 We were clear of the Twin Cities and I was very relieved. We had accomplished our primary goal which was to canoe down to the head of navigation on the river. To reach Prescott we had cleared four locks on the river. We still had time left however before I had to return to work. It was July 24th and I didn't have to be back in St. Louis until August 10th. So we decided we would continue on and head for the next obstacle in the river, Lake Pepin. From Prescott, Wisconsin it was a one day paddle to Red Wing.
There was no place to camp in Prescott. I didn't think we would be welcome in the city park along the river, so we walked into town in search of a local motel. The folks at the drug store told us there was a motel on top of the hill on the road out of town and so we started walking. It was about a mile away -- we checked in and then walked back to town to get some dinner and stow the canoe. We pulled the canoe on shore at the public boat launch and covered it with our tarp. I felt safe there and expected the canoe would be OK. The next morning we departed for Red Wing.
 The trip to Red Wing was a real pleasure as we passed through another major area of transition on the river. As you leave the Twin Cities you start to see some hints of the bluffs that will soon grace each side of the river. The bluffs really begin in the stretch of river between Prescott and Red Wing. By the time you're in Red Wing the river is flowing through a distinct valley that is bordered on each side by beautiful tree covered bluffs that eventually reach a height of six hundred feet in La Crosse. These bluffs come right to the river's edge until the river reaches northern Illinois. Then the bluffs snake away from the river to open up the midwest floodplain. Finally they end along the west bank of the river in the Missouri bootheel, and along the east bank at Memphis. This is considered the most senic stretch of the river. Isaac and I have always been very fond of the river bluffs and we were delighted to be able to canoe into Red Wing.
 There is a marina and campground on the Wisconsin side of the river just opposite downtown Red Wing. We camped there the night and enjoyed a fine dinner at the Harbor Bar and Restaurant which is just down the road from the campground. We were desperate for a chance to do laundry and thankfully the campground had a couple of washers and dryers available. The next morning we crossed the river and walked into town to find a bank -- we were out of cash. Then we set off for Lake Pepin. We knew the lake could be a real problem for a canoe and we just figured we'd decide what to do when we got there -- it was only about four miles below Red Wing. Sure enough the waves on the lake were huge (from a canoeist's point of view). The lake is twenty two miles long. There was no way we were going to cross it without having to stop periodically and bale out the canoe. There was a real risk that we'd be swamped. Our options then were to attempt the crossing, return to Red Wing and wait for calm weather or go home. I reminded Isaac that Clare and my wedding anniversary was two days away, and so we decided to call Clare and tell her to come to Red Wing and bring us home.
Appendix: How we were outfitted.
- canoe: A 17 foot Old Town Discovery Scout with webbed seats and seat backs. A great canoe -- lots of storage capacity, plenty stable, very durable, not the fastest, but a really great expedition canoe.
- paddles: Old Town light weight aluminum shaft paddles -- no blisters!
- life vests:
- rope: A fifty foot nylon rope tied to the front of the canoe -- required! We also had a very useful ball of string and a piece of clothes line that came in handy.
- knives: I carried a small pocket knife with the usual screwdriver, corkscrew, etc. and Isaac carried a larger single blade knife with about a four inch heavy duty blade -- both required.
- water: We carried fresh water in a single seven gallon container. For the two of us that was enough water to last three days. There are certainly sections of the river where, given the weather conditions, you could be three days between fresh water sources. We also carried three quart bottles of water in the canoe during the day. That was enough to get us through five hours of paddling.
- tent: We had a eureka tetragon9 tent that Isaac had carefully gone over with seamsealer before we left. It was bigger than we really needed, but I really appreciated a tent I could stand in. This is a terrific tent; in our first three weeks on the river it rained more than than it didn't, but we stayed dry. The night we camped with a group of Audubon Society members and it rained torrents, we woke up dry and many of them with brand X tents woke up with soaked sleeping bags. Eureka!
