'We really DUG the ROOT RIVER' TR!!!!!

“Everyone is safely on their way home. We shall never forget:

- The Viking and his horn

- Our visitors at the first night's campsite who had us rolling (including middle linebacker Jimmy of the "0 and 9 Saints" ... did I mention he was a middle linebacker?? OR... was he... a... MIDDLE LINEBACKER!!! lol)

- Jimmy San going one-for-one on tipping a canoe his first time in one (OK, he ended the trip at one-for-two)

- Cow patties -- AND COWS!!!!

- TUBERS!!! Did I mention tubers?!?! LOLOLOL!

- Picking correct lines on the Root River on Sunday

- The short, steep, crazy, thistle-lined goat path to the Saturday night campsite

- GAINING 10 POUNDS ****EACH AND EVERY DAMNED ONE OF US!!!!! **** ON THE SUPERB FOOD:
Friday night: Steaks, baked potatoes, sweet corn roasted on the coals in the husks... All courtesy Dry Foot.
Saturday night: A yummy, tasty, much-awaited wok meal from the goat, plus a fresh-baked cake, whipped cream and strawberry topping by Dry Foot.
Sunday lunch, after leaving the river: German sandwiches, homemade root beer and polkas courtesy the soon-to-be-married elementary1 and novembertime.

Wow, what a great time! I'll let the rest elaborate. Gotta go "warsh" myself up in the shower. :-)”

“Wow, sounds like a blast. When can we expect more details, hm?”

“Where we went backpacking, the high temperature broke the record at the nearest town for that day by 12 degrees. How was your weather?”

“Home in only just under 5 hours. Not a bad drive this evening.

We all gathered just south of Chatfield, MN on the Root River. Great weekend for a paddle as the sun beat down and it felt like 10 degrees cooler on the water. Jimmy san, Dry Foot and the Goat were at the put in when I arrived at 2pm Friday. Lizs joined us shortly afterwards. A quick shuttle of cars to the takeout later and the paddling began.

Well protected by the goat in his Viking helmet, blowing his Viking horn (who is going to mess with a big man with a long goatee in a viking helmet???)we cruised down the river about 6-7 miles to a campsight below a massive bluff. Specatular spot!

Shortly thereafter we heard voices coming down the river and the goat got horny again calling out to a new group of paddlers. It was elementary1 and novembertime following a gaggle of young "canoers". After landing the last of our party, Dry Foot got to cooking up some tubers, I mean potatoes and steaks while lizs and I dove in to the corn husking :-) I don't think a baked potato has ever tasted that good! Everything was perfect and we washed it down with a couple of brews and some "Three blind moose" cabernet. pretty yummy.

During this time the goat blew his own horn over and over again, each time there was a responding call from the next campsight down the river of hooting hollering boys. When it got dark there was a warning flasher hung from a low hanging tree limb to protect us from getting beaned. It seemed to cause some frustration from the youngsters as they yelled up to us, "turn of the effing blinker", laughing hysterically.

It wasn't long before we saw an exploration party from that group coming up the river. It was about 200 yards but took them about 40 minutes to paddle. There was 1 flashlight between two boats and they struggled to come for a visit despite the easy current. We were in for an evening of rollicking entertainment.

I don't remember all of the names but the star of the show was the inebriated Jimmy. There were many laughs as we learned of Jimmy's football and baseball careers, both records rather dismal. Has anyone mentioned that he was a middle linebacker yet? The boys idolized the Viking and paid homage. One of them was even named Lief (Leif?) so of obvious royal Viking heritage. We all learned about "riding the pile." Everyone laughed for hours until it was time for the guys to paddle back down to their campsite. It was with trepidation we saw them off with only a small flashlight to find the way. However, there were 2 designated paddlers which eased our minds. That didn't help the infamous Jimmy as he attempted to enter his canoe and did a complete dive bomb over the opposite side. Upside down and up to his shoulders in mud and river water, he came up sputtering and well a little bit more sober. The horn was blown and they set sail, making it safely to their camp in a mere 15-20 minutes.

We stayed up a few minutes longer to chuckle over the evening's moments, the crowed thinned as everyone made their way into tents and sleeping bags. Laughter is ineed the best medicine.

