duty Paddle Boy, and with Verlen riding in his seat, I pulled the canoe down to the put-in. It was all down hill and blacktop. The crew had another hot meal. I ate 5,000 calories every day. The food was excellent. I'll never know how Stan could think up so many different varieties of macaroni and cheese, spaghetti and rice.
It rained off and on the rest of the day. At 8:35 p.m., we pulled into the landing prior to County Road 3. We were wet and a little cold. We ate in the trailer and decided to sleep until 4:00 a.m. At 4:00 a.m. it had stopped raining and the moon was very bright. Verlen and I had paddled this tricky stretch the week before. This made us eager to paddle it before sunrise. At this time, we did not know if we were still in the lead or not. All of the teams had to call in to headquarters between 5:00 and 7:00 a.m. and again in the afternoon. When the teams called in, they had to give their river mile. We would all be eager to hear where the competition was. As it turned out, we were still in the lead.
Day 3, May 7, 2001, 6 AM to May 8, 2001, 6 AM
May 7th at 4:00 AM, it had stopped raining and the moon was very bright. We pushed off for day three of the race. Verlen and I had paddled this tricky stretch the week before. This made us eager to paddle it before sunrise. At this time, we did not know if we were still in the lead or not. All of the teams had to call in to headquarters between 5:00 and 7:00 a.m. and again in the afternoon. When the teams called in, they had to give their river mile. We would all be eager to hear where the competition was. As it turned out, we were still in the lead.
We passed White Oak Lake without a hitch. Finding the route through Black Water Lake was a little more difficult though. We had gone through Cohassit a week before in the car. Jon Young had helped me put a reading in my GPS (global positioning system), but I must have done something wrong. My GPS kept directing me through the power plant, instead of just below it. Verlen's map reading did well, though, and we hit the right channel. Dan Cruser, a canoe racer, had warned me about this area. He wanted to make sure we didn't end up in Pokegama Lake, which is a dead end.
We arrived at the first dam and completed the short portage on river left. At the put-in, the water was very fast, and by 10:30 a.m., we reached the dam at the paper mill in Grand Rapids. This portage was a little more difficult because the take-out had a steep bank of about five feet.
We put in below and on river right. After a block or so, we saw Big Al Rudquist in a parking lot. He is one of the best canoe racers in Minnesota and probably in the top ten of North America. He told me he would paddle with us down to Jacobson. He was waiting for another friend of mine, Fred Rayman, a racer from Ely, Minnesota. Al had told me that with the high water, he could save us about a half-hour in the 40-mile stretch to Jacobson. There would be a lot of shortcuts we could paddle through which were legal. Al had said that he and Fred would join us later down the river when Fred arrived. Within the next half-hour, we saw Al and Fred paddling up-river to meet us.
We made Jacobson by 6:00 p.m. thanks to our guides! We decided to eat in the trailer. The temperature was dropping and a bad storm was moving in. After eating, we decided to sleep. Verlen had stomach cramps, and the weather was bad anyway. Stan drove Al and Fred back to their cars, and we slept.
Day 4 - May 8 2001, 6 AM to , May 9, 2001, 6 AM
We started the next morning, May 8th, before sunrise. On our way to Sandy Lake Recreation Area, at mile 1108, I saw a small black bear. We made a stop at the house of Gene Hill, "The Artist," for lunch. It was 9:30 am
Our next town was Palisade. Valerie and Verlen had left such an impression 17 years prior that the town had painted their picture on the water tower. We were disappointed because no one in town noticed as we paddled through. To our surprise, ten miles below Palisade, at river mile 1080, Todd Dseher and Linda Lane were on the bank with our support crew. Come to find out, no one had time to get down to the river in Palisade because we were ahead of schedule. Todd and Linda drove all the way down to present us with Palisade T-shirts and hats, plus a hot meal. What a treat!!
The next stretch had a lot of farmland and some open areas where the wind got to us. The flooding was very evident in this area.
According to my GPS, we were approaching the mouth of the diversion channel. Prior to the race, Stan and Jon had assisted me in programming this location.
According to the race rules, if you could paddle through any cut, it was legal as long as you didn't portage. When we reached the channel, we found lots of water going through it --almost too much. We zipped up our spray skirts and went through the turbulence. We had six miles of straight channel with the sun in our eyes and fighting a head wind.
Dan Cruser was right. Even facing difficult conditions, the diversion channel saved us time. Our support team met us on County Road 6, close to where Dan lives. Because of prior commitments, Dan was unable to paddle a stretch with us.
After eating at County Road 6, we paddle planned on while having me sleep until my about 11:00 p.m. while Verlen paddled. Then I would paddle while Verlen slept. During my paddling turn, I would be going through the back waters of Potlatch Dam. I remember waking up cold and seeing a very large ball overhead. The ball turned out to be the type they put on power lines. They do that to keep low flying aircraft from hitting the wires.
It was my turn to paddle so Verlen could sleep. This would be the first night that we would actually paddle all day and all night for 24 hours. Now we would find out how my map reading skills were and at night. Things went well until we were a mile out of Potlatch Dam. I had Rice Lake on my left and there was no detectable current in the pond. I over-compensated by staying right so that I would not go into Rice Lake. This caused me to go into a small bay, which I had to back out of. I considered waking Verlen, but decided not to bother him. Total lost time would only be about ten minutes. It taught me to watch the map even more closely.
We arrived at County road 25 just before dawn. On the satellite phone, Captain San had told us to wait here because there was trouble at the portage around Potlatch. Our support team had arrived at the dam before dark the night before to check it out. When they got there, they found no warning buoys in front of the dam to keep boats from being swept over the dam. They also discovered that the put-in below the dam had several 20-foot logs floating in a whirlpool. This would be dangerous and foolish to attempt at dark. While Verlen grabbed a bite to eat, Chuck and I took the car down to check other portage options. We only found one, but it was two miles, and it didn't seem a good option. After getting back to the trailer and eating, we decided on a plan. It was dawn by now, and a lot safer. We took the portage over to the chain link fence, then went outside the fence rather than on the trail. There was a lot of brush, but it allowed us to put back in below the logs and whirlpool. Stan notified the race safety officials of the fact there were no safety buoys and asked them to pass that on to the rest of the teams. It was a race but good sportsmanship and safety were more important.
Day 5 - May 9, 6 AM to May 10 6 AM, 2001
The homes below Brainerd are very nice and sit high on the banks. The day was crisp and sunny and our spirits were high. It was May 9, the fifth day of the race. It actually seemed like less than that. A few miles below Brainerd, I slid down in the bow and took a 30-minute nap. Just below Crow Wing State Park, we saw a deer swimming across the river. I'm sure she wondered what we were and why we were there. We reached Little Falls Dam around 1 :30 p.m. The portage was fine, but below the dam the angry river was very fast and turbulent. The next portage was Blanchard Dam, which proved to be very time-consuming. Our crew had several options for us to pick from. They aJso picked up several deer ticks and had mud up to their knees .
It was then that we realized our support crew was so busy cheching things out that they were getting less sleep than we were. It also got worse for them as time went on.
After looking at the Blanchard portage options, we decided on putting in about 15 yards down from the regular put-in. The bank was quite steep and had a lot of brush.
Once we got to the water, it was hard to keep the canoe upright while we got in because of the severe turbulence and high waves caused by the water spilling through the dam. The spray from the water reached at least a 100 feet high above our heads. Because of flooding, we had to paddle through thick tangled brush to get to the river.
The paddle to Champion Dam in Sartell was fast because of the increased current. Once we got there, we discovered, once again, that below the dam the river fJwas impossible to paddle in. Our only option was a portage past the put-in, down the street three blocks, and put in below a bridge. It was getting dark. It was 8:20 PM, and our next town was Sauk Rapids. This place would be extremely dangerous, and almost impossible without capsizing especially after dark. Our support crew headed that way to check it out with flashlights. As we approached the town, Verlen and I miscounted a bridge on our map and thought we were close to the rapids. In fact, we were about half mile away. This cost some time, but better safe than sorry. We realized our mistake and met up with our crew in the park above the rapids. The plan would be to wait until dawn, then take a short portage under the bridge and put back in.
Day 6 May 10, 6 AM to May 11, 6 AM, 2001
During early morning hours, our competitors, the Double Helix, had actually caught us and decided to portage six miles to avoid the rapids. When we put in at dawn, we were not aware that they had passed us. The rapids below the bridge were tricky and very fast, but after some difficulties, we made it safely. Afterwards, we found out that the Helix had actually some difficulties, we made it safely. Afterwards, we found out that the Helix had actually seen us go by in the water while they were still on their portage. We keep the lead!
We arrived at St. Cloud Dam at 7:00 a.m., May 10, 2001. The portage was good, but the put-in was a 20-foot high slick, muddy bank. I remember the slide I took to the bottom with the canoe pushing against my head. Richard Lewis also remembers. He was a photographer taking pictures at the bottom. Below the dam was full of islands, but easy to pick the best line. I usually had a talent for doing that, but Verlen ALWAYS did.
At Montissippi County Park, we beat our crew to the site. It was cool, so rather than wait, we ate some of the emergency food we were required to have with us at all times and started paddling again. At Elk River, our support team met us on river left, and we ate. They gave us the word that the river was closed in Minneapolis. It was unknown when it would re-open.
At Coon Rapids, my friend and fellow canoe racer, Kjell Petterson met us and showed us where to portage. Stan had more word on the closed river. The plan was for all racers to stop above St. Anthony's Falls at Ketter's Canoes. We would then have to wait for word from the Coast Guard.
Kjell led us down to Ketter's place on river right. Kjell lives there and sells canoes for Ken Ketter. This was race day six, and I was about to get my first much needed shower. Such is the life of a marathon canoeist. Verlen and I also got a great dinner from Beth and Ken Ketter and Kjell. I took a one-hour nap.
My plan was to wake up and greet Clark and Kurt of the Helix when they arrived at Ketter's. When Double Helix arrived 2 hours and 30 minutes later, they had to make a small repair on the bow of their beautiful cedar strip kayak. Ketter's had fiberglass and resin on hand to do that. I thought it was amazing that Double Helix only had one scuff mark on it after that trip. After a short talk, we went to bed in the trailer.
Day 7 May 11, 2001, 6 AM to May 12, 6 AM, 2001
On the morning of May 11th, I took a long, hot bath after breakfast at Ketter's place. At noon, after a 20-hour stop, the Coast Guard let us go. Todd Ellison, a Minnesota racer, paddled down to St. Anthony's with us. The Double Helix locked through with us. This was my first time to ever lock through. Verlen had done it many times.
After Lock and Dam #1, below St. Anthony's, Verlen developed stomach cramps, so we pulled over to the left bank and Verlen took care of business. Meanwhile, Double Helix took over first place. This was their first time to lead the race after six days. Even though we had a 20-hour layover, none of the other teams caught us.
Later we would find out that Team Alaska had capsized at Sauk Rapids and lost their kayak. Team Amazon had problems with infected blisters on one of the paddler's hands and withdrew from the race under doctor's orders. Team Rebels had other problems and also had to withdraw ..
At river mile marker 831, Tom Gardner, another Minnesota canoe racer, joined us. Tom paddled down to his place on the river. It's always a lift when you can paddle along with friends when you're in a long race.
By 8:00 p.m., we were at Lock and Dam #2 at Hastings. I think it was at Redwing that I found out that even though Verlen has good eyesight, he has problems seeing at night. I was sound asleep in the bow when our canoe hit a large, green metal buoy. I popped up in a hurry! The sound was still reverberating in my head. I decided I would paddle during the night and sleep an hour at dusk and a few hours in the morning.
The next body of water that we would need a support boat on was Lake Pepin. We reached it on the evening of May 11th. The plan was for our support crew to share Double Helix's support boat, with Stan riding along with it. It took forever to get the support boat ready when we arrived. The boat ramp was flooded and it was dark. After 45 minutes, we took off with Team Kruger and Double Helix together, and the support boat close behind. There was a little wind, and it was a clear night. It got cold. Verlen was asleep and so was the Double Helix's Kurt Zimmermann. The stars made it easy to keep on course and I felt especially good. At one point, we had edged out ahead a little. Then I noticed that the support boat and Double Helix seemed to get off course a bit. After an hour, I noticed they had dropped way back. We later learned that they stopped so Kurt could get up and help Clark paddle.
Day 8 May 12, 2001 6 AM to May 13, 2001 6 AM
By daybreak, May 12, we had come off the lake and back into the river. No one was in sight when I looked back. Our support crew was ahead at Wabasha, in a flooded marina. It was cold, but it was a great place to stop. To my surprise and delight my wife Janet, son Mike, grandson Michael, and a friend Chris Andrews were waiting with our support team. We ate breakfast and then I climbed under the deck for a sleep. My son, grandson, and Chris got into one of Verlen's canoes and paddled along with us. What a treat!
During our stop at the marina, Double Helix had passed and they were ahead again.
At 12:40 p.m., we arrived at Lock and Dam #5. While I ate lunch, Mike washed my feet and doctored them. I had an infected toenail, and with the dirty river water, I didn't want it to get worse. Mike would do this several more times during the following week while I ate. At 5:25 p.m., we came to Lock and Dam #6. We seemed to be chasing the Double Helix. Each time we came to a lock, they had just left.
After Lock and Dam #7, and near river mile 687, we had a tight pass with a tug and several barges. We were on the right bank of the river and making a left-hand turn. It was dark. To make it worse, the tug had his high beam shining right on us. It's enough to make you feel like you have just escaped a concentration camp. Before it was over and the tug made the turn, we had the canoe tight against the bank.
After this mile marker, the buoys cross over to the Wisconsin side of the river. The river is approximately three miles wide at this point. We crossed over and arrived at Lock and Dam #8 after midnight, early May 13. Our support team had hot food for us. They said they had not seen Double Helix go by yet. Shortly thereafter, Double Helix arrived. Apparently, they had not crossed to the Wisconsin side when we did, and it cost them some time. They paddled on through the lock. We made the decision to stay until daybreak. The support crew had parked next to the boat ramp. Thirty feet on the other side of us was a railroad track. I slept in the back seat of Mike's truck, and every time a train went by, it rocked back and forth.
Day 9 May 13, 2001 6 AM to May 14 2001, 6 AM
In the morning on May 13, we put back in with Mike, Michael, and Chris paddling with us again. By the time we got to river mile 655, Lake Winneshiek, the wind had picked up a lot. We had a struggle getting across. We hid behind islands for protection as much as possible.
We went through Lock and Dam #9 by 12:30 p.m., then Lock and Dam #10 by 8:30 p.m. The flooding in the last 50 miles had been especially bad. We also noticed a lot of green and red buoys out of position. There were also some missing day markers. From Minneapolis down, the river has red and green buoys, so that watercraft know where the channel is. Each buoy also has reflective tape on it. The tape makes it easy to see when you shine a light on it at night. The day markers are large signs which have the river mile marked on them. Some of the river mile markers have blinking lights or navigation lights on them. These lights are battery operated. The further down the Mississippi you get, the better the markers and the more navigation lights they have.
The river charts show you exactly where the navigation lights and mile markers are though they do not show you where the red and green buoys are. During the daylight, you could see where large trees or other debris had knocked over the markers or lights. Sometimes you could find several buoys washed up on shore. One of the most dangerous situations was when we found what we called a "bobbing buoy''. This happens when the anchor cable is short and the current is very fast. The buoy will actually go underwater, then pop up for a few seconds, then submerge again, only to pop up 15 feet from its original place. There were plenty of times that either us or Double Helix would shout out "submerged buoy" during the night.
One other phenomenon that occurred with buoys in fast, deep water was its lateral movement. You could be paddling to pass the buoy on the right side, but then it seemed like you would hit it. That's because the buoy would swing up to several feet back and forth in the current. Verlen and I would kid that there was a huge magnet on the buoy that would attract canoes and kayaks.
At mile marker 608, the power plant lights were so bright that it was confusing. Why the charts don't tell you it's a power plant, I'll never know! It was very dark and cloudy that night, and there were signs it would rain. At river mile 606, I took the Jack Oak Slough rather than the main channel. I didn't do this on purpose. I didn't realize it until it was too late. Verlen was sleeping or we wouldn't have missed it. I don't remember if I even told him about it. I wouldn't want him to lose faith in my navigation.
