Motor Touring the Great River Road

We departed Buffalo Lake on Sunday and headed north to Blackhawk Park, a COE park about 25 miles south of La Crosse WI, about a three hour drive.  On our way through La Crosse we stopped and did a little shopping.  We stopped at Sam's Club for a few groceries and Dorcas bought an iPad Air 2 at Best Buy.  She had been considering an upgraded iPhone and/or a new computer and couldn't make a decision.  Ultimately, she decided this was a good compromise.  With this devise she could still be happy with her old 3G 4S iPhone, and could also benefit from the the bigger screen that a small PC or MacBook might offer.  I think it was a practical choice.

We arrived at Blackhawk Park mid-afternoon on Sunday and set up for our 5-night stay.  It is a nice park with large spacious sites and 50 amp service.  The park is on the banks of the Mississippi River with Iowa just across the river.  We watched recreational vessels and commercial barge traffic plying the waters.  It seems white 5th-wheel trailers were the RV of choice in this park.  Only a few, including us, were camping in something else.

A barge on the river

Our site at Blackhawk Park

See all the white trailers

Cool rig!  Our neighbor for 1 night.

We are camped on the banks of the mighty Mississippi River and on the "Great River Road".  The Great River Road is not a single road, but a series of state and local roads generally following the course of the Mississippi River through 10 states from Minnesota to Louisiana.  So we had to do an auto tour of the Great River road in this area.  We left our camp and traveled south on WI 35 and crossed into Iowa at Lansing IA.  We then turned north driving primarily on IA 26.  We stopped at practically every overlook and point of interest.  The locks and dams were very interesting.  Most of the area we passed through was in the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge, and there were many overlooks at refuge viewing sites.  We crossed back into Wisconsin at Winona MN and returned to camp on the east bank.

The Mississippi River bridge to Lansing Iowa

The Mississippi river bridge at Lansing Iowa

North into Minnesota

Minnesota loves canoes.  And we're not anywhere near Ely yet!

Historical monument marking the Iowa-Minnesota state line, 200 yards from the river

A view into the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge

The 9-foot Channel Navigation Project was built from 1930 to 1940 by the USA Corps of Engineers.  It formed a 9-deep channel for dependable navigation on the Upper Mississippi River, primarily by raising the river level using a series of dams.  Locks were necessary to enable river traffic to get around the dams.  Today, the Upper Mississippi River – Illinois Waterway Navigation System includes 37 locks and 1,200 miles of nine-foot deep navigable waterway in Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, and Wisconsin.

A barge in the lock.  Note that the barge extends past the gates of the lock.

Even the barge companies like canoes!

This photo shows the corners of four barge units cabled together

The locks are 700' long and the 15-barge rafts are 1200' long.  Do the math.  How does that work?  Well, the tug would place the raft into the lock and disconnect the forward 9 barges, back out of the lock while those locked through.  Then the tug and the remaining  6 barges would lock through.  We never watched the whole process, but it seemed complicated.  Transportation by barge is very economical.  A barge is able to carry one ton of cargo 576 miles per gallon of fuel compared to only 155 miles for a truck and 413 miles by rail.  A 15-barge raft can haul as much material as 870 semi-trailers.

Most rafts are three barges wide and 5 barges long, about 1200' total length

Lock and Dam No. 7

For canoe people Winona MN is famous as the home of We-No-Nah Canoes

We particularly wanted to visit the We-no-nah Canoe factory.  Unfortunately they did not give factory tours.   It was not a very impressive building.  Like most canoe companies, they now produce more kayaks than canoes.  I have always claimed that Minnesota was the last bastion of the traditional open canoe.   Maybe not so much.

The We-no-nah Canoe factory

Our Great River Road tour lasted all day and covered about 175 miles.  Thankfully we arrived back at camp in time for happy hour.  In 2007 we visited New Mexico and started drinking margaritas with nachos every evening.  It was appropriate for the region, and a tradition was born.  Life is still good.

Nachos and a margarita.   A typical happy hour serving.

