Stay Away From Barges

Michael Leuthe

Adventure Traveller

Age: 28

Nationality: USA

Where was your adventure?: United States

How many days was it?: 57

What type of adventure?: Overland

Give us a general overview of your adventure:
I took a solo canoe trip from Northern Wisconsin to New Orleans. I started the trip with a friend, but a day and a half later it turned into a solo trip. I left in early September just north of Danbury, WI and ended up in New Orleans 57 days later. I didn't really know anything about canoeing before the trip.
I could identify the front/back of a canoe and I knew what end of the paddle to put in the water, but that was about it. The idea just occurred to me one day, and the trip itself was actually put together within a week. I followed the St. Croix River down from it's headwaters to the Mississippi River, which I followed the rest of the way. The weapon of choice was a 30+ year old aluminum canoe that weighed considerably more than I do, gladly donated to the cause by the parents of my friend who started out with me to free up some garage space.

Was it difficult?: yes
Why or why not?
Bleeding hands, poisonous snakes, hillbillies, I have carpal tunnel in both wrists, impossible to lift the canoe by myself, rain, lightening, alligators, wing dams, poor maps, barges, ocean liners, rain, mosquitoes, West Nile Virus, rain, muscle cramps, huge waves, wind that ALWAYS blows upstream, sunburn, windburn, rain, ants, whirlpools, unpredictable currents, hurricanes in New Orleans, and unmapped waterfalls. And did I mention RAIN!

Would you recommend this adventure trip to someone else? Why or Why Not?
Absolutely, but it is a lot harder than I thought it would be. Contrary to popular belief, the wind is actually stronger than the current. If you stop paddling, you will go upstream.

What do you wish you would have done differently?
Used rigid, waterproof containers sooner - I finally traded in my bags for rubbermaid containers in Louisiana, MO. I wish I would have had a canoe that I had the ability to pick up by myself - that would have made life easier.

What kind of advice can you give to other travellers going on this adventure?
Brace yourself for absolute physical torture. Watch out for barges coming downstream - they are absolutely silent. Stay near the channel - it is possible to sometimes venture down an alternate route, but those unmapped areas can kill you. Literally. Buy the Army Corps maps - the upper ones were excellent; the southern ones were not, but at least it gives you a rough idea of what is coming your way. South of Baton Rouge the river is almost exclusively commercial, which means that barges sometimes cover all the shoreline, ocean liners are all over and aren't accustomed to watching for canoes, and there are few places to stop sometimes. STAY AWAY FROM BARGES - even the parked ones! The bottom of a barge is shaped like an upside-down airplane wing and creates a sort of reverse lift effect which will draw you in and pull you under if you are near them. Bring your gear in solid containers, like rubbermaid. They not only keep your stuff dry in the rain (not so well when submerged...) but come in really handy later on as chairs and tables and tent door alligator blockers. Oh, and if you are going with another person - BRING 2 TENTS!! After not being able to shower for weeks, having to settle your burned and bleeding body into a wet sleeping bag is enough mental torture without having to do so in a small, nylon, enclosed space next to some whining, no-good, smelly, former best friend who can't paddle for shit and ate your last cookie and who you are convinced was more responsible than you for that whole capsizing episode. You get the picture.

What type of gear did you bring?
An ancient canoe that weighed close to 4,000 pounds as far as I could tell. 3 paddles - one lashed tightly to the inside of the canoe. Rubbermaid containers - one for clothes, one for food, and one with inside tent stuff like the sleeping bag, etc. Army Corps of Engineers Missisippi River maps (two sets - 1 for the upper river, one for the lower river) Big water container for those long hauls between sources. Beer.

Where is your next big adventure? Why?
A friend and I are going to attempt to bicycle from Alaska to Argentina in the summer of 2008. Before then I'll be teaching abroad, and I think there might be a trans-Africa safari thrown in there somewhere.

Did you travel before or after your adventure? If so, where?
The canoe trip was the gateway to adventure travel for me. It almost killed me a few times, but woke up a part of me that was sleeping my whole life in the meantime. All my international travel has been since this trip. I had traveled extensively in the United States before the trip.