Once we got down to the pool above Dubuque, Iowa, and Lock and Dam #11, it began to rain. Soon the thunder and lightning started, and we were out in the middle of it. The map showed that the area was full of stump fields, although with the high water, I doubt there would be any. Once again, I found that the red and green buoys were out of location. In order to find your way through a stump field at night, your only hope was to count on these buoys to keep you in the channel. To locate the reflector tape on the buoys, I would first swing the canoe right or left until I picked up a buoy. After finding one, I would pass it, then swing right or left again to find the next one.
When I got about half way across the pond, my spotlight on the bow began to grow dim. We had already burned Verlen's down to nothing. The headlamp that I used to read my map stopped working. Now I would have to pick out the lights from the dam, if possible, and follow them. My only problem was that there were some bright lights a little to my right and some straight ahead. At the point when I could still read my map, I did not remember seeing anything that would have lights on it. I made it to what's called Island #212 below river mile 591.
I grabbed a tree limb to hold us and woke Verlen up. It was about 4:00 a.m. I needed Verlen's flashlight to read my map. He hooked his flashlight on a tree limb, then I moved the canoe back and picked it up. The lights on the right were from a bridge. The ones ahead were from Lock and Dam #11 . I paddled on toward the lights. The storm had let up by now. When we arrived just above the lock, I found that our support crew had not yet arrived. I needed to know if they were going to meet us above or below the lock. The support crew was only a mile away, so I locked through. As I entered the lock, Mike came running up. He told us that Double Helix had left their kayaks at the lock and were taking a nap someplace.
It was 5:00 a.m. on May 14. The plan was to eat and take a two-hour nap, then leave, maybe, ahead of Double Helix.
Day 10 May 14, 2001 Monday 6 AM to May 15, 2001 6 AM
Mike woke me up at 7:30 a.m. as planned. Just then, Captain Stan came up and said that there was word that the Coast Guard had closed the pool below Lock 11. He said there would be a meeting in an hour or two to let us know.
As it turned out, we had several meetings, about every two hours all that day. I would just get to sleep and we would have another meeting. Later that day, we went to Earl's house and took a shower. Earl is the local Winona Canoe dealer in town. We slept that night at Lock and Dam 11. The lock master let us stay in the driveway. In the morning, we had to chase a snake out of the men's restroom.
Day 11 May 15, 2001, Tuesday 6 AM to May 16, 2001 6 AM
It turned out that we were not allowed to go until 8:00 a.m. on May 15th. The Coast Guard said we could continue IF Team Kruger and Team Double Helix stayed together for safety. We would now be the ONLY craft allowed on the swollen and flooded river. Verlen said that it is really safer when a river is flooded as it gives you more options for safety and there are fewer watercraft to contend with. Even our own safety officials in Florida couldn't understand this and wanted us not to paddle at night. That is what we had been doing up to this point and at the pre-race meeting it was decided that it was up to each team to make their own decision as to when to paddle at night. We were glad to have Verlen's experience!! This condition would last until Lock and Dam 19.
As we took off, my son Mike and Chris Andrews went along with us and Double Helix. For the week they were there, Mike, Chris, and my grandson Michael would travel often with us, although not at night. Chris started marking my maps with mile markers of the next lock and dam. This proved to be valuable information.
As we got into the area below Lock 11 , it was evident why the Coast Guard had closed the river and the Corps of Engineers closed the locks. The next several locks were under water, and many homes along the river were under water, or had sand bags around them. The race committee had talked the Coast Guard into letting us go, because a canoe would not make big waves. The tug boats and barges, on the other hand, would make waves big enough to knock down the sand bags.
The safest place to pass a flooded lock was usually over the levee at the end of the dam. Whenever we approached a lock, we would use the marine band radio. We would call for the lock master of whichever lock we were approaching, and ask for directions. The lock master would then give us his best advice.
When we were three miles above Lock and Dam 12, the wind was blowing hard from out of the southwest. Mike and Chris were with us in a Kruger Cruiser. Their canoe did not have a full cover like ours. It only had the three feet of hard cover in the bow. Mike put a garbage bag over his lap with duct tape. For protection from the wind, we went on the back side of some islands. When we contacted the lock master, he instructed us to go over the levee beside the dam. Lock 12 was under water. There were a lot of islands below the levee, and they can snag you if the current is fast. We had to paddle closer to the dam to clear the islands below. By now, we had to paddle almost parallel to the levee. Half-way across there was a break in the levee, and the water was rushing through. We paddled very fast to get across the current. By the time we got to the other side, both Verlen and I were out of breath. Once we reached the unbroken portion of the levee, we had protection. We went over the land portion, then paddled on the back side until we got away from the islands downriver.
The next lock was 13, and on this one, the lock master recommended to go right of the lock. He told us to take the Lyons Chute. It was a very noticeable drop of about three feet, but it's not a sudden one.
Below Lock and Dam 13, we pulled into the rocky shore at Clinton River Front. It was 5:30 p.m. There was a big surprise for Verlen. Verlen's wife Jenny was with our support team. She had come with Verlen's daughter and son-in-law, Nancy and Terry Norris. Team Double Helix ate with Verlen and me. We found that with the restrictions to stay together, it would be easier to eat together. Over the next several days, our support teams took turns supplying the meals.
As we paddled into the night on May 15, we met with our third mandatory stop. It was around 10:50 p.m. on a dark night. Because we were still traveling together, now was a good time for sleeping, both for me and Clark of the Double Helix. All of a sudden, a loudspeaker woke me up. There was a voice instructing us to pull into the shore. There were all kinds of search lights shining on us, plus a chopper was over our heads. There were firemen in a couple of motorboats that directed us into the right bank at LeClaire, Iowa. The Sheriff's Department started interviewing us. They had a report that someone had capsized in the river. The Fire Department and a medical helicopter had been dispatched to save us. Now the question was, who would pay for this episode? After all, the river was closed to all traffic. The Sheriff could not confirm our release with the Coast Guard because no one was in the office. We had to wait until morning so the Sheriff could confirm the story that Clark and I had told them even though the lock master had confirmed what we had told the sheriff. Very frustrating!!
When we were stopped, I called our support team who had been waiting at Lock and Dam 14. Before the Sheriff had finished interviewing us, our team showed up. The lock was only three miles down the river. We slept in the trailer, except for Verlen. His family took him to a motel for the night.
Day 12 May 16, 2001 Wednesday, 6 AM to May 17 2001 6 AM
It was after 9:30 a.m. on May 16 when the Sheriff finally got confirmation on our permit and released us from LeClaire. Just below LeClaire, on the 1-80 bridge, there was a television crew taking our picture. The night before, they had heard of a rescue attempt and wanted the latest news. About a mile below the bridge, the TV crew caught up with us. They wanted an interview, which we granted. Clark explained about the cause and why we were racing for Rett Syndrome.
At Lock and Dam 14, we stayed river right. The lock was flooded and they recommended we take the LeClaire canal up to the auxiliary lock, then portage. Nancy and Terry met us there and guided us over the portage and gave us some treats.
At Lock and Dam 15 our support crew did not meet us. It was too close to 14 and on the other side of the river. Lock 15 was also flooded, and we had to pull out and portage along the wall of the lock. It was around 8:20 p.m. when we reached New Boston, Illinois. When we got to Lock and Dam 18, it was very dark. I remember the lock master saying we should go over the levee on the right of the dam because the lock was flooded. Verlen was asleep in our canoe, and so was Clark in the Double Helix. Kurt zipped up his spray skirt, as did I. When we got close, you could hear the rushing water, but our lights could not detect the drop off. Team Kruger went first with Double Helix close behind. What a rush, and Verlen never woke up!
In Burlington, we had to pull over. It had kicked up a wind and was pouring down on us. There was a lot of thunder and lightning. It was still dark. There was a railroad bridge just ahead of us, and we could not tell if there was clearance for our canoe under it. We pulled into the right shore and actually paddled right over a railroad track. We pulled our canoe up next to a large building. It was 2:00 a.m. - our support team would never be able to find us. We stood on the steps under an awning. The door was locked. We discussed our options. We had to sleep and try to stay dry. Verlen found an unlocked truck and crawled in to sleep. I slid down into the bow of our canoe with my raincoat on. Kurt slept under the dome of the Double Helix. Clark crawled into the stern of our canoe to rest. It was cold and wet.
Day 13 - May 17, 2001 Thursday 6 AM to May 18, 2001 6 AM
We slept until early morning when two guys came to the building to work. We found out that it was a fertilizer plant. At the same time, the guy who owned the truck showed up. Boy was he surprised to find Verlen! The truck owner was a railroad switchman working the third shift. The guys in the fertilizer plant made us hot coffee. Then we were on our way. It was May 17.
When we passed Fort Madison, we couldn't find Team Helix's support team. We had thought they were going to be there. Fort Madison is on the right shore. The Mississippi at this point is 1-1 /2 miles wide. Just ahead of us, the river gets to be over 2 miles wide. We had called our support team, and they were to meet us on river left by Nauvoo, Illinois. We had to quarter across while battling a strong headwind. It was around noon when we pulled into the left shore. We were exhausted, and Verlen had a severe pain in his side and the very hard paddling into the wind really irritated it. The pain was almost a race ending pain for Team Kruger. We ate, then went into the trailer for a nap. Team Helix joined us. The last thing Verlen said to Captain Stan was "keep an eye on the weather."
At 3:00 p.m., Stan woke Verlen. The sun was shining, and the wind had not only let up, but was also blowing the opposite direction. Verlen said, "let's make some miles Bob!" We made it to Keokuk and Lock and Dam 19 by 5:10 p.m. The lock master used the lock gate to lift our boats out of the water. Double Helix support team fed us fried chicken. We portaged down to put in under bridge 218. Everything was flooded. The Coast Guard and race committee had instructed us to stay together until Lock and Dam 19.Now we had met this condition. Both teams had basically decided to continue to assault the record by paddling together until St. Louis. Then the race would be on again!
Late that evening, we passed Lock and Dam 20 on the right side. The lock master said the lock was flooded. We had to go around some fenced-in area and pull over some grass. We then paddled through a parking lot and down the road. When we got to Henderson Street, we found our support crew waiting for us. Some of the people from Canton, Missouri, had turned out to see us. We ate and so did Clark and Kurt from the Double Helix. It was our turn to treat them. When we finished eating, we paddled down the street and through the railroad crossing. Our canoe bumped a stop sign that was now in the river because of the flooding. We came back out on the river at Ayers Oil Company dock lights.
By approximately 1 :00 a.m. May 18, we arrived at Lock and Dam 21. The lock master told us to go over the levee on the right side, which we did. We were still traveling with the Double Helix at this time. Near Hannibal, Double Helix pulled over to change places so one of them could sleep. Verlen was already asleep, so we kept going. They would soon catch up.
At 5:06 a.m., we arrived at Lock and Dam 22. The Double Helix was somewhere behind us. The lock master said we had to go to the right of the lock. It was still dark, and there were a lot of trees, brush, and a fence. We arrived at the road that led to the lock, and paddled our canoe into the right bank. The road going to the lock was flooded. The lock master had been using a boat to get to the lock, which was now an island. Our support team was not there yet. They said the road from Hannibal was flooded and they had to backtrack. Team Helix support team arrived next, and so did team Helix. Their support crew fed us, too. Shortly after, our support team arrived, and we got extra provisions for the canoe.
Day 14 May 18. 2001 Friday 6 AM to May 19, 2001 6 AM
At Lock and Dam 24, we were told by the lock master to go over the levee on river left. After the lock, we had to cross back to the right because our support crew was in Clarksville. The town was flooded near the river. At this stop, we found that Chuck would be leaving our support crew and heading back to California. We would miss him, but by St. Louis, Missouri, Stan's wife Dana would join us. The plan would be for our support crew to head for St. Louis after this stop, and we would get fed by Double Helix's crew.
Late afternoon on May 18, we arrived at Lock and Dam 25. The sky looked bad, and the marine band radio said a storm cell was moving in from the southwest. The Double Helix support crew met us just below the lock on river right. We pulled our boats up along the levee and went down to the car to eat. The levee at this point had sand bags along it. All of the houses on the river side of the levee were flooded -- at least the ground floors were.
After eating, it began to rain. We decided to spend the night here and let the storm blow over. Everyone would sleep in the workshop of lock 25, except me. I would stay with the two boats at the levee and sleep under the dome of the Double Helix. At first, it was too hot under the dome. Clark had thought of everything! The dome had a small, battery-operated fan which I used. By 3:00 a.m., I was too cold, but I was dry.
Day 15 May 19, 2001 Saturday, 6 AM to May 20, 2001, 6 AM
In the morning of May 19, everyone came back. They gave me a hot meal pack. All you have to do is pour a small bag of salt water over a magnesium grate below the food. I put the food pack under my seat as we took off. It was cold that morning. I zipped up my spray skirt to hold the heat in. By the time my meal was hot, I was too. The meal was spaghetti and meat balls.
We had lost over 10 hours during the stop the night before. By late morning, we were rounding a long bend near mile marker 207. We had some wind in our face. That's why we didn't hear the tug barges coming up behind us. He was sure close when he blew his horn!
The 1989 Corps of Army Engineers chart shows Lock and Dam 26 at mile marker 203. Since that time, they have moved the dam down a couple miles. They also call it Mel Price Lock and Dam now. We discovered that when we called on our marine band for 26 and they didn't respond right away. Finally, they told us it was Mel Price. It was the newest lock and dam on the Mississippi.
We arrived at Mel Price at 11 :45 a.m. Team Helix's support team fed us again By 1 :15, we left Mel Price for St. Louis. We took the Chain of Rocks route to the right. Team Helix had pulled ahead and was paddling strong. By the time we got to the Arch in St. Louis, it was 5:00 p.m. Clark Eid and Kurt Zimmermann of Team Helix were already on the shore. We had a great meal there on the shore. The Rett families had set up a table with pasta, salads, and cold drinks, courtesy of a local Italian restaurant.
We also met Stan's wife Dana for the first time here under the Arch. She became our official map keeper and provider. She also kept wonderful notes and took care of getting witnesses along the way for the world record which we hoped was still in our grasp in spite of several bad decisions to stop us unnecessarily.
When Verlen and I had eaten all we could, we put back into the river. All of the shore along St. Louis was flooded. When we pulled up to the Arch, we had actually paddled over a flooded parking lot. There were horse-drawn carriages taking tourists by the arch, cars driving past and a television crew filming us. After the race was over, we learned that a few weeks after our stop in St. Louis, the river had risen even more, and the road was also flooded between the Arch and the river.
It didn't take long before Double Helix came paddling past us as we were leaving the city. We wouldn't see them again until we stopped for another meal that evening. They were just leaving when we arrived. They had been moving very well, but Verlen and I didn't want to overdo it. Remember this is a matter of survival as much as a race.
It was almost dark when Verlen and I set out on May 19th from this last stop. would take a short nap, then Verlen would go to sleep after my nap.
That night, the barge traffic got very heavy. When we arrived at Mississippi Lime Company on river right, there were some parked barges. They also had some harbor tugs going back and forth across the river. I didn't realize it at the time, but some place prior to this, I had passed Double Helix. It had been dark and they had stopped to let Kurt go to sleep under the dome. Verlen had been sleeping, and I was very busy watching the map and checking buoys and navigation lights. Soon I saw a light behind me coming up fast. It was Clark paddling the Double Helix.
About an hour or so later, in the pre-dawn hours of May 20th , we had a close call with a tug. The tug with his loaded barges was coming up river. We were on the right side and thought we should go to the left and let him pass. What we didn't realize was that he had to swing way over in order to turn his load up river. Clark and I did a sharp left-hand 180-degree turn and paddled very fast for the right shore. I'm not sure how close it had been, but I can tell you it's probably the fastest I ever paddled in the race!
Very early in the morning, about 4:00 a.m., it was foggy. It was so bad that you could not see the shore. I started following Clark because he was using his GPS. Andrew from his support team had programmed it to show a river map. It seemed to me that we were doing a lot of zig-zagging. At one point I felt that we had gotten turned around. I went on my own even though Clark called me. This was a serious mistake! Within seconds, I could no longer see Clark and could not tell from where he was calling. Next, I heard the dreaded sound of diesel engines. It was a tug! I could not tell for sure where it was. I had to find a shore ASAP! Then there was a very loud toot on his horn. He must have picked me up on his radar. I somehow managed to find the shore and stayed there until he passed. I never saw the tug in the fog, but the river is half-a-mile wide in this area.
