Day - 37

Captain Ned is in Vicksburg, MS. He's had a pretty good head wind working against him today. He said is was real bad when he was paddling up the wazoo. I just laughed and asked what river did you say...the wazoo? He said "oops...please excuse my vocal miscarriage I meant to say Yazoo River".

It was 3:16 PM EST when the call came in. He said his bow just hit the shore and he was wore plum smooth from the 1/2 to 3/4 mile paddle up the 'Ol Yazoo. Not so smooth that it was going to keep him from going and rooting around for some cold "gold tops" though. He's planning to set up camp on top of the levee. His new neighbor is a casino river boat.

We had a good signal but he was kind itching to get out of the kayak, stretch and go scouting around, so I didn't pepper him with questions of the missing stops. Hoping for a good nights sleep so tomorrow he can try to make up some time the wind stole from him today.

I asked the captain if had gotten a hold of anyone else and he said that he talked to Aunt Becky and was going to make a couple more calls after he got settled in, so we'll be back in touch tomorrow after we get a complete family update. Stay tuned.

Day - 36 - 2nd update...

I got another call from Capt. Ned just before 4 PM EST. He said he set his condo up in the rain but that he was now looking at blue sky drinking a warm "gold top". He said he had contemplated pushing off again but it was still pretty windy and didn't feel much like fighting it. Said he would rather kick back and polish off the other beers he found rolling around behind his seat.

Prior to losing our Larry style cell signal the captain informed me that he was closer to Vicksburg, MS then he thought. After he got settled and got an accurate reading on his GPS he found that he was only 15 miles north of Vicksburg, and he's only 360 miles from New Orleans.

As for the map, as soon as we have a good signal and some talk time we'll try to get the missing camping locations filled in. But then again...who knows...we may not...we know where he is right now and we know he's got a Busch in his hand. Life is good!

Hello - Hello

Wednesday - Day 36

2:02 PM EST...I just received a call from Captain Ned. First personal contact since last Friday afternoon. He's currently about 20 / 25 miles north of Vicksburg, MS. He said all is good but he's getting ready to stop and hunker down. Thunderstorms moving in fast. He said it looks like the storm is behind him but he's not taking any chances. He ran into some pretty bad weather yesterday. He said the rain wasn't so bad but the wind was slapping him around pretty good.

I was scrambling to pull up a weather source on the net to let him know for sure what was happening and I told that if we got cut off, I'd call him right back and let him know what the deal was. I also said that if I couldn't get through I would definitely leave a message. He said "tell you what mon...I'm going to go ahead and hang up now...that was a pretty damn big lightning bolt".

I called him right back and got his voicemail. I informed him that only one part of the storm was behind him, that he's only threading the needle and there's another side of it getting ready to smack him in the face. I ended my message to him with "keep the good side up, take care and call us when you can".

Although our conversation was very short, I could tell that his spirits are soring high.

We'll be back in touch as soon as Capt. Ned is back in touch.

Here are some more pictures that were taken and provided by Mr. John Ruskey. There's not much explanation that needs to accompany these pictures other then notice the river is up, Captain Ned Mott is looking pretty damn good, and that lazy SOB Wilson is doing nothing but catching some rays all folded up strapped on the front deck of the kayak.

Also, we hope to be able to post some pictures that Captain Ned has taken. He mailed a full camera to Cousin Larry, which Larry confirmed that he received last Wednesday, but that he was currently on a weekend golfing extravaganza, and that he would email me the pictures on Monday. Hmmm...Monday has come and gone and no pictures. Larry has disappeared like Captain Ned's cell signal. Hey Larry...hint-hint...don't forget to forward me the pics.

Weekend update...Days 32 & 33

Captain Ned still doesn't have a signal on his cell phone. Leslie Van Pelt on the other hand does have a signal. Capt. Ned ran into Leslie and some other very nice folks on an island / sandbar. Leslie let Capt. Ned borrow her phone so he could check in real quick to let us know he was alive.

Capt. Ned contacted Uncle Keith for a quick hey mon, doing fine, in Rosedale, MS camping on an island with some other nice folks, their are bear tracks on the island, hoping to be in Vicksburg, MS in a couple days, cant talk, borrowing phone, have to get off of here so I can commence to the consumption of some of my new found friends cold beer.

Please be sure to go back a couple / few posts and check out the comments. Leslie, Heidi and Brent have posted some comments, and it sounds to me like there was some partying going on. And not only did they supply 'Ol Ned with cell service and beer, but they also gave him a "Po Monkey's Lounge" beer huggie.

3 Delta Icons...The River...The Plantation...and The Juke. Po Monkey's Lounge is one of the last standing blues juke joints. This is a MUST SEE kind of place. Use the popular search engine that I have mentioned in the past and just punch in Po Monkey's Lounge and be ready for a plethora of information and history. There are several sites and articles. Pretty cool.

The action photos of Captain Ned come to us courtesy of Mr. John Ruskey. John Ruskey of Clarksdale, MS sent me an email titled "Your father at Kangaroo Point mile 650". Saturday June 21st, Summer Solstice, Mr. Ruskey, founder/owner/operator of the "Quapaw Canoe Company" was out with 6 other people in a canoe that he built when they rendezvoused with Capt. Ned around noon a couple miles south of Friars Point, MS.

I checked out the Quapaw Canoe Company / John's web site www.island63.com and this too is a MUST SEE. I'm not done checking it out yet, there is a lot their. Their are journals & photos of canoe expeditions, an events calender, and at the very bottom of his home page John graces the cover of the "Memphis Flyer" magazine. The article dates back to December 2000, but I can almost guarantee that if you read this article, as I did, and check out the pictures at the end you are going to want to take a trip with this dude, as I now do.

