Page 37 - "Mississippi in the 1st Person" - Michael James Stone (Demo/Free)

Walking from the Cabin to the Lakeshore I noticed the other cabins still closed. May 1st
was a little early for the season and even at the Welcome Center things were still getting orga-

nized for summer.

The Lake was magnificent with non of the eventual growth that would block the en-
trance to the Mississippi River with tall grasses growing out of the lake. This was early. Skele-

ton trees and bare bushes with dry dusty ground only made the evergreens surrounding the lake
magnificent in splendor. Lots of variety of evergreens I didn’t know the names of but with the
sun shining I could smell them.

Reminded me of Oregon.

It was obvious I was anxious and anyone standing near me could feel the electricity of
pent up energy. I was here. I had arrived, I had slept, I was awake and I had enjoyed a morning

serenade from the Lake Itasca orchestra. But I remained planted on the log near the waters not
ready to head back yet so Lori my wife could get some rest. I hardly slept and always rose ear-
ly, Lori needed eight to ten hours if she could get away with it. We made an interesting couple.

Watching sunrise touch the tops of the evergreens across the lake I was reminded of my
desire to “Turtle Down the River.”

Being still and watching was my personal goal for this trip as so many others all talked
of miles and cities, eateries and how far they had come. I didn’t want to cave in to that tempta-

tion, but wanted to “breathe the land” and “learn the River.”

At all cost I wanted camping out and going slow to be my motto. Turtling down the Riv-
er. So here I sat over a thousand miles from home getting ready to live the next four months on

a kayak paddling down a river I had never seen in person and knew almost nothing about.

Tom Sawyer was not my hero, and Huckleberry Finn I still wasn’t sure I read. Lewis &
Clark didn’t mean anything to me and the history of the river or the states along the river I was

having to admit to myself I was ashamed to say I knew almost nothing about.

It wasn’t as if I didn’t know a lot of history, just nothing really detailed about the River,
the People, the States and the History of a Great Adventure I was about to embark on. Maybe

others were in it for the glory or the fame, but I really wanted to see more and camp more than
anything else.

I didn’t care how fast I would go, I was towing one kayak behind me with supplies. I

didn’t know anything about canoes, but I had managed to infuriate some real canoeist when I
had nothing but admiration for those who “could canoe” because I could not.

No I wanted to learn how to kayak my Inflatable Kayak better so I could go down the

Green River eventually and it was recommended a way to learn was the Mississippi River Trip.