Once the tug passed and I could not hear his engines, I started paddling again. could no longer find my location on the chart. I stayed very close to the left-hand shore. After a few minutes, I noticed that the shore didn't seem to be moving by very fast. I stopped paddling and dreaded what I saw. The shoreline was going by backwards! I had been paddling up river! With the excitement of the tug, I had gotten turned around.
Day 16 - May 20. 2001, Sunday 6 AM to May 21, 2001 6 AM
When we pulled into river mile 80 for breakfast, Double Helix had already been there for 30 minutes. On a lighter note, my daughter Angie and grandson David Phelps were driving up to our support team. It was May 20, and what a night it had been! Double Helix left before we finished breakfast, but only a few minutes. Angie and Dave were a welcome sight and addition for the support crew as well!
By noon that day, we were at Cape Girardeau, and it was Sunday. We pulled in to get some food. Stan and Jon had stayed in town to make repairs and adjustments to the trailer. David, Angie, and Dana were there to meet us with some hamburgers and shakes. The area we were at was like a sandy beach. I had to use a bathroom, but all of the stores were closed. David came to the rescue. He held a blanket up on the beach for me while I took care of business. Such is the life of a marathon canoeist. .. or have I already said that?
During that day, we would see the Double Helix again. Somewhere near river mile 44, Dorrity Landing, they were on the right shore eating. We were on the left bank and almost missed them. We waved and took over the lead again! At mile 25, we decided to take Brown's Chute. It's on the left of Brown's Bar and most of the time it's dry. On May 20th, it had lots of water in it. The chute saved about a half-mile.
Around 6:45 p.m. that evening, we arrived at mile 0, where the Ohio River comes in from the east. It is also the point where the Mississippi starts counting down from river mile 954. Now we had less than 1,000 miles to go! Our crew was on the left shore at Fort Defiance Park at the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers. We had a real treat. I'm not sure what we had for the main course, but desert was ice cream. This was Verlen's favorite, besides macaroni & cheese!
We tried to keep track of Double Helix to see if they would pass. They didn't.
We pushed off after 45 minutes and paddled into the wind. We crossed the river to seek some protection on the right bank. It looked like rain and the temperature started dropping. Either that or it was the ice cream! By 10: 15 p.m., it was a full blown storm with rain, thunder, and lightning. We looked for a spot to pull in. There was a sandy area on river right with just enough room. The overhead trees made it difficult to use our GlobalStarUSA satellite phone, but we did make contact with our team. We let them know we would wait out the storm. I can't imagine doing this race without these satellite phones. They were invaluable!
Verlen slid down into his bed and covered up. I scooted into the bow as far as I could get and laid my head on the seat. I had the spray skirt zipped up and my raincoat over my head.
We had not designed the canoe to sleep two people at one time. After all, who would guide the canoe if both paddlers were sleeping?!
By 1 :00 a.m. on May 21, it stopped raining. I was wet and cold. I told Verlen to finish sleeping as I pushed off and started paddling. Near mile 938, the storm came up again. I pulled into another sandy area. This time, I could not make contact with the support team. Verlen was still asleep in the storm. I once again crawled into the bow to sleep and try to keep dry.
At 4:00 a.m., I was shivering so bad I couldn't hold still. I drank some coffee from my thermos. I thought about changing into my dry clothes, but it was still raining hard. The thunder quite a distance away, so I felt it would be safe. I turned on my light and something caught my eye. About 30 feet away, I saw a large animal. It looked like a large greyhound, or was it some type of cat? At any rate, it ran when it saw my light.
I decided to change into a dry poly-shirt and jacket and start paddling hard to get warm.
Day 17 May 21, 2001, Monday, 6 AM to May 22, 2001, 6 AM
When dawn broke it was the morning of May 21. Day 17 of our race.
When we left Cairo, Illinois, the afternoon before, our team had planned on meeting us at Hickman Ferry. Our problem now was that we had to cross to the left side to meet them. The flooded river was over a mile wide at this point, and I was bucking a strong headwind. Verlen was asleep in the stern, but that would be okay, because I wanted to paddle hard to get warm anyway. I planned on hiding behind the lower part of Wolf Island Bar for protection. To my surprise, I could only see the tops of bushes that had been on the bar.
I made it to Hickman Ferry by 7:00 a.m. It had taken 12 hours to go 32 miles! What a night! We also found that the Double Helix had not passed us yet.
During breakfast, the support team told me about Angie's dream. At Hickman Ferry, Angie had parked next to a corn field. During the night, she dreamt we had paddled past the ferry, so she started honking her car horn. While the part with us passing was dream, the part about her blowing her horn was for real! I guess she had the whole crew looking out over the corn field to see what she was blowing her horn for. That's the daughter I remember!
After breakfast, we left Hickman. Our river crew got a free ride across on the ferry. Even though the ferry was free, I hear they spent a lot of money buying shirts and caps from the captain of the ferry.
By 2:50 p.m., we were at New Madrid. It had taken a long time to get there. No matter which way the river turned, we seemed to be getting a headwind. We had a hard time getting back into the channel after the food drop at New Madrid. There is an island just down below the town. We had a strong current pushing us into the island that we had to go left of.
Finally after New Madrid, we ended up with a tailwind. The tailwind was great, until it got even stronger. By 6:00 p.m., the wind was up to 40 miles per hour out of the north. We pulled into the left bank at river mile 872. Our support team was only a mile down river, and they would meet us in a few minutes.
It was just after 6:00 p.m., and because of the wind, we decided to eat in the trailer. We were just below Tiptonville Ferry landing right. We ate in the trailer as the wind howled. After dinner, we decided to wait it out until the wind let up. We looked out the window and saw a tug going up river. He was being blown against our shore, and he came close to where our canoe had been pulled up. Verlen and I thought it had been good that we weren't out in the storm. It was raining now, along with the wind. If we weren't going to paddle, then we should be sleeping, so we stretched out.
After dark sometime, there was a knock on our door. It was Clark from the Double Helix. They had just arrived. It must have been a terrifying trip for them. Clark asked us for a cup of hot coffee. Stan was glad to oblige him and we talked about their trip. Their crew was down river just a short distance. It was extraordinary racing like this, being able to help out the competition. There were more times than I can remember when Double Helix's support crew fed Verlen and I. It also worked the other way when we fed them or let them sleep in our trailer. At one point, it was discussed if we should just paddle the rest of the race together. I do believe it would have slowed our pace to do this. There were many times that Double Helix could just paddle away from us. There were also times when we just stayed in the canoe and only made short stops.
At any rate, I felt Verlen and I had done a very good job of pacing ourselves. I know Verlen could stay in a canoe forever, and I felt comfortable myself. Chuck had given me the back strap out of his canoe. I had started using it off and on since Minneapolis. I had also learned to eat more food, more often. Verlen says you have to feed the engine.
The trailer rocked and rolled all night and the rain hit the windows. By 5:30 a.m. May 22, it had stopped.
Day 18 May 22, 2001 Tuesday 6 AM to May 23, 2001 6 AM
We ate breakfast and left by 6:10 a.m. A mile down river, we passed the Double Helix camp on the left. They were eating breakfast, and we waved as we passed.
We arrived at Caruthersville at 10:50 a.m. I still don't know how they pronounce Caruthersville, but Stan knows. Believe me, you wouldn't recognize it! It's something like "Cruvill".
At 3:25 p.m., we paddled into Barfield boat ramp. It was hard to find, because there were so many barges parked on the bank. We ate on the shore. We had fried chicken, and it was very good. Dana had warned us there was poison ivy all along the ramp.
Late that night, May 22, we pulled into Reverie boat ramp to get fed again. Our support team had known we were coming, even before I called. The Helix support team on the other side of the river had seen our light go by when we rounded the turn at Lookout Dikes.
When we were ready to pull out of Reverie boat ramp, Verlen realized we had lost our rear strobe light. Verlen had thought it was a good idea to have one, and now I did, too. Jon and Stan rigged up another one, and we pushed off. Verlen was in bed in the stern, and I was doing my late night turn. Not long after, I noticed that I had almost no control of the rudder. I paddled the next 20 miles with no rudder at all. When I was a couple of miles above Memphis, I decided to pull over and take a look. There was no way I wanted to fight barge traffic in Memphis with no rudder. I found that the pin for the rudder was badly bent, and I had to push the rudder down to get it to work. If I hit a log or any floating debris, it would come up again and not work. With flooded conditions, it was hard to never hit debris.
By 5:00 a.m., May 23, I was at the first bridge in Memphis. The support team would meet me at a park below the city. It was on river right at mile 729. When we arrived, I was happy to see that Mick Wood had rejoined the support team and would be with us until the end of the race. Mick had shaved his head and was sporting a beard.
Day 19 May 23, 2001 Wednesday 6 AM to May 24, 2001 6 AM
While we ate breakfast, Mick repaired the rudder for us. He was amazing. He did it with a pair of pliers, hatchet and a couple of big rocks. When Mick finished, we pushed off with me sleeping and Verlen paddling. I had said goodbye to Angie because she had to return to Michigan. Angie would be sorely missed by the land crew; however, she decided to let her son David stay. Angie had been in touch with home and found out more family were on their way. My son Mike and my wife Janet would be joining us soon. They planned to go to the end with us. Jon Young would be going home with Angie. This would be good to have two drivers. The support crew would miss Jon very much as he was a valuable member and had been with the support team from the very beginning. His abilities and personality held our team together when things got tough.
By 1 :12 p.m., May 23, we stopped for a feed. It was river mile 693, Star Landing. It was hard to find. The river was wide here, and there were islands out in front. David was waving his shirt so we could find them.
In the afternoon, we went through Helena, Arkansas. The wind was out of the southwest and had picked up a Jot. We hugged the right shore for protection as long as we could.
Late that evening, the wind let up, but you could see lightning in the sky ahead. Our support team would be meeting us on river right, mile 644. They had found a grain elevator but had to get someone to open the gates in order to get to the water. When Verlen and I got about 3 miles from the feed, we could see the Superior Grain Dock light. We decided to stay to the right. When we got closer, we could no longer see the light. We didn't know why, because it looked like a straight shot. Soon we found ourselves up against a six-foot high sand bar. We were soon to find that by staying right, we had paddled over Kangaroo Point. The flood had almost made it an island, but not quite. We had to backtrack about oneeighth of a mile, then pull out into the channel.
We finally arrived at Superior Grain at 10:50 p.m. We ate in the trailer. Later that night, we had a light rain. Verlen was sleeping, and I was again navigating at night. I'm becoming a very good "night navigator".
Day 20 May 24, 2001 Thursday 6 AM to May 25, 2001 6 AM
Early May 24, the rain let up, but fog rolled in. I remember going through Sunflower Cut Off at river mile 625. When I came out of the cut off, there was a tug on the other side of the island. According to the chart, I was in the channel, and he wasn't. I never found out if I was in the right place or if he was. It was too foggy to find any buoys in the cut.
During the next 65 miles of river, there are at lot of charts that overlap. On the chart that has river mile 605 to 592 on it, the north pointer is actually pointing west.
On Scrubgrass Bend, we cut the corner to the left. There was a tug with barges behind us, and we didn't want to take his wash. As we made the turn, we hit one of Smith Point Dikes. This was the fist dike or wing dam we hit. It would also be the last. The Army Corps of Engineers installed these rock dams to keep the river in its channel. All of the dams had been under water because of flooded conditions. Whenever the wing dams are close to the surface, they cause severe turbulence. Sometimes very rough, especially disturbing at night. That's why it pays to stay in the channel when possible.
Once we got around Scrubgrass Bend, we had a straight away, then a right turn around Victoria Bend. Come to find out by cutting the previous bend, we ended up being ahead of the tug still. This time, we were on the outside bend and did get his wash. After getting around the bend, we saw David and Mike paddling up river to meet us. Mike and Janet had arrived at our feeding spot, Rosedale Gage, just in time. They would remain with the support crew until the end and they were glad to have their expert help. We pulled in to have a quick bite to eat. It was 12:50 p.m., May 24.
Later that day, we came across one of the first big river boats. They make them so they look like the old rear paddle wheelers.
It was near 6:00 p.m. when we arrived at Easton Landing for our next feed. We had news there that Verlen's wife Jenny would soon join our support team. Nancy and Terry were bringing her out in their fifth wheeler. They planned to follow to the end. They were also a welcome addition to the team. Captain Stan could take much needed rest!
Early morning, May 25, as we approached Greenville, we tangled with a tug boat. He was coming out of the Greenville Harbor on our left. We hadn't seen his light until he came out, which was right beside us. A few minutes later, we met our support crew. It was Greenville bridge, mile 531. We had a hard time finding our way into the landing above the bridge. It was 12:40 a.m., May 25. They had to guide us with the radio and a strobe light.
When we left Greenville, Verlen was tucked in for his sleep. The river grows to about a mile wide in the next stretch. In the next five miles, I passed six tugs, each with several barges. All of them were up-river bound.
I turned on the marine band radio. Sometimes we would turn it on just to check on tug traffic. Tonight they were talking steady. I heard one captain, in his southern drawl, say that he hadn't seen a single can coming across to Lakeport light. Well, after 20 days of racing, I finally learned what river captains call buoys. It's a "can"! I checked my map. I was on the right bank, but at mile 525, I had to cross to the left bank. My problem would be that with a fog on the water, I would not see the Walnut Point light. At least if there were any cans out there I could find my way across. The thought crossed my mind to stay on the right bank and not in the channel. A closer look at the map told me otherwise. Kentucky Bend Bar was on the right as well as the dead-end bay. I watched my compass as I went almost straight east until I hit the left shore. I found Walnut Point light, also, but not until I was about 30 yards from it.
About 4:00 a.m. that morning, I came to Grand Lake Cut Off. Because of the flooding, it was about a mile and a half wide. It was still foggy. Somehow I had stayed too far right, and got behind Craft Lower Dikes. With lower water, it would have been impossible. Now I was behind another sand bar. I backed up a few hundred yards and moved left to the channel.
Day 21 May 25, 2001 Friday 6 AM to May 26, 2001 6 AM
At 6:45 a.m., May 25, we arrived at mile 496. It was the Mayersville tennis court and boat ramp. Our crew had breakfast ready for us. They had been attacked the night before about 1 AM by a pack of wild dogs in Mayersville. No one was hurt but plenty scared.
By 1 :20 p.m., we were at river mile 457, Madison Parish Port. On the stretch below this, we saw a Coast Guard boat putting buoys in and relocating stray ones. It had not been uncommon to see 20 or so buoys laying on the banks in different places.
We would paddle all night again on May 25, but not without excitement. After Vicksburg, it got windy and the river gets wide. I couldn't take a nap yet because we both had to paddle into the wind. After sundown, I took a short nap, then Verlen took his turn to sleep.
At river mile 415, in the wee hours of the morning May 26, we hit a lot of barge traffic. They were all coming up river. Buckridge Landing light was not on, or at least I never found it. I could not find another light all the way around Togo Island Dikes. Finally I did find Brooks light at mile 409.5. Still later that morning, well before sunrise, I hit fog again. At the time, I was on the right bank. Once you hit fog, you are better off staying within sight of shore. I had learned this the hard way, early on in the race. At Coffee Point Dikes, river mile 403, I got inside too far. Yes, I got behind another sand bar and had to back out.
Day 22 May 26, 2001 Saturday 6 AM to May 27 2001, 6 AM
On May 26 at 9:25 a.m., we came to Natchez. We had planned on meeting them on the left before the bridge, but the support crew couldn't get in there. They met us under the U.S. 84 bridge on river right. We were very late getting there and our support crew was upset. They had called on the marine band to see if any tug captains had seen us. They told us that finally one captain had reported seeing one paddler in a white canoe. Upon hearing this, Stan had immediately figured out that one of us was laying down sleeping. We were all so relieved and there might have been a tear or two amongst us.
May 26, at about 6:00 p.m., we arrived at Knox Landing, mile 314. It was just past the two river control structures that allow water to cut off Concordia Parish. David and Mike had paddled up to meet us a couple of miles above the landing. We went up to the trailer to get a bite to eat. By the time we had finished, you could see a storm coming. We decided to take a two-hour nap, then head out after dark. In a couple of hours, the storm had passed.
We went down to the landing to get the canoe. As we went down, we could see a large river boat going up river.
