Missouri River Relief

This weekend, I had a rare chance to connect to the Missouri River, and I want to share my experience with you.  The opportunity came through another Sustain Mizzou executive member, Billy Froeschner, a man of the coolest connections from recycling to veteran’s affairs.  This time it was with Steve Schnarr, the Lower Reach Manager for Missouri River Relief.  Talk of our organization helping with a river cleanup evolved into an optional camp-out.  And so it goes.

Adam, Jonathan and Valeria launching from Cooper's Landing.

We launched at 6:30 p.m. on Friday from Cooper’s Landing, which is just outside of Columbia, MO.  Cooper’s Landing has been in my Columbia lexicon, but I had never actually been there.  What a cool place!  When we arrived, a man with sun-reddened skin and a coarse white beard was playing music by picnic tables.  Campers milled about the store and boaters were putting in at the dock.  I smelled Thai food cooking in one of their kitchen huts, and the spices mixed with smells of rotting driftwood seemed out of place.  From what I hear, though, Chim’s Thai Kitchen itself is worth a trip to Cooper’s.  We loaded our gear onto two of MRR’s plate boats, strapped on life vests, and headed seven miles upstream to our campsite.

Post-Modern "Nature Access Point" Tent

After 30 minutes, a sandbar with several tents and a makeshift pavilion came into view.  California Island, according to the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, “can be the size of several football fields when the river is lower than 8 feet.”  This weekend, it was probably the length of two football fields.  (Maybe.  I’m not great with sports analogies.)  After pitching tents and exploring the island’s west end, we ate a delicious spaghetti and salad dinner provided by MRR volunteers.  The night saw stargazing, hot potato, shocking stories and mild stories, newspaper hot air balloons, and a “passing of the feather” around the fire, where we introduced ourselves and discussed the River’s importance in our personal lives and beyond.  In all, about 15 students and about 10 MRR people stayed the night on the island.

MU Student Shanty Town on California Island

I woke up before 6:00 a.m. on Saturday morning.  Walking barefoot along the sand and clay, listening to the geese honking across the water, I felt the river’s influence without the aid of light.  It’s a constant push/pull artistry on the land, carving valleys and depositing minerals, driving the cycle of all nearby life.  As the sun rose over the tree line, it revealed the geological beauty, the healthy tree line, and the brotherhood of campers preparing to rid these riverbanks of others’ negligent waste.

Before 9:00 a.m. Racin’ Dave Strous dropped seven of us off downriver with bags and work gloves.  We were at least 15 feet above the shoreline, but we could pick up at least 5 waste items from one standing location at any point.  Plastic and glass bottles were the most immediately abundant finds, but closer inspection opened our eyes to the bags and bags full of Styrofoam packaging that makes its way into our waterways.  This was the trash that frustrated me most.  We also dragged out tires, a refrigerator, pesticide applicators, and a trash can from Iowa.  MRR will post final clean-up results later.

I recommend that all Missouri residents work with MRR at least once in their lives.  I came away from the experience feeling a new allegiance to the river and to my fellow campers/cleaners.  In making a place more beautiful, we also learn more about it and about ourselves.