Day 54: New friends
I was able to sleep in today. It felt good to be in a bed. I got up and caught up on some blog post. I met Cyndee’s son. He was going to take me to get a bite to eat and back to my boat. We stopped by a Hobo Sandwich shop. I ordered a large sandwich because I would need the fuel for this day. They made me two sandwiches. They were good, but that was a lot of food. I guess I need to go burn it off. I was dropped off at the marina and loaded my boat back up. I got Ryan’s information and headed out. It was a good stop in Davenport. I was glad to see some faces from earlier on the adventure and meet some new ones.
I made it to Lock 15. I got right in. One of the lock guys asked me if I was the guy from the news last night. I told him I was. He said it was cool to see someone doing an adventure like I was doing. He offered me tips for downstream locations and wished me well. I was about 10 miles out of the lock and spent the day paddling through a variety of sloughs. It was nice being off the main channel. The sloughs allow you the opportunity to see the people that live and vacation along the river. It is a different perspective looking at the places from the water. You see such a wide variety of homes and cabins along the river. I photographed some to help show what life alongside the river is like. I have a feeling a few of them will end up in the book.
I pulled alongside a cement pillar to have lunch. My foot was not completely healed up yet, so I had to keep it dry. I stood up in my boat and pulled myself up onto this post. I made a quick lunch and enjoyed the views. I jot back in because I wanted to get some more miles in for the day. That didn’t work out as planned.
About 1 mile down from where I had lunch, a guy flagged me down. He was on this dock with a lot of other people. He asked if I was the guy on the news and said I should pull up. I thoughI would say hi and chat for a few. They asked if I was hungry or needed anything. I told them I was good. Then they asked me if I was tired. They told me they had a guest bedroom and I was welcome to stay. One part of me wanted to keep moving downstream, but there was a slightly bigger part of me that knows these interruptions are what makes the adventure and adventure. It is the people along the journey that make the memories. I got out of my boat and introduced myself. My boat was pulled up and the new adventure was beginning. I met Steve (his place, Owner of Iowa Pawn), Tom (co-owner of Iowa Pawn), Tim (friend with the boat), Andrew (Tim’s son), Lisa (Steve’s girlfriend), and Brian.
Within a few minutes of being on land, I was grabbing my camera and jumping onto the bot with Tim, Andrew, and Brian. We were off to explore pool 15. It was moments like this that I was even more thrilled to be on this adventure. We went flying along the river checking out some of Tim’s favorite locations to take his boat. They were simply showing me their lives. I was happy for that experience. After some time on the water, we headed back in. I made a quick call to my best friend to catch up. She wanted the clip from the news to help promote it. I only chatted for a few as it was about time to light off the fireworks. They had a giant brick of big air fireworks. I pulled out the camera again as I wasted to capture another show. I managed to catch a few shots that showed off their backyard with the river in the background. I will be getting them some of those images. After the show, we all sat around enjoying the fire and trading stories.**
We talked late into the night. They offered some kind words and encouragement as the night wound down. They had a guest room with a very comfortable queen sized bed. Just before going to bed, I heard a tornado siren outside. We were watching a tv in their bar. I pointers it out and they said it was the tv. I told them, no it wasn’t. I can pick those sirens out of a group of other noises. It is not a sound I like. I went outside trying to figure out what was going on. The winds were breezy, but the stars were out. I looked towards where the sound was coming from. They turned on the weather channel to see what was happening. Nothing showed up and there was no warnings. The siren stopped and I could hear rescue in route towards the sound. It was a very uneasy feeling. I know I am entering the part of the country where tornados happen. It put in a little reality check to the things I must be aware of and on the look out for while on the river.
**While sitting around trading stories, I wondered how many people actually do that. We often get so busy in our lives, but to be able to stop and hear others life’s adventures is a rare thing. I often get caught up in the rat race of life that I forget that we need to stop and do that more often. It is all about connections. Stories help build them. That is just my 2 cents.