As we watched the waves come in, we saw our canoe sliding out into the water. The support team got to it just in time. Even though it had been high and dry a few minutes before, we almost lost our canoe because of a wave. I'm not sure, but I think that's when Mick took control of securing our canoe each time. He put a 100-foot rope on it, no matter where we were.
After all, you can never trust a couple of canoe racers to tie their own canoe .....
Later that night on May 26, our support crew went through the next town down river, and saw storm damage. They saw downed trees and wires, and lots of emergency vehicles. They were told that a tornado had passed through the area. It was a good idea for us to take that nap.
In the early morning, I had more fog, but it was not that much of a problem. Along Morgan's Bend, mile 279, I was along the right bank. I had been rather close because of a couple tugs which had just passed. All of a sudden, there was a train whistle behind me. It made the hair stand up on the back of my neck.
Day 23, May 27, 2001 Sunday 6 AM to May 28, 2001 6 AM
We arrived at St. Francisville Ferry at 6:45 a.m. May 27. Our crew was on the bank with breakfast ready. We had paddled 49 miles during the night. Not bad! After breakfast, I remember calling my mom and dad in Michigan. It was a Sunday and my sister Verneta and brother Don were there at Mom's having coffee. I talked to all of them.
It had proven to be harder than ever tor our support crew to get to us in Louisiana. They had to find places where they could cross the river. Sometimes they had to drive back up river to do this after feeding us. The boat landings were almost always on dirt roads. Sometimes when they got near the landing, they would find a locked gate. Locked gates didn't mean too much to the support crew. They either found a way to get through or around them. It became apparent that ferry landings were their best bet.
By 1 :50 p.m. May 27, we were on the edge of Baton Rouge. We knew we could no longer break the record. Terry on our support crew had been making calculations daily. The Double Helix was at least 40 miles behind us. The crew had talked to the guy that runs Lucky Louie's near Wilkerson Landing. He would give us free showers, food and let us use his Laundromat tor free too. The food was great and the restaurant was air conditioned. We had fries, hamburgers, and lots of ice tea. The shower was good, too!
Before we left the landing near Lucky Louie's, Verlen's nephew and family drove up. He had come from Texas to see us. Total time lost was about three hours, but it was worth it.
We were now entering Baton Rouge. Now I would get a chance to deal with ocean-going ships. There was a lot going on with all of the docks in this area. At mile 217, we took the inside corner around Manchac Point. It was a tight, right, 180-degree turn. At the same time, there was a tug with barges trying to pass us. He had to stay way over to the left bank in the channel. Verlen and I stayed ahead of him for four miles. What a stroke rate!! We were getting cocky trying to race a tug!
Our next stop that evening was mile 208. It was at West Plaquemine Ferry. We had a chicken dinner that Verlen's nephew had bought for us. We also decided to take a couple-hour nap in the trailer. When I tried to wake up, I didn't know where I was.. It took a few minutes for me to get oriented.
By late night, we were near White Castle Anchorage, mile 191. I saw what I thought would be an ocean freighter. It had high running lights and a very high bow white light. He appeared to me to be docked at the anchorage on the right. If he was, then we couldn't go to the right. So I headed across to the left bank. The channel crosses here anyway. It's called Alhambra Crossing. To my surprise, he was not anchored. He was up-river bound, and I was now paddling across his bow. I thought it was good that Verlen was sleeping. Another elevated stroke rate!!
On the next right bend, there was a tug tight to the right bank. He did not seem to be moving, but after my last experience, I thought I should be sure. After a few minutes, I got closer and could see that he had nosed his barges into the bank. He still had his diesel engines running. They do that sometimes, so that the current doesn't push them down river.
Our support team had planned on meeting us at Philadelphia Point Landing, mile 182.When we got there, we found that they were unable to get back into the landing. They would meet us at Port Barrow, mile 176.
As I went down along the right bank, I heard a motorboat behind me. It was just before sunrise, and there was a light haze over the water. I sure hoped that the motorboat operator could see me. As he passed, very close, I could see that he was an old fisherman. He had a big John boat with a 20-horsepower motor. He did not have any running lights.
By the time I reached Smoke Bend, I could see our crew on the right bank waving us in. The sun had just come up. I saw the old man who had passed us earlier. He was fishing on the inside bend.
Day 24 May 28. 2001 Monday 6 AM to May 29 2001, 6 AM
It was 6:30 a.m. May 28 when we ate breakfast at Smoke Bend. The two guys that signed our witness forms gave us their milk from McDonalds. They were barge workers and were waiting to be picked up. When we left Smoke Bend, I was sleeping in the bow. Mike and David joined us for part of the day, paddling one of Verlen's canoes. It was hard to sleep very long because it got very hot!
During some of these sections, Verlen had to use my maps because he had lost his overboard. I should mention that Verlen had violent nightmares, almost every night. During these dreams, he would kick, fling his arms, and grunt. He may have been dreaming about how I navigate at night. During one of these episodes, he had somehow lost about 20 charts overboard. One time he said he was dreaming of alligators!
By 3:00 p.m., Monday, May 28, we were at Edgard Ferry Landing, river mile 138. It took us 'til midnight to get the next 41 miles to Jackson Avenue Ferry in New Orleans. The ship traffic had been horrific! When you add in all of the city lights, you have a real problem. We passed ship yards where welders were welding right near the water. We had harbor tugs going in and out of ports, and big river boats going by.
At Jackson Ferry, our support crew had chairs set up under the ferry ramp on a low strip of land. We sat in the chairs and ate a late night snack. After half an hour, we pushed off with Verlen sleeping in the stern.
The U.S. 90 bridge was lit up like a Christmas tree. My eyes burned just trying to pick out which lights were moving and which were not. When we reached Algiers Canal, mile 88, I found several ocean freighters. They were all anchored near the center of the river. I passed them on the right, even though the main channel was on the left. I didn't want some ship coming up behind me.
I found several smaller watercraft cruising around in this area. They were quite fast. Verlen said they were used to taxi sailors from the ships to shore and back.
Once I turned the bend at mile 85, I was out of the bright lights. I stopped paddling long enough to read my maps again. My head hit the bow of the canoe! I had fallen asleep. The lack of sleep was starting to show on me.
As I completed the right-hand turn at mile 81, I moved out of the channel to the right. I had spotted a big freighter behind me and decided to give him lots of room. It as still dark and very early, May 29. Just as the freighter passed on my left, I stuck my paddle on a sand bar. It was only about two feet deep. I knew I would be in big trouble when his wave got to me. I turned to head into the wave which now had started to crest. I got wet, and the canoe shook violently. Verlen never woke up.
Day 25 May 29, 2001 Monday 6 AM to May 30 2001 6 AM 6
We arrived at Belle Chase Ferry at 6:35 a.m. on Tuesday, May 29. We only had 76 miles to go. That should have been easy, but it got hot. Our plan was to paddle 51 miles without stopping, but that proved to be too long in the sun. About mile 40, I saw paddles flickering in the sun. I told Verlen, "I bet it's Mike and David." They were about a mile away padding up river. Sure enough, soon Mike and David came along side.
They knew we would need a boost because of the heat. They had four peanut butter sandwiches and two gallons of ice tea. The tea was half ice cubes! Mike said he and Janet had driven along the levee looking for a place to get to the water. They had just put in one mile below us. I don't know how Mike hit it that close.
In these last several miles of the race, the river slows and straightens out. In many places, it's over nine miles between cuNes. At mile 30, we heard watercraft calling Empire to open the locks. Empire is a small town on river right. They have a lock at the levee. With high water, the Mississippi was higher than water on the outside of the levee.
We made it to Fort Jackson, mile 20, by 6:30 p.m. We met Don Keller, the race's official timekeeper for Mile Zero who had joined our support crew. We ate at the trailer while Don briefed us on where the escort boat would meet us. When we left Fort Jackson, I think we picked up the pace. It had cooled down to about 70 degrees and the sun was almost down. The first shrimp boat passed us when it was still light enough to see. They were headed up to Empire. The next three shrimp boats passed us after dark. Verlen and I think the first shrimp boat must have warned the others to look out for us. As they approached us, after dark, they would almost stop until we got passed.
When we reached Venice, it was very dark. Venice is the end of the road for cars. Our escort boat was to meet us here for the ten-mile run to Mile Zero. We had some difficulty contacting our support team. When we did make contact, we still couldn't find their exact location. At Venice, the Mississippi River splits up. There is a branch that goes right called Grand Pass. In order to find our escort boat, we actually had to paddle a short distance down Grand Pass. There was ship traffic everywhere, and now there was a lot of current sucking us down Grand Pass. Ship captains and tug captains refer to this split in the river as "the jump."
After several minutes, the escort boat found us. The boat was about a 60-footer. They had our families and all of our support crew on board.
We now had ten miles to paddle down a delta which was almost a mile wide. We were tired, but very excited. Just when I thought we would be out of the bright lights, we came to Pilot Town. It's on river left, and there are no roads going there. Pilot Town is a string of islands with petroleum storage tanks and other docking facilities on it. They have several range lights and dock lights at the shore line. A range light is a set of at least two lights. The light that is farthest away is higher than the one closest to the water. When these two lights line up in your sight line, you can tell where you are in the river.
At Head of Passes, the Mississippi splits up again. This time, it goes three different ways. The width of the river at this point is two miles. Mile Zero is right in the middle of them all. Lucky for us, we had. a captain on the escort boat who knew where Mile Zero was! One thing for sure, I was a little confused on which spot was Mile Zero.
To make it even more difficult, there was a dredge at work rear the finish line. The dredge had several lights on board which would not even show on our charts.
We arrived at Mile Zero at 11:51 pm on May 29, 2001. It took several of us to pull our canoe up onto the deck of our escort boat. I remember getting sprayed by champagne and getting a lot of hugs. It was a great time. What a race!
We later found that the Double Helix was about 130 miles behind us when we finished. After Double Helix, none of the other teams would finish the race. Team Alaska, after losing their kayak in the rapids, had purchased another one. They were only 300 miles from the finish line when the race ended.
I consider myself lucky to have had Verlen as my partner. Without his knowledge of navigation, his design of a canoe, and determination, I would not have made it. Our support crew and family support were fantastic. There were many times when this crew got less sleep than Verlen and I. Our support captain, Stan Hanson, fit all the requirements. He was able to get gates open or permission to get to places that would seem impossible. I wouldn’t want to to do it again without all those people. They were so many things getting done behind the scenes. I did not always know who got them done, but I do recall some. Chuck swapped batteries in our phone, head lamps, and canoe bow light. Jon wiped out our canoe and put in sleeping pad and bags. He stocked our food and water. Dana took over numbering my river charts. She also added information notes. She gave me river miles and miles from last feeding point. Mike repaired things and secured our canoe when were on shore. Stan cooked and even his “old family recipes” which were great. Stan also got the ball rolling prior to the race. He got sponsorship and details of the river and worked with the race officials getting us signed up and collecting waivers and all the paperwork involved. He provided the support boat and the trailer.
When our families joined us, they would pitch in and do these tasks, too, but just having them there meant so much to us.
Now the question comes, “Would I ever do it again?”. I would answer that with another question -- Did we break the record?
As Enhanced by Stan Hanson
May 4-29, 2001
Webmaster Mary Potter note: A "day" is 24 hours, starting on May 5, 2001 at 6 AM
May 4, 2001 Before Race
The night before the race, we met at the lodge on Lake Itasca where we were all introduced to the other racers. There were five teams in all: Team Amazon, Team Alaska, Team Rebel, Team Double Helix, and Team Kruger. The Rebels and the Alaskans were relay teams but the other three would be made up of two members in each team. All of the teams were using kayaks, except Team Kruger. On May 5, 2001, our team was the first to arrive at the site, but not without excitement! We had put all of our gear inside of our canoe the night before. We also put the spray skirts on for the race.
Day 1 May 5, 2001 6 AM to May 6, 2001, 6AM
On May 5, 2001, our team was the first to arrive at the site, but not without excitement! We had put all of our gear inside of our canoe the night before. We also put the spray skirts on for the race. All we had to do this morning, was to load the canoe on the car racks in an upright position so the gear wouldn't fall out. The trip was only three miles from our camp, so that wouldn't be a big deal. Thank goodness Kruger canoes are built tough. As we slowed to make the left turn to the parking lot, where the race was to start, the canoe shot off the roof and landed in front of the car. It hit the pavement with a loud crash! We pulled the canoe the rest of the way on the Heavy Duty Paddle Boy. There had been no damage to the canoe.
At the race starting site, we checked and re-checked all of our gear. It would be a half hour before any of the other competitors arrived. I made at least five trips to the woods for a bathroom break. Even though I had been careful to hydrate myself, I think it was just the excitement. I noticed Verlen appeared calm.
Spectators began to appear, some with daughters that had Rett Syndrome. Cameras were flashing and people were asking us questions, like how will you be able to go that long in a boat? I wasn't sure, but I knew Verlen had to know what it would take. We had talked a lot that spring about how we would have to pace ourselves. I had been mostly a racer, and Verlen had been both a racer and a voyager. As Verlen told me later, ''This isn't a race, it's survival!!"
It was almost race time. All of the teams were there, except Team Amazon. Clark Eid said it was time to draw straws to see how we would line up. The Mississippi is only about 12 feet wide at its beginning. It starts at Lake Itasca, where a small rock dam allows water to flow out of the northern end of the lake. I drew the third position for us. The bows of our watercrafts had to be touching the water at the start. Ten yards downstream there was a log across the river. It was only a foot above the water so our plan was to pull the canoe up out of the water and portage around the log as soon as the gun went off. Verlen and I had scouted at least six hours' worth of the Mississippi River during the previous four days. We knew exactly where we wanted to go in the first twenty miles. I knew we should try to get out in first place, if possible, but only if we didn't expend too much energy.
Our canoe was only 18 feet 6 inches. Most of the kayaks were over 21 feet. We would have an advantage for at least the first 30 miles of the race because of the tight, twisty nature of the river.
When Steve Landick started the race, no one seemed to be in a hurry. No one wanted to lead the race. We did, and it was time to make our move. Verlen would be in the back and I in the front. That would be our positions the entire race. We made the short portage and jumped back into the canoe ahead of the other teams. I remember turning to the race starter, Steve, and asking what we should do now. After all, we had drawn the number three position. Steve grinned and said, "This is a race, Bob!" As we turned the first corner, I turned to Verlen and said, "Are you having fun yet, Verlen?" He replied, "It doesn't get any better than this!" As the next 24 days would pass, I would ask that same question several times, and Verlen would give me the same response.
Our plan to break away seemed to work very well. We got to the culvert, which was only ten minutes downstream, and went through the tube. We had practiced this move several times prior and found it very fast. As we would approach the tube, I would sit on the floor, then grab the tube as we got there. I would then stop our movement long enough for Verlen to slide off his seat onto the floor. As it turned out, when I grabbed the culvert, it stopped us so suddenly that Verlen slid off the seat automatically. After reviewing the race videos, we saw that all of the other teams had to portage around the culvert.
During the first hour, we broke through three small beaver dams. The river also did several switchbacks through the cattails. More than once I would look over my shoulder to check for other teams. We would never see any for the first week.
After going under the Road 200 bridge, the river does not switchback as much. There was a dead tree ahead with a bald eagle sitting in it. I took the time to snap a picture. It would be the first of many eagles we would see in Minnesota.
We passed a guy in a white solo canoe at about mile marker 1330. It was a Kruger Sea Wind solo canoe. The guy had picked it up from Verlen a day earlier. He wished us luck and took our picture.
Our next obstacle was a tree down across the river. We had practiced this on a prior reconnaissance. I jumped out and pulled the canoe over the log, then got back in. This was faster than a portage around. Soon we came to the old wooden dam. It's at river mile 1339. The portage is on the left side and it's very rocky and rough. The dam was too dangerous to shoot through. It had some large rocks in the center, so we took the portages, but couldn't use the Heavy Duty Paddle Boy. The Heavy Duty Paddle
Boy is a set of wheels that attach to the canoe that was furnished to us by the Paddle Boy company. Thank you Zoe!!!!