Paddling the Mecan River

While shopping at Rutabaga in Madison, I had asked Darren Bush, the owner of the store, for some paddling recommendations for central Wisconsin.  One river he suggested was the Mecan River and showed us that entry in "Paddling Southern Wisconsin".  I guess since we were buying a boat, or maybe he just felt sorry for us, he gave us a complementary copy of the guide book.  Sweet!  He said we should see Paul Harvey at Mecan River Outfitters and Lodge.  Paul Harvey.  Really.  And I also cycle in Florida with a guy named Ted Williams.  Really.  It turns out that Mecan River Outfitters and Lodge was only 7 miles from our camp.  It had rained the day before, but the weather forecast for today was dry, if somewhat cloudy.  So off we went.

We pulled into the lodge and a fellow came up and asked if he could help us.  I asked if he was Paul.  Yup.  We asked for a shuttle then spent some time talking about this river and others.  He was really a nice guy.  The Mecan is small and shallow, but thanks to yesterdays rain, it was up about an inch and was at a good level.  We chose Section 2 from the guide book, which puts in at a dam just below Germania Marsh State Wildlife Area and we would paddle southward to "Bridge 10", a few miles below State Road 23.

Paul rode with us to the put-in and drove our car back to the lodge and would spot it at the take-out a few hours later.  This was the maiden voyage for our new Prospector 15, and it was a good river for it.  Just after we shoved off Dorcas saw either a beaver or an otter on the far shore, but it disappeared before we could be sure.  The river was winding and shallow, but the bottom was sandy, so we acquired no significant scratches on the new boat.  Paul had done a pretty good job of keeping the river clear of snags, but he didn't get them all.  We were able to paddle around most dead falls, and boofed over most of the rest.  At one point we came to a fork and chose to go left, where most of the water was going.  Around the bend was a tree across the river that we could have dragged over, but it would have been difficult.  Instead we returned to the fork and took the right channel which was clear.

The put-in on the Mecan River with a virgin boat

A wide calm section on the Mecan

Matilda takes a dip

The only wildlife we saw, except for the bashful beaver/otter, was a plethora of birds.  Notably, belted kingfishers, red-tailed hawks, sand hill cranes and hundreds and hundreds of cedar waxwings.  Did you know that a group of cedar waxwings are known collectively as an "ear-full" or as a "museum"? Really.  Cedar waxwings most often are seen eating berries and fruit.  Sometimes cedar waxwings will eat fruit that is overripe and that has begun to ferment, intoxicating the bird.  Today they were skimming the river eating insects.

A cedar waxwing   Photo downloaded from the audubon.org

Negotiating a snag on the Mecan

The trip was fun and uneventful.  We saw two other parties along the way, but at the take-out was a group of 16 boats all taking out.  The first boats had just begun to take out, one at a time, so there were still a dozen or more waiting their turn.  I couldn't see the landing very clearly, and I asked someone near the end of the line if there was only room for one boat at a time.  He said yes.  In the meantime the boats were slow to hit the beach; some seemed to be timid and reluctant while others were drifting downstream and snagging in the trees and bushes.  We decided to barge on in and break in line.  We didn't hinder any other boats, and there was actually plenty of room for more than one to take out at a time.  Our car was there, and we loaded our gear and pulled out.  The pack was still taking out when we drove off.  Rookies!



Our route on the Mecan

After our paddle we returned to the Mecan River Outfitters and Lodge to report on the river conditions to Paul.  While there we toured the lodge and grounds.  The lodge is a large log structure, which Paul Harvey and his family built by hand with logs they cut and shaped themselves.  It is filled with interesting and unique carvings and artifacts.  Very cool.

The outfitters office

And now ... the rest of the story: 

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Buffalo Lake Camping Resort was having their annual "Hoe Down".

From the Buffalo Lake web site:

August 7 - 9: WESTERN WEEKEND & BBQ
Giddy-up campers. It's time to put on your chaps and saddle up for some old-fashioned country western fun. There will be cowboy and cowgirl games in the afternoon. Followed by a BBQ dinner*. At night, we’ll be having a “Barn Dance”.

They had a big  tent, and were BBQing chicken and sweet corn.  There was a DJ and everyone was dressed in their best cowboy boots.  We didn't spend any time there, but it seemed like folks were having fun.

Doing the Tourist Thing: The Wisconsin Dells

As we come into town, we think, "Do we really want to be here?"

