Take Me to the River
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| Catfish at the Crystal Grill in Greenwood. Can't beat it! |
About a year and a half ago, I had lunch with a friend from work. She'd just come from a paddling trip on the Mississippi River, and she was raving about it - the experience, the food, the paddling company she booked with, everything. I took a few notes, but didn't follow up on it right away.
Then, in the summer, one of organizations I'm involved with presented a lifetime achievement award to a man named John Ruskey during a ceremony in Meridian, Mississippi. And I realized he was the very same man who founded and ran the canoe business - Quapaw Canoe Company - that my friend had booked her trip with.
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| The Delta Blues Museum is so uniquely Mississippi. |
I made time to talk with him at the ceremony, and I really tried to get myself out on the river that fall. However, I struggled to find the right traveling companion to take with me. So I missed my opportunity in 2019.
This year, I was ready. And I knew the perfect person. My friend Mara is also a business colleague, and our (pre-pandemic) work trips were legendary - full of funny stories. She has a big sense of adventure and shares my affinity for puns. But most of all, Mara loves the water. She grew up on the Gulf coast, sailed as a child, and enjoys camping and kayaking. A few emails/texts later, and we'd booked a three-day, two-night paddling trip (Friday-Sunday) in early November.
Day 1
Based on John's route suggestion (He's making recommendations based on weather, the time of year, the river level, your skill level, all kinds of things.), we decided to put in at Quapaw Landing, near Clarksdale, Miss. Since we were to meet up at 9 a.m. on Friday, we opted to drive to Clarksdale on Thursday for some pre-paddle adventuring. We left at around 10 a.m., and we stopped at the Crystal Grill in Greenwood for a delicious lunch on the way. (You gotta get the catfish. And the mile-high pie! I chose the coconut flavor.) For curious minds, this large restaurant has spaced their tables way out, the staff wears masks, and patrons are required to wear masks when not seated at their tables. This is a great stop for a meal and a leg stretch!
By the time we arrived in Clarksdale, it was about 2 p.m. The Delta Blues Museum, housed in the old depot by the railroad tracks, was open until 3 p.m., so in we went. Neither of us had been before, and we loved it. So many cool, interesting artifacts - clothing, instruments, original art pieces, recordings playing. And then in the back of the museum, they have very lovingly and carefully brought in Muddy Waters' cabin! It's very well done. This is one of those attractions that couldn't be anywhere but Mississippi. It's so unique and specific to the character of the Delta.
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| We loved the street art in downtown Clarksdale! |
After we enjoyed the museum, we stopped by Cat Head Delta Blues & Folk Art in downtown. It's a great little shop! I picked up a cross ornament made from Coca-Cola bottle tops and a really pretty print of the Mississippi River. Then, we both got fun T-shirts touting a "2020 Clarksdale Socially Distanced Road Trip." (It's like they knew we were coming!) Then, we walked the little downtown of Clarksdale for a bit to admire all of the public street art. It's beautiful, and it's everywhere. We took tons of photos.
By now, it was check-in time at our luxurious AirBnb on the Sunflower River. Less than two miles from downtown Clarksdale, this snug feathered nest at the end of a wooded road not only boasted two huge, plush, professionally decorated bedrooms with their own sitting rooms, you also had a shi-shi bath, a kitchenette, and two private outdoor decks with lounge furniture, a fire pit, and pretty lighting. Plus, the owner popped her head out to greet us, and one of her precious dogs presented himself to be petted!
We brought our things up, settled in, and headed out to one of our decks with a bottle of wine we'd brought with us. As the sun set, the pretty outdoor lighting came on. We sipped, ate small squares of dark chocolate, and chatted. After a while, we headed into Clarksdale for a bit of dinner at Levon's Bar and Grill. Seating has also been drastically reduced/distanced in this restaurant, the staff is masked, and they've built wooden and plexiglass dividers that they've placed between tables. I felt very comfortable dining here.
We both chose delicious pasta dishes, and they were fantastic! We ate, talked, laughed, and then headed back to bed in our plush AirBnb.
