Catching up on My Blog Reading: The Crazy Kayaker

Filed in archive Outdoor Blogs on May 27, 2007

When catching up on my blog reading this weekend, I stopped by CrazyKayaker.com and realized by Jacob Van der Merwe a.k.a, The Crazy Kayaker, was while on his way down the mississippi River. If you remember, Jacob was the first interview subject of the weekly interview series, "The Outdoor Enthusiast Next Door" and is embarking on a 100 day, 2,000-mile paddle down the river.

On his last pre-trip post, he honestly conveyed his feelings about the much anticipated trip, admitting he " spent a lot of time analyzing things on an emotional level."

I've been so busy with the practical, and sometimes mundane, aspects of planning my trip that I had no time for introspection. So I dodged the question or kind of waffled my way through a response, usually along the lines of, "I'm excited/really looking forward to it/not scared/not worried about alligators", or something to that effect.

But, it was his wife that evoked a truthful and real response.

I am not apprehensive, scared or nervous. I am well prepared, very well equipped, and I know I have the physical and mental stamina, and common sense to complete my journey safely and successfully. And I'm really not afraid of alligators.

I'm looking forward to writing about my adventure and the river. I'm not even on the river yet, but already the words are flowing as if through a wide open pipe with no obstructions in sight. And it's about more than writing a book and earning money from it (we all have to make a living); it's about being able to share my experience with so many people as it unfolds, in near real time via my blog and web site. I have both the privilege and a responsibility to share my adventure with others.

On May 13, Jacob launched from St. Paul Minnesota. After loading his kayak and getting acclimated with unfamiliar equipment, he was off.

Getting out on the Mississippi for the first time felt like meeting an old friend again after many years. But if the river welcomed me like a friend, it also commanded my respect from the very first second. The way it gripped my kayak and swept it into its powerful current left no doubt about who is in charge. I immediately realized two things: I'll have to work with this river for every one of its 2,000 miles, and I'll have to be fully alert for every second of my journey. But I also knew right away that I can do it; the old friend will be there too for my journey. It feels good to be here.

On May 20, Jacob met another fellow kayaker, Xander, who may have been a little unprepared for his journey.

"I need one of those," he said, pointing to my map. It turned out that he was making his way to New Orleans in a small Extreme plastic kayak with an open cockpit. He needed to get back upstream to St. Paul because his dad had to go in for surgery. 'Xander had set out from St. Paul on Saturday, May 11th, and managed to make about 22 miles the first day. The second day he spent 8 hours paddling around in circles on 'some lake', completely lost. I figured he must have been on Spring Lake, from the general area he was in. I got the distinct feeling that he wasn't overly disappointed when he got the call about his dad.

Read more of The Crazy Kayaker's journey here.