There would be repurcussions for some during the heat of the day on Saturday for drinking a little too much but overall it was a wonderful evening with great company, a tasty meal and a wonderful river waiting to be paddled in the morning. Run-on sentance alert!

I'll let someone else take it from here...pass”

“It was 95 degrees based on the temp gage in my truck. Add humidity and it was a downright scorcher. Being on the water was really nice.”

“Oh boy...this sounds like it was a good one! C'mon, let's hear the rest!”

“More on the initial paddle...

After the shuttle, we arrived back at the Parsley Access to find an unhappy-to-be Viking. His canoe reeked of booze. It seemed sitting in the hot sun didn't go over very well for his just-opened, with just a couple sips outta it, whiskey (or bourbon??) A BIG bottle -- with a CORK in the top. Maybe 1/10th of it was left? The rest was in the bottom of his canoe. LMAO!

We think we saw him licking the bottom of his canoe, muttering about pillaging to come and saying things we can't repeat here.

OH yeah... and we didn't realize until later... But ya gotta watch Jimmy San and his strange relationship with a female Thermarest. (Be afraid, be very afraid!) She had a run-in with the boys and was not to be the same all weekend... and neither was Jimmy San!

We were somewhat proud of our crazy, young neighbors paddling to our camp the first night, I mean, we all were old fogies compared to them. Once the eight or nine of them got settled in and the initial meeting and "what school did you go to?" got over, lol, there was mingling. And a couple talked of their camping experiences and how they thought they might like to do more.

Jimmy yelled, "Ya mean tube plants??!?" (or something like that) when we said we might send him back swimming/snorkeling. The much-admired Viking set him straight and understatedly said, "That would be a reed" to much laughter. (Maybe ya had to be there)

LOL... whadda trip! Much more to come... and then... THE PHOTOS!!!

Clarification on meals: Dry Foot cooked all that food over the coals Friday night. dhutch and I pulled back corn husks, took off the silks and then pulled the husks back up for roasting in the coals. Excellent, then again, I am a freak for sweet corn. Saturday night the goat cooked for all. Sunday noon, elementary1 and novembertime treated us to the German meal at Das Wurst Haus in Lanesboro, also fudge dessert treat there courtesy dhutch.
last edited: 7/16/06 7:49:28 PM”

“

Soooo.................
What's the deal with the cows?”

“Where's the pictures? :)”

“I got back a few hours ago. There was REALLY bad traffic at the toll booth before the Marengo exit.

As usual, an outstanding trip with outstanding and interseting companions. The food was OUTSTANDING and I felt like I was catered to with lizs and her planning and all the food provided by dry foot, the goat, elementary1 and novembertime. You people are all very generous with your time, food, and experience.

So for me while the Root River was cool the high-point of the trip was the good company... and the Viking horn of course!”

“Sorry to hear about the traffic JS. I came across from 90 on 43 and dropped down WI120/IL47 from Geneva. NO TRAFFIC.

A little about Saturday. We all got up to make breakfasts and coffee and such. As we were beginning to rumble around there was a roar from the viking, "!@!#$% I don't remember how it came that I'm using my rain fly as a blanket!". First peal of laughter for the day. I ate my oatmeal while watching Dry Foot cook up an awesome quiche type dish and the viking baking some very tasty bread. Note to self: really need to start doing more than just boiling water.

We got on the water quickly because it was heating up on shore. With no mishaps we paddled down a mostly lazy stretch of river in the beating sun. To keep our cool hats and shirts and who knows what else was dipped in the water.

At about noonish we began looking for a take out to take a break from the sun. Not long thereafter, we found it. A dubious landing with an 8-10 foot ladder up to a shaded grassy area. Someone obviously uses it as a place to hang out by the river as there was a fire pit and several countertop height tables. Lizs, Dry Foot, Novembertime, Elementary1 and I all rested in the shade and had some lunch.

Yes, there were a couple missing now that you ask. Jimmy san had landed on the other side of the river at a nice beachy area. He was looking for a way to cross when Dry Foot graciously took the canoe over to get him. A few moments later we heard a SPLASH! While lizs checked the safety of her camera we ran to the small bluff to see the guys wet but the canoe and contents safe. Watch your step there mister kayaker!

But where was the viking you ask? Seems the bourbon, beer and wine from the night before didn't mix well with the heat and sun of the morning. He had stopped in a shady spot up the river and joined us with a blow of his horn about 1/2 hour later. We all laid down in the shade and had a siesta.

