fyi - maps
I don’t know if you’ve come across this site or if I posted it earlier for you. But, here are some maps with good detail to wile away some of your time before you go. I ran some off for the area I live near in color just to have (MO/Iowa border anddown stream a ways). Mostly - just a site fyi - http://www2.mvr.usace.army.mil/NIC2/mrcharts.cfm
Water filtering
You said that agriculture toxins can’t be filtered out. Do you know this as fact? I am asking because I am taking a trip down the Illinois River and I do plan on hauling my own water as well as filtering. I am taking along my MSR MiniWorks EX micro filter and Potable Aqua Chlorine Dioxide Tablets. I think I will be okay with filtering a few times.
Agricultural toxin . . .
. . . and heavy metals have been overblown according to what I have read about Mississippi water. It seems that most cities using Mississippi don’t remove either in their treatment process. I plan on drinking Mississippi River water for a couple of months using my Katadyn Pocket filter and chlorine bleach.
Me
I have been preparing me for about six months. I was in fair shape. I lost about 30 pounds to get below a BMI of 25. I am now 5’9" and weigh about 165. I have been working out twice a day since December. Every other day I run four mile in the morning and do pull ups in the evening, four sets 1/15/14/13 with a 2/3 mile fast walk between sets to make it a half-ass cardio work out. Every other day I do sit-ups in the morning and push-ups in the evening, four sets 10/60/55/50 using a 18" stool to elevate my feet. Same routine as the pull-ups with 2/3 mile walk between sets.
My blood pressure is in the 115/65 range with a resting pulse around 50. I don’t think by physical condition will be a factor on the trip. My hands are hard and calosed from doing so many pull-ups so blisters early on won’t be a factor.
I have quite a bit of experience camping and doing long distance touring on bicycles and motorcyles so the camping won’t be a problem.
I have good medical insurance I don’t have to worry about getting sick along the way. I am also retired military so I can walk into any military facility and get treatment if I need it.
Once I establish a routine I think I can just relax and enjoy it. I plan on using every bit of daylight. I read these accounts of folks gettin’ on the water at 9 am. I plan on being paddlin’ every day before the sun comes above the horizon. I also plan on takin’ the occassional day to relax, recover, clean and repair equipment. I don’t have a rigid schedule. I figure I can average 40 miles/day considering the current and still take off a day every week or so.
river
Be careful and look out for dead bodies floating in the Mississippi near Minneapolis.
Minneapolis police are investigating the death of a man found in the Mississippi River this morning.
Minneapolis Park Police Lt. Robert Goodsell said a jogger on the Hennepin Avenue bridge spotted the body about 10:20 a.m. and called police. The body was stuck on a floating tree in the river.
The body is male, with no obvious signs of foul play, but the Hennepin County medical examiner’s office will determine cause of the death. The Hennepin County sheriff water patrol was working to retrieve the body.
Goodsell said they have no reports of any persons missing near that part of the river.
I hope things go well at lock & dams
I frequently stop and look at the locks on the Mississippi on the border of southwestern Wisconsin. As often as not, there’s a string of barges locking through when I arrive, and that process usually takes about an hour for barges going upstream, and about an hour-and-a-half going downstream (it takes longer going downstream because the operators seem reluctant to use the winch cables to pull the first half of the string out the bottom end, so it drifts S-L-O-W-L-Y with the current). If there are two barge strings in a row waiting to pass through, which isn’t at all uncommon, you might wait three hours for your turn. I know I mentioned this in earlier thread, but with your ambitious daily mileage expectations, I mention it again.
Not sure if thats 3500 calories
Just looking at your menu here and trying to plan on my own menu, that doesn’t look to be 3500 calories. I’m working on my food for my trip and it’s difficult to get to the calories I’m trying. Lots of pasta/rice and potatoes with high energy snacks along the way. What else are you supplementing with?
Btw, good luck and enjoy. I’l be launching June 13th from Bryson City NC for 30 day trip to Mobile. I’ll be trying to keep up with everyone along the way.
Chain of Rocks
I had to go read about the Chain of Rocks, since you mentioned it. It looks pretty interesting. From what I can figure out, the “falls” you are referring to is really a low-water dam built by the Corps of Engineers. Prior to construction of that dam, the Chain of Rocks was a rocky shallows that stretched along 17 miles of the river, rather than a single, dangerous drop.
That’s just one more thing to dream about when imagining what the river was like before it was turned into a water-highway.
Youtube of Upper Miss
This is from QueticoKid at a BWCA site. Thought it might be fun for you to see.
