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 Back to Trip Reports
Lake Pepin, March 18, 2000
by Jody Russell
 | As I sit here and write, my body is still feeling the motion of the Mississippi. And my cheeks are red and stinging from a wet late March snow. And I feel wonderful. I suppose when I heard the 40% chance of snow, I didn't really think it would snow -- even though snow is not unusual here in March. But I admit, I was a bit surprised. When we arrived at Lake Pepin this morning, it was snowing fairly steadily -- not the huge beautiful flakes of dry snow we've enjoyed all winter -- this was a soaking snow. In the time I spent getting my dry suit on, my PFD and spray skirt awaiting me in my boat got pretty wet. Despite the weather, there were 7 of us there, all eager to get out on the water. Die-hards, all of us. |
 | We launched at the south side of Lake City. As we moved out on the water, we could see a large gathering of bald eagles sitting in a large tree right on shore. I counted 11 and commented that I had never in my life seen so many bald eagles at one moment. As we paddled, we watched the birds. Amazingly enough, there were more bald eagles than sea gulls flying along the shore. Not long after, we counted over 20 eagles sitting in trees alongside the water. The adults' white heads stood out brightly, even in the misty gray day. When I say that it was awesome, I mean that quite literally. The awe I felt being on the river, with these majestic creatures watching us or soaring above was a powerful feeling.
We paddled directly into the snow until a small beach beckoned us for lunch. Much debris and garbage had collected in this area, something which was disturbing. But piled up a couple of feet high along the beach (and a few feet wide) was a washed up bank of open zebra mussel shells. We had to climb over these small "hills" of shells to get onto the beach from our boats. There was a fishy smell, but to be out of the wind for a break was nice, and the smell seemed to disappear over time.
After lunch, we paddled back, with the snow never ceasing, keeping Wisconsin invisible throughout. An after trip warm-up in a local tavern (we drank coffee, tea and pop -- really) made the day complete.
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