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| Ready to put in at Quapaw Landing! |
Day 2
We woke early, made coffee in the rental (because the host had thought of everything - coffee pods, creamer, sweetener, etc.), and enjoyed early morning on the private deck. Then, we suited up in our activewear and headed into downtown Clarksdale for a hearty breakfast. We ended up at Our Grandma's Pancake House, where (strangely) we did NOT get pancakes! The waitress suggested the loaded hash browns, and they were great - cheese, ham, onions, peppers. We washed our breakfast down with more coffee, then met up with John Ruskey and his crew at Quapaw Canoe Company, just around the corner.
First things first - We re-packed all of our personal items and gear into their dry bags. Then, he and his team carefully loaded the canoe - keeping the weight low and balanced and trying to make the gear as low-profile as possible for reduced wind resistance. While they did that, I explored the shop, which has tons of books and other resources about the river, artwork, and some of the canoes they've made. The canoes are gorgeous, and some of them are huge. John said it takes them about 3-4 months to make just one of these beauties.
Then, we all loaded up into the shuttle (even Osa the dog, a chill black lab who'd quickly become our trip mascot) and headed to Quapaw Landing to put in. Along the way, we made a brief stop at the original site of Muddy Waters' cabin (super cool). The weather was perfect - sunny, low 70s, a light breeze. Once we arrived at the landing, we donned our life vests, John and his buddy Mark Rivers (also a canoe guide) made a few last adjustments, and then they eased the canoe into the water. We hopped in and were off!
We started in a channel/tributary that led to the big river. It was a delightful, easy paddle, and then it flowed into the Mighty Mississippi! We paddled hard into the river, which was big - bigger than even I thought it would be. We put in for lunch at Island 62 (which Mara and I quickly re-named Pebble Island due to all the fossilized sand and river-smooth rocks we found there). While John set up lunch, Mara and I explored, crossing though some wooded areas, across some sandy flats (tons of bird and animal tracks here), and back out to the shore, where we observed barges puttering through the deep channel and found lots of cool driftwood that had been twisted by the river and bleached by the sun.
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| Paddling the Mighty Mississippi! |
When we returned to where we'd put in the canoe, John was waiting with lunch - thick-sliced salami, cheese, fruit, potato chips, bread, all kinds of goodies. He'd even set up tables and camp chairs for us! We loaded up our plates, settled down, and enjoyed the sun on our faces, the view of the river, and the breeze. "I wonder what the poor people are doing right now," Mara joked with a trademark grin.
After lunch, we loaded back into the canoe and paddled downstream. We passed islands, saw more barges, observed all kinds of birds (geese, herons, flocks of ducks, etc.), and reveled in the river and the fresh air. We decided to make camp at Island 64 (which we re-named Row Island, both because you have to row to get there and because an avid river paddler named Shawn Row had his ashes sprinkled there).
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| Making tracks! |
We paddled down the deep channel side of the island looking for a spot where the trees grew close to the water, so we'd have some shelter. Seeing none, John had Mara and I hop out of the canoe and walk back to the head of the island. (Again, we saw tons of animal tracks. Plus, we made plenty of tracks of our own!) He pulled the boat back up river using a rope. When we met, we all hopped back in and paddled down the back channel side of the island. When we found the perfect spot, we put in. And, of course, the spot Mara and I picked was at the top of a rather high, sandy hill. There were some big cottonwood trees up there, which would provide shade; some nice flat places for the tents and the kitchen; and a glorious view of the bank and the river. In addition, water poured over a low rock wall on the opposite shore, creating a delicious, lulling sound.
Then, we hauled all of our gear up the hill and set up camp. We faced our tent door to the view so we could just close the screen and see the river and the stars as we feel asleep at night. Then, John set about making dinner - he filled a cast iron dutch oven with seasoned ground beef patties, onions, and peppers, which he served us with a green salad and big hunks of French bread crispy from the campfire. Mara opened a bottle of wine, and we ate, stretching our feet towards the flames and watching the sun slip below the treeline on the opposite shore.
Once it got good and dark, you could see every star and the Milky Way in the sky above. Because not only is the river dark, nothing is built between the river's edge and the levees on either side. (You can't even get flood insurance on a a structure in that zone.) So it's very dark, and all of the planets and stars come out to play. John played blues songs and river songs on his guitar, and he taught us paddling songs that we could sing as we rowed.
That night as we slept, we could hear the wind rustle the leathery leaves of our cottonwood trees, as well as the distant hum of a barge puttering through the deep channel on the other side of our island.
More to come . . .
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| Sunset on our island . . . |
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