John, thank you again for pictures and especially for the kind words about my dad.

I created the maps working off of what was posted in the comments and emails received from the fine people 'Ol Ned has paddled across in the last couple days. I believe it to be pretty accurate.

Here they are...the birth of the "Rainbow's End". In the last photo Captain Ned is explaining his vision to Dawn...at least I think that's my sister??? This construction took place in the Duckworth Steel Boats shipyard in Tarpon Springs, FL. Duckworth is where Captain Ned still resides and works, or should I say occasionally works when he's not exercising his busy retirement, kayaking, windsurfing, rollerblading and doing whatever he damn well pleases.

I hope you enjoyed these pictures. I'll be back shortly with action Kayak pictures of Capt. Ned on the Mighty Mississippi and the weekend update.

Hello - Hello

I spoke to Captain Ned at high noon Friday EST. He was currently passing Tunica, MS and was about 3 hours from Helena. The captain said he just scored some water from the "Tunica Queen", one of the gambling casino boats. He said he paddled right up next to it and asked for some water, in which they obliged.

I asked him where he camped Thursday night and he said "oh hell...I don't know...I was on the Mississippi in Mississippi. His goal was to make it 40 miles today, and that's when we started saying hello...hello can you hear me...and that was the extent of our conversation. We'll catch up with him ASAP and get back with you.

The pictures above are of the "HO-BO". If you recall from a previous blog, before the "Rainbow's End" came to be, she was known as the "HO-BO". And of course that's Capt. Ned in the first photo perched up on deck with his feet kicked up. Gee...I haven't seen that a time or two.

Just FYI...I created this post on Friday but had to run out and never had a chance to post until now. Also, there will be another post immediately following this one which will have pictures of the "HO-BO" when she was being morphed into the "Rainbow's End". The blog will only allow 5 photos at a time. Look for that in a moment.

The cell signal has been real...ummm...I'll use the word...crappy, but I do have some info from the travels of Captain Ned from over the weekend. I Plan to get this info to you later this afternoon. Please be patient, I'm busier then a one arm wall paper hanger. This darn work thing keeps getting in the way of fun. Stay tuned in though, I will be back ASAP...with some really good action shots of Captain Ned on the Mississippi.

Hello again, we're back and with confirmation of where 'Ol Ned camped Tuesday night. Tuesday's camp site was about 6 miles north of Osceola, Arkansas.

Day - 29

I got a call from the captain at 5 PM EST and he said he was just north Memphis, TN in Millington. Millington, TN is home to Naval Support Activity Mid-South. Captain Ned and Uncle Keith both went to school here in Millington when they were in the Navy.

Capt. Ned set up camp or should I say...almost set up camp near the boat ramp at the Meeman Shelby State Park. At 6PM EST I got another call from 'Ol Ned and he said "I'm paddling again". He said he had his condo about 75% set up when he was run off by the park ranger.

A quick note to the park ranger; I got a call from Captain Ned just before 7 PM EST. He said he had his condo all set up in your park. He said he was nestled in right along the bank in a nice wooded area between 2 of your big beautiful trees. He said it was much nicer then spot you ran him out of and he only had to paddle about 3/8 of a mile to find it. I asked him if he was worried about you finding him, and he said "no fear at all, because it would involve a little work and effort on your part, and you probably couldn't find your own ass searching with both hands".

Moving on...just prior to Capt. Ned's run in with ignorance on shore he said he ran into 3 guys that were out running a ski boat around. 2 of these guys were also in the Navy back in the day. They got along real well and I received emails from two of the guys. Now I'm not sure if both guys tried posting comments on the blog, but I know one of them did. He said he was having problems getting it to post. This isn't the first time I've heard this, so I'll go ahead type up what I received here in a minute.

In case you weren't aware...I know I wasn't...the Mississippi River has mile markers, just like an interstate. Capt. Ned said he was 703 miles from New Orleans. Hey wait a second here...Uncle Keith said Capt. Ned was 702 Miles from New Orleans...Oh yeah...there was that (add expletive of choice here) park ranger to contend with. The mile marker system is counting down and actually ends/begins 50 miles south of New Orleans where the Gulf Of Mexico and Mississippi River run together.

Wilson took the day off...again, but he worked Tuesday and helped move 'Ol Ned 75 miles in 2 days. WOW! He keeps up this pace and we'll be drinking a couple "gold tops" together before you know it.

Day - 30

I got a call at 1:15 PM EST and Capt. Ned was 8 miles from the Mississippi state line. We only talked for a minute or two. He was cruising underneath the second interstate bridge in the heart of Memphis. He stated the wind was against him but he was moving along at 4.7 knots. Then he said "oh sh!t I just got spun around, oh...well now would you look at that...that's a good shot of Memphis, I better take a Picture of that, hang on, let me get my camera". "Okay, I just got a picture of a big building that looks like a pyramid at the top and it's as shiny as a freshly spanked babies ass". It was right after that one of many analogies that 'Ol Ned uses that he said "oh sh!t, I just got spun around again...I gotta go mon I'm down to 2 knots and I better start paddling again" As always I told him to take care and call when he could.

We received an inner family email update from Gary this afternoon. Gary talked to his Uncle Ned a few hours after I did. Captain Ned is still moving right along at 4 knots and is leaving Memphis behind. It was reported that 'Ol Ned was drinking his last cold "gold top", and then he would have to tap into a warm one shortly as to not let them feel left out.