We had to dodge a lot of rocks in the next stretch. Some we couldn't and just hit. We arrived at County Road 2, river mile 1336 in a time faster than our scouting time three days earlier. We had to make sure we were not paddling too hard. About 15 minutes past Road 2, we came to a split in the river. I asked Verlen if we should go right or left. He said he didn't remember this. It had only been 17 years prior to his when Verlen had paddled this section. It appeared that the left fork had more flow, so we picked it. After three bends, the river forked again. We took another left, then it forked again. Now there was room for concern. The river was only four feet wide and the brush was very thick. So thick that I had to get out and pull Verlen through. Now we were in big trouble. At the start of the race, we had broken one of our two headlights off the bow. I had broken the mount at the culvert, and it was hanging by its wires. Now I broke the other one on the brush, and it, too, was hanging from its wires. We would need duct tape at the next feed stop.
After a lot of mud and brush, we broke back into what seemed to be the main part of the river. So much for keeping our feet dry and the inside of the canoe clean!
We arrived at County Road 40, and I remember seeing a Minnesota Canoe Club member standing on the bridge. Because of the tangle that we had just paddled through, I asked him if any of the other teams were ahead of us. He said, "No." Then I told him that we weren't sure if we had gone through the right way. He looked at his watch and said, "You must have done something right!"
The next difficult area was Rice Lake at river mile 1307. The Canoe Club, according to Clark, had put some markers up to guide the racers through Rice Lake. The river opened up and cattails were everywhere. You couldn't just follow the tree line. Several times I stood up in the bow in order to check our course. I'm sure that the kayakers didn't have this luxury. A couple times, we had to back out of a dead end. More than once we had to stop the canoe and check the river bottom to see which
direction the weeds were bending in what current there was.
As you leave the Rice Lake area, it is very tricky. We were watching the tree line and missed the outlet on the right. Once in the river channel again, we saw a lot of flooding conditions and the wind picked up.
When we arrived at Lake Irving, river mile marker 1286, we were getting a side wind. This made the crossing of Lake Irving difficult. I also got a little mixed up on the location of the passage to Lake Bemidji, but Verlen knew. He had been monitoring his map and compass and really knows how to use them. When we arrived at the north side of Lake Irving, we met our support team. Our team captain was Stan Hanson, and he had some bad news. The support boat, required for Lake Bemidji, would not run.
The good news was that they had permission for us to go alone if we followed the right shore around. We were running ahead of schedule. The portage at the dam went well.
The next spot of concern was at the north end of Wolf Lake. The lake is full of cattails and several openings that dead end. As we exited Wolf Lake, we saw a powerboat coming our way. It was Captain Stan, and he had the boat running. They had to have the engine tuned up in the last town. We went along with Stan to the bridge on County Road 8. Stan picked up Jon Young for the trip across Cass Lake. Chuck Hasenkamp was pulling the trailer to the dam. Mick Wood had canceled a trip to Ely to help a couple more days pulling the boat trailer.
As we started to cross Cass Lake, it began to rain. The temperature began to drop, the wind came up, and the sun went down. Water temperature was 45 degrees! Our support boat was off to the right about 30 yards. They had been closer, but kept getting tangled in weeds. At 11 PM we were about 2-1/2 miles from Knutsun Dam, when our 16' powerboat came along side. Stan said they had been taking on water from the high waves and the bilge pump couldn't keep up. They had to go to the closest shore, which was on our left.
This was no time to take chances, so we headed for the north shore. Stan picked out a house that had lights on. When we got to the shore, Verlen and J also started having trouble. The waves were cresting even higher in the shallow water. When I got out, I got soaked, too. The support boat almost sank. The people from the house ran out on the dock to see what was going on. It was Wes Kinneberg, J.D. Gard, David Warner, and David Belino. They thought we were nuts, and in so many "colorful" words told us so. We couldn't totally disagree. When they found out about the race, they helped us out. They had been in the garage celebrating a birthday. We went in the garage taking our dry bags with us. Once in the garage, I discovered it was not heated. We were all wet and Jon was shivering badly. He was suffering from hypothermia as were we all. I gave him my dry jacket from the dry bag. After that, I realized that I had begun to shake also. I stripped my wet clothes off and when I did so, someone ran over with a blanket. Verlen just sat in the corner, half asleep with a grin on his face. He was loving every bit of this! They fed us some Sloppy Joes, birthday cake, and hot coffee. They also drove Captain Stan to the dam so he could get Chuck and Mick and our trailer. Once they got back, we jumped into the trailer and slept 'til dawn.
Day 2 May 6, 2001 Sunday 6 AM to May 7, 2001 6 AM
The paddle to the dam in the dawn on May 5th was a piece of cake. We portaged on the left, because it was only a few feet of grassy area. We arrived at the opening of Lake Winnibigoshish. The wind was blowing hard and the wind chill was very cold. You could see the waves stacking up. The lake is wide enough that you can't see across. We ate lunch on the left bank of the river at the opening to Lake "Winnie".
We needed to decide what to do -- stay put, or go without a support boat and stay on the southern shore all the way. This last choice would make the 14-mile trip more like 23 miles. On the other hand, if we stayed put, it could get worse. Verlen, in his trip 17 years ago, had spent part of the night in a camper at this point because of high wind and snow. We opted to paddle the south shore and the support crew would follow along the west shore as much as possible then meet us at the dam.
When we got all the way around to Tamarack Point, we not only had wind, but also a cold, driving rain. We cut across the bay heading for the dam. When we reached the dam, it stopped raining. We loaded the canoe on the Heavy Duty Paddle Boy, and with Verlen riding in his seat, I pulled the canoe down to the put-in. It was all down hill and blacktop. The crew had another hot meal. I ate 5,000 calories every day. The food was excellent. I'll never know how Stan could think up so many different varieties of macaroni and cheese, spaghetti and rice.
It rained off and on the rest of the day. At 8:35 p.m., we pulled into the landing prior to County Road 3. We were wet and a little cold. We ate in the trailer and decided to sleep until 4:00 a.m. At 4:00 a.m. it had stopped raining and the moon was very bright. Verlen and I had paddled this tricky stretch the week before. This made us eager to paddle it before sunrise. At this time, we did not know if we were still in the lead or not. All of the teams had to call in to headquarters between 5:00 and 7:00 a.m. and again in the afternoon. When the teams called in, they had to give their river mile. We would all be eager to hear where the competition was. As it turned out, we were still in the lead.
Day 3, May 7, 2001, 6 AM to May 8, 2001, 6 AM
May 7th at 4:00 AM, it had stopped raining and the moon was very bright. We pushed off for day three of the race. Verlen and I had paddled this tricky stretch the week before. This made us eager to paddle it before sunrise. At this time, we did not know if we were still in the lead or not. All of the teams had to call in to headquarters between 5:00 and 7:00 a.m. and again in the afternoon. When the teams called in, they had to give their river mile. We would all be eager to hear where the competition was. As it turned out, we were still in the lead.
We passed White Oak Lake without a hitch. Finding the route through Black Water Lake was a little more difficult though. We had gone through Cohassit a week before in the car. Jon Young had helped me put a reading in my GPS (global positioning system), but I must have done something wrong. My GPS kept directing me through the power plant, instead of just below it. Verlen's map reading did well, though, and we hit the right channel. Dan Cruser, a canoe racer, had warned me about this area. He wanted to make sure we didn't end up in Pokegama Lake, which is a dead end.
We arrived at the first dam and completed the short portage on river left. At the put-in, the water was very fast, and by 10:30 a.m., we reached the dam at the paper mill in Grand Rapids. This portage was a little more difficult because the take-out had a steep bank of about five feet.
We put in below and on river right. After a block or so, we saw Big Al Rudquist in a parking lot. He is one of the best canoe racers in Minnesota and probably in the top ten of North America. He told me he would paddle with us down to Jacobson. He was waiting for another friend of mine, Fred Rayman, a racer from Ely, Minnesota. Al had told me that with the high water, he could save us about a half-hour in the 40-mile stretch to Jacobson. There would be a lot of shortcuts we could paddle through which were legal. Al had said that he and Fred would join us later down the river when Fred arrived. Within the next half-hour, we saw Al and Fred paddling up-river to meet us.
We made Jacobson by 6:00 p.m. thanks to our guides! We decided to eat in the trailer. The temperature was dropping and a bad storm was moving in. After eating, we decided to sleep. Verlen had stomach cramps, and the weather was bad anyway. Stan drove Al and Fred back to their cars, and we slept.
Day 4 - May 8 2001, 6 AM to , May 9, 2001, 6 AM
We started the next morning, May 8th, before sunrise. On our way to Sandy Lake Recreation Area, at mile 1108, I saw a small black bear. We made a stop at the house of Gene Hill, "The Artist," for lunch. It was 9:30 am
Our next town was Palisade. Valerie and Verlen had left such an impression 17 years prior that the town had painted their picture on the water tower. We were disappointed because no one in town noticed as we paddled through. To our surprise, ten miles below Palisade, at river mile 1080, Todd Dseher and Linda Lane were on the bank with our support crew. Come to find out, no one had time to get down to the river in Palisade because we were ahead of schedule. Todd and Linda drove all the way down to present us with Palisade T-shirts and hats, plus a hot meal. What a treat!!
The next stretch had a lot of farmland and some open areas where the wind got to us. The flooding was very evident in this area.
According to my GPS, we were approaching the mouth of the diversion channel. Prior to the race, Stan and Jon had assisted me in programming this location.
According to the race rules, if you could paddle through any cut, it was legal as long as you didn't portage. When we reached the channel, we found lots of water going through it --almost too much. We zipped up our spray skirts and went through the turbulence. We had six miles of straight channel with the sun in our eyes and fighting a head wind.
Dan Cruser was right. Even facing difficult conditions, the diversion channel saved us time. Our support team met us on County Road 6, close to where Dan lives. Because of prior commitments, Dan was unable to paddle a stretch with us.
After eating at County Road 6, we paddle planned on while having me sleep until my about 11:00 p.m. while Verlen paddled. Then I would paddle while Verlen slept. During my paddling turn, I would be going through the back waters of Potlatch Dam. I remember waking up cold and seeing a very large ball overhead. The ball turned out to be the type they put on power lines. They do that to keep low flying aircraft from hitting the wires.
It was my turn to paddle so Verlen could sleep. This would be the first night that we would actually paddle all day and all night for 24 hours. Now we would find out how my map reading skills were and at night. Things went well until we were a mile out of Potlatch Dam. I had Rice Lake on my left and there was no detectable current in the pond. I over-compensated by staying right so that I would not go into Rice Lake. This caused me to go into a small bay, which I had to back out of. I considered waking Verlen, but decided not to bother him. Total lost time would only be about ten minutes. It taught me to watch the map even more closely.
We arrived at County road 25 just before dawn. On the satellite phone, Captain San had told us to wait here because there was trouble at the portage around Potlatch. Our support team had arrived at the dam before dark the night before to check it out. When they got there, they found no warning buoys in front of the dam to keep boats from being swept over the dam. They also discovered that the put-in below the dam had several 20-foot logs floating in a whirlpool. This would be dangerous and foolish to attempt at dark. While Verlen grabbed a bite to eat, Chuck and I took the car down to check other portage options. We only found one, but it was two miles, and it didn't seem a good option. After getting back to the trailer and eating, we decided on a plan. It was dawn by now, and a lot safer. We took the portage over to the chain link fence, then went outside the fence rather than on the trail. There was a lot of brush, but it allowed us to put back in below the logs and whirlpool. Stan notified the race safety officials of the fact there were no safety buoys and asked them to pass that on to the rest of the teams. It was a race but good sportsmanship and safety were more important.
Day 5 - May 9, 6 AM to May 10 6 AM, 2001
The homes below Brainerd are very nice and sit high on the banks. The day was crisp and sunny and our spirits were high. It was May 9, the fifth day of the race. It actually seemed like less than that. A few miles below Brainerd, I slid down in the bow and took a 30-minute nap. Just below Crow Wing State Park, we saw a deer swimming across the river. I'm sure she wondered what we were and why we were there. We reached Little Falls Dam around 1 :30 p.m. The portage was fine, but below the dam the angry river was very fast and turbulent. The next portage was Blanchard Dam, which proved to be very time-consuming. Our crew had several options for us to pick from. They aJso picked up several deer ticks and had mud up to their knees .
It was then that we realized our support crew was so busy cheching things out that they were getting less sleep than we were. It also got worse for them as time went on.
After looking at the Blanchard portage options, we decided on putting in about 15 yards down from the regular put-in. The bank was quite steep and had a lot of brush.
Once we got to the water, it was hard to keep the canoe upright while we got in because of the severe turbulence and high waves caused by the water spilling through the dam. The spray from the water reached at least a 100 feet high above our heads. Because of flooding, we had to paddle through thick tangled brush to get to the river.
The paddle to Champion Dam in Sartell was fast because of the increased current. Once we got there, we discovered, once again, that below the dam the river fJwas impossible to paddle in. Our only option was a portage past the put-in, down the street three blocks, and put in below a bridge. It was getting dark. It was 8:20 PM, and our next town was Sauk Rapids. This place would be extremely dangerous, and almost impossible without capsizing especially after dark. Our support crew headed that way to check it out with flashlights. As we approached the town, Verlen and I miscounted a bridge on our map and thought we were close to the rapids. In fact, we were about half mile away. This cost some time, but better safe than sorry. We realized our mistake and met up with our crew in the park above the rapids. The plan would be to wait until dawn, then take a short portage under the bridge and put back in.
Day 6 May 10, 6 AM to May 11, 6 AM, 2001
During early morning hours, our competitors, the Double Helix, had actually caught us and decided to portage six miles to avoid the rapids. When we put in at dawn, we were not aware that they had passed us. The rapids below the bridge were tricky and very fast, but after some difficulties, we made it safely. Afterwards, we found out that the Helix had actually some difficulties, we made it safely. Afterwards, we found out that the Helix had actually seen us go by in the water while they were still on their portage. We keep the lead!
We arrived at St. Cloud Dam at 7:00 a.m., May 10, 2001. The portage was good, but the put-in was a 20-foot high slick, muddy bank. I remember the slide I took to the bottom with the canoe pushing against my head. Richard Lewis also remembers. He was a photographer taking pictures at the bottom. Below the dam was full of islands, but easy to pick the best line. I usually had a talent for doing that, but Verlen ALWAYS did.
At Montissippi County Park, we beat our crew to the site. It was cool, so rather than wait, we ate some of the emergency food we were required to have with us at all times and started paddling again. At Elk River, our support team met us on river left, and we ate. They gave us the word that the river was closed in Minneapolis. It was unknown when it would re-open.
At Coon Rapids, my friend and fellow canoe racer, Kjell Petterson met us and showed us where to portage. Stan had more word on the closed river. The plan was for all racers to stop above St. Anthony's Falls at Ketter's Canoes. We would then have to wait for word from the Coast Guard.
Kjell led us down to Ketter's place on river right. Kjell lives there and sells canoes for Ken Ketter. This was race day six, and I was about to get my first much needed shower. Such is the life of a marathon canoeist. Verlen and I also got a great dinner from Beth and Ken Ketter and Kjell. I took a one-hour nap.
My plan was to wake up and greet Clark and Kurt of the Helix when they arrived at Ketter's. When Double Helix arrived 2 hours and 30 minutes later, they had to make a small repair on the bow of their beautiful cedar strip kayak. Ketter's had fiberglass and resin on hand to do that. I thought it was amazing that Double Helix only had one scuff mark on it after that trip. After a short talk, we went to bed in the trailer.
Day 7 May 11, 2001, 6 AM to May 12, 6 AM, 2001
On the morning of May 11th, I took a long, hot bath after breakfast at Ketter's place. At noon, after a 20-hour stop, the Coast Guard let us go. Todd Ellison, a Minnesota racer, paddled down to St. Anthony's with us. The Double Helix locked through with us. This was my first time to ever lock through. Verlen had done it many times.
After Lock and Dam #1, below St. Anthony's, Verlen developed stomach cramps, so we pulled over to the left bank and Verlen took care of business. Meanwhile, Double Helix took over first place. This was their first time to lead the race after six days. Even though we had a 20-hour layover, none of the other teams caught us.
Later we would find out that Team Alaska had capsized at Sauk Rapids and lost their kayak. Team Amazon had problems with infected blisters on one of the paddler's hands and withdrew from the race under doctor's orders. Team Rebels had other problems and also had to withdraw ..
At river mile marker 831, Tom Gardner, another Minnesota canoe racer, joined us. Tom paddled down to his place on the river. It's always a lift when you can paddle along with friends when you're in a long race.
