One4Water Mississippi canoe trip raising funds, awareness for clean water

By Audrey Posten, Times-Register

Iowa native Hank Kohler paddled past Marquette and McGregor last week as part of his One4Water trip, a 3,500-mile effort to canoe the Mississippi River south to the Gulf of Mexico. The trip is a fundraiser for the National Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium in Dubuque, particularly its Take CAARE initiative, which stands for Conservation Action through Advocacy, Research and Engagement.

“They engage and involve students each year, teaching them ownership of their watersheds, how to help endangered species like freshwater mussels, to plant trees and wildflowers. Do the things we need to do so we can enjoy this planet in the future,” said Kohler. “That’s exactly the type of program I wanted to fund.”

Through canoeing and fishing, water has taken Kohler to many beautiful places over the years.

“But I’ve done nothing to protect and preserve them,” he shared. “So I thought,  if I’m going to do this at my age, I’m not going to do it just for the adventure, but to raise awareness and funds for clean water projects, to help the people who know how to help.”

Kohler, who now lives in Ames and was in the pizza/restaurant industry for 40 years, was joined by Marquette resident Don Smalley on the opening leg of the journey. The two first met in college at UNI in the 1970s, and have stayed connected over the years, enjoying fishing and other trips together.

When he started thinking about who could paddle with him, Kohler said Smalley was a perfect fit.

“Don likes adventure,” he quipped. 

For Smalley, who’s been an avid runner, biker, backpacker and climber, floating the Mississippi was actually a bucket list item.

“I’m always looking for something new and challenging, but I’d never really put much thought into it,” he said. “I actually just bought a new canoe last fall, though, with the intent of doing more paddle camping trips.”

What’s unique about this trek is that it didn’t start in the Mississippi River headwaters, but on Minnesota’s Leaf River. Kohler grew up vacationing in Otter Tail County, and remembered learning that water in that area didn’t flow south to the Gulf of Mexico, but rather north to the Hudson Bay. In 1979, Kohler, his brother and two friends made the 1,300-mile paddling adventure from central Minnesota to the Hudson Bay.

“A year ago, I was going up to our cabin in that region of Minnesota on an ice fishing trip, and crossed the Leaf River and had an epiphany: We canoed north from here. Why don’t I go from here south? No one’s done that,” Kohler recalled.

Kohler kicked off the trip June 3, on the Leaf River. Smalley met up with him a day later, on the Crow Wing River, a Mississippi tributary. 

The two traveled in an aluminum canoe Kohler bought used several years ago. Although Kohler equipped himself with maps of the river, a solar charger and a marine radio to communicate with the lock and dam system, his main gear was already on hand prior to the trip.

“I do quite a bit of river camping and fishing, so I have stuff I’m comfortable with as far as setting up for the night—the tent, what I cook with,” he said.

Kohler and Smalley paddled around 30 miles per day from the start of the journey to Dubuque, where Smalley’s leg ended on June 18. 

“I was thinking we’d only be going three miles an hour, but we’ve been going four,” said Kohler, who noted the days start around 7:30 or 8 a.m. and end at 5:30 p.m., with a break in between. The two largely camped on sand bars at night, with the exception of a few luxuries, including a two-night stay at the Smalley home in Marquette last week.

“Now, we’ve got a routine down—what it’s like, how hot it is and how long the days get,” Kohler added.

Rather than looking at the trip in its entirety, which will be around 70 days, he prefers to break it up into smaller increments. 

“Mostly it’s a small trip of two or three days and having fun on the river, followed by another small trip, followed by a whole bunch more of them,” said Kohler.

Paddling in a smaller, tippy vessel, the two were vigilant of other river traffic. Barges, which are larger and easier to spot, haven’t been the main concern, though. 

“From a safety standpoint, we’ve learned the barges aren’t as problematic as pleasure boat traffic. Last weekend, all the pontoons, cabin cruisers and jet skis were just flying by,” Kohler said. “We were constantly in wakes. Sometimes we had to turn the canoe and point into them or we’d be swamped.”

Heat has also been issue. Temperatures topped out in the 90s, and even triple digits, every day.

“We’ve had such good weather that the sun is just baking us. We beg for a cloud to come by,” Kohler said.

“But on the days when it was hot, it was more comfortable not being on land. The water is cooler and there’s always a breeze,” Smalley added.

The worst part, though? Sitting all day.

“I was looking forward to an activity that wasn’t so dependent on my legs and back. Just about everything I’ve done—running, biking, climbing, backpacking—it’s the legs and spine carrying all the weight. So doing an activity where you sit on your butt the entire time sounded great,” said Smalley. “Now that I’ve done it for two weeks, my butt hurts really bad. You’re never comfortable, and you just want to get up and stretch your legs.”

But the two said it’s worth it to experience the Mississippi River from a new perspective.

“We’ve gone almost 500 miles, and you realize just how majestic the river is,” shared Kohler. “Both of us really love trees, and because of the steepness of the bluffs, they haven’t been de-forested for the most part, so we’re going by millions and millions of beautiful trees. It’s also fabulous the amount of eagles—we’ll see 100 or 200 every day—and the waterfowl, heron, peregrine falcons, songbirds.”

“The other day, right before a rough stretch of water, we had two pelicans 20 feet above us. The coloration on the underside of them, it was neat seeing that up close,” remarked Smalley.

From his home in Marquette, Smalley said he often sticks to the closest stretch of the Mississippi River. 

“I do a lot more things where I drive along it and look from the highway,” he stated. “But from the river I got a whole different perspective—the views, the scenery, the magnitude of it. You’re sitting out there and see the bluffs miles away, and then you look that way and see the bluffs miles away, and you realize that was once the river. Those were the edges of the river. You realize how much land drains into that. It made me really think about that.”

“Aside from the idea of taking a canoe trip, the chance to give back and pay it forward is something that’s been on my mind,” he added.

One4Water has generated nearly $17,000 in donations so far. Even if people can’t financially contribute, Kohler hopes the canoe trip raises awareness for the importance of clean water.

“It’s really easy to be cynical and give up, to say there’s too much pollution and nothing we can do about it. It’s harder to work and teach people how to turn the tide and change that,” he said. “Not everyone can donate money, but as long as they are following along and think about this and doing the right thing, I feel like I’ve done my part.

Kohler will now continue heading south on the Mississippi, with plans to be in St. Louis around July Fourth. Eight other individuals will join him on the trip, like Smalley did, for varied lengths of time. To follow along and learn more, check out the “One4Water” Facebook page or go to www.rivermuseum.com/one4water.