Capt. Ned hopes to make it to Penton Mississippi tonight which will put him in Helena, AR in a day or so. Were hoping to maintain a decent cell signal, but Capt. Ned said he's not feeling to positive about it. The only time he's getting anything is when he's next to an interstate or near a bridge. We'll send an update ASAP.

The following are the emails I received from Jerry Morelock and Bill Painter, 2 of the fellow sailors dad meet yesterday:

Attempted a couple of time to post this to blog with no go evidently. Doing an end run this way.

Cheers!
Jerry Morelock

Had tried to post the following:
"Hey Guys, that sure is a strange looking tree floating down the river! Hold on a minute...It's a guy in a kayak!"

Pulled the ski boat we were testing in a hard circle and went back to look at the tree. Stopped mid river fifteen miles north of Memphis to chat with Ned and point out the boat ramp at the local state park. He's in great shape and good spirits but wants said the wanted a beer about the size of a 55 gallon barrel! Plans to camp over the night and continue in the morning which will be his 30th day on the water.

Bon Voyage! (6/18/08) from two old ex-sailors and a river rat.

...time here now 4:25 CST just a few miles above Memphis, Tennessee. My two pals and I took the boat out this afternoon to enjoy a few hours on the water and sighted a strange apparition mid-river. At first we thought it was a tree ball rolling over and over in the river, but when we got closer we could see it was a guy -- in a kayak, f' chris'sake! ...well, we'd run across Captain Ned. Couldn't be anyone else. He said it was his 29th day on the water, and (holding up a tattered piece torn from a Rand-McNally Road Atlas) wondered if we could tell him where the park was...the one just below Millington. ...we pointed ashore two hundred yards to the boat ramp from which we'd launched a couple of hours before. We assume Ned's middle name must be "Amerigo," given his navigational skills. ...as we pulled our boat, Ned came ashore looking for a place he could pitch his tent for the night. He found a suitable spot at the top of the ramp where there was a clearing with grass and wildflowers (and only a few tall weeds). He admitted he could use a laundromat; said he'd been banging his clothes clean on river rocks. And he said he could drink a beer "...about this big," holding his hands a foot apart. Well, we didn't have any beer, but we did leave him with two cold bottles of water; he said he didn't have any place to put the ice from our chest, but we offered. ...and we directed him to the nearest marina -- he said he'd only seen one in his travels so far. Ours is on he River in Memphis, immediately south of the Hernando Desoto Bridge. We advised him to cruise under the bridge and bear hard a'port, which would take him into the marina entrance.
...we spent a pleasant few minutes trading Old Bill Snuffbucket stories of our times in the Navy, and took a look at Rainbow's End photos. Ned is quite an impressive fellow; our drive home was quiet. Each of us not-quite-mid-sixties fellows were wondering what the hell we'd done with our lives. ...now I'm going to quit, get into the car and drive back out to the Park with a beer "about this big." Seems the least I can do.

Jerry and Bill,

Thanks for the emails and attempts to post comments. Most appreciated. These are some of the things that I know Capt. Ned will really enjoy reading when hits the "Rainbow's End". When I talked to Capt. Ned this afternoon, the first thing he asked me was "did you call the marina up here?" I said no, but I can tell you who did...I pulled your email up on my screen and said it was either Jerry or Bill, and I'm guessing it was Bill because he loaded some beers up and was coming back down to the boat ramp to shoot the sh!t with you. I then got his famous "well damn the bad luck" and a chuckle. He said that when he got to the marina they were almost expecting him and greeted him with smiles. Anyway...take care guys...stay tuned in and in touch...thank you!

Hang on...Hang on...More of day 30.

We just received a short email message from Ruthy. She confirms Capt. Ned is in Mississippi and has a nice little isolated camp site set up and is chowing on some noodle soup. She said their conversation consisted of several hello...hello...can you hear me...hello's before they were cut off, so we don't know if he made it to Penton or not, but one thing we do know is that as soon as we know you will too.

Oh my...2 blog updates in 1 day. Don't get used to it. Here is the picture I have been looking for and I just couldn't wait to show you. The "Rainbow's End" and "Prancer" just south of where the Wabash River runs into the Ohio River. Man...what a site!

More pictures of the "HO-BO" & "Rainbow's End" to come soon. And if you are just joining the blog and are wondering what the "HO-BO" is...or was...please check out some of the older posts, or just wait and see...it's up to you.

Day - 28

Captain Ned was kroozing under an interstate bridge mid afternoon Tuesday and decided to try his phone. With success he spoke to Keith and reported that everything is running smooth. A north wind has brought Wilson out of retirement. Wilson is finally pulling his weight and also pulling Capt. Ned at a steady 4.4 knots.

Wilson is giving 'Ol Ned some much needed rest. I guess that after about 5 hours of steady paddling Capt. Ned is starting to feel some lower back discomfort. Nothing major, nothing that he says he cant walk off shortly after he gets out of the kayak or a night in his tent cant cure.

At this time we don't have confirmation of where Ned ended up camping last night. We'll let you ASAP. Captain Ned is hoping to be just north of Memphis, Tennessee by nightfall Wednesday.

I believe we may be back on track. Please disregard the last map posted. The dates were wrong and Captain Ned didn't make it to Wickliffe, KY Thursday as he had planned. Moving away from my mapping errors, I did some more digging and located more pictures, including the one with the "Rainbow's End" and "Prancer" tied up together. However, I'm having scanner issues. The issue being...I don't have a damn scanner. I believe the payment of a 12 pack to a buddy of mine with a scanner will get these issues resolved. I'll get them posted ASAP.