Back on the river most of us donned shirts to keep the merciless sun off our shoulders. First we dipped them in water, oooh aaaah it felt so good. No one has mentioned it yet but we did see some wildlife. The air was thick with eagles, hawks, turkey vultures and herons. We passed several bluffs where cliff swallows had built their homes. Jimmysan and I watched two otters cross the river and one stopped to check out my boat. Very cute creatures. But that afternoon, coming around the bend after a small rapid area, low and behold did we meet up with a stranger sight. Swimming cows! There were a couple of bovines wading up to their udders and beyond in the cool river. The gentle beasts watched us paddle by. We had been more suprised than they were.

I'll let someone carry on from here. Gotta get ready to go to work.”

“The gracious dhutch forgot to mention my very ungraceful, Jimmy-like (Now... was he a middle linebacker??!?) near faceplant in the water, lol. I'd climbed down the bank elsewhere other than the ladder, slipped and next thing I knew was on my butt and my legs were in a canoe. LOL! Apparently I didn't flip over or anything, and didn't even hit the water.

There were the requisite "are you OK?"s, while I was literally LMAO. Always a good sign when the dumpee is laughing. Am still awaiting what I'd guess must be a big bruise-a-coming on my left calf from hitting the edge of the canoe at near warp speed!”

“That Jimmy kid was hilarious. The whole situation was in fact. They asked if we were sleeping in tents (they were set up all around us) and then told us they had thrown a tarp on the ground and brought some blaknets/sheets.”

“Oh yes, there were tumbles. I think you fell twice if recalled correctly. Leaving the first campsite and at the lunch spot??

Jimmy san tried to hack a leg off with his beautiful camp saw but only managed to rip his shorts, break his saw and create some nasty bruisage. Legs of steel the man must have.

No other major injuries other than a very pink viking and little nettle stings.

Oh and lizs, you are right, it's fuchsia. :-)”

“So far this thread is reading like I believe the trip was...fun, chaotic, tasty, hot, wet, fun and funny! So, now we know about the swimming cows...what about thistles and cow-patties?”

“I don't think I fell at the first campsite??? Was I knocked out, so I don't remember?? lol... or not a bad fall? I'm thinking maybe elementary1 fell. Hey, didn't we pretty much ALL FALL at some time?? LOL!”

“btw, on the broken saw... i decided i liked the field-repaired part of the saw better than the original part it replaced... so last night I knocked out the second piece just like the one that broke and replaced it the same way.”

“Sure sounds like a fun trip. Thanks for the reports.”

“Jimmy san - your field kit was phenomenal. I'd love a list of what it included.

Yes lizs - maybe it was elementary1, slips and falls just started to run together after a while.”

“Jimmy San... similar bruise and cut as the first one, then?

LOL”

“The paddling was great... but just a note... Umbrellas can act as a sail or a brake!”

“Yeah, pix?

Ummm the food one can carry afloat...”

“i like mata's discription of this trip:

...tasty, hot, wet, fun

LOL”

“I likely can't do photos till Wednesday. However, here are some photos to get you by! (You WILL want to anxiously anticipate mine, because I think I have the only shots of our visitors, including Jimmy -- say, did he happen to play football??!?! -- in the VIKING HORNS!!!)

From elementary1... and for some reason, not in order (but FUN!!! nonetheless):

http://community.webshots.com/album/552322803ORoOCx

http://community.webshots.com/album/552325481lGNIdk”

“Thanks lizs for putting my pics in. I put the 2 folders into one now... so just use the first link.”

“I recall the Goat falling the first night.. flat on his back, trying to dodge that darn tree branch in the middle of the path. It must have been after taking the warning beacon off the branch!
How many of us fell on the slope at Eagle Bluff? I know I did! I thought I had so gracefully saved myself after a sliding down the hill, and then as I stood up my feet went out from under me!”

“Haha, after passing down a cooler I slipped in that spot... both feet shot out from under me and I fell straight down on my butt. It was comical... :)”

“I was just down at the county fair on registrtaion night and ran into the guy who let us stay on his property... um, working pasture... Saturday night -- cow patties and all! (But not, we didn't really see any cows there, although novembertime had dhutch going for awhile. Then again, maybe he DID see cows! Be afraid, very afraid!)