We have driven through Wisconsin near the Dells, dozens of times, but have never stopped before ... til now.  It is one of those places we usually try to avoid, but sooner or later you just gotta go.  Kinda like Graceland.  Sure enough, it was a crass, over-commercialized, tacky tourist trap.  It is probably like Disneyland for a 6-year old, but I don't see the appeal for a mature adult.  There is a central business district with a narrow street that is like downtown Gatlinburg.  Then there is a parkway out of downtown that is like Pigeon Forge.  The worst of both worlds.  There are water parks, roller coasters, upside down jumbled mansions, Ripley's Believe It or Not, fortune tellers, more water parks, Roman amphitheaters, tee shirt shops, a life sized Trojan horse, human slingshot aerial thrill rides, bungee slingshot rideie things, more tee shirt shops and more water parks.

While all those things were a site to behold and somewhat interesting in their own right, that was not why we went to the Dells.  I wanted to ride the "Ducks"!  Before all this amusement park crap was built, the Dells was a scenic destination to experience the unique geologic features on this section of the Wisconsin River.  In 1946 the Original Wisconsin Ducks were first launched in the Dells.  The Ducks were WWII surplus amphibious vehicles.

Duck Vitals:

• 31' long, 8' wide, weighs 7 tons 
• Originally powered by a 270HP GMC gas engine, most have been modified to a 115HP Cummins diesel.
• For land travel: 10 forward speeds, 2 reverse speeds, 4 or 6 wheel drive, 50 mph
• For water travel: 21" propeller, 6 knots
• Produced by GMC from 1942 until 1945

For more information on Duck origins and history click here.  This is cool stuff!

We arrived in town about noon and were hungry.  Soon we saw a delivery car for Moose Jaw Pizza and Brewing Company, and we just had to go there.  The food was overpriced and the pizza was just fair, but it was worth it to see the delivery cars.


We saw these guys driving around town, so we just had to go to the Moose Jaw

Dorcas has new antlers!

After lunch we went to buy tickets for our ride on the Ducks.  The lady at the ticket counter said we could buy tickets for any other attraction at half price.  The Ducks toured the so-called lower Dells, a section of the river below the dam.  There was a boat ride that tours the upper Dells, and included a section we had paddled a few days before.  What the heck; it's only money, so we bought tickets for an upper boat tour.

We did the ducks first and that was a blast!  I would do it again if we find our way back here.  The route was about 8 miles and 1 hour, and we did several "splashes".  We also toured some of the wooded park land in the area.

The boat tour was OK, but I'd skip it next time.  It took us to several named features on the river, namely Stand Rock and Witches Gulch, where we got off the boat to tour the features.  There were boardwalks and paved paths at both places and a cheesy snack bar and gift shop.  The tour lasted about 2 hours and covered about 11 miles.

The "Ducks" graveyard

On the Wisconsin River

Another way to travel

Another Duck hitting the beach

Hitting the water

Through the woods

They use Ducks for shuttle buses around town.  I doubt these are still amphibious

Wisconsin Dells Ducks ride

Here are the Cambrian limestone bluffs that made the Dells famous

Meeting another tour boat like ours

Witches Gulch

Stand Rock

Several times during the tour the guide mentioned the jumping German shepherd at Stand Rock.  I expected to see the dog jump from some great height into the river.  That would be cool.  Instead the shepherd jumped a 5' gap between Stand Rock and the adjacent cliff.  Not so cool.  The handler pitched a dog biscuit from the cliff, and the dog looked back like "What?  You want me to jump over there?"  Then he pitched another biscuit, and the dog jumped.  He coaxed him back with yet another biscuit.  I don't know if they ever lost a dog, but there were 4 up on the hill this day.  This event celebrates photographer H.H. Bennett, who explored the area in the 1890s and made photos of his young son Ashley making the same leap.  That photograph was famous for proving Bennett's invention of the instant shutter and his stop-action photography technique, at a time where most photos required an exposure of 30 seconds or more.

Historical graffiti.  This would get you a $1000 fine if you did it today

Dorcas in Witch's Gulch

Want a $4 soda?  There was a snack bar and gift shop at each of our two stops on the boat tour.

Our kindred spirits.  I hope they weren't cursing us, as we often curse the tour boats.

Wisconsin Dells Boat Tour