Day - 23, 24 & 25 - Still no cell signal. Didn't get an updated until the 26th.

Before continuing with the day to day of 'Ol Ned which has been sketchy as of late, while in catch up mode from the last couple days of silence Capt. Ned was excited to tell me that he meet 3 new kayak friends, but being on a different schedule they parted ways shortly after they met. Capt. Ned did however want to make sure I knew about them and wanted to make sure I had their blog address.

These guys are kayaking for a cause. I have it on my other screen right now, and although I haven't read very much of it, I think it's worth checking out. If you would like to read more about their trip and their cause, check out http://www.upstreambattle.blogspot.com/ .

To Tim, Ethan and Justin: Captain Ned Mott and company wish you a safe journey and wish you the best of luck on your mission.


Now, on with the krooz...


Captain Ned didn't quite make it to Wickliffe, KY on the 23rd as he had planned. He ended up stopping near Cairo, IL.


Friday - day 24 was a short day for the captain. He said he's been making good time so he decided to go ahead and stop and hangout in Wickliffe and rest a little bit. He said everything was going well. He said one of the locals he met ran him into town to the store so he could pick up some supplies, and it wasn't until he was at the store that he was informed it was a dry county. He said he walked out of the store and just wanted to lay down in the parking lot and cry.


Capt. Ned was back at his camp site when a Whickliffe local, who had evidently heard of the captain's misfortune, saved the towns good name and delivered a couple cold beers. Being most appreciative they chatted for a while and about the time this guy was leaving another local popped in with a couple more. Per Captain Ned, "life in Whickliffe, KY wasn't bad at all, but you can guarantee I'll be more prepared next time".


Day - 25


Hickman, KY is where 'Ol Ned decided to stop for the night. Purchased a case of cold "Gold Tops". Life is grand again.


Sunday, Day - 26


Happy Fathers Day is how I answered the phone, he laughed and said "your sister already beat you to the punch". And I thought I was going to be on top of the good kid club. Trust me, I'll knock her off of that perch before you know it. The cell signal was still poor but workable. At the time we spoke he said he was just drifting along at 3 knots. He said with a moderate paddle he could easily maintain 5 knots. 7.2 has been the top speed so far.


The river is still on the rise. It's at about 44 feet and expected to come up another 4 feet. Not exactly sure where the actual channel is anymore as all of the channel buoys have washed away.


New Madrid, Missouri is where Capt. Ned ended up Sunday late afternoon. He set up camp at the public boat ramp. He said this place was set up perfect for kayak and canoe travelers. A new friend, Mr. Hall, ran the good 'ol captain up to the supermarket to replenish supplies. He said the only problem he had with this stop was that a couple young boys were throwing stones at his tent while he was trying to get some shut eye. Other then that it was all good.

Capt. Ned told Keith "be sure to inform Becky that I had to alter my good Sunday go to meeting britches". He cut of the legs and brought in the waistband. He said after 600 miles any excess pounds he may have had are now gone.

Day - 27

Caruthersville, MO was Monday night's destination when I talked to the captain. Our conversation was cut a little short when he said he was running upon another whirlpool. He said he's been running into these things the last day or so. He said he can hear them before he can see them. When he said this I kind of chuckled and said "dad...you have Wet Macular Degeneration, of course he can hear them before he can see them". We both laughed, then he said "Hey mon I'll talk to you later, I also have a log heading my way".

Come to find out the whirlpools / boils / spouts are caused by man made jetties made of big rocks used to slow flood water run off in an attempt to help protect the Mississippi levee system. He informed Keith that their not a major problem but he likes to be prepared and try to avoid them because if one pops up underneath you, you have to paddle like crazy to get out and they can spin you a slow 360 degrees.

7.2 was the record. Now the Mighty Mississippi is narrowing a bit and according to one of the gadgets he has, he hit warp speed of 9.2. He said he averaged 8 for at least an hour and maintained around 7 for about 2 hours. He wants to hit a now new personal goal of 10.

The Caruthersville, MO destination was confirmed by Uncle Keith. He said the captain set up camp in a public park right next to a flag pole. Shortly after arrival Capt. Ned spotted a young lady with a child and an old coon dog down looking at the river. Capt. Ned thought it to be a good idea to ask if she would happen to know of a place to re-hydrate. The grin worthy response that was received was "yeah my daddy owns a tavern". "One of the oldest on the river...WOODY'S BAR".

Well now Katy bar the door, you aren't going to believe this...when Capt. Ned walked into this fine establishment they gazed at him for a second or two and exclaimed..."The Kayak Kid"...and handed him a "Gold Top". Captain Ned said that Woody's is a must see place...it's full of history.

Captain Ned has only been in Caruthersville for a couple short hours and has already meet quite a few people. One of these fine soles is taking 'Ol Ned a nice steak dinner. This big meal will definitely help conserve on the supply of Becky's jerky. Estimates he has enough jerky to get him to the gulf.

Hopes to make it too Osceola, Arkansas Tuesday night.

Hello again!



As promised here are a couple photos of "Prancer". I need to do some more digging for pictures of the "Rainbow's End". The first picture I believe was taken by Capt. Ned from the "Rainbow's End". The next two where when "Prancer" was being re-painted with a Mott by a Mott. Hmm..the only Mott I see working in the picture is Gary. Now, Larry will try to say he was the one behind the camera, but I know that's not true, because from where I was standing, up on the deck of Rusty Bellies Waterfront Grill nursing a cold beer, he was no where to be found. Now that I've mentioned the place I have to elaborate a little and let you know, Rusty Bellies has some of the absolute best sea food around. And while you're there don't forget check their desert menu, it's called the "Rainbow's End". Actually, all of the items on a Rusty Bellies menu is named after local boats. Pretty cool. Check 'em out.



