Omaha, NE

Think I might be in Hawkeye and Husker country. Took a couple days to get from Sioux City to with striking distance of Omaha.

Woke up at 4 yesterday, couldn't sleep with the tent condensation. It was high light, or bright enough to see the horizon unaided, so I made a run for it. Only other thing up at that hour was a friendly local Beaver that swam right under the front end on my canoe.

The first part of this trip was through some of the most picturesque, untouched, remote landscapes I've experienced. As expected, now I'm seeing more and more of our human history on the river.

For me, this carries its own beauty. The ingenuity of the human spirit and creativity of the things we design inspires awe and curiosity. Our God-given ability to survive and thrive in nearly any environment amazes me.

Several big benchmarks yesterday; biggest city so far (Omaha), past mile 600, navigated my first moving barge (successfully), and had only my second 40+ mile day so far of the whole trip.

Found a great spot in the trees to camp; clear, sandy, with a beer can thrown here and there. Clearly, it was a popular spot. The sun was going down and I headed my bets. Poorly.

The local Iowans shot various calibers all night from various locations around me. I didn't believe they were shooting at me (or they were very poor shots). But it was close enough to make me nervous around 7 pm...and 9, and 10, and 11, and 1 am, and 3 am and finally at 7 am this morning. Needless to say, I'm hoping for better sleep tonight. Nebraska City tomorrow!