I wasn’t in a big hurry to leave in the morning, but I also didn’t waste time. I got back in the water and started paddling back to the Mississippi River. The campground was actually a half mile up a small creek.

After a few miles I got to Scott’s Rapids campsite. I guess the one thing I was expecting in the area was rapids, but there really wasn’t anything more than a few ripples a bit down river. I didn’t get out, just a view from the boat.

I took a break at Wold’s Ferry Crossing. It had an insane amount of frogs by the landing. There must have been a dozen bouncing around.

The MN DNR also has a life jacket program where they have free life jackets available at many of the boat ramps.

Before I took off from my break I decided I’d catch a frog. I’m not really sure why, but just seemed like the thing to do. They put up a good fight. Finally I got one cornered next to the water. He would swim for a few minutes, but clearly wasn’t going to swim into the current and head down river. It took several tries to get him and I could tell that his little swims were wearing him out. I caught him in the end. I gave him a toss into the water after I finished.

It was strange to see my first jet ski. There really weren’t any boats on the river. I assume that’s because it gets shallow and has lots of obstructions. They must have been done with the jet ski because they were loading it up on the trailer, so I never even saw it running.

To my dismay, the next thing I came across was a 55 gallon drum of tractor fluid. I’m not sure of its current contents, but just being dumped in the river is ridiculous.

I finally made it to Palisade, MN at the boat ramp to Berglund Park. It was a little steep, but I used my wheels to pull my boat on up the ramp. It’s a decent looking campground to stay out, but I was there for another reason. There was food in town. I walked down to a place called Rustic Trail and had a nice burger. It was satisfying. I relaxed at the campground for a while before getting back on the water.

It was about 8 more miles until I got to my home for the night at the confluence of Willow River. The site was not terrible, but it was up a steep bank and the mosquitos were hellacious. I got ready for bed as quickly as possible to get relief from the bugs.

Mileage: 27

Total Mileage: 263.1

Today’s Audio: How Democracies Die by Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt

Day 14