Day - 22



As you know from the last post we located Captain Ned and he was still moving right along and was hoping to set up camp near Paducah. I spoke with 'Ol Ned yesterday at 10:00 am and he said the boat ramp area in Paducah was pretty populated so he decided to go a little further. He set up camp about 4 miles further south.



He said that he got a decent start Thursday morning and had just passed Metropolis, IL. He was finishing up breakfast as he was coasting along and talking to me. Breakfast consisted of 2 of those Mix-N-Berry granola bars that he's now addicted too, some more of Aunt Becky's jerky and he said that when we hung up he was going to tear ass into some M & M's. Mmmm...breakfast of champions.



Capt. Ned must have lost his cell signal again because we never heard from him last night. He was planning to make it Wickliffe, KY so I went ahead and logged it on the map. Speaking of the map...as you can see there are a couple days of camp sites missing. I will get those added in, an make any necessary adjustments as soon as I get a confirmation from the man himself.



Where ever he said he landed he was hoping for some cold "gold tops" and a mail box. He said it's been several days since his last cold beer and he feels he's overdue. Capt. Ned also informed me that he filled up one of the cameras that Larry and Kevin gave to him when they visited him in Darwin. He said he'll be dropping it in the mail ASAP, which means we'll get them posted ASAP. I cant wait to see some of the scenery the good 'ol captain has been seeing and some of the people he's met along the way. One thing he was disappointed about though was that he never took any pictures of the fiasco that took place last Friday night that involved his first 911 call. See one of the previous blogs for details of the fiasco.

I realize the blogs have been king of sketchy and kind of all over the place the last couple days, and for that I apologize, but it's been kind of hard piecing several broken conversation between several different people together. The bottom line / consensus of all the Mott's is that Captain Ned is still alive and grinning. He's still having fun, and still meeting new people.

It's now 8:45 pm 6/13/'08. I just tried to call but it went to his voicemail. I'm going to think positive and picture my dad relaxing with an ice cold Busch beer in his hand plotting tomorrows attack on the mighty Mississippi River. Tennessee is right around the bend. Capt. Ned is blowing through Kentucky like sh!t through a goose. Stay tuned...there is excitement to follow...trust me.

Day - 21

We don't have an update direct from the source himself yet, but we do have an update. I made a few calls this morning and first one being too Deputy Scottie Sauls of the Gallatin County Sheriff's Office. Deputy Sauls said he knew Capt. Ned was there a day or so ago, but said he would run down to the boat ramp (Old Shawneetown) to talk to a couple of the guys down there. Deputy Sauls called me right back and confirm that Capt. Ned camped there Saturday night, had breakfast with a couple of the locals at the diner near the river and pushed off Sunday morning. Deputy Sauls also gave me contact info just down the river. The kind deputy also posted a comment on yesterday blog. Thank You Sir!

Another call or two put me in touch with a very nice woman named Judy. Judy works at the Cave-In-Rock Ferry Service Office. The Cave-In-Rock ferry is a free service that runs 7 days a week and crosses the Ohio River between Illinois Route 1 and Kentucky Route 91. Judy jumped on the marine radio and put out the inquiry. I overheard everything. It wasn't 30 seconds later and I heard, "oh yeah...the loan kayaker came by here yesterday morning at 10:00 am".

Judy was back on the phone with me 2 seconds later informing me of the spotting of the Kayak Kid. Judy said that there is absolutely no cell signal down in this area on the water. With that said, it may be another day or two before hear from Capt. Ned. Who knows. One things for certain though...I'm sure he'll have some stories.

Oh!...Breaking news...Lindy just talked to him. He said "I'm fine girl, I'm about 3 hours from Paducah, Kentucky and I'll catch everyone up then".

Oh crap!...hang on...he's calling...okay, he still has a poor cell signal, he just passed where the Cumberland River dumps into the Ohio and he'll be setting up camp in or around Paducah. He said he's been making real good time. Yesterday he was hugging the Illinois bank and was moving along at about 5 - 51/2 knots. Today he's been hugging the Kentucky bank and going about 31/2 knots. The wind is blowing at about 15 knots which he said is "one hell-ov-a lot better then the 30 he's had for the last couple days". But still making pretty good time.

The river is real wide and kind of rough, but he's guessing he's only two days from the Mississippi River. Once Captain Ned sets up camp and gets settled in we'll get a little more accurate info and I'll get a new map posted, along with a picture or two of the "Prancer". I'll have to do a little digging for some digital pictures of the "Rainbow's End".

Now, I believe thanks are in order. Special Thanks to everyone who helped chaperon Capt. Ned the last couple days and who stopped what they were doing to help the Mott family find his whereabouts...Deputy Scottie Souls, Betty from the Elizabethtown, Illinois sheriff's dept., the woman (sorry, I didn't catch your name) at the Lodge in Cave-In-Rock, Judy and the guy who immediately responded to Judy on the radio. From the Mott family...Thank you all very much!

Day's 18, 19 & 20

Saturday day 18 started out in New Harmony. The roll over skirt was used for the first time and worked great. The sponge that's being kept below to soak up any excess water is working well. Working harder then Wilson, that's for sure.

Uncle Keith reports that Captain Ned stopped in Hudsonville...not to be confused with Hutsonville. Now it's not that I don't believe my Uncle Keith, I trust him with my life, but I cant find that damn place anywhere on the map. I looked everywhere...even that popular web search engine I mentioned before that sounds like bugle and starts with a G.