“A video of a trip on the upper mississippi I just got back from.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BtrALFlFyCQ
I am writing a trip report up tonight.”
sounds good
except for the food… The mosquitoes are coming out now in droves, expect them in the swampy upper regions of the river. 40 miles shouldn’t be too tough.
River is pretty high now.
Good luck, happy paddling
Got bug juice . . .
. . . (industrial strength army stuff) and a tent with good mosquito protection.
Got the food packed . . .
. . . around 150 pounds of it divided into five parcels, one 8 day initial supply, one 10 day resupply and three 14 day resupplies.
Food weight ended up at about 2 1/4 lbs/day and about $2.70/day.and around 3,500 calories.
Food items:
Ramen noodles
canned chicken
canned mixed vegetables
boxed macarroni and cheese
margarine
powered whole milk
oat bran
sugar
raisins
grape jelly
peanut butter
whole wheat bread
coffee
red wine
I’m no nutrition expert…
But with a trip of that duration I would recommend supplementing with a multivitamin 2x per day because the types of food you are consuming for such a long period lack a complete nutritional spectrum aka no fruits and veggies, particularly because you will be exerting yourself as much as you are. Don’t need scurvy traveling down the Mississippi. I know you’ve mentioned supplementing, but it doesn’t hurt to mention something!
Good luck on that trip! That is my eventual kayaking aspiration, that and to cross the English Channel
I’m taking . . .
. . . multi-vitamins, a Centrum generic knock-off. I hope to pick up stuff I crave along the way such as cookies, fruit and White Castles. Might even catch a fish or three.
should be fun.
Hope it all goes well. Wouldn’t mind doing it myself one day…let us know how it went when you return.
you might run into
Look for Joe Forrester once you get past St Louis. Joe is leaving next tuesday from Three forks montana to paddle down the Missouri then the Mississip to the gulf of mexico.
check out his site at http://www.paddlingforparkinsons.com
good luck
How neat . . .
. . . would it be to run into someone else paddling the river?
Kayak is . . .
. . . on top of wife’s Yukon. Everything is packed and ready to go. We will take off in the morning and drive to Olkahoma City. next day to Omaha and Thursday on to Lake Itasca. I have a reservation to stay in one of the lodge rooms at Itasca State Park. I have the first two resupply postal cashes with me to mail when I get there (Palisade and Red Wing).
The weather is a little cooler than I was expecting but I didn’t bring any more clothes. All I have is Goretex pants and top. The only other clothes I have are nylon shorts and poly long sleeve shirt plus a pair of running shorts and a cotton short sleeve T-shirt. I took a few thing I might end up leaving with the wife (waterproof housing for camera).
I left the last two resupply boxes open so that I can get the wife to add anything I find I need that I can wait for.
making it along pretty well.
making it along pretty well. I’ve gone about 350 miles and yhings are going as planned, Here is a link to my SPOT shared page detailing my track and current positions. The SPOT device belongs to a friend, Mark Low, so that id why he is lidted instead of me.
http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=08Dape4kUo20slpc4Oqy3SH9dOKqWbial
I am now in Desoto, Winsonsin . . .
. . . about 650 miles from Lake Itasca below Lock and Dam 8. Wind is blowin’ a gale from the north. Unfortunately I am goin’ south. I am averaging about 30 miles a day. Picked up second resupply in Red Wing, MN a couple of day ago, beautiful little town where Red Wing boots are made.
Somtetimes thing are not what you expect. Tow boats and tows are not a problem. They move very slowly and don’t create much of a wake. The tows have been mostly three barges wide and five long. The channel is very narrow, maybe 100 yards wide. The river is pretty wide, maybe half a mile. Tows must stay in the channel but I don’t. The channel also takes the long way round and I usually cut corner so I am not in the channel most of the time. Lotsa power boats, many big cruiser/Mc Yaht types or go fast boats with driven by guys with small peckers. They come by fairly close at full speed puttin’ out huge wake.
So far the . . .
First part of the trip before any dams, above Beminji, think African Queen. After Beminji the dams start. Some of the portages ain’t bad. Longest one was 530 yards. Hardest one had a couple of grades a goat couldn’t get get up. After dams without locks come the locks with dams. They start at Minneapoles with Saint Anthony Falls upper a lower and end in St. Louis.
I met another fellow kayaking to New Orleans at Red Wind in a Carolina Perception 12 (I think) and saw a guy in an inflatable kayak at Saint Anthony Upper lock. Not sure where he was heading but looked like he was packed for a long trip.
Not much current in the dam section (or is that damn section. Current might be 1 - 1.5 miles/hour just below the dam but quickly drops.
So far shortest day was 10 miles (stopped in Beminji to by shoes, long story, don’t ask). Longest day 41 miles.