The other group did have permission to camp there. Anyhoo, he hoped we had a good time. I thanked him profusely! :-)”

“After a five hour drive I finally arrived at the canoe launch in Chatfield. It was a very hot day and there were two guys standing in the shade next to a canoe… turned out to be “the goat” and “dry foot”. We chatted for a while and then the goat went out to pick up his boat he would borrow for the next few days. I went down to check out the lake water. It was cool and of course the air temp was much more tolerable by the water. I hung out there for a while watching fish jump and when I came back up the hill there was dhutch1.

I will admit that I was thrown off by the goats Viking hat… but would be even more impressed later…

The gang was almost there and it wasn’t long before lizs arrived. A group set out to deploy the shuttle vehicles. The goat’s truck was dropped off at Eagle Bluff along with the fixings for Saturday nights stir fry along with some fire wood. The other vehicles were dropped off at the canoe launch near Lanesboro. While the group was out deploying the shuttle dhutch1 and I kept an eye on the boats and hung out by the river trying to keep cool. There was zero shade at the canoe launch and it was scorching hot.

Soon everyone was there except for “two others” whose names I did not know but remembered would be meeting us at camp the first night. There was a nasty surprise for the goat when he got back to his canoe. A full bottle of whiskey he brought (an expensive brand too) had heated up in the scorching sun and popped its cork! About three-quarter of the bottle had dumped into the canoe and much of this had already evaporated! I admit the canoe smelled pretty damn good to me… The goat made the best of the situation, but the cork back in the bottle, and we dumped out the boat.

After unpacking and hauling the canoes down the water and repacking them we were off. Generally dhutch1 lead the pack… way out in front. It wasn’t long before I had my first notice of how shallow the water was. I was gawking at the sites and missed a rock under the water… thwunk and scrape! I must have hit the first rock on the trip but I wouldn’t be the only one and for sure it wouldn’t be the last for me! The goat let out a blast from his Viking horn (honest to god, a Viking horn he got at Mardi Gras!) and we were off…

That horn was the signature of the trip… often imitated but never copied.

The trip down to the camp site was fairly uneventful but generally a blast. Fish were clearly visible in the water, bass and trout I expect. There were lots of birds including eagles (young and old) and egrets. The sun burned down on us the entire way… but dunking my hat in the water cooled me off. I don’t recall any fast water (“rapids”) on the trip to the first camp site but I could be wrong.

We arrived at Friday nights camp site very quickly… dhutch1 spotted the first campsite and paddled downriver to explore the second. We chose the first and she paddled back. The bank was very muddy and the goat pulled his canoe up to the shore further down and lodged it in the mud. With a minimal amount of fuss he was out of his boat. I think pretty much everyone got out onto shore with no problems other than a little mud. The boats were hauled out and camp was set up.

The camp itself was very nice. It was well wooded and set up from the bank of the river. There were a few clearings where we could pitch tents and most people staked their claims quickly and set about camp chores. I hauled in wood with my saw (I broke my saw but managed to kludge together a fix that worked well). I dropped a large tree branch I was dragging on my leg and badly tore my shorts and bruised my leg. It was quite a bruise! Others prepared for the meal that evening: Steak, roasted corn on the cob, and baked potatoes! Thank you dry foot! Dry foot started a fire and got the charcoal going.

I don’t think it was long before we heard voices and assumed it was the “other two” coming down the river… but it was a bunch of young men in canoes. They clearly wanted our camp site (claimed!) and took the second one. They were pretty rowdy and having a good time which I totally approved of given it was a Friday and all. They started shooting off fireworks, hooting, and hollering. A blast from the Viking horn of the goat told them who was boss of the river, and their response proved it. “We are coming to your camp to party!” one of them exclaimed. I think we all knew they were not joking.

Elementery1 and novembertime were not far behind… we helped them get up to shore and unpacked. The group was complete.

Some tents were re-arranged and I collected more firewood (can you ever have too much firewood!) The saw was killer work in the hot weather but it wasn’t that long and the work was made short by the mug of sangria I was drinking. I would drink a liter of the stuff before the night was over and pay the price the next day… that stuff is stealthy. I sawed wood for the fire as the women folk shucked corn for dinner… what a picture!

