Our first day in Missouri! We slept in. I explored over the berm and realized that tilled land was closer than I’d imagined it could be. This is where fertilizer enters the river; nitrates/nitrites and phosphates seep through the soil a few hundred feet (or less) into the river, or, when the river floods, it takes these chemicals right with it. More about the effects of this here.
Leanne was moving super slow when it was time to pack up, so I just enjoyed all the frogs and toads and butterflies at this little landing. The day was hot, though, and there was no good shade at this landing. When Leanne stood up she was woozy. She vomited once, and I decided we should get to a doctor in Hannibal since this was the 2nd time in a week that she had vomited out of nowhere. I was pretty sure she was having some sort of overheating event, and wanted to get her some anti-emitics and IV fluids. I helped pack her boat and we set off. The lock was only 5 miles away, but she was too weak to paddle, and vomited again. I decided we needed to get her to a doctor immediately. She called her father who figured out the nearest clinic was in the town at the lock; Canton. Meanwhile, I tied her boat to mine and towed her the five miles to the lock. The lock was closed for maintenance until evening, but the workers were super friendly, and offered to help portage around. When I asked if there might be someone who could help us get to the clinic, they didn’t bat an eyelash. Immediately we had a fellow (I think his name was Joey? I feel really bad I don’t remember) drive us to the clinic, wait for us, drive us to Dollar General for some Gatorade and groceries, and drive us back to the lock. At the clinic, they did some bloodwork, called in a prescription in Quincy and told her what we already knew—she needed rest and hydration. I decided we wouldn’t head to Quincy until morning, and that we’d use the evening to rest and hydrate. Thus, we went directly from being badasses one day (50 miles!) to being very humbled (5 miles) the next.
The guys at Lock 20 were awesome. They let us camp wherever we wanted, and offered the tractor barn as cover if we wanted too. We took them up on that, but still set up our tents inside (bugs were bad). We had incredible electric storms pass overhead that night; two thunderheads and attendant lightning were visible on the horizon over the setting sun (one of the photos/videos I was saddest to lose). My tent doesn’t stand on its own—you have to stake it out to support the arches. Since the floor of the tractor barn was concrete, I was pretty happy with my macguyvered solution to set heavy metal plates I found in a metal recycling bin on the stake-guides.
Leanne was moving super slow when it was time to pack up, so I just enjoyed all the frogs and toads and butterflies at this little landing. The day was hot, though, and there was no good shade at this landing. When Leanne stood up she was woozy. She vomited once, and I decided we should get to a doctor in Hannibal since this was the 2nd time in a week that she had vomited out of nowhere. I was pretty sure she was having some sort of overheating event, and wanted to get her some anti-emitics and IV fluids. I helped pack her boat and we set off. The lock was only 5 miles away, but she was too weak to paddle, and vomited again. I decided we needed to get her to a doctor immediately. She called her father who figured out the nearest clinic was in the town at the lock; Canton. Meanwhile, I tied her boat to mine and towed her the five miles to the lock. The lock was closed for maintenance until evening, but the workers were super friendly, and offered to help portage around. When I asked if there might be someone who could help us get to the clinic, they didn’t bat an eyelash. Immediately we had a fellow (I think his name was Joey? I feel really bad I don’t remember) drive us to the clinic, wait for us, drive us to Dollar General for some Gatorade and groceries, and drive us back to the lock. At the clinic, they did some bloodwork, called in a prescription in Quincy and told her what we already knew—she needed rest and hydration. I decided we wouldn’t head to Quincy until morning, and that we’d use the evening to rest and hydrate. Thus, we went directly from being badasses one day (50 miles!) to being very humbled (5 miles) the next.
The guys at Lock 20 were awesome. They let us camp wherever we wanted, and offered the tractor barn as cover if we wanted too. We took them up on that, but still set up our tents inside (bugs were bad). We had incredible electric storms pass overhead that night; two thunderheads and attendant lightning were visible on the horizon over the setting sun (one of the photos/videos I was saddest to lose). My tent doesn’t stand on its own—you have to stake it out to support the arches. Since the floor of the tractor barn was concrete, I was pretty happy with my macguyvered solution to set heavy metal plates I found in a metal recycling bin on the stake-guides.
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