I woke up after a cold and damp night hopeful for sun. I unzipped the tent door and peaked outside to find heavy cloud cover and mist once again. Dang it.

After the discouraging start it took me an hour or so to get moving and pack up my belongings inside the tent. With the rainfly still soaked from the the past 3 days of moisture I decided to keep it separate from the rest of my sleeping essentials in an effort to mitigate any seeping that could/would occur had they been packed together.

I moseyed around the morning mist in my rain gear, feeling a bit down about my circumstances. I was cold and wet, and had spent the past 3 days in the same condition, and to top it all off I had missed rendezvous with helpful folks offering warm beds the past two nights.

It took a while to make breakfast as I was moving slow in my morning funk. After oatmeal and a full cup of French pressed Joe the mist stopped and my spirits turned for the better. Going in, I knew I would have days like this (heck every once in a while I have days like this in the front country). In fact, I actually predicted the exact time frame. Before leaving for the trip, when folks would tell me of their jealousy or envy I would typically say "I wouldn't be too jealous. You can think of me on day 50 when the wind is whipping sideways and it's been raining for a week straight". Funny how in actuality it lined up almost perfectly.

By the time I got the boat pushed off I was happy to on the water and feeling good. Much of the paddling day consisted of adjusting layers between a rain jacket, stocking cap and extra mid layer.

I passed through lock 18 midday, just barley beating a barge through. Not too far after I paddled through Burlington, IA. From the water it looked like a busy river town. The bridge that joined Burlington to Illinois was one of my favorite of the trip thus far; two towering white pillars which supported dozens of white cables attached to the bridge.

Sometime around 5pm I saw my first rays of sun in 4 days. A damn welcomed sight and reason to celebrate. Soon after I found camp on a large sand bar. I unpacked the boat and set up as the setting sun left an orange hue on the horizon.

I cooked dinner and hung out in the cool night air for sometime, basking in the glory of the river. This is the trip I'd dreamed of. Alone, surrounded by water, a tent to sleep in and a canoe to travel by. I sat back in my lawn chair, kicked my feet up on a 5 gallon bucket and enjoyed the sounds and sights of life.

Hopeful for sun tomorrow. Either way though, I'll be glad to be here.