- luggage: We had three Baja Sealine waterproof bags (the 30 size models). One each for Isaac's and Joe's clothes and sundry items and one for Isaac's sleeping bag -- required! You must be able to keep clothes, shoes and bedding dry after you've turned over in the river. The Baja bags are great! In addition to the Baja bags Isaac took a small knapsack in which he stored sundry items that didn't need to be kept dry. I had a waterproof box in which I carried a camera, two lenses, film and the phone. Isaac had a small tackle box that he had sealed with weather stripping in which he carried an odd collection of items like a compass, watch, radiator hose clamp, radio, etc. We also took a large sundries box for misc. camping gear, cooking supplies and dry food. We shopped a long time but finally found a box that was designed for file storage. It was plastic with a snap on lid. The lid was real important. It snapped shut securely. We bought weather stripping and sealed the lid. It wasn't waterproof, but it was water resistant. Two sturdy nylon bags with pull cords rounded out the luggage. One we used to store canned foods and the other was a spare.
- shoes: On a trip like this you're going to need your feet. We often had to walk for miles for various reasons. A good pair of dry shoes and socks is a requirement. (The Baja bags kept them dry). In the canoe we went barefoot. However getting in and out of the canoe often required shoes. We needed shoes for walking in the river and in wet areas. Isaac had a pair of cheap stretch fabric "water shoes" which disintegrated by the end of the trip. I had a pair of Nike slip-on stretch fabric shoes that were amazing. The color faded, but the shoes held together through seven weeks of soaking and drying and mud and muck and washing machines. I would dry them at night by the fire and the fabric is singed, but these shoes held together -- best of class! Watch your feet! They're wet for long enough periods that you can develop an infection. Isaac got a small cut on one of his toes that became infected. We were able to treat it, but it could have ended out trip if it had gotten worse.
- hats: We each wore a wide-brimmed hat. Isaac chose a classic straw hat while I selected a combination straw and fabric hat. Each hat had a pull string that went under the chin, a necessary feature. We were very careful with our hats throughout the trip; they were absolutely essential gear.
- clothes: We each took about three changes of clothes. I wore my long pants only once during the trip (when it snowed); Isaac wore only shorts. We did however wear jackets in May and June and long sleeve shirts in July to ward off the sun. We both got used to washing our clothes in the shower and or at times in the river. Three or four times during the trip we managed to stay where we had access to laundry machines and we used them.
- tarp: I must admit that at first I wasn't convinced a trap was a necessary item. Isaac however insisted we bring one and now that we've finished the trip I wouldn't consider going again without a tarp. We took a plastic tarp long enough to cover the canoe. It came in handy in many ways. We used it as a rain shelter and a sun shelter. When we left the canoe overnight we left the camping gear in the canoe and covered in over with the tarp. Then we would tie the tarp to the canoe with our rope. I'm convinced that people were more likely to leave the canoe alone with the tarp in place.
- food: We took a combination of canned foods and dry foods. We took canned chili, beef stew, corned beef hash and the like which we stored in a nylon bag. In our big box we took dried fruits, instant oatmeal, rice and pasta meals. We took the prepared meals from their packages and put them in ziplock bags. Our favorite was Uncle Ben's quick cooking rice dishes. We also had couscous, noodle dishes, ramen noodles and the like. A bottle of olive oil, Tabasco sauce and salt rounded off the list. I also took tea bags which I found a great comfort on cold mornings. All told we had enough food for at least fifteen days. After the first couple of weeks Isaac started to carry a stash of snickers candy bars in his knapsack. These we would eat during the day when we reached the halfway point on the river.
- chairs: We took a pair of folding camp chairs. These were luxury items and there were a few times during our portages when I was tempted to sink them in the river, but they did come in handy on a number of occasions.
- sleeping gear: We each had a sleeping bag. Isaac's was light weight so he also carried a wool blanket. I had an Thermarest inflatable mat and Isaac had a foam mat. I would never have survived the trip without that Thermarest mat!
- fishing gear: Fishing isn't our thing but we figured we had to take along minimal fishing gear. We took a cheap rod and reel we got from X-mart and some lures and the like which we kept in our sundries box. It was quite a thrill when we finally caught some walleye and fixed them for dinner.
- first aid: We carried a first aid kit in our sundries box. It contained the usual bandages, antisecptics, aspirin, antibiotic cream, Benadryl and Immodium. A required item!
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