It might seem like a long way off but Memorial Day weekend will be here before I know it. That’s a significant weekend during any year, but this year especially as it’s the weekend of the first ever South Dakota Kayak Challenge. The planned trip consists of 72 miles, starting in Yankton, SD and ending in Sioux City, IA, traveled during an estimated 36 hours by some of the most hardened and seasoned paddlers in the region. It’s a trip I’ve wanted to take ever since I moved back to the Dakotas in 2006.
So what’s the problem?
I’ve always envisioned the trip taking place on a warm sunny day, with a small cooler of beer between my legs and maybe a fishing pole hanging off the gunwale. No deadline. No sweat. A trip down South Dakota’s Missouri River in May could prove to be quite the opposite. The month of May, at least in the upper mid-west, is quite often cold, windy and rainy. Factored with the big water of the Missouri River, paddlers could be faced with… less-than-desirable conditions.
So here’s my dilemma: Do I make the trip knowing that chances of poor weather and tough paddling are very high? Or do I sit this one out and let my first experience on the Missouri be a more pleasurable, relaxing one? You know how these things go. If I stay home, I’ll regret it. If I go, I may regret it. Damned if I do, damned if I don’t.





