Holy Jeesuz & Wild Rice

A & W Rootbeer stand, Cohasset, MN. Frank and I eat and drink in exhausted silence. I'm thinking, I wonder if Frank's having the experience he'd figured on. Another moment of silence and just as I'm about to ask, Frank speaks. "This ain't what I expected." I have to laugh. Another ten or so miles under our belts, or at our backs rather, and we're cooked. Hot sun, endless rice fields yield no shade. For all the boaters out on the water today, this is it. The end of summer. For us, it has only just begun. And we're spun. Several more miles to go today and a dam to portage around, and it's already 4:45. Frank says he expected forests in northern Minnesota. So did I. Frank adds that this is not undifferent from his initial AT experience. In short, it's damn hard. And I dunno about him, but I'm feeling damn old and broken down. But oh boy does a rootbeer freeze taste good after work like this. We return to our canoe on the old local fishing peir, put paddle to water and carry on. -RSM
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