Re: [Paddlewise] kayak trip information

Well...you already have a GREAT troll line, that's for sure. (LOL)

1)How far west on the Missouri are you planning to start? Fort Peck
Reservoir (eastern MT) or all the way back at  the Gates of the Mountains
near Helena MT, or even further back like Fort Benton MT, which was the head
of navigable waters for steamboats?  There are a lot of dams on the
Missouri, making for big windy reservoirs in MT & NoDak, power boats to
avoid, and large dams to portage around.

2)What is your timetable?  You have about 2000 miles of Big Muddy, depending
on starting point. May can be really "sucky" in MT, with occasional snow
squalls ( in a bad year). Same for June (remember the weather swoops down
from  Alberta and Saskatchewan.) By July eastern MT and North Dakota can be
extremely hot! In eastern MT water can be tough to find. Don't count on
drinking the Missouri River where it flows "free". The "Wild and Scenic
River " section of the Missouri is heavily used in season by outfitters. A
few miles east (in the CM Russell WildLife Refuge ) you are back on the same
River that Lewis and Clark saw. It is beautiful there. Then you have to get
across Fort Peck Reservoir.....

By the time you reach Lake  Sakakawea in NoDak (near Williston) , you will
be ready to quit, OR decide to paddle the rest of the way down the
Mississippi to the Gulf.

There was a father-son trip from MT to the Gulf via the Missouri-Mississippi
written up well and published on the Web. I will try to track it down for
you, I read it 6 years ago while planning a  500 mile trip on the Little
Missouri River in WY-SoDak_NoDak. (Only paddled 280 miles of it, the best
part of it.)   For me it was the first time in a canoe in 30 years , if you
will consider a Boy Scout merit badge earned in upstate NY when I was 14,
"canoeing".

Don't let the "wise-guys" get to you. BUT... you sure have a LOT of research
and planning ahead! Are you thinking of doing this year? Let me know...THIS
summer I am "off"  to paddle around Bathurst Inlet on the central Canadian
Arctic Coast ( 67N/108W), following part of the route of Franklin/Richardson
in  1821. But your plans sound interesting especially if you pursue the
historical landmarks of the route, contrasting L&C route vs. today's "tamed"
River .

Would also recommend  a stop at the Museum of Western Expansion in St.Louis,
beneath the  Arch.

Regards,
Rich Dempsey
ridem_at_msn.com

----- Original Message -----
From: "Knox" <knoxb_at_lvnworth.com>
To: <paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net>
Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 3:31 PM
Subject: [Paddlewise] kayak trip information


> I recently purchased a Folbot GII with a trip DOWN the Missouri River in
> mind.  I live near Kansas City and would like to fly the boat north and
> float home.  This is my mid-life adventure (SNIP) I've never kayaked
(SNIP)
> I camp, hike, and fish, so I understand about food, water, PFDs, etc.
> What am I missing?  What could I do stupid that would endanger my life or
trip?
> What special equipment should I consider?  A foot rudder?
> Thanks,
> Buddy Knox
>
>
>
>
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