Anyway, the cell signal on day 18 was very poor. No major bars could be found...for drinking or talking. You can thank Keith for that little funny, it came straight from the inner family email. He's the only one who talked to Capt. Ned on Saturday.

Sunday day 19 was the beginning of new life for 'Ol Ned. The Captain has left the Wabash and is now on the Ohio River. Captain Ned and I played phone tag several times on Sunday but we never actually spoke. He ended up leaving me a message that said he was in Old Shawneetown, IL. Keith is the lucky one who actually spoke with him Sunday. The captain said the water is clearer but also rougher. Battling the wind a bit, but nothing he cant handle.

Captain Ned's original plan was to stop and set up camp where the "Rainbow's End" moored together with "Prancer" a couple years back. This spot is just south of where the Wabash and Ohio River's meet. I believe this may be the spot where these two boat's met in the water for the first time...but don't quote me on that.

"Prancer" is the name of my Uncle Dave's boat. Uncle Dave built "Prancer" in his back yard in Monroeville, Indiana. "Prancer" is bigger then the "Rainbow's End" but they both share the same thing...the love and determination of a Mott dream.

David M. Mott, Ned and Keith's brother and best friend passed away 2/15/2007. Dave is the father to Larry and Gary.

Okay...quick story...people always try to come up with new & different ways of doing things with the ashes of loved ones. Well...like it or not, these were Dave's wishes and you can damn sure bet we carried them out. Dave wanted to be mixed in with some paint and painted onto "Prancer". David M. Mott's wishes were carried out and he will now forever travel with his nautical dream.

I'll see what I can do about getting the picture of the "Rainbow's End" and "Prancer" together at this point. It's a beautiful picture. We may have to wait until Captain Ned gets home to Tarpon Springs, FL. I can however post a picture of "Prancer" when Larry and Gary had the painting party and painted Dave's ass...shes onto his boat. They did the painting and I showed up for the party.

Back to Captain Ned, the site where the brother's boats were tied together, there was no place to camp. It was under water. As is the camp site where he stayed just a few days ago and was interviewed by Tom Compton, the Hutsonville, IL reporter. I got an email from Tom on Sunday stating that they ran the story on Capt. Ned in their Saturday's paper. Check it out...go to the Robinson Daily News... http://www.robdailynews.com/ . The title of the story is "The Adventures of Captain Ned on the Wabash". It's a good read. Thanks Tom.

Monday day 20 - Unfortunately no one, including JR over at the shipyard in Tarpon Springs has had contact with Captain Ned since Sunday, so we don't actually know where he currently resides. But not to worry, Ned is a "Captain" and knows how to read the water. JR said that when he talked to him, which was just before Ned hit the Ohio River, Ned said once he got onto the Ohio he was going to hold up somewhere, ride out the storms and let the river fall a bit.

I'll bet he's still in Old Shawneetown, IL ripping the lid off of a few "gold tops" the with a Larry style cell signal, saying damn the bad luck. I'll let you know as soon as we hear something.

EXTRA!!! EXTRA!!! READ ALL ABOUT IT!!!



Day - 17 News Flash!

7:42 pm I received a voice message from Capt. Ned. He was laughing and said if I wanted to know what kind of exciting things were happening to him that I had better call him back. He continued with every things okay but it's a good one. I had actually just hung up the phone when his call was coming in, so my phone never actually rang, it went right to voice mail, but lucky for all of us, I was right next to it when I heard the message alert sound. I immediately called him back.

After 2 rings he answered with a "you ain't gonna believe the Chinese fire drill I juts witnessed first hand". He said he was just sitting there enjoying the sites when this young lady drove up and unloaded this little 12$ POS (peice of sh!t) 8 to 10' dime store inflatable boat with 1 paddle about the size of a spoon. She was getting ready to launch this thing into the Wabash. Let me remind you that THE RIVER IS UP! Capt. Ned quickly intervened and said "do you really think that's a good idea...do you have any clue as to what you're getting your self into".

She responded with a clueless "I just want to paddle around the river a little bit". Ned said "well, it's only going to take a little bit for you to end up in the Ohio River. Now I cant stop you, but if this is something you feel you really need to do, I strongly suggest you go up stream, so when you come flying by I can call 911 for you".

About that time, out of the blue, somebody on a golf cart came by and took this woman and her POS up the river. Well...game on. Capt. Ned said he sat back cracked open a gold top, opened up his cell phone and was just waiting to dial. Yep...it wasn't long before she come rollin...rollin...rollin down the river. Screaming, yelling and frantically paddling with her spoon. It was at this time the good 'Ol Capt. Ned dialed 911 for the first time in his life.

Hey dad, I know it's going to be a long time before you're back aboard the "Rainbow's End" and read this, but damn...ain't it a bitch always being right. I know the feeling...I'm a Mott.

Captain Ned was still on the phone with 911 dispatch, still yelling for the woman to give up on trying to reach the Indiana bank and for her to head to Illinois, when New Harmony's Marshall Scott Champlin pulled up. Followed by a police rescue boat, the EMS, a fire truck and couple more squad cars. Lights flashing everywhere.

The police rescue boat was immediately launched to then immediately discover that it wouldn't start. Now we have a police rescue boat, not necessarily in distress, but yet floating down river. In the mean time, the woman in distress is clinging onto some trees on the Illinois bank. A few moments later another rescue boat arrived and rescued both the woman in distress and the rescue boat.

Once the distressed woman was safely back on the bank Indiana bank of Historic New Harmony she hugged and thanked Captain Ned for spotting her and calling for help. Ahh...hello...lady...my dad saved your life. Capt. Ned simply asked her "did you learn anything?".