Dinner was… spectacular…. really well done. The steaks were bacon wrapped. The corn was fire roasted. The potatoes were mushy. Mr Dry Foot had even bought real butter and a squeeze bottle of sour-cream potato topping. In fact he even brought plastic plates to eat off of proving that he knows that most hikers, when given the chance, will only carry a mug and spoon… I cut my steak with a knife and ate it with the same.

Dishes were easy. All the remains went into the fire. Soon the goat (I presume) had stoked the fire up to a respectable blaze and people settled in for an evening around the campfire.

Exchanges of fireworks from the young men upstream were answered with the Viking horn. Dutch1 or perhaps it was lizs, hung a strobe light on a tree branch. “Turn that f*cking light off!” they shouted. The Viking horn was the response.

It wasn’t long before we heard the rattle aluminum as the dudes loaded into their canoes to (try and) paddle to our camp. I have no idea what they were doing but it sounded like a cross between a game of drunken battleship and the noise your recycle bin makes when it gets shaken about. Crash! Boom! Thunk! Lots of swearing…

Turns out they had stuck on a rock and in their state, you can guess what that was, they had a heck of a time getting free. What should have been a 4 minute trip to our camp must have taken twenty minutes, but you can bet they had a great time.

They arrived in camp and it seemed like they would never stop coming! There must have been 12 guys in the group… and they were pretty lit up. The one they called “Jimmy” was especially lit up. The conversation that evening was pretty animated. At one point we joked about the authorities coming into camp from downriver and Jimmy said he would “Run down and jump into the river with one of those tube plants in my mouth!” They told us they make this trip every year and they just come to hang out with their friends and have a good time. They wanted to know if this was a regular trip for our group and when we would be back next year…

I’ll leave the evenings events for someone else to describe because I was pretty out of it. I would up drinking 1l of that sangria and I was pretty out of it. Suffice to say it went on for quite a while and they left when they ran out of beer…

The night was uneventful for me. I slept like a rock but work up with a splitting headache. Damn cheap wine. I popped about 4 Excedrin and went down to the waters edge to make breakfast: bacon, eggs, percolated coffee, and a bagel. My headache passed and I was feeling pretty good… but damn jittery from all the caffeine.

We broke camp and got ready to shove off for the day. The goat snapped his paddle trying to push off from the shore. I rushed over with the spare paddle from my kayak and he was off. I was the last one to leave shore. The shore was elevated from the water so I put the kayak on the edge like a teeter-totter, climbed in, an and leaned forward… and slid bow first into the river. I was off and cruising.

As usual dhutch1 lead the pack. I hung out with her for a while. We were both in kayaks so we almost could keep up with the canoes without paddling at all. I spent a lot of time practicing.

We past a few areas that had fast water, not strong rapids but they were fun. These were areas where the river bed was shallow in some spots and deeper in others. So you sort of had to work out where to best paddle to not bottom out. I was not as good at this as others so I bottomed out a few times.

The day was very hot. People kept to the shade. The Viking horn sounded on and off for a while. Pretty soon I lost track of the goat and his horn was silent. We figured he was off taking a nap somewhere.

We passed several “rapids”, some more challenging than others but all a heck of a lot of fun. Dhutch1 was approached by several aquatic mammals, otters I think, playing in the water… sooooo cute.
We passed a pair of fishermen in a flat-bottom boat and an electric trolling motor. We chatted briefly (I warned them about the Viking helmet dude but had to back down and tell them I was joking when their reaction was not what I expected).

I paddled back and even up a set of “rapids” and eventually found the goat. We was just hanging back taking it all in. He was sunburned (he should have changed his name to “the lobster” and did not look comfortable… but he was going so I turned and caught up with the others quite a ways downstream.

The group beached their boats at a “landing” (a mud ledge) near a steep wall of mud that opened into a grassy area. I beached my boat opposite the landing on a sand/gravel beach where there was more room. I intended to unpack my food and swim for the opposite bank in my PFD. Dry foot kindly offered me a shuttle and as payment for his efforts I tipped his canoe over when we got to the opposite shore. When I felt the canoe tip I threw myself out of the boat thinking I didn’t want to tip it over and would rather go overboard than to swamp the boat. It all happened so fast but I guess Dry Foot also jumped out (on purpose I surmised). The boat actually only got a little water in it and the dunking made me feel good… but I had ruined dry foots “never gotten wet in a canoe” streak which kind of bummed me out. My first fear when I hit the water was, “Where is lizs’ camere!?!?” When I resurfaced and didn’t see it in the boat my heart skipped a beat, but it turns out she had it the entire time.

