I'd almost forgotten what a cloudy day looked like, but yesterday refreshed my memory. In addition to overcast skies we had a brisk north wind and a much cooler temperature. So I wasn't in the mood for any surfing as I embarked on yesterday's paddle, and it turned out there was no barge traffic on the Mississippi anyway. It was just as well, because I felt tired and achy in the boat and I needed a steady session to work those feelings out. My quest for better rotation from the hips continues: such mechanics harness more power from the legs and take stress off the arms and shoulders, and I can tell my arms feel a lot better when I'm doing it well.
This morning the temperature was even a few degrees lower, but the sun was out and the wind was calm. I didn't feel like a world-beater but I did at least feel better than yesterday. I had a good 60-minute paddle on a river that was again mostly deserted.
About two-thirds of my dock is now on the ground. I'm having to carry my boat around to another dock that still has access to the water. The river level continues to hang out just above -10.0 feet on the Memphis gauge, and the forecast says it will more or less stay there. That's a very, very low level, but not quite as low as the record -12 feet we saw last year. So far I haven't seen any mention in the local or national news about the situation on the lower Mississippi. The floodwaters from Hurricane Helene didn't prevent low water here, but they at least bought us some time, and I'm hoping wetter weather will settle into the watershed soon so we can avoid another record-setting year.
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