After dad was done telling me the story, that we were both laughing heavily through out, I had too ask "Scott...you said Scott pulled up...you spoke as if you already knew him". Capt. Ned said that shortly after he first pulled up to shore Marshall Champlin stopped to see what was happening and asked what he was doing. Ned said "if your here to charge me for anything, please do it while I'm sitting down, because I'm damn tired". Captain Ned's intentions were explained, pleasantries were then exchanged and all is good. Marshall Scott Champlin will now be following the blog and enjoying the journey. Welcome, it's only just begun.

We don't know where he is. We know, but we forgot. We now know again.

Day - 16 & 17

The faithful inner family email started out "we don't know where he his". I guess my cousin Shawn was talking too him on his 2-way, but the signal was crappy. A couple hours later we got an inner update from Ruthy stating she talked to him last night, but now, LOL, she cant remember where the hell he is. By the way, Ruthy is Capt. Ned's step-sister which is Esther's daughter, which in turn is Ned's step-mom. Okay, enough with how a family tree works, which for the record, ours has branches...were not from that one state...you know the one, the one that doesn't branch out. Moooving on, Ruthy talked to Ned for quite a while and although she couldn't remember where he was, she said he was laughing and joking the whole time.

11:45 am 6/6/2008 I was contacted by the source. Captain Ned is currently in Historic New Harmony, IN. He's just down below the old toll bridge that connects Illinois to Indiana. I can now go home tonight and tell my kids "hey, guess what...Grandpa is living below a bridge again", and I will do this with pride. He said he was getting ready to go get a couple gallons of water form the Indiana welcoming center. I looked up New Harmony on that web search engine that starts G and sounds like the valveless brass horn instrument called a bugle. There are pictures of the area that you can zoom right down on to see where he is, but I thought it best not to print key photo anything due to the "all right reserved" BS that accompanied it. Anyway...pretty cool...check it out.

Capt. Ned has been camping in New Harmony since yesterday early afternoon. The wind was atrocious and was creating a serious chop on the water that was soaking him pretty good. He said he was taking on a little water from the splash. He wanted to keep his gear down below dry so he decided to make a pit stop to put on his roll over skirt. When he realized he was a short walking distance from everything he could possibly need, he then decided it was time for a couple cold beers. Time to stretch his legs and check sh!t out.

The wind was not much better this morning when he woke up, so he decided to just chill for the day, check out some more sh...tuff and relax a little. Relax between relocating hit tent higher and higher on the bank that is. The river is still on the rise, I believe he said it was up another 12 feet, which puts it at near 24 now.

Capt. Ned was eating breakfast at a small diner that's a stones throw away from his camp site. The rising river was the topic of conversation between the locals, when one of them stated that he spotted a guy that was kayaking down the river. Capt. Ned fessed up and said that it was him. Well...'Ol Ned now has friends in Historic New Harmony. The weather of course was another topic of conversation. There's a mild cold front coming in tonight that should tame the winds and with only 42 miles to go before he hits the Ohio River, he'll be leaving his new found friends behind come sunrise. Sunrise...HA!...yeah right...Capt. Ned will keep on keeping on, I'm guessing around the back side of 9ish.

Wilson! Oh my God! I damn near forgot to tell you about the umbrella sail known dear to our hearts as Wilson. Don't panic...he fine, still lazy considering out of the 300+ miles traveled so far he's only assisted in about 25 of them. But again, he's fine. In fact he's fixed. Yep...Fixed. Not like a vasectomy, neuter, spayed or anything weird like that, but Ned believes he's been modified for the last time. He's now set up like a parachute with risers attaching to the handle.

The hope to be final modifications were put to the test for about 2 miles prior to living in New Harmony. Captain Ned said he was sacred half to death, hitting mind blowing speeds of up to 61/2 knots. He said he knows he be able to use him a lot more when he hits the gulf. I told him he has to make to the gulf first. We laughed and joked some more then wound up our conversation. We talked for a good 15 minutes or so and when we hung up I confidently thought to myself...no fears...my dad will be hitting the Gulf Of Mexico before you know it.

Hello - Hello

Here are some more photos of the Darwin camp site. The top 1st picture, left to right, is Kevin, 'Ol Ned, Larry and Jake. Jake is Karen's son. Karen is a long time friend of the family. In the 2nd picture Capt. Ned is trying to teach Larry his A B C's...just kidding, he's showing Larry a new route that he's decided to take.

In the 3rd picture Capt. Ned is playing with his new crank radio. The view of the background confirms the fact that Ned is having a good time. He's seeing things most people never get to see and meeting people he never would have had the opportunity to meet. Dad gave me some Mott wisdom a long time ago, he said "never get so damn busy that you forget to live, because when you're old & gray and you no longer have your health, all you'll have are your memories...so make them good ones". Another one was "when you are on your death bed, trust me...the last thing you will say is...I wish I would have worked more". Hmmm.

The 4th picture of the captain, Kevin, Karen and Jake can be easily summed up...chilling & telling lies. The 5th and last picture of the bunch is the last one that was taken just before everyone left the camp site to let 'Ol Ned get some shut eye. Grinning from ear to ear with a belly full Gold Top - Busch.

Day - 15

Before I log this day I want to give another quick thanks to everyone who is helping keep me informed. Especially my Uncle Keith. Uncle Keith has not missed a day of keeping the family informed of his brothers whereabouts. The first thing I do, as I think all the Mott's now do every morning, is check their email, and as sure as the sun, there it is, the inner family email from Uncle Keith entitled "The Kayak Kid". Thanks!!! Everyone else in the family who's talked to Capt. Ned in the past 24 hours then tacks onto to Keith's email with their input. I couldn't do this without you. Thanks!!!