Everyone had a good laugh at my expense (for the rest of the trip) and everyone settled in for lunch and a nap on the landing. Soon the goat blew his horn and we could see he was rounding the bend. Soon he was with us.

We hung out on the landing for quite a while… sleeping, drying things out, eating, peeing, and other things that hikers generally enjoy doing… the simple things. Well, anyway we set out after a good rest. The goat offered to give me a ride back to the opposite shore. I joked (in reference to his helmet) that I was told never to pay the ferryman until one gets to the other side… well I didn’t pay the goat like I did dry foot and didn’t tip him over as I got out of the canoe. Soon the group was off and together again.

It was more “rapids” and then we were at Eagle Bluff. At first I had no idea how we were going to get the boats up. The shore was pure mud and dropped of dramatically under the boat right at the edge. It was going to be a real trick getting out of the kayak in these conditions (at least for me). Someone pointed out a greasy, thistle covered “trail” leading up to the ledge that was our way up and soon people were unloading. I held back to make sure there was room. I removed a length of line I kept lashed to my deck with a carabiner on it and hooked the carabiner to the webbing of the boat. I figured if the boat kicked out from under me as I unloaded I wouldn’t lose the boat. I tossed the line onto the shore then rather than support myself with my paddle like I was taught I used my paddle as a brace in the water to prevent the boat from slipping out from under me. It worked like a charm and with a little balance I was out of the boat and on the shore without even getting my boots or hands muddy.

We hauled the kayaks up to the shore and also dry foots canoe (it is VERY light). Then we tied a fixed line to the canoes and the other end to a tree at the top of the landing so I wouldn’t fret about them coming free in the night. We unpacked and set up camp.

I turns out we started setting up camp in a “day use only” area which was a mistake. Actually I think I was the only one that did this… so we moved to where we were approved to camp. It was a pasture on the other side of an electric fence. Cow pies were everywhere! Soon the tents were up and the goat had a roaring fire going to prepare dinner.

It was hot at camp. I couldn’t stop sweating. I drank water like crazy, tried to stay in the shade, and move as little as possible. There just wasn’t any breeze. The fire just made it worse… but as the sun started to sink things got better.

The goat had retrieved his cooler and firewood (obviously) at this point. The food in the cooler was frozen like a rock despite being in his truck in that heat for an entire day… in fact he said it was frozen to the seat of his car… thanks to the two blocks of dry ice he used in the cooler. He pulled out a cleaver and started defrosting beef and cutting veggies for dinner… stir fry!

Dry foot started in on dessert which he did not make the night prior. He was baking a cake in a backpackers oven and it was a site to watch. It smelled really good baking. It was going to be a good dinner!

Yes, I got ribbed a lot about my love for my Thermarest so I may as well confess right here. My Thermarest sprung a leak the night before. It is a sort of “sea foam green” (as lizs pointed out”) and is… in fact a model made for a woman. Well I tend to think more of function and the thing was like 75% off when I bought it… but the way I was carrying on trying to “find the hole”… well… I deserved what I got and I’ll leave it at that.

What a meal! The goat made enough stir fry to feed an army and he made half what be brought! We all stuffed ourselves and there was food remaining. Then dry foot unloaded his cake, served with cherries and whipped cream. Wow.

All I can say is, “Thank you” to the goat and dry foot for making the weekend special for all of us.

The campfire talk was typical stuff. What is the most amazing think you ever saw? It was that sort of conversation. Talk about interesting people. I think these sorts of events are great where so many people of different ages, backgrounds, and experiences can get together and enjoy each others company.

For me the evening ended laying on my mattress looking up at the stars. Pretty much everyone but dhutch1 had gone to bed. I laid there for hours watching the sky rotate around Polaris… getting dizzy… counting satellites… a favorite game of mine. I must have dozed off because around 12:30 am I said goodnight to dhutch1 but she was gone. I had never heard her leave! Sounds like a country-western song.

