Drop Me in the Water! (Wait, do fish pee in there?)

So, what is a float trip all about? It's all about fun, that's what! Grab a canoe and a partner (or a kayak and your awesome solo self) and enjoy a relaxing float down a beautiful river. Yes, fish might just pee in there. (Where else would they go?) If you object to that, as does our "fearless" faculty sponsor Dr. L, then try not to fall overboard.

Here are some Things You Need on a float trip.

• Clothes that can get wet. Please tell me this one is self-evident. The rivers should be clean enough to swim in, so feel free to wear a bathing suit under some old clothes.
  
• Clothes that can get muddy. It's not always smooth sailing down any river, unfortunately. We may just have to wade in shallow places. If you absolutely have to wear your finery, hope for a lot of rain in the preceding weeks so the river is nice and deep.
• Close-toed shoes. The idea of wet feet inside wet shoes may not appeal to you, but I bet it sounds better than open-toed shoes floating away downstream or bleeding bare feet. (The rocks underwater are typically smooth and the mud typically covers them enough, but you should be prepared for anything.) If you jump in for a swim, you may want to take your shoes off, but make sure there's nothing too sharp underfoot before you do.
  
• A set of dry clothes and shoes to put on after you come off the river. Not strictly necessary, but it's a lot more fun to go home warm and dry than cold and clammy.
• A towel. Beach towel, bath towel, whatever.
  
• Plastic bags or other containers to store those things that should not get wet. I usually just go with the plastic shopping bags that everyone has lying around the house, but you may want something more waterproof, especially if you bring a camera.
• Life preserver. Everyone will get one along with the canoe rental; no need to bring your own. Will you need it? Not likely. Should you have it? Of course.
• Sunblock and bug spray. These things sort of go together in the category of surviving the elements. And they make those nifty two-in-one bottles. If you don't have any, no worries; the club will provide some.
• Oars - Again, please tell me this is self-evident. These come along with the canoe rental as well. You don't really need paddling experience. You should get the hang of it pretty quickly. These are gentle rivers that do not require mad paddling skillz to navigate. (Yes, I said skillz.)

Things You Do Not Need on the river:

• Non-waterproof electronics. Please don't bring your iPod, laptop, etc. on the float trip. The sounds and sights of the natural world will be plenty stimulating enough, and civilization should function just fine without your input for half a day.
• But what if I want to take pictures? A perfectly natural desire. If you do bring a camera, try to get the waterproof disposable kind; I believe they are pretty cheap. If your camera is not waterproof, PLEASE be careful with it. Keep it in a sealed bag when not using it. Note: Digital cameras are NOT waterproof unless they say they are. Unfortunately, I speak from personal experience. (I swear I thought I left it in the car, and it was too late when I realized my mistake.)
• Cell phone. We won't get reception on the river. Keep it in the car. If you have an emergency, you'll have your life preserver, your canoe partner, and several other floaters to help you out.
• Books/papers/homework, etc. But feel free to bring them in the car; we may have a long drive ahead of us.

I hope this gives you a good idea of what to expect on a float trip. It's not a do-or-die list, just some things I recommend from personal experience.


Will your canoe capsize? Probably not, if you know what you're doing, but it can happen. It's not the end of the world if it happens as long as all your stuff is waterproof. The rivers are not very deep, so don't worry about losing your stuff or drowning (you should be wearing your life jacket anyway).

Will your stuff get wet even if your canoe stays the right way up? Most likely. Water always collects in the bottom of the boats.

Can you collect the pretty shells? There are some small clams and snails in the river. If you see a shell you like, please don't take it unless you are absolutely positive there's no one living in it. We don't want to kill little critters. (Use common sense: if a clam shell is closed, it's occupied.)


All right, I think I've rambled long enough to give you some good information about float trips. If you have any questions, feel free to post here. And don't be intimidated by my lists either. Float trips are quite safe and loads of fun.

April Events: Take Me to the River!

Welcome back, fearless adventurers! I hope everyone had a great spring break. Didja do outdoorsy things? If not, or even if so, get your fill now with Outdoor Club. We're getting back in gear with a couple awesome events for you: Climbing at Petra (you should know all about that by now) and a float trip to the Niangua or Buffalo River.


Monday, April 13: Climbing at Petra Gym
6 PM - 9 PM
Meet in the FSC Circle at 6 to carpool, or meet us at the gym before 6:30.
Cost: FREE before 6:30. If you show up after 6:30, Outdoor Club cannot pay for you. Sorry!
Check out Petra's Web site: http://www.petrarockclimbinggym.org/


Saturday, April 25: Float Trip to Niangua or Buffalo River (exact location TBD)
More details on this trip forthcoming! We are hoping for the Niangua, as it is only a 1-hour drive from campus, whereas the Buffalo is 2 1/2 or 3 hours away.
This event will start in the morning and last all through the afternoon, probably into the evening. Times TBD. We will also need an EXACT head count for this trip so we know how many canoes to rent.
Cost: FREE, unless we manage to generate an insane amount of interest and need more canoes than we thought. We would like to cap attendance at 20 or 25 people; beyond that, we may require a small fee for the canoe rental.


Hope to see you at these awesome events! Stay safe but intrepid!

I Shot the Fake Deer... But I Did Not Shoot the Park Ranger

Hello intrepid explorers, so sorry for the lack of updates last week! I hope to make up for it with extra awesomeness now.

