Day 6 = 27 miles Total paddled to date = 145 miles Remaining = 70 miles Rivergator.org Island63 Mississippi River Expedition Vicksburg to Baton Rouge (210 miles) Dec 11 Woke up at 5:00am on Artonish Island (mi marker 325). I used my kelty tent for the first time on this trip. The woods on the island were just too thick to put up our hammocks (Nathan too). The north wind was blowing pretty good and a little chilly (? Low 40s) in the morning. John has the campfire going and the coffee ready ... Like always. You cant wake up before John.... hes always there when you wake up. There is a good gravel bar on the island filled with petrified mud, quartz, coal and just cool rocks. The wind dies down and our tents and gear dry out... So we pack up. I jump into Adam Elliots canoe with Braxton and everyone else in the 30 ft Grasshopper canoe. Its partly cloudy and in the 50s (high of 60 today). We pass by the Old River Control Structures. They can be really dangerous because they draw off 1/3 of the Ms River to give to the Atchafalaya River. Barge traffic has picked up and we laugh when a Captain says theres 2 canoes and I dont see how the big one is floating. The Grasshopper is packed in a big pile in the middle. Ill get a picture of it packed. It does look like itd sink. Lunch is cheeses, salami, watermelon, ham, bread and any combination you decide. Paddlers, mike and Paul Orr find fresh persimmons that have dropped and brings back a bunch. They are sweet and John makes a sandwich with them. We pass by Angola Prison /Louisiana State Penitentiary (not visible... Just the land and ferry). Another funny towboat experience happens as we get past Shreves Island (famous person that Shreveport is named after). Were cruising the river and a towboat behind us by about 2 miles blows a single horn at us. We look back and keep on paddling. After 15 min, he blows his horn at us again. He is still way back there... Because were going just a little slower than the towboat. After 15 min, the captain gives us 5 horns... Which is danger. Hes like a mile behind us and we move 100 yds away from the red buoy line and John rides the red buoys. We hear the captain say well, the one smart canoe got out of my way... The other one is going to cause me problems. Adam, Brax and myself were the smart canoe and we made sure everyone in the other canoe know it. We paddle another 30 min and make our campsite before he actually passed us. We land on Hog Island (mi marker 298). There are beaver sign everywhere (tracks, cut willows...). Dinner was a great vegetable soup by Adam. We added Doritos in it... Because they were there... And they are awesome. The temp feels great and the clouds roll by and the sky is full of stars. Great day # 6 Laynes Log
Posted on: Fri, 12 Dec 2014 04:30:49 +0000
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