Gayle Harper, Author at Gayle Harper

Like many, I didn’t even know there was such a thing as the Mississippi Great River Road until about six years ago when my husband and I came upon a section of it in Wisconsin. I was hooked – instantly – and the first thing I did when I got home was order a map of the entire GRR from the Mississippi River Parkway Commission, laminate it and hang it on my wall. It’s been there to entice me ever since. I have watched my calendar for any opening that would give me time to get to some section of the GRR. When one appeared, I would stand in front of the map and see which area seemed to be calling me. Then just load the car and go.

While I’m preparing for our 90-day journey, I thought I would share with you a few of my favorite moments from some of these previous trips. It’s kind of like the fun of studying travel brochures before you leave on a trip – it stirs things up and gets the spirit of adventure flowing!

One very hot 4^th of July weekend I found myself at LeClaire Park in Davenport, Iowa for the Mississippi Valley Blues Festival. It’s a pretty park right beside the river that on other weekends would be a serene spot to watch the river roll by. But on this day the park was a sea of lawn chairs, blankets, coolers and people of all ages. Barefoot kids were doing handsprings in the grass, guys were tossing Frisbees off to the side, people were dancing or lined up at the concession tents for cold drinks and bar-b-que and the steamy air was filled with some smokin’ good Blues! It all seemed to fit just right.

A succession of musicians took their place under the band shell and played their souls out. It’s the kind of music that seems to speak of humor in the face of hardship and seems at once to be from another time and timeless. The soulful sounds from this Blues man’s guitar seemed to come through him from somewhere else. I turned around to look at the crowd and many swayed with him, eyes closed, having abandoned their own stories in favor of his. It was all just right!

See you soon! Gayle

: Mississippi River at Davenport, IA

Could you use a road trip? Well, hop in! I’m Gayle Harper, a travel photographer and writer working on a book about life along the Mississippi Great River Road. Click on the page About the Great River Road if you’d like to read about this National Scenic Byway. On August 24, I will begin a 90-day road trip covering the entire length of the GRR from its headwaters in Minnesota to its mouth at the Gulf of Mexico. Why 90 days? According to the National Park Service, a raindrop entering the Mississippi at its headwaters would take approximately that long to complete the entire journey to the Gulf. I’ll be wandering the GRR, keeping pace with my imaginary raindrop, visiting river towns and cities and rural communities. There will be time spent with hundreds of interesting people who will share their stories and their lives with us (I know this because it happens every time I have traveled any piece of the GRR). I’ll take thousands of photographs to capture every aspect of this experience, and many will be shared with you here.

The Mississippi River itself changes from a small wilderness stream to a majestic mile-wide current of power and finally to the point where it disappears as a separate entity and becomes one with the sea. Cultures, terrain, accents and lifestyles all change as we travel south. What seems to be consistent throughout all the changes, however, is a certain quality of authenticity and vibrancy to life along the Mississippi. It is this quality that draws me to this project and that I hope to share with you here.

Click on the page About This Journey if you’d like to read how life has delivered me to this point of loading the car and heading north, or just jump in with me and come along! You can sign up to be notified by email when a new post appears – just click on the box to the right or use the RSS feed if you like. I’ll post again in a few days and share some moments from previous GRR trips to give you a taste of the adventure ahead. You can just click and relax – I’m doing all the packing! Gayle

Moments

Welcome!