Outdoor Club went shooting on Saturday, March 14. We all had a blast (pun intended), and not one, not two, but THREE of our Editing and Publishing crew were fearless enough to venture out with us! Give a shout-out to Jim "Daddy" the wrestling aficionado, Helen of the Diner's Diary, and Clint of Total Games.


Here's Jim with a Glock. Did you say you don't like pro wrestling? Care to repeat that?

We had a decent turnout of 11 shooters. Once at the range, we enjoyed tasty, tasty Panera bagels and coffee while a ranger showed us some firearms and taught us how not to shoot ourselves. Then we donned our safety gear, split up into two groups, and headed out to the range.


Outdoor Club's equipment manager, Danielle, with a six-shooter.

My group used the handguns first. I shot a Ruger .22 semi-automatic MK II. It had been a while since I shot a pistol, and it took me a few rounds to get back into the swing of things and aim correctly. I did manage to hit a few bullseyes. The following photo shows me with a six-shooter, but I didn't actually use that; I just posed with it so you can get the idea. It's a sweet picture, if I do say so myself.


After pistols, my group headed out to the archery range. We used compound bows of some variety or another. And apparently I was really out of practice. Bows are a lot harder to aim than pistols or rifles, in my experience. At least I hit the target board... sometimes...


I may be out of practice, but my confident stance will have everyone fooled! Mwahahahaa!

You know what? I'm gonna blame it on cross-dominance. I am left-handed but right-eye dominant. Cross-dominance messes with your head, man. Which arrow do I focus on? Which eye do I keep open? Oh, the pressure!


Clint (Mr. Gamer) thinks this "archery" is the best first-person shooter yet.


Helen (Ms. Chef) is concocting recipes for venison. We DID shoot at deer, but as you can see...


They were NOT real. (The strangely stunted beasts remained quite docile and stationary, as if they couldn't sense the danger... or as if they knew it was Amy shooting at them, so they had nothing to fear.)

This event was a rousing success. We didn't shoot ourselves or others or anything but the targets we were aiming for (and sometimes their immediate surroundings). We all enjoyed ourselves immensely. Nothing helps you blow off steam like blowing a few holes into something. It may look like a bullseye target, but just imagine it's that stupid article you have to write for stupid GO! magazine. Then send an arrow right through the DEK line and supporting photographs. Then riddle it with bullet holes. Ohhh yeah.


I got your "charticle" right here, Springfield!

(I jest, of course. This class is pretty awesome. As for where the above targets came from, they are mine--but from shooting rifles at a different event, not archery or handguns. It is MUCH easier to aim with a rifle than with a pistol. My archery targets, well, those were not worth saving.)

Climbing this Thursday, Shooting next weekend

Outdoor Adventurers, I hope you aren't too disappointed about the hike being postponed! The following awesome events should make up for that.

Thursday, March 5 - Rock Climbing at Petra

That's right, we just can't get enough! All the details of this event are the same as from the previous excursion. I will post them here again anyway!

What: Rock climbing
When: 6 PM, Thursday, March 5
Why: Because it's fun! It provides a great workout too for those seldom-used lower arm muscles.
Where: Meet in the FSC circle (by the fountains) at 6 PM to carpool. If you know where Petra is, feel free to go and meet us there. However, if you show up after 6:30 PM, the club will NOT pay for you.
Who: Anyone can come, as long as we have enough drivers (please offer to carpool if you have a vehicle). Simply show up! Sign-ups are not required.
Cost: FREE before 6:30 PM. If you plan to ride with someone, please offer gas money!

Check out Petra's Web site: http://www.petrarockclimbinggym.org/

If you can't make it to this event, try coming out next weekend to engage in the ultimate stress relief: blowing holes in things!


Saturday, March 14 -
Archery and Handguns at the Andy Dalton Shooting Range

Come on out to the range and shoot things up with us! Don't worry, safety comes first at this event, and NO previous experience with guns or bows is required. This is also not a hunting trip; we're not out to kill anything or anyone. The event will be proceeded by a safety seminar, at which we will learn basic gun handling techniques and how not to shoot our eyes out.


Here are the details of this awesome excursion.

What: Archery and handgun sthooting
When: Saturday, March 14, 8:30 AM - 11:30 AM
Why: Because it is educational, it improves accuracy and concentration, it helps people like me overcome their fears, it's a fun challenge, it relieves stress, and it's immensely satisfying to hit that bullseye!


Where: Meet in the FSC circle (by the fountains) at 8:30 AM to carpool. A breakfast of Panera bagels, coffee, and orange juice WILL be provided at the range.
Who: All Drury students, faculty, and staff are welcome to attend. We MAY require sign-ups for this event depending on how much interest we generate. I will let you know what we decide.
Cost: FREE


The Game Plan: We will arrive at the range and eat a delicious bagel breakfast while the instructors teach us how to handle firearms safely. Again, NO previous experience is required; these guys and gals will teach you everything you need to know. We will then head out to the firing ranges and shoot to our heart's content.


All guns, bows, ammunition, and safety gear will be provided by the range. Just remember to dress warmly and comfortably. We shoot at bullseye targets only; no animals will be harmed.

Check out the Web site of the Dalton Range!


This is going to be one awesome trip. I hope to see you there! If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to contact me.

Sincerely,
Amy