The mighty Mississippi is 2310 miles long from Lake Itasca to the Gulf. It is measured along its course and in the charts in two sections: The Upper and Lower Mississippi, with the dividing point being Cairo IL, where the Ohio joins in. The lower section begins, oddly, at negative ten. "Milepost" will note where I stand in this system. I will not be paddling the 500 miles above Saint Paul, nor the 105 miles below New Orleans. "To go" (cumulative) will reflect the 1705 miles I do intend to paddle. "Done" will be a weekly sum. I'll note which states I have on either hand, and will star the state on whose side of the channel I'm on for the night. Bivouacs are noted by the nearest town or feature, and are in a wild place, unless they are [bracketed thus].

(.......off the river. Now overland, and into foreign lands......)