May 5-7: Stayed in St. Joseph, Mo for 3 days, longer than I had
planned, but my wrist needed the rest. I'm worried that I
might have developed tendonitis, which could become a
chronic problem. St. Joe's was one of the primary jumping
off points for westward expansion in the 19th century, and
it's known as the birthplace of the pony express.
Appropriately, I stayed in the Pony Express Motel. During
my stay in St. Joe's, I experienced the only vandalism I've
encountered so far. While I was picking up my rental car, a
dog chewed up one of my freeze-dried dinner packets. Alas,
no Wild Thyme Turkey for me until the next set of supplies!
If this is the worst I have to face in terms of vandalism, I'll
be happy. While in St, Joe's I finally got a chance to read a
month's worth of e-mail. Many thanks to all of you who have
wished me well!
May 8: A difficult day to return to the river. The early morning was
calm, but by noon the winds had picked up substantially and
were so strong by the afternoon that I had to stop early, for
fear that I would aggravate my wrist. It still feels weak,
even after the rest, and I'm very concerned about whether
it's going to recover. The optimism I felt before St. Joe's is
waning, and I'm increasingly pessimistic about getting to the
Divide in time to avoid snow. My hope is that I haven't
reinjured my wrist, and that the wind will diminish tomorrow.
One notable sighting today - a pelican. What's a pelican
doing in St. Joseph, Mo.? Thunderstorms predicted for
tonight. Only 12 miles today.
Richard on the go.
May 9: It rained last night, heavily at times, but I stayed dry and
warm. I made 21 miles today, but it was a joyless, grind-it-
out kind of day. The winds were just as strong today, plus
it was cold and rainy. I'm trying a new routine now: paddling
for shorter intervals and adding more breaks in the day.
During the breaks I'll soak my hands in the cold water of the
river, in hopes this will ease the problems with my wrist, and
I'll take regular doses of ibuprofen to see if that helps. My
wrist felt weak but OK this morning, but started to get sore
in the afternoon. One most unusual sighting today - a large,
healthy, handsome dog lounging on the bank, miles away
from any human settlement. Was he a wild dog, or a
domestic dog out on an adventure? He looked too well-fed to
be a stray. I built a fire tonight, as much to cheer me up as to
dry my boots and socks.
May 10: What a difference a day makes! The winds diminished
somewhat, and shifted so they weren't in my face. I also
encountered fewer dikes, which meant less time in the
current and more time to develop a steady paddling rhythm.
The day started with two good omens: a catfish I startled
leapt clear across my bow, and I spotted two deer watering
at the mouth of a little tributary.
I made it to Nebraska today - no more Kansas - but it will be
a couple of days more until I pass through Missouri. The
scenery here isn't appreciably different from most of western
Missouri, just a little flatter since Kansas City.
I'm getting frustrated with my maps. They have failed to
indicate two settlements I've passed and, more annoyingly,
they consistently understate the length of the bends I have
to go through. My rule of thumb now is to look at the map and
add 45 degrees to any bend they indicate. I've also learned
that there is no such thing as a straight section of the river:
I'm either entering a bend or coming out of a bend.
Lots of birdlife today: brightly colored yellow warblers,
red-head woodpeckers, plus the usual array of ducks, geese,
egrets, heron, coots and wild turkeys..
Made 23 miles to pass the 500-mile mark. Only 2000 more to
go to the Divide.
The riverbank, peppered with swallow nests.
May 11: A hot, windy day. The wind was as strong as it's been for a
while, and for a change it was mostly at my back, but despite
the helping wind I had another taxing day. I discovered that a
5 mph tailwind helps me much more than a 30-mph tailwind
because the stronger wind chops up the surface of the water
so much that it's difficult to read the current and impossible to
develop a good rhythm. My wrist didn't start to bother me
until the sixth hour of paddling, so my cooling-down routine
(and the ibuprofen) may be helping. It still feels like it's only
at 50-75% of full strength.
Made 21 1/2 miles.
May 12: Strong winds, and a surprisingly strong current. I felt weak
today, perhaps from lack of sleep. Severe weather warnings
dominated the news last night, and I could see tremendous
lightning activity south of me in the St. Joe's area. My new
gripe is with radio weathercasters. Either they fail to
mention the wind direction and velocity, or they say it's going
to be "breezy". I've learned that "breezy" means 15-25 mph,
strong enough to be a pain in the ass for me. "Windy" means
25+ mph, and a real beating. I found myself really disliking
the river today - the relentless current, the difficult dikes, the
headwinds, the monotonous landscape, the mud. At least my
wrist held up OK.
I saw a water mocassin today, curled up on a limb that was
streched out over the water about head-high. I now have
misgivings about ducking under branches, as I have been
doing, and about soaking my hands in the water.
Made 20 miles, barely.
Click here for days 36-42 of Richard's journal