The next morning brought more food, breakfast. Again I made coffee in my percolator, bacon, and eggs. I skipped the bagel. Too much food the night before! It was obvious it was going to be a very hot day…

There were boats to be loaded and some that needed to be lowered to the shore. We passed the coolers and such down the hill which was even more slippery than the day prior. Soon we were down to the one canoe and the two kayaks. We hooked the line with carabiner to the kayak and while dry foot stood below the canoe guiding it down I held it from the top lowering it on the rope. It worked well so we did the same with dhutch1’s kayak and then mine.

I nearly had a major dunking getting back into my kayak on that bank and got rather muddy in the process. I figured it out and got back in with no event and we were off!

It wasn’t long before I ran up on the rocks… I don’t think I was the only one that got that one wrong. I had to get out of the boat it was so bad… but I took a moment to clean myself up and cool off. Then we took off again. My boat was mostly cleaned off as well by now. Like most men I like to keep my boat clean you know.

OK… so the days paddle was easily the best of the three days. The “rapid” were far more challenging with trees to work around and I had to do some serious paddling to keep from smashing up on the shore in spots.

I pulled out ahead for a while. I think dhutch1 went to check on the canoes. As I turned a bend on a set of rapids there were cows standing in the water. Good call, I thought. It was a damn hot day. They watched me as I passed in silence. Soon I heard dhutch1 saying something like, “Hi babies! Hi babies!” I think that was it. It was a site.

Word is that the goat freaked them out with his Viking horn! LMAO!

We passed up young people on canoes… young guys with a few women. Some were in PFDs and beer cans were left in their wake. We passed them by. Soon we came up to another group of kids, adults, and young people in tubes. What fun! We chatted as we passed them and went down the river to another set of rapids, this time with a beach on the one shore. We waited for the others at the foot of the rapids and I beached my kayak while I waited.

Soon lizs and dry foot made for the beach to pick up rubbish left on the bank and everyone unload on the beach. I didn’t need an invite and I was instantly in the cool fast moving water. I dove in over and over and soon novembertime and I were off in the fastest water holding on to a tree sticking out of the water “flying” in the current. What a blast! I did NOT want to come in but soon got the wave that the group was ready to depart. The people in the tubes passed us by. It wasn’t long before we were off.

We came to a railroad bridge and SPLOOSH a kid jumped from the bridge into the water! Then another! We heard the sound of a very distressed dog… a German Sheppard that was chasing down each of the boys jumping from the bridge obviously tormented for the well being of the boys. I was heading right where the boys were jumping. SPLOOSH… another right in front of my boat (not THAT close, however). Then we were told all the boys had jumped and laughing we paddled on.

… and then it was over. I know I was NOT ready for the day to end but that was it. We pulled over and went about the chores of unloading the boats and getting ready to run the shuttle. It turns out that we were short vehicles for the shuttle but worked it out. Dry foot drove us all to get our cars. We stopped at Eagle Bluff where we staged the goat’s truck. Then we went to Chatfield to get the other cars. It wasn’t long before we were back with our boats and loaded up.

We headed out to Lanesboro where we were going to eat lunch. We went to a restaurant that served home made root beer and other foods while someone played polka on an accordion. Someone PLEASE post the name of this place! I changed clothes in the rest room after ordering and was really hungry! Well, if you thought the food part of the trip was over guess again because we had a huge lunch and elementery1 and novembertime picked up the tab for the group! The root beer was $1/glass and was outstanding. Many had the Ruben sandwich which was outstanding. Others had bratwurst, schnitzel, and other mouth watering dishes.

Thank you elementery1 and novembertime for lunch!

Thank you the goat and dry foot for dinner!

Thank you lizs for the meticulous planning and trip execution!

Dry foot, I am sorry I ruined your streak!

In short, this was an outstanding TT trip… a classic made that way by a combination of good planning, good location, good luck, but most importantly good people. I feel truly blessed to have had a chance to hang with you people over the weekend.

:)
last edited: 7/17/06 7:58:59 PM”

“The German restaurant in Lanesboro was the Das Wurst Haus in Lanesboro. Das ist gut, yah?!”

“Just got back to Indy after taking a detour to Central MN to do some fishing with my father. 14 hour drive today, and I am whiped out.

