October 3, 2005
last night (oct 2) we camped along the missouri river. finding the campsite was an adventure. we have this book, don wrights guide to free campsites, and it told us to take an exit, drive south 18 miles, and there would be a campground managed by the state, which would be free. so we got off the exit, drove 18 miles and saw nothing. so we turned around, and were about to take another road. i saw something on the side of the road, drove by it, and intuition told me to turn around and see what it was. it was a sign for the nature area we were looking for. 11 miles back. so we drove 11 miles, and saw a sign for a boat launch. 4 miles. so we drove 4 miles. we see nothing. except a small dirt road marked "designated state road" so we take the road. (thank god we have the jeep)

we drive around for a while on this dirt road, first taking it left, then taking it right. no campsites. there are parking areas, marked with a "park car here" sign. Did i mention it's dark? we're trying to figure out where we are, there is supposed to be a boat launch and campsites, but we can't even find the water. i finally step out of the car, and in the darkness, see a shimmering body - of water - in the distance. is this were we are supposed to be? at this point, it's getting late, and we decide to set up camp and find out the morning. we wake up, and Dana makes the observation that it's not a lake, it's a river we are camping near. a big river - the missouri river. and so our first camping adventure goes. pretty darn cool.