Thursday, June 25, 2015
Weather conditions:
High – 90
Low – 72
Skye’s – Mix of clouds and sun. Stray afternoon shower or thunderstorm
Winds – WSW 5-10
It’s almost 8:00pm. I’m, John, laying on my back next to the tent watching the swifts fly within a couple of feet of me as they tweet and dive, catching the evening bugs. (See Instagram @ separateboats) It’s much cooler tonight, and there is a light breeze. There are some deer grazing about 200 yards down the river bank. They are aware of our presence but seem ok with it as their tails hang straight down and twitch back and forth in contentment. There are numerous birds singing songs both familiar and unfamiliar. At least tonight they are all singing their own songs as often a single mockingbird feels obligated to do all the sounds by himself.
It was a short day – only 24 miles. However, with rising waters causing available campsites to vanish and the next favorable looking location (based on what we’ve learned to glean from the charts) another 15 miles downstream, we decided we better not pass up this decent spot. We will try to put in a big day tomorrow.
We’re on a long stretch of about 130 miles from Natchez to our next stop in Baton Rouge. There does not appear to be many options for accessing water, so we’re filtering and boiling our cooking water directly from the river. This will allow us to conserve more of our stored water for drinking.
Today was an easy paddle. Relative to most days you could almost call it boring. Oh the scenery is cool, but calm winds and a long straight stretch of river made it difficult to stay alert and, in fact, to stay awake.
We did encounter another big steam-powered paddle boat today. It was the American Queen headed to St. Paul with a full load of passengers (I spoke to the captain via radio). They gave is a “hello” blast on their horns and we could see and hear some passengers waving and hollering something at us from the deck rails. (See Instagram @ separateboats)
Our weather alert app continues to blast flood warnings at us periodically as I finish this writing and prepare to retire to the tent. The goal is 34 miles tomorrow as we make an effort to stay ahead of the rising waters as much as possible. All is well.
Thanks for following our adventure. For photos and videos of the events mentioned in this daily journal, check us out on Instagram @ separateboats.
Also, please continue to pray for and support our charity, The Fortress. Check out our “Charity Page” – you can donate using the Pay Pal button. Thank you.
Be First to Comment