Haven't much to add to what has already been reported.
Yep, worst part of the trip was before the boats got wet. With my vast knowledge of physics (ha ha), I should have anticipated the bourbon trouble. The sun heated the contents of the bottle and blew the cork off. Lost 3/4 litre. Drank most of what remained on the way to and at Fridays campsite. Also drank some of D's wine. Thank you!

With my vast knowledge of the effects of mixxing alchohol, I should have known not do do that. Woke up with a bit of a hang over. How the F**k did I end up using my rainfly for a blanket?

F**k, I just broke my paddle. "Anybody got any Duct Tape? I'll go get a stick!"
Thanks Jimmy for allowing me to use your extra Kayokie paddle. I shall never again paddle a canoe without one.

Saturdays morning was a slow go for me. Made 3 pit stops in the weeds before I passed the fishermen. Decided to lean back alongside a mud bank and under a shade tree so that I could get some more sleep. The fishermen passed me. Two couples with 2 children passed me. I slept well for about 30 minutes. Paddled hard to catch the rest of the group waiting for me at a lunching spot.

Haha @ "the goat path" at Saturdays campsite. I didn't fall on that one, eh!

My fresh redish/pink skin is now tanning. Twas really sore for a few days, and still a bit tender now. My glass infested heal is also doing well. It was a minor wound, didn't go deep.

We ended up using my boat as a trash barge during the Sunday portion of the trip, landing on beaches to "pillage" so to speak. Also picked cans out of the river.

Sunday evening, I stopped at a bar in Chatfield. The bartender asked "what are you doing in Chatfield?"
I told him that I was canoeing on the river. He asked if I saw a Viking on the river this weekend.

"Well", I said, "I am the Viking!"

He said that his friends and their children were canoeing also. When they got home, they called him to tell him that they had seen a Viking with a Kayokie paddle and a horn in a canoe. The Viking was sleeping.
Word certainly travels fast in that village.

Thanks to those of you who provided food, whether you cooked it or not. Thanks for the good times, whether I laughed or not. Thanks for the memories, whether I remember them or not. And thank you Lizs for planning the trip and setting me up with a boat.

Thanks for enjoying "The Viking - Lobster - Goat"!! (whether you did or not)

Photos will be posted when I get to it. Gimme a few days to relocate my basecamp in Southern Indiana.”

“LMAO! Word sure does travel fast in the village, don't doubt it. ;-)”

“I love the Viking hat and the horn of Valhalla! The Goat is obviously one fun guy to be around. LOL! And it’s hard to find a more fun person than Dhutch, especially when the wine comes out.”

“I'm molting, I'm molting!”

“Ok goat, I was there and I don't get it?”

“Maybe his sunburn?
The TR said something about a pink goat. ;-)”

“...we didn't really see any cows there"
~Miss Lissy

AH! Yall wold seen verry menny cows if my hubsand Gissmaeioux was ther! He wold prolly go get some and get them to the camp so he could show ever buddy his essalent cow hertin skills for entertanement! BOL!

Yall prolly had the gooooooooood times any ways. Botes are fun times!”

“Oh yeah! You were fiery red goat. I'm sure that's causing some fall out! That's what I get for 1/2 reading posts. :-)”

“Drove over Allen Bridge yesterday. Wished I coulda been on the water with such a fun group again!

(*and SOMEDAY I'll have photos to post!)”

“Liz,
Looks like you all had a really good time. I've hardly set foot outdoors this summer unless it was to do yard work at the new house we just got a month ago. With the weddings now 7 weeks away we've hardly had time to think let alone get out and backpack.”

“FLASH!!! YEAH!!

I was wonderin' if you were still alive and kicking. :-)

So the wedding is seven weeks away huh? We had a couple on the trip there were getting married a mere month away. SO WHERE WERE YOU????! lol

Hope all is well!”

“Was in Dubuque with my mother and Laurie looking for a place to have the rehearsal dinner. I might just pitch the tent in the backyard tonight I'm getting desperate.”

“FINALLY!!! I've posted my trip photos to Webshots. A bunch o'them. And, hehehehee, don't worry if'n I pick on any one of youse!

Click on the photo. Plenty more where THAT came from!

”

“thanks lizs for posting pics of people in short in warm weather at the end of december...man, i can't wait until spring”

“When is this year's "Return to the Root River"??”

“indeed!

tell dryfoot you can only lose your virginity once...”