Excerpts from the book

"Within the next ten minutes, the wind's strength increases, piling the water up into four-foot waves near the lock walls...I have been struggling for forty minutes with no word from the lock...I don't know how much longer I can hold on! With the dam on the right and jagged rocks on the left, I have no place to rest. I battle the waves to reach my radio..." (pp. 105-106)

A kayaker's view of the lock chamber (p. 16)

The boat ramp at Natchez, Mississippi, during very low water conditions (p. 172)

"'Are you the fellow that came in that ca-noe?' He spoke with a thick southern drawl. 'That's me.' 'Did you come from up the river?' He questions. 'Yes.' 'Did you have any troubles up there?' 'No. Everything went okay.' 'You're lucky. Whenever there's trouble on the river, it's always from up there.'" (p. 150)

"My eyes pop open, my heart races. 'Am I dreaming?' I glance at my watch, it's 12:30 a.m. 'There it is again!' ...I lay silent, almost paralyzed by its breathing...It makes its way toward my tent through the dense bayou thicket. I raise up slowly, ever so quietly, my hand reaching for my knife..."(pp. 194-195)

A very unique camp on the lower Mississippi River (p. 152)

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