Race To The Dome – 10/4/2025

I was excited for this year’s Race To The Dome. Its one of the last races of the season. Yes, there are a few others, but in the Midwest, this is pushing your luck for decent weather to get a race in for the masses. I’ve participated in most of the large races this year … Continue reading “Race To The Dome – 10/4/2025”

Ten Mile Lunch – 9/6/2025

One of my favorite paddles in the St. Louis area is from Klondike to Weldon on the Missouri River. This is a gentle paddle of less than 10 miles puts you out on the Missouri river. When the river is lower about a mile into the paddle is a large sand bar that is perfect … Continue reading “Ten Mile Lunch – 9/6/2025”

Gamers of HLL Meet Up – 8/29/2025

Sonora and I are both very into a game called Top Heroes. It is a role-playing strategy game, a multi-player online dungeon adventure, and a great way to meet and chat with players from all across the world. We have gotten to know several other players pretty well online and decided that it would be … Continue reading “Gamers of HLL Meet Up – 8/29/2025”

Mussel Monitoring Project, Year 5 – 8/16-17/2025

  This year is the 5th year of my 10-year freshwater mussel monitoring project. This is an effort to collect, identify, tag, measure, and photograph the diverse group of mussels (see photos above with 4 or 5 species in each tray) living in the Sangamon River in Illinois. While I call it “my” project, there … Continue reading “Mussel Monitoring Project, Year 5 – 8/16-17/2025”

Car Swap – 8/10/2025

The saying “no good deed goes unpunished” became very true for our family this year. This time specifically, Corvin came home to St. Louis to visit us. I was feeling generous and offered him money to fix the air conditioning in his car. Its been broke since we purchased it several years ago. This all … Continue reading “Car Swap – 8/10/2025”

2025 MR340 – 7/8/2025

Today we left for my third MR340 river race. Don’t worry, I would never do this solo, I’ve enlisted Hogan and a second couple, Scott and Dot Merritt. If you have been following along, we’ve been doing races together this year preparing for the big race. We packed our trailer with all of our gear … Continue reading “2025 MR340 – 7/8/2025”

Fourth Of July – 2025

We started our holiday celebration on the third. Danelle was invited (with the family) to the Audobon Center to view Alton’s fireworks. There was a nice gathering there. We started by viewing the sunset over the river and it didn’t disappoint. I was busy teasing Sonora while we waited for the fireworks to start. It … Continue reading “Fourth Of July – 2025”