By 8:00 p.m., we were at Lock and Dam #2 at Hastings. I think it was at Redwing that I found out that even though Verlen has good eyesight, he has problems seeing at night. I was sound asleep in the bow when our canoe hit a large, green metal buoy. I popped up in a hurry! The sound was still reverberating in my head. I decided I would paddle during the night and sleep an hour at dusk and a few hours in the morning.
The next body of water that we would need a support boat on was Lake Pepin. We reached it on the evening of May 11th. The plan was for our support crew to share Double Helix's support boat, with Stan riding along with it. It took forever to get the support boat ready when we arrived. The boat ramp was flooded and it was dark. After 45 minutes, we took off with Team Kruger and Double Helix together, and the support boat close behind. There was a little wind, and it was a clear night. It got cold. Verlen was asleep and so was the Double Helix's Kurt Zimmermann. The stars made it easy to keep on course and I felt especially good. At one point, we had edged out ahead a little. Then I noticed that the support boat and Double Helix seemed to get off course a bit. After an hour, I noticed they had dropped way back. We later learned that they stopped so Kurt could get up and help Clark paddle.
Day 8 May 12, 2001 6 AM to May 13, 2001 6 AM
By daybreak, May 12, we had come off the lake and back into the river. No one was in sight when I looked back. Our support crew was ahead at Wabasha, in a flooded marina. It was cold, but it was a great place to stop. To my surprise and delight my wife Janet, son Mike, grandson Michael, and a friend Chris Andrews were waiting with our support team. We ate breakfast and then I climbed under the deck for a sleep. My son, grandson, and Chris got into one of Verlen's canoes and paddled along with us. What a treat!
During our stop at the marina, Double Helix had passed and they were ahead again.
At 12:40 p.m., we arrived at Lock and Dam #5. While I ate lunch, Mike washed my feet and doctored them. I had an infected toenail, and with the dirty river water, I didn't want it to get worse. Mike would do this several more times during the following week while I ate. At 5:25 p.m., we came to Lock and Dam #6. We seemed to be chasing the Double Helix. Each time we came to a lock, they had just left.
After Lock and Dam #7, and near river mile 687, we had a tight pass with a tug and several barges. We were on the right bank of the river and making a left-hand turn. It was dark. To make it worse, the tug had his high beam shining right on us. It's enough to make you feel like you have just escaped a concentration camp. Before it was over and the tug made the turn, we had the canoe tight against the bank.
After this mile marker, the buoys cross over to the Wisconsin side of the river. The river is approximately three miles wide at this point. We crossed over and arrived at Lock and Dam #8 after midnight, early May 13. Our support team had hot food for us. They said they had not seen Double Helix go by yet. Shortly thereafter, Double Helix arrived. Apparently, they had not crossed to the Wisconsin side when we did, and it cost them some time. They paddled on through the lock. We made the decision to stay until daybreak. The support crew had parked next to the boat ramp. Thirty feet on the other side of us was a railroad track. I slept in the back seat of Mike's truck, and every time a train went by, it rocked back and forth.
Day 9 May 13, 2001 6 AM to May 14 2001, 6 AM
In the morning on May 13, we put back in with Mike, Michael, and Chris paddling with us again. By the time we got to river mile 655, Lake Winneshiek, the wind had picked up a lot. We had a struggle getting across. We hid behind islands for protection as much as possible.
We went through Lock and Dam #9 by 12:30 p.m., then Lock and Dam #10 by 8:30 p.m. The flooding in the last 50 miles had been especially bad. We also noticed a lot of green and red buoys out of position. There were also some missing day markers. From Minneapolis down, the river has red and green buoys, so that watercraft know where the channel is. Each buoy also has reflective tape on it. The tape makes it easy to see when you shine a light on it at night. The day markers are large signs which have the river mile marked on them. Some of the river mile markers have blinking lights or navigation lights on them. These lights are battery operated. The further down the Mississippi you get, the better the markers and the more navigation lights they have.
The river charts show you exactly where the navigation lights and mile markers are though they do not show you where the red and green buoys are. During the daylight, you could see where large trees or other debris had knocked over the markers or lights. Sometimes you could find several buoys washed up on shore. One of the most dangerous situations was when we found what we called a "bobbing buoy''. This happens when the anchor cable is short and the current is very fast. The buoy will actually go underwater, then pop up for a few seconds, then submerge again, only to pop up 15 feet from its original place. There were plenty of times that either us or Double Helix would shout out "submerged buoy" during the night.
One other phenomenon that occurred with buoys in fast, deep water was its lateral movement. You could be paddling to pass the buoy on the right side, but then it seemed like you would hit it. That's because the buoy would swing up to several feet back and forth in the current. Verlen and I would kid that there was a huge magnet on the buoy that would attract canoes and kayaks.
At mile marker 608, the power plant lights were so bright that it was confusing. Why the charts don't tell you it's a power plant, I'll never know! It was very dark and cloudy that night, and there were signs it would rain. At river mile 606, I took the Jack Oak Slough rather than the main channel. I didn't do this on purpose. I didn't realize it until it was too late. Verlen was sleeping or we wouldn't have missed it. I don't remember if I even told him about it. I wouldn't want him to lose faith in my navigation.
Once we got down to the pool above Dubuque, Iowa, and Lock and Dam #11, it began to rain. Soon the thunder and lightning started, and we were out in the middle of it. The map showed that the area was full of stump fields, although with the high water, I doubt there would be any. Once again, I found that the red and green buoys were out of location. In order to find your way through a stump field at night, your only hope was to count on these buoys to keep you in the channel. To locate the reflector tape on the buoys, I would first swing the canoe right or left until I picked up a buoy. After finding one, I would pass it, then swing right or left again to find the next one.
When I got about half way across the pond, my spotlight on the bow began to grow dim. We had already burned Verlen's down to nothing. The headlamp that I used to read my map stopped working. Now I would have to pick out the lights from the dam, if possible, and follow them. My only problem was that there were some bright lights a little to my right and some straight ahead. At the point when I could still read my map, I did not remember seeing anything that would have lights on it. I made it to what's called Island #212 below river mile 591.
I grabbed a tree limb to hold us and woke Verlen up. It was about 4:00 a.m. I needed Verlen's flashlight to read my map. He hooked his flashlight on a tree limb, then I moved the canoe back and picked it up. The lights on the right were from a bridge. The ones ahead were from Lock and Dam #11 . I paddled on toward the lights. The storm had let up by now. When we arrived just above the lock, I found that our support crew had not yet arrived. I needed to know if they were going to meet us above or below the lock. The support crew was only a mile away, so I locked through. As I entered the lock, Mike came running up. He told us that Double Helix had left their kayaks at the lock and were taking a nap someplace.
It was 5:00 a.m. on May 14. The plan was to eat and take a two-hour nap, then leave, maybe, ahead of Double Helix.
Day 10 May 14, 2001 Monday 6 AM to May 15, 2001 6 AM
Mike woke me up at 7:30 a.m. as planned. Just then, Captain Stan came up and said that there was word that the Coast Guard had closed the pool below Lock 11. He said there would be a meeting in an hour or two to let us know.
As it turned out, we had several meetings, about every two hours all that day. I would just get to sleep and we would have another meeting. Later that day, we went to Earl's house and took a shower. Earl is the local Winona Canoe dealer in town. We slept that night at Lock and Dam 11. The lock master let us stay in the driveway. In the morning, we had to chase a snake out of the men's restroom.
Day 11 May 15, 2001, Tuesday 6 AM to May 16, 2001 6 AM
It turned out that we were not allowed to go until 8:00 a.m. on May 15th. The Coast Guard said we could continue IF Team Kruger and Team Double Helix stayed together for safety. We would now be the ONLY craft allowed on the swollen and flooded river. Verlen said that it is really safer when a river is flooded as it gives you more options for safety and there are fewer watercraft to contend with. Even our own safety officials in Florida couldn't understand this and wanted us not to paddle at night. That is what we had been doing up to this point and at the pre-race meeting it was decided that it was up to each team to make their own decision as to when to paddle at night. We were glad to have Verlen's experience!! This condition would last until Lock and Dam 19.
As we took off, my son Mike and Chris Andrews went along with us and Double Helix. For the week they were there, Mike, Chris, and my grandson Michael would travel often with us, although not at night. Chris started marking my maps with mile markers of the next lock and dam. This proved to be valuable information.
As we got into the area below Lock 11 , it was evident why the Coast Guard had closed the river and the Corps of Engineers closed the locks. The next several locks were under water, and many homes along the river were under water, or had sand bags around them. The race committee had talked the Coast Guard into letting us go, because a canoe would not make big waves. The tug boats and barges, on the other hand, would make waves big enough to knock down the sand bags.
The safest place to pass a flooded lock was usually over the levee at the end of the dam. Whenever we approached a lock, we would use the marine band radio. We would call for the lock master of whichever lock we were approaching, and ask for directions. The lock master would then give us his best advice.
When we were three miles above Lock and Dam 12, the wind was blowing hard from out of the southwest. Mike and Chris were with us in a Kruger Cruiser. Their canoe did not have a full cover like ours. It only had the three feet of hard cover in the bow. Mike put a garbage bag over his lap with duct tape. For protection from the wind, we went on the back side of some islands. When we contacted the lock master, he instructed us to go over the levee beside the dam. Lock 12 was under water. There were a lot of islands below the levee, and they can snag you if the current is fast. We had to paddle closer to the dam to clear the islands below. By now, we had to paddle almost parallel to the levee. Half-way across there was a break in the levee, and the water was rushing through. We paddled very fast to get across the current. By the time we got to the other side, both Verlen and I were out of breath. Once we reached the unbroken portion of the levee, we had protection. We went over the land portion, then paddled on the back side until we got away from the islands downriver.
The next lock was 13, and on this one, the lock master recommended to go right of the lock. He told us to take the Lyons Chute. It was a very noticeable drop of about three feet, but it's not a sudden one.
Below Lock and Dam 13, we pulled into the rocky shore at Clinton River Front. It was 5:30 p.m. There was a big surprise for Verlen. Verlen's wife Jenny was with our support team. She had come with Verlen's daughter and son-in-law, Nancy and Terry Norris. Team Double Helix ate with Verlen and me. We found that with the restrictions to stay together, it would be easier to eat together. Over the next several days, our support teams took turns supplying the meals.
As we paddled into the night on May 15, we met with our third mandatory stop. It was around 10:50 p.m. on a dark night. Because we were still traveling together, now was a good time for sleeping, both for me and Clark of the Double Helix. All of a sudden, a loudspeaker woke me up. There was a voice instructing us to pull into the shore. There were all kinds of search lights shining on us, plus a chopper was over our heads. There were firemen in a couple of motorboats that directed us into the right bank at LeClaire, Iowa. The Sheriff's Department started interviewing us. They had a report that someone had capsized in the river. The Fire Department and a medical helicopter had been dispatched to save us. Now the question was, who would pay for this episode? After all, the river was closed to all traffic. The Sheriff could not confirm our release with the Coast Guard because no one was in the office. We had to wait until morning so the Sheriff could confirm the story that Clark and I had told them even though the lock master had confirmed what we had told the sheriff. Very frustrating!!
When we were stopped, I called our support team who had been waiting at Lock and Dam 14. Before the Sheriff had finished interviewing us, our team showed up. The lock was only three miles down the river. We slept in the trailer, except for Verlen. His family took him to a motel for the night.
Day 12 May 16, 2001 Wednesday, 6 AM to May 17 2001 6 AM
It was after 9:30 a.m. on May 16 when the Sheriff finally got confirmation on our permit and released us from LeClaire. Just below LeClaire, on the 1-80 bridge, there was a television crew taking our picture. The night before, they had heard of a rescue attempt and wanted the latest news. About a mile below the bridge, the TV crew caught up with us. They wanted an interview, which we granted. Clark explained about the cause and why we were racing for Rett Syndrome.
At Lock and Dam 14, we stayed river right. The lock was flooded and they recommended we take the LeClaire canal up to the auxiliary lock, then portage. Nancy and Terry met us there and guided us over the portage and gave us some treats.
At Lock and Dam 15 our support crew did not meet us. It was too close to 14 and on the other side of the river. Lock 15 was also flooded, and we had to pull out and portage along the wall of the lock. It was around 8:20 p.m. when we reached New Boston, Illinois. When we got to Lock and Dam 18, it was very dark. I remember the lock master saying we should go over the levee on the right of the dam because the lock was flooded. Verlen was asleep in our canoe, and so was Clark in the Double Helix. Kurt zipped up his spray skirt, as did I. When we got close, you could hear the rushing water, but our lights could not detect the drop off. Team Kruger went first with Double Helix close behind. What a rush, and Verlen never woke up!
In Burlington, we had to pull over. It had kicked up a wind and was pouring down on us. There was a lot of thunder and lightning. It was still dark. There was a railroad bridge just ahead of us, and we could not tell if there was clearance for our canoe under it. We pulled into the right shore and actually paddled right over a railroad track. We pulled our canoe up next to a large building. It was 2:00 a.m. - our support team would never be able to find us. We stood on the steps under an awning. The door was locked. We discussed our options. We had to sleep and try to stay dry. Verlen found an unlocked truck and crawled in to sleep. I slid down into the bow of our canoe with my raincoat on. Kurt slept under the dome of the Double Helix. Clark crawled into the stern of our canoe to rest. It was cold and wet.
Day 13 - May 17, 2001 Thursday 6 AM to May 18, 2001 6 AM
We slept until early morning when two guys came to the building to work. We found out that it was a fertilizer plant. At the same time, the guy who owned the truck showed up. Boy was he surprised to find Verlen! The truck owner was a railroad switchman working the third shift. The guys in the fertilizer plant made us hot coffee. Then we were on our way. It was May 17.
When we passed Fort Madison, we couldn't find Team Helix's support team. We had thought they were going to be there. Fort Madison is on the right shore. The Mississippi at this point is 1-1 /2 miles wide. Just ahead of us, the river gets to be over 2 miles wide. We had called our support team, and they were to meet us on river left by Nauvoo, Illinois. We had to quarter across while battling a strong headwind. It was around noon when we pulled into the left shore. We were exhausted, and Verlen had a severe pain in his side and the very hard paddling into the wind really irritated it. The pain was almost a race ending pain for Team Kruger. We ate, then went into the trailer for a nap. Team Helix joined us. The last thing Verlen said to Captain Stan was "keep an eye on the weather."
At 3:00 p.m., Stan woke Verlen. The sun was shining, and the wind had not only let up, but was also blowing the opposite direction. Verlen said, "let's make some miles Bob!" We made it to Keokuk and Lock and Dam 19 by 5:10 p.m. The lock master used the lock gate to lift our boats out of the water. Double Helix support team fed us fried chicken. We portaged down to put in under bridge 218. Everything was flooded. The Coast Guard and race committee had instructed us to stay together until Lock and Dam 19.Now we had met this condition. Both teams had basically decided to continue to assault the record by paddling together until St. Louis. Then the race would be on again!
Late that evening, we passed Lock and Dam 20 on the right side. The lock master said the lock was flooded. We had to go around some fenced-in area and pull over some grass. We then paddled through a parking lot and down the road. When we got to Henderson Street, we found our support crew waiting for us. Some of the people from Canton, Missouri, had turned out to see us. We ate and so did Clark and Kurt from the Double Helix. It was our turn to treat them. When we finished eating, we paddled down the street and through the railroad crossing. Our canoe bumped a stop sign that was now in the river because of the flooding. We came back out on the river at Ayers Oil Company dock lights.
By approximately 1 :00 a.m. May 18, we arrived at Lock and Dam 21. The lock master told us to go over the levee on the right side, which we did. We were still traveling with the Double Helix at this time. Near Hannibal, Double Helix pulled over to change places so one of them could sleep. Verlen was already asleep, so we kept going. They would soon catch up.
At 5:06 a.m., we arrived at Lock and Dam 22. The Double Helix was somewhere behind us. The lock master said we had to go to the right of the lock. It was still dark, and there were a lot of trees, brush, and a fence. We arrived at the road that led to the lock, and paddled our canoe into the right bank. The road going to the lock was flooded. The lock master had been using a boat to get to the lock, which was now an island. Our support team was not there yet. They said the road from Hannibal was flooded and they had to backtrack. Team Helix support team arrived next, and so did team Helix. Their support crew fed us, too. Shortly after, our support team arrived, and we got extra provisions for the canoe.