Lindy reported that she spoke with her Uncle Ned at 11:00 am and that the captain was currently relaxing and drifting down river backwards checking out where he had been. He started off the day with a couple mix-n-berry granola bars and was planning on snacking on some of Aunt Becky's famous jerky.

Now let me tell you a little something before we go further, my Aunt Becky, besides being a total sweet heart, cant be singled out for just jerky. This woman can cook, bake and grill up a storm. Every time I visit there are always fresh baked goods sitting around just waiting to be munched on at will. And there is always something homemade that's either ready or will soon be ready to chow on. Even if it's leftovers. We all know the leftovers are sometimes the best. Just an FYI...most all of the vegetables come fresh from her garden. If you leave the company of my Aunt Becky hungry...it's your own damn fault. Man...I'm all of the sudden real hungry...Ohh and thirsty too...my cousin Kevin can make one hell of a mean bloody mary. It's like a meal. I could go on and on, but we need to get back to the captain. I guess I'm just thinking about the trip I have planned to head back up their.

Back to Capt. Ned, he told Lindy he was having a ball and that all of the people he has been meeting along the way have been great! He said that Wilson was still giving him fits and that his last unscheduled stop for modifications lasted about 2 minutes before he flipped in-side-out again. He then said he had to get going because there was a log bumping into the kayak and that it was trying to push him back north towards Ft. Wayne. He chuckled and told her to tell everyone to "hang in there while he keeps on keeping on".

Day 15 ended about 4 miles from Grayville, IL were more modifications on the umbrella sail that he named Wilson were going to be made...yet again.

Day's - 11, 12, 13 & 14

I know it's been a few days since the last entry and you've probably been chomping at the bit for an update, so please accept my apology, I've been busier then a one legged man in an ass kicking contest. It can be summed up with a nasty little 4 letter word...work.

Before we get to the update, lets cover the photos above that were taken in Darwin. The first one, of course, is the Kayak Kid himself, Captain Ned Mott. The second is his current means of transportation, that is tied up next to the ferry. The last one is...you guessed it...Wilson. If you notice Wilson had to be modified with some string from the survival kit to help keep him from blowing in-side-out. Hmm...I wonder if there is an actual nautical term for this type of rigging, or if it's just known as I damn sure hope to hell this works.

FYI...More pictures will follow. The blogger would only let me load so many at once.

Day - 11

Hutsonville, IL is where capt. Ned set up camp at the closing of day 11. It's been reported that the natives were great!!! Captain Ned was given a warm welcome greeting complete with homemade beef stew, strawberry shortcake, cold beer and oh yeah...cold beer. Then the bull sh!t sessions commenced. One of the kind natives was a Mr. Tom Comptom, a local news reporter for the Robinson Daily News. I got to work after a long weekend, checked my email and one was titled Captain Ned in Hutsonville, IL. Tom was kind enough to send me an update on Capt. Ned. It was short sweet and to the point. Thank you again Tom. Tom informed me that was going to be doing a short story on Capt. Ned and that I should look for the story later in the week. Pretty cool. I'll keep my eyes peeled for it and will follow up.

Day - 12

The morning started off a little sketchy. The good 'Ol captain almost lost his kayak. The river rose 4 feet over night and started to float the kayak away, but a mighty fine young lad saved the day and rescued the kayak, got it back to shore and tied it safely off. Guess what Kayak Kid was doing...he was sleeping off the strawberry shortcake.

The day was saved, all the gear was packed, loaded and the captain was off like a cannon shot. The Wabash is still rising and is expected to crest around 6 feet. The current is zipping along at at least 2 knots. Capt. Ned put 29 miles behind him with ease. He set up camp 5 miles north of Vincennes, IN. Had a great day and he wants to continue having great days and meeting new people. One of the ways he going to ensure this continues to happen is for him keep hold of his kayak. He is now using an old fashion early warning system that puts Doppler to shame...he's tying it to his toe...Tom Sawyer / Huck Finn style. The fun will continue.

Day - 13

Another 20 or so miles of Indiana Illinois river banks are behind him. He said Wilson has been sluffing off, not doing much accept hanging around below deck snoozing. Capt. Ned was only able to keep him awake for about an hour. The river is running a good 3 knot current, which made for a nice day. Captain Ned set up camp in St. Francisville, IL near an old ferry site. He stayed in this same spot many years ago just after he was discharged from the Navy. I'm not exactly sure what was on the dinner menu but I do remember him telling me that he polished off the rest of his Gold Tops. He said they were worm, but didn't care, they were wet and they were good. Hoping to make it to Mt. Carmel, IL tomorrow.

Day - 14

Mission accomplished. The days mission of making it to Mt. Carmel that is. He said he could have kept going, he still had day light left to burn but the winds were starting to blow like a hooker on nickle night and creating some serious chop. Storms are on the way. Camp was set up on an island which was high and dry. Dry being part of the problem...no Gold Tops to sip on. All & all...another good day. Weather permitting only about 3 days to the Ohio River, and only 1050 miles to New Orleans.

Moving on to an unofficial day 15, I spoke with 'Ol Ned 10:30 am and he was on the move again. Mt. Carmel was now behind him. The Wabash is getting pretty wide an the rains have got the river up about 10 feet. Around 1:00 pm Kevin reported that Wilson was inside out again and an immediate stop for repair had to be made. The official day 15 and more photos will come early tomorrow. Thanks for stopping in.