It has been super in the weather department. I got the ok from my supervisor to hit the river yesterday, She has a wall map of Iowa in her office, and I like to point out for her areas of the Des Moines river I've covered. After yesterday's 20 mile journey to Keosauqua, I've only got about 60 miles to the Mississippi River to go on the southern leg. 

 I left here at 6 AM. The tow car and the gear were all ready to go, I just needed to pack some lunch. It had been in the 30's at night, so there were layers of fog interspersed with the sunrise. I drove 3 hours, through Oskaloosa and down to Keosauqua by way of Hwy 63/163. The boat ramp is right downtown. There was some activity for their big fall festival this weekend, but this is a town of 1,000 and it was easy to get around. I left the tow car by the riverside. 

 I've been uneasy about this part of the river because it has a major bend to the south and west. You end up rowing north under a pretty white-girdered bridge. So, I put in about 20 miles upstream, at Selma. The river came up 8 feet last Sunday, after the 5 inches of rain. I knew from the internet that it had gone down several feet, but that there was still plenty of water and current. The boat ramp had mud in a 6 foot long area, but the rest was clear, so I slogged through the mud to get all the gear down to the water. Once I was launched the current took me right along. I was pleased to be going 4-5 miles per hour. 

 It was a beautiful day, not much wind, enough clouds to block the sun occasionally. There were long stretches of peaceful forest, with muted colors. I got to chat with some people at riverside, and found a new boat ramp and campground. People were amused by the cat in the hat. It was a typical fall day, where you can be hot one moment and cold the next, so it was good to have lots of layers to cover and uncover. 

 One neat thing about the GPS is that it creates a continuous track of your movement. I keep it on as I drive to the downstream point. Then, as you row along, you can see the track of the roads you took compared to the track on the river. This was especially helpful with the major bends in the river...I could "see" where I was in relation to the road, even though there were high bluffs. Having the GPS is half the fun of these outings, knowing where you are, how fast you are going, what's up ahead.