Day 14 May 18. 2001 Friday 6 AM to May 19, 2001 6 AM
At Lock and Dam 24, we were told by the lock master to go over the levee on river left. After the lock, we had to cross back to the right because our support crew was in Clarksville. The town was flooded near the river. At this stop, we found that Chuck would be leaving our support crew and heading back to California. We would miss him, but by St. Louis, Missouri, Stan's wife Dana would join us. The plan would be for our support crew to head for St. Louis after this stop, and we would get fed by Double Helix's crew.
Late afternoon on May 18, we arrived at Lock and Dam 25. The sky looked bad, and the marine band radio said a storm cell was moving in from the southwest. The Double Helix support crew met us just below the lock on river right. We pulled our boats up along the levee and went down to the car to eat. The levee at this point had sand bags along it. All of the houses on the river side of the levee were flooded -- at least the ground floors were.
After eating, it began to rain. We decided to spend the night here and let the storm blow over. Everyone would sleep in the workshop of lock 25, except me. I would stay with the two boats at the levee and sleep under the dome of the Double Helix. At first, it was too hot under the dome. Clark had thought of everything! The dome had a small, battery-operated fan which I used. By 3:00 a.m., I was too cold, but I was dry.
Day 15 May 19, 2001 Saturday, 6 AM to May 20, 2001, 6 AM
In the morning of May 19, everyone came back. They gave me a hot meal pack. All you have to do is pour a small bag of salt water over a magnesium grate below the food. I put the food pack under my seat as we took off. It was cold that morning. I zipped up my spray skirt to hold the heat in. By the time my meal was hot, I was too. The meal was spaghetti and meat balls.
We had lost over 10 hours during the stop the night before. By late morning, we were rounding a long bend near mile marker 207. We had some wind in our face. That's why we didn't hear the tug barges coming up behind us. He was sure close when he blew his horn!
The 1989 Corps of Army Engineers chart shows Lock and Dam 26 at mile marker 203. Since that time, they have moved the dam down a couple miles. They also call it Mel Price Lock and Dam now. We discovered that when we called on our marine band for 26 and they didn't respond right away. Finally, they told us it was Mel Price. It was the newest lock and dam on the Mississippi.
We arrived at Mel Price at 11 :45 a.m. Team Helix's support team fed us again By 1 :15, we left Mel Price for St. Louis. We took the Chain of Rocks route to the right. Team Helix had pulled ahead and was paddling strong. By the time we got to the Arch in St. Louis, it was 5:00 p.m. Clark Eid and Kurt Zimmermann of Team Helix were already on the shore. We had a great meal there on the shore. The Rett families had set up a table with pasta, salads, and cold drinks, courtesy of a local Italian restaurant.
We also met Stan's wife Dana for the first time here under the Arch. She became our official map keeper and provider. She also kept wonderful notes and took care of getting witnesses along the way for the world record which we hoped was still in our grasp in spite of several bad decisions to stop us unnecessarily.
When Verlen and I had eaten all we could, we put back into the river. All of the shore along St. Louis was flooded. When we pulled up to the Arch, we had actually paddled over a flooded parking lot. There were horse-drawn carriages taking tourists by the arch, cars driving past and a television crew filming us. After the race was over, we learned that a few weeks after our stop in St. Louis, the river had risen even more, and the road was also flooded between the Arch and the river.
It didn't take long before Double Helix came paddling past us as we were leaving the city. We wouldn't see them again until we stopped for another meal that evening. They were just leaving when we arrived. They had been moving very well, but Verlen and I didn't want to overdo it. Remember this is a matter of survival as much as a race.
It was almost dark when Verlen and I set out on May 19th from this last stop. would take a short nap, then Verlen would go to sleep after my nap.
That night, the barge traffic got very heavy. When we arrived at Mississippi Lime Company on river right, there were some parked barges. They also had some harbor tugs going back and forth across the river. I didn't realize it at the time, but some place prior to this, I had passed Double Helix. It had been dark and they had stopped to let Kurt go to sleep under the dome. Verlen had been sleeping, and I was very busy watching the map and checking buoys and navigation lights. Soon I saw a light behind me coming up fast. It was Clark paddling the Double Helix.
About an hour or so later, in the pre-dawn hours of May 20th , we had a close call with a tug. The tug with his loaded barges was coming up river. We were on the right side and thought we should go to the left and let him pass. What we didn't realize was that he had to swing way over in order to turn his load up river. Clark and I did a sharp left-hand 180-degree turn and paddled very fast for the right shore. I'm not sure how close it had been, but I can tell you it's probably the fastest I ever paddled in the race!
Very early in the morning, about 4:00 a.m., it was foggy. It was so bad that you could not see the shore. I started following Clark because he was using his GPS. Andrew from his support team had programmed it to show a river map. It seemed to me that we were doing a lot of zig-zagging. At one point I felt that we had gotten turned around. I went on my own even though Clark called me. This was a serious mistake! Within seconds, I could no longer see Clark and could not tell from where he was calling. Next, I heard the dreaded sound of diesel engines. It was a tug! I could not tell for sure where it was. I had to find a shore ASAP! Then there was a very loud toot on his horn. He must have picked me up on his radar. I somehow managed to find the shore and stayed there until he passed. I never saw the tug in the fog, but the river is half-a-mile wide in this area.
Once the tug passed and I could not hear his engines, I started paddling again. could no longer find my location on the chart. I stayed very close to the left-hand shore. After a few minutes, I noticed that the shore didn't seem to be moving by very fast. I stopped paddling and dreaded what I saw. The shoreline was going by backwards! I had been paddling up river! With the excitement of the tug, I had gotten turned around.
Day 16 - May 20. 2001, Sunday 6 AM to May 21, 2001 6 AM
When we pulled into river mile 80 for breakfast, Double Helix had already been there for 30 minutes. On a lighter note, my daughter Angie and grandson David Phelps were driving up to our support team. It was May 20, and what a night it had been! Double Helix left before we finished breakfast, but only a few minutes. Angie and Dave were a welcome sight and addition for the support crew as well!
By noon that day, we were at Cape Girardeau, and it was Sunday. We pulled in to get some food. Stan and Jon had stayed in town to make repairs and adjustments to the trailer. David, Angie, and Dana were there to meet us with some hamburgers and shakes. The area we were at was like a sandy beach. I had to use a bathroom, but all of the stores were closed. David came to the rescue. He held a blanket up on the beach for me while I took care of business. Such is the life of a marathon canoeist. .. or have I already said that?
During that day, we would see the Double Helix again. Somewhere near river mile 44, Dorrity Landing, they were on the right shore eating. We were on the left bank and almost missed them. We waved and took over the lead again! At mile 25, we decided to take Brown's Chute. It's on the left of Brown's Bar and most of the time it's dry. On May 20th, it had lots of water in it. The chute saved about a half-mile.
Around 6:45 p.m. that evening, we arrived at mile 0, where the Ohio River comes in from the east. It is also the point where the Mississippi starts counting down from river mile 954. Now we had less than 1,000 miles to go! Our crew was on the left shore at Fort Defiance Park at the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers. We had a real treat. I'm not sure what we had for the main course, but desert was ice cream. This was Verlen's favorite, besides macaroni & cheese!
We tried to keep track of Double Helix to see if they would pass. They didn't.
We pushed off after 45 minutes and paddled into the wind. We crossed the river to seek some protection on the right bank. It looked like rain and the temperature started dropping. Either that or it was the ice cream! By 10: 15 p.m., it was a full blown storm with rain, thunder, and lightning. We looked for a spot to pull in. There was a sandy area on river right with just enough room. The overhead trees made it difficult to use our GlobalStarUSA satellite phone, but we did make contact with our team. We let them know we would wait out the storm. I can't imagine doing this race without these satellite phones. They were invaluable!
Verlen slid down into his bed and covered up. I scooted into the bow as far as I could get and laid my head on the seat. I had the spray skirt zipped up and my raincoat over my head.
We had not designed the canoe to sleep two people at one time. After all, who would guide the canoe if both paddlers were sleeping?!
By 1 :00 a.m. on May 21, it stopped raining. I was wet and cold. I told Verlen to finish sleeping as I pushed off and started paddling. Near mile 938, the storm came up again. I pulled into another sandy area. This time, I could not make contact with the support team. Verlen was still asleep in the storm. I once again crawled into the bow to sleep and try to keep dry.
At 4:00 a.m., I was shivering so bad I couldn't hold still. I drank some coffee from my thermos. I thought about changing into my dry clothes, but it was still raining hard. The thunder quite a distance away, so I felt it would be safe. I turned on my light and something caught my eye. About 30 feet away, I saw a large animal. It looked like a large greyhound, or was it some type of cat? At any rate, it ran when it saw my light.
I decided to change into a dry poly-shirt and jacket and start paddling hard to get warm.
Day 17 May 21, 2001, Monday, 6 AM to May 22, 2001, 6 AM
When dawn broke it was the morning of May 21. Day 17 of our race.
When we left Cairo, Illinois, the afternoon before, our team had planned on meeting us at Hickman Ferry. Our problem now was that we had to cross to the left side to meet them. The flooded river was over a mile wide at this point, and I was bucking a strong headwind. Verlen was asleep in the stern, but that would be okay, because I wanted to paddle hard to get warm anyway. I planned on hiding behind the lower part of Wolf Island Bar for protection. To my surprise, I could only see the tops of bushes that had been on the bar.
I made it to Hickman Ferry by 7:00 a.m. It had taken 12 hours to go 32 miles! What a night! We also found that the Double Helix had not passed us yet.
During breakfast, the support team told me about Angie's dream. At Hickman Ferry, Angie had parked next to a corn field. During the night, she dreamt we had paddled past the ferry, so she started honking her car horn. While the part with us passing was dream, the part about her blowing her horn was for real! I guess she had the whole crew looking out over the corn field to see what she was blowing her horn for. That's the daughter I remember!
After breakfast, we left Hickman. Our river crew got a free ride across on the ferry. Even though the ferry was free, I hear they spent a lot of money buying shirts and caps from the captain of the ferry.
By 2:50 p.m., we were at New Madrid. It had taken a long time to get there. No matter which way the river turned, we seemed to be getting a headwind. We had a hard time getting back into the channel after the food drop at New Madrid. There is an island just down below the town. We had a strong current pushing us into the island that we had to go left of.
Finally after New Madrid, we ended up with a tailwind. The tailwind was great, until it got even stronger. By 6:00 p.m., the wind was up to 40 miles per hour out of the north. We pulled into the left bank at river mile 872. Our support team was only a mile down river, and they would meet us in a few minutes.
It was just after 6:00 p.m., and because of the wind, we decided to eat in the trailer. We were just below Tiptonville Ferry landing right. We ate in the trailer as the wind howled. After dinner, we decided to wait it out until the wind let up. We looked out the window and saw a tug going up river. He was being blown against our shore, and he came close to where our canoe had been pulled up. Verlen and I thought it had been good that we weren't out in the storm. It was raining now, along with the wind. If we weren't going to paddle, then we should be sleeping, so we stretched out.
After dark sometime, there was a knock on our door. It was Clark from the Double Helix. They had just arrived. It must have been a terrifying trip for them. Clark asked us for a cup of hot coffee. Stan was glad to oblige him and we talked about their trip. Their crew was down river just a short distance. It was extraordinary racing like this, being able to help out the competition. There were more times than I can remember when Double Helix's support crew fed Verlen and I. It also worked the other way when we fed them or let them sleep in our trailer. At one point, it was discussed if we should just paddle the rest of the race together. I do believe it would have slowed our pace to do this. There were many times that Double Helix could just paddle away from us. There were also times when we just stayed in the canoe and only made short stops.
At any rate, I felt Verlen and I had done a very good job of pacing ourselves. I know Verlen could stay in a canoe forever, and I felt comfortable myself. Chuck had given me the back strap out of his canoe. I had started using it off and on since Minneapolis. I had also learned to eat more food, more often. Verlen says you have to feed the engine.
The trailer rocked and rolled all night and the rain hit the windows. By 5:30 a.m. May 22, it had stopped.
Day 18 May 22, 2001 Tuesday 6 AM to May 23, 2001 6 AM
We ate breakfast and left by 6:10 a.m. A mile down river, we passed the Double Helix camp on the left. They were eating breakfast, and we waved as we passed.
We arrived at Caruthersville at 10:50 a.m. I still don't know how they pronounce Caruthersville, but Stan knows. Believe me, you wouldn't recognize it! It's something like "Cruvill".
At 3:25 p.m., we paddled into Barfield boat ramp. It was hard to find, because there were so many barges parked on the bank. We ate on the shore. We had fried chicken, and it was very good. Dana had warned us there was poison ivy all along the ramp.
Late that night, May 22, we pulled into Reverie boat ramp to get fed again. Our support team had known we were coming, even before I called. The Helix support team on the other side of the river had seen our light go by when we rounded the turn at Lookout Dikes.
When we were ready to pull out of Reverie boat ramp, Verlen realized we had lost our rear strobe light. Verlen had thought it was a good idea to have one, and now I did, too. Jon and Stan rigged up another one, and we pushed off. Verlen was in bed in the stern, and I was doing my late night turn. Not long after, I noticed that I had almost no control of the rudder. I paddled the next 20 miles with no rudder at all. When I was a couple of miles above Memphis, I decided to pull over and take a look. There was no way I wanted to fight barge traffic in Memphis with no rudder. I found that the pin for the rudder was badly bent, and I had to push the rudder down to get it to work. If I hit a log or any floating debris, it would come up again and not work. With flooded conditions, it was hard to never hit debris.
By 5:00 a.m., May 23, I was at the first bridge in Memphis. The support team would meet me at a park below the city. It was on river right at mile 729. When we arrived, I was happy to see that Mick Wood had rejoined the support team and would be with us until the end of the race. Mick had shaved his head and was sporting a beard.
Day 19 May 23, 2001 Wednesday 6 AM to May 24, 2001 6 AM
While we ate breakfast, Mick repaired the rudder for us. He was amazing. He did it with a pair of pliers, hatchet and a couple of big rocks. When Mick finished, we pushed off with me sleeping and Verlen paddling. I had said goodbye to Angie because she had to return to Michigan. Angie would be sorely missed by the land crew; however, she decided to let her son David stay. Angie had been in touch with home and found out more family were on their way. My son Mike and my wife Janet would be joining us soon. They planned to go to the end with us. Jon Young would be going home with Angie. This would be good to have two drivers. The support crew would miss Jon very much as he was a valuable member and had been with the support team from the very beginning. His abilities and personality held our team together when things got tough.
By 1 :12 p.m., May 23, we stopped for a feed. It was river mile 693, Star Landing. It was hard to find. The river was wide here, and there were islands out in front. David was waving his shirt so we could find them.
In the afternoon, we went through Helena, Arkansas. The wind was out of the southwest and had picked up a Jot. We hugged the right shore for protection as long as we could.
Late that evening, the wind let up, but you could see lightning in the sky ahead. Our support team would be meeting us on river right, mile 644. They had found a grain elevator but had to get someone to open the gates in order to get to the water. When Verlen and I got about 3 miles from the feed, we could see the Superior Grain Dock light. We decided to stay to the right. When we got closer, we could no longer see the light. We didn't know why, because it looked like a straight shot. Soon we found ourselves up against a six-foot high sand bar. We were soon to find that by staying right, we had paddled over Kangaroo Point. The flood had almost made it an island, but not quite. We had to backtrack about oneeighth of a mile, then pull out into the channel.
We finally arrived at Superior Grain at 10:50 p.m. We ate in the trailer. Later that night, we had a light rain. Verlen was sleeping, and I was again navigating at night. I'm becoming a very good "night navigator".
Day 20 May 24, 2001 Thursday 6 AM to May 25, 2001 6 AM
Early May 24, the rain let up, but fog rolled in. I remember going through Sunflower Cut Off at river mile 625. When I came out of the cut off, there was a tug on the other side of the island. According to the chart, I was in the channel, and he wasn't. I never found out if I was in the right place or if he was. It was too foggy to find any buoys in the cut.
During the next 65 miles of river, there are at lot of charts that overlap. On the chart that has river mile 605 to 592 on it, the north pointer is actually pointing west.
On Scrubgrass Bend, we cut the corner to the left. There was a tug with barges behind us, and we didn't want to take his wash. As we made the turn, we hit one of Smith Point Dikes. This was the fist dike or wing dam we hit. It would also be the last. The Army Corps of Engineers installed these rock dams to keep the river in its channel. All of the dams had been under water because of flooded conditions. Whenever the wing dams are close to the surface, they cause severe turbulence. Sometimes very rough, especially disturbing at night. That's why it pays to stay in the channel when possible.
Once we got around Scrubgrass Bend, we had a straight away, then a right turn around Victoria Bend. Come to find out by cutting the previous bend, we ended up being ahead of the tug still. This time, we were on the outside bend and did get his wash. After getting around the bend, we saw David and Mike paddling up river to meet us. Mike and Janet had arrived at our feeding spot, Rosedale Gage, just in time. They would remain with the support crew until the end and they were glad to have their expert help. We pulled in to have a quick bite to eat. It was 12:50 p.m., May 24.
Later that day, we came across one of the first big river boats. They make them so they look like the old rear paddle wheelers.
It was near 6:00 p.m. when we arrived at Easton Landing for our next feed. We had news there that Verlen's wife Jenny would soon join our support team. Nancy and Terry were bringing her out in their fifth wheeler. They planned to follow to the end. They were also a welcome addition to the team. Captain Stan could take much needed rest!
Early morning, May 25, as we approached Greenville, we tangled with a tug boat. He was coming out of the Greenville Harbor on our left. We hadn't seen his light until he came out, which was right beside us. A few minutes later, we met our support crew. It was Greenville bridge, mile 531. We had a hard time finding our way into the landing above the bridge. It was 12:40 a.m., May 25. They had to guide us with the radio and a strobe light.
When we left Greenville, Verlen was tucked in for his sleep. The river grows to about a mile wide in the next stretch. In the next five miles, I passed six tugs, each with several barges. All of them were up-river bound.
I turned on the marine band radio. Sometimes we would turn it on just to check on tug traffic. Tonight they were talking steady. I heard one captain, in his southern drawl, say that he hadn't seen a single can coming across to Lakeport light. Well, after 20 days of racing, I finally learned what river captains call buoys. It's a "can"! I checked my map. I was on the right bank, but at mile 525, I had to cross to the left bank. My problem would be that with a fog on the water, I would not see the Walnut Point light. At least if there were any cans out there I could find my way across. The thought crossed my mind to stay on the right bank and not in the channel. A closer look at the map told me otherwise. Kentucky Bend Bar was on the right as well as the dead-end bay. I watched my compass as I went almost straight east until I hit the left shore. I found Walnut Point light, also, but not until I was about 30 yards from it.
About 4:00 a.m. that morning, I came to Grand Lake Cut Off. Because of the flooding, it was about a mile and a half wide. It was still foggy. Somehow I had stayed too far right, and got behind Craft Lower Dikes. With lower water, it would have been impossible. Now I was behind another sand bar. I backed up a few hundred yards and moved left to the channel.
Day 21 May 25, 2001 Friday 6 AM to May 26, 2001 6 AM
At 6:45 a.m., May 25, we arrived at mile 496. It was the Mayersville tennis court and boat ramp. Our crew had breakfast ready for us. They had been attacked the night before about 1 AM by a pack of wild dogs in Mayersville. No one was hurt but plenty scared.
By 1 :20 p.m., we were at river mile 457, Madison Parish Port. On the stretch below this, we saw a Coast Guard boat putting buoys in and relocating stray ones. It had not been uncommon to see 20 or so buoys laying on the banks in different places.
We would paddle all night again on May 25, but not without excitement. After Vicksburg, it got windy and the river gets wide. I couldn't take a nap yet because we both had to paddle into the wind. After sundown, I took a short nap, then Verlen took his turn to sleep.
At river mile 415, in the wee hours of the morning May 26, we hit a lot of barge traffic. They were all coming up river. Buckridge Landing light was not on, or at least I never found it. I could not find another light all the way around Togo Island Dikes. Finally I did find Brooks light at mile 409.5. Still later that morning, well before sunrise, I hit fog again. At the time, I was on the right bank. Once you hit fog, you are better off staying within sight of shore. I had learned this the hard way, early on in the race. At Coffee Point Dikes, river mile 403, I got inside too far. Yes, I got behind another sand bar and had to back out.
Day 22 May 26, 2001 Saturday 6 AM to May 27 2001, 6 AM
On May 26 at 9:25 a.m., we came to Natchez. We had planned on meeting them on the left before the bridge, but the support crew couldn't get in there. They met us under the U.S. 84 bridge on river right. We were very late getting there and our support crew was upset. They had called on the marine band to see if any tug captains had seen us. They told us that finally one captain had reported seeing one paddler in a white canoe. Upon hearing this, Stan had immediately figured out that one of us was laying down sleeping. We were all so relieved and there might have been a tear or two amongst us.
May 26, at about 6:00 p.m., we arrived at Knox Landing, mile 314. It was just past the two river control structures that allow water to cut off Concordia Parish. David and Mike had paddled up to meet us a couple of miles above the landing. We went up to the trailer to get a bite to eat. By the time we had finished, you could see a storm coming. We decided to take a two-hour nap, then head out after dark. In a couple of hours, the storm had passed.
We went down to the landing to get the canoe. As we went down, we could see a large river boat going up river.
As we watched the waves come in, we saw our canoe sliding out into the water. The support team got to it just in time. Even though it had been high and dry a few minutes before, we almost lost our canoe because of a wave. I'm not sure, but I think that's when Mick took control of securing our canoe each time. He put a 100-foot rope on it, no matter where we were.
After all, you can never trust a couple of canoe racers to tie their own canoe .....
Later that night on May 26, our support crew went through the next town down river, and saw storm damage. They saw downed trees and wires, and lots of emergency vehicles. They were told that a tornado had passed through the area. It was a good idea for us to take that nap.
In the early morning, I had more fog, but it was not that much of a problem. Along Morgan's Bend, mile 279, I was along the right bank. I had been rather close because of a couple tugs which had just passed. All of a sudden, there was a train whistle behind me. It made the hair stand up on the back of my neck.
Day 23, May 27, 2001 Sunday 6 AM to May 28, 2001 6 AM
We arrived at St. Francisville Ferry at 6:45 a.m. May 27. Our crew was on the bank with breakfast ready. We had paddled 49 miles during the night. Not bad! After breakfast, I remember calling my mom and dad in Michigan. It was a Sunday and my sister Verneta and brother Don were there at Mom's having coffee. I talked to all of them.
It had proven to be harder than ever tor our support crew to get to us in Louisiana. They had to find places where they could cross the river. Sometimes they had to drive back up river to do this after feeding us. The boat landings were almost always on dirt roads. Sometimes when they got near the landing, they would find a locked gate. Locked gates didn't mean too much to the support crew. They either found a way to get through or around them. It became apparent that ferry landings were their best bet.
By 1 :50 p.m. May 27, we were on the edge of Baton Rouge. We knew we could no longer break the record. Terry on our support crew had been making calculations daily. The Double Helix was at least 40 miles behind us. The crew had talked to the guy that runs Lucky Louie's near Wilkerson Landing. He would give us free showers, food and let us use his Laundromat tor free too. The food was great and the restaurant was air conditioned. We had fries, hamburgers, and lots of ice tea. The shower was good, too!
Before we left the landing near Lucky Louie's, Verlen's nephew and family drove up. He had come from Texas to see us. Total time lost was about three hours, but it was worth it.
We were now entering Baton Rouge. Now I would get a chance to deal with ocean-going ships. There was a lot going on with all of the docks in this area. At mile 217, we took the inside corner around Manchac Point. It was a tight, right, 180-degree turn. At the same time, there was a tug with barges trying to pass us. He had to stay way over to the left bank in the channel. Verlen and I stayed ahead of him for four miles. What a stroke rate!! We were getting cocky trying to race a tug!
Our next stop that evening was mile 208. It was at West Plaquemine Ferry. We had a chicken dinner that Verlen's nephew had bought for us. We also decided to take a couple-hour nap in the trailer. When I tried to wake up, I didn't know where I was.. It took a few minutes for me to get oriented.
By late night, we were near White Castle Anchorage, mile 191. I saw what I thought would be an ocean freighter. It had high running lights and a very high bow white light. He appeared to me to be docked at the anchorage on the right. If he was, then we couldn't go to the right. So I headed across to the left bank. The channel crosses here anyway. It's called Alhambra Crossing. To my surprise, he was not anchored. He was up-river bound, and I was now paddling across his bow. I thought it was good that Verlen was sleeping. Another elevated stroke rate!!
On the next right bend, there was a tug tight to the right bank. He did not seem to be moving, but after my last experience, I thought I should be sure. After a few minutes, I got closer and could see that he had nosed his barges into the bank. He still had his diesel engines running. They do that sometimes, so that the current doesn't push them down river.
Our support team had planned on meeting us at Philadelphia Point Landing, mile 182.When we got there, we found that they were unable to get back into the landing. They would meet us at Port Barrow, mile 176.
As I went down along the right bank, I heard a motorboat behind me. It was just before sunrise, and there was a light haze over the water. I sure hoped that the motorboat operator could see me. As he passed, very close, I could see that he was an old fisherman. He had a big John boat with a 20-horsepower motor. He did not have any running lights.
By the time I reached Smoke Bend, I could see our crew on the right bank waving us in. The sun had just come up. I saw the old man who had passed us earlier. He was fishing on the inside bend.
Day 24 May 28. 2001 Monday 6 AM to May 29 2001, 6 AM
It was 6:30 a.m. May 28 when we ate breakfast at Smoke Bend. The two guys that signed our witness forms gave us their milk from McDonalds. They were barge workers and were waiting to be picked up. When we left Smoke Bend, I was sleeping in the bow. Mike and David joined us for part of the day, paddling one of Verlen's canoes. It was hard to sleep very long because it got very hot!
During some of these sections, Verlen had to use my maps because he had lost his overboard. I should mention that Verlen had violent nightmares, almost every night. During these dreams, he would kick, fling his arms, and grunt. He may have been dreaming about how I navigate at night. During one of these episodes, he had somehow lost about 20 charts overboard. One time he said he was dreaming of alligators!
By 3:00 p.m., Monday, May 28, we were at Edgard Ferry Landing, river mile 138. It took us 'til midnight to get the next 41 miles to Jackson Avenue Ferry in New Orleans. The ship traffic had been horrific! When you add in all of the city lights, you have a real problem. We passed ship yards where welders were welding right near the water. We had harbor tugs going in and out of ports, and big river boats going by.
At Jackson Ferry, our support crew had chairs set up under the ferry ramp on a low strip of land. We sat in the chairs and ate a late night snack. After half an hour, we pushed off with Verlen sleeping in the stern.
The U.S. 90 bridge was lit up like a Christmas tree. My eyes burned just trying to pick out which lights were moving and which were not. When we reached Algiers Canal, mile 88, I found several ocean freighters. They were all anchored near the center of the river. I passed them on the right, even though the main channel was on the left. I didn't want some ship coming up behind me.
I found several smaller watercraft cruising around in this area. They were quite fast. Verlen said they were used to taxi sailors from the ships to shore and back.
Once I turned the bend at mile 85, I was out of the bright lights. I stopped paddling long enough to read my maps again. My head hit the bow of the canoe! I had fallen asleep. The lack of sleep was starting to show on me.
As I completed the right-hand turn at mile 81, I moved out of the channel to the right. I had spotted a big freighter behind me and decided to give him lots of room. It as still dark and very early, May 29. Just as the freighter passed on my left, I stuck my paddle on a sand bar. It was only about two feet deep. I knew I would be in big trouble when his wave got to me. I turned to head into the wave which now had started to crest. I got wet, and the canoe shook violently. Verlen never woke up.
Day 25 May 29, 2001 Monday 6 AM to May 30 2001 6 AM 6
We arrived at Belle Chase Ferry at 6:35 a.m. on Tuesday, May 29. We only had 76 miles to go. That should have been easy, but it got hot. Our plan was to paddle 51 miles without stopping, but that proved to be too long in the sun. About mile 40, I saw paddles flickering in the sun. I told Verlen, "I bet it's Mike and David." They were about a mile away padding up river. Sure enough, soon Mike and David came along side.
They knew we would need a boost because of the heat. They had four peanut butter sandwiches and two gallons of ice tea. The tea was half ice cubes! Mike said he and Janet had driven along the levee looking for a place to get to the water. They had just put in one mile below us. I don't know how Mike hit it that close.
In these last several miles of the race, the river slows and straightens out. In many places, it's over nine miles between cuNes. At mile 30, we heard watercraft calling Empire to open the locks. Empire is a small town on river right. They have a lock at the levee. With high water, the Mississippi was higher than water on the outside of the levee.
We made it to Fort Jackson, mile 20, by 6:30 p.m. We met Don Keller, the race's official timekeeper for Mile Zero who had joined our support crew. We ate at the trailer while Don briefed us on where the escort boat would meet us. When we left Fort Jackson, I think we picked up the pace. It had cooled down to about 70 degrees and the sun was almost down. The first shrimp boat passed us when it was still light enough to see. They were headed up to Empire. The next three shrimp boats passed us after dark. Verlen and I think the first shrimp boat must have warned the others to look out for us. As they approached us, after dark, they would almost stop until we got passed.
When we reached Venice, it was very dark. Venice is the end of the road for cars. Our escort boat was to meet us here for the ten-mile run to Mile Zero. We had some difficulty contacting our support team. When we did make contact, we still couldn't find their exact location. At Venice, the Mississippi River splits up. There is a branch that goes right called Grand Pass. In order to find our escort boat, we actually had to paddle a short distance down Grand Pass. There was ship traffic everywhere, and now there was a lot of current sucking us down Grand Pass. Ship captains and tug captains refer to this split in the river as "the jump."
After several minutes, the escort boat found us. The boat was about a 60-footer. They had our families and all of our support crew on board.
We now had ten miles to paddle down a delta which was almost a mile wide. We were tired, but very excited. Just when I thought we would be out of the bright lights, we came to Pilot Town. It's on river left, and there are no roads going there. Pilot Town is a string of islands with petroleum storage tanks and other docking facilities on it. They have several range lights and dock lights at the shore line. A range light is a set of at least two lights. The light that is farthest away is higher than the one closest to the water. When these two lights line up in your sight line, you can tell where you are in the river.
At Head of Passes, the Mississippi splits up again. This time, it goes three different ways. The width of the river at this point is two miles. Mile Zero is right in the middle of them all. Lucky for us, we had. a captain on the escort boat who knew where Mile Zero was! One thing for sure, I was a little confused on which spot was Mile Zero.
To make it even more difficult, there was a dredge at work rear the finish line. The dredge had several lights on board which would not even show on our charts.
We arrived at Mile Zero at 11:51 pm on May 29, 2001. It took several of us to pull our canoe up onto the deck of our escort boat. I remember getting sprayed by champagne and getting a lot of hugs. It was a great time. What a race!
We later found that the Double Helix was about 130 miles behind us when we finished. After Double Helix, none of the other teams would finish the race. Team Alaska, after losing their kayak in the rapids, had purchased another one. They were only 300 miles from the finish line when the race ended.
I consider myself lucky to have had Verlen as my partner. Without his knowledge of navigation, his design of a canoe, and determination, I would not have made it. Our support crew and family support were fantastic. There were many times when this crew got less sleep than Verlen and I. Our support captain, Stan Hanson, fit all the requirements. He was able to get gates open or permission to get to places that would seem impossible. I wouldn’t want to to do it again without all those people. They were so many things getting done behind the scenes. I did not always know who got them done, but I do recall some. Chuck swapped batteries in our phone, head lamps, and canoe bow light. Jon wiped out our canoe and put in sleeping pad and bags. He stocked our food and water. Dana took over numbering my river charts. She also added information notes. She gave me river miles and miles from last feeding point. Mike repaired things and secured our canoe when were on shore. Stan cooked and even his “old family recipes” which were great. Stan also got the ball rolling prior to the race. He got sponsorship and details of the river and worked with the race officials getting us signed up and collecting waivers and all the paperwork involved. He provided the support boat and the trailer.
When our families joined us, they would pitch in and do these tasks, too, but just having them there meant so much to us.
Now the question comes, “Would I ever do it again?”. I would answer that with another question -- Did we break the record?