Mississippi
Guiding company gives visitors an edge on the Mississippi River
WABASHA, Minn. — When Michael Anderson co-owned a mattress and breakfast, one among his favourite elements of the job was taking friends out on kayaks on the Mississippi River.
He shed the fixed stream of laundry and housekeeping he didn’t get pleasure from when he based Damaged Paddle Guiding Co. in Wabasha in 2012.
Damaged Paddle gives deliberate excursions across the backwaters of the Mississippi River or a possibility to hire a ship to go your individual method. And the one laundry he has to do is his personal.
When the COVID-19 pandemic restricted recreation alternatives, Damaged Paddle thrived. The enterprise loved its busiest seasons in 2020 and 2021, Anderson mentioned.
“By far,” he added.
The additional enterprise allowed the enterprise to purchase one other van and trailer. That helps coping with the logistics of placing into the water and choosing up tour teams, which implies they’ll information paddlers on excursions extra usually.
A part of the enjoyable of constructing the enterprise was determining routes for excursions.
John Molseed / Put up Bulletin
Anderson was one among two guides taking half a dozen paddlers on a flooded forest tour by the backwaters of the Mississippi in Wisconsin.
In late August, the water is low and a bit close to the put-in space is mud.
“The primary 100 ft are ugly,” mentioned Taylor Treinen, a Damaged Paddle information. “The remainder, nicely it could possibly’t get any worse.”
Treinen teaches one-on-one kayak classes too.
Becky and Glen Pattee, of Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, joined the tour as a part of an anniversary journey to the Driftless space. Becky mentioned she received the thought from a co-worker who went on a Damaged Paddle tour as a retirement present.
“It’s like floating down the lazy river on the water park,” Glen mentioned. “However for adults.”
The remainder of the tour is calm. Regardless of small storms popping up shut sufficient to offer some rumbles of thunder, the group remained principally dry.
The backwaters provided loads of glimpses of raptors, turtles, mussels and different wildlife. The tour ended with a visit south on the Mississippi River again to Wabasha. Wind churned the floor of the river however the guides stored the group shut and the paddlers have been capable of navigate by the temporary interval of waves.
John Molseed / Put up Bulletin
Anderson mentioned a part of the enjoyable of creating the enterprise was discovering routes for the excursions. The flooded forest tour takes about 4 hours. One other backwater journey, the sundown journey is about 1 hour.
Individuals may also select their very own journey. Spring brings increased waters and alternatives to paddle, nicely, anyplace.
“You’ll be able to go any path you need by the bushes, which is enjoyable,” Anderson mentioned.
Anderson loved canoe journeys within the boundary waters rising up. He labored at Gunflint Lodge and Outfitters in Grand Marais, Minnesota. After a stint with the Conservation Corps in northern Minnesota, a longtime buddy invited him to co-run a mattress and breakfast his buddy had bought as an funding property.
“None of us had stayed at a B&B or labored in a kitchen,” Anderson mentioned.
Anderson mentioned it was a enjoyable job and that he loved the friends however needed to discover a technique to make a residing spending extra time open air. He purchased a constructing on Major Avenue in Wabasha and established Damaged Paddle.
Most of his clients come from the close by area, he mentioned.
“We get fairly a couple of folks from Rochester,” he mentioned. “Greater than I anticipated once we first began out.”
Summer season does deliver a bigger share of vacationers from additional away, he added.
“Persons are amazed by this space,” he mentioned. “It won’t be the primary place that involves thoughts, however this a part of Minnesota actually is exclusive and enjoyable to paddle.”
Photographs: Damaged Paddle Guiding Co. kayak tour
John Molseed / Put up Bulletin
John Molseed / Put up Bulletin
John Molseed / Put up Bulletin
John Molseed / Put up Bulletin
John Molseed / Put up Bulletin
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Mississippi
MPCA testing the entirety of the Mississippi River within Minnesota
![MPCA testing the entirety of the Mississippi River within Minnesota MPCA testing the entirety of the Mississippi River within Minnesota](https://assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com/hub/i/r/2024/09/02/0564de83-90fa-4d81-9619-84022c30819e/thumbnail/1200x630/e98078edb78f4dec2ccc9e494c22c33c/4p-pkg-river-testing-wcco61yp.jpg?v=25685eaa472b1a5dbb5bd46ae506d232)
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. —It winds 650 miles, rushing past the cities, industries and landscapes that make up Minnesota.
However, the Mississippi River has never gotten this type of attention from water quality professionals.
For the first time ever, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) is testing the entirety of the river, from Itasca to Iowa, in a single year.
The governor’s office wants the river to be swimmable and fishable, but right now, parts of the river are polluted.
The MPCA says the upper Mississippi is largely healthy up north, but quality drops south of St. Cloud where metro development and tributaries from agriculture muddy the waters. The National Park Service says stretches of the river exceed water quality standards for things like mercury, bacteria and sediment.
Think of the testing like a checkup for one of our state’s most valuable and powerful resources. Researchers will check temperature, transparency and levels of pollutants like phosphorus, nitrogen and ammonia.
Crews also check fish for those contaminants and collect insects to test in a lab to identify any concerning trends.
“If we find the fish community is suffering — maybe the water is too warm and maybe there’s a thermal pollution source upstream or maybe it’s too much runoff — that sort of stuff. Temperature is an important indicator especially for sensitive species,” Isaac Martin with the MPCA said.
Also for the first time, the agency is looking for PFAS contamination with money from an Environmental Protection Agency grant to identify and stop the forever chemicals from streaming into the Mississippi.
PFAS are a group of manufactured chemicals for industry and consumer products that don’t break down in the environment. While research is ongoing, the EPA says exposure to the chemicals can cause human health issues. It’s why the federal agency just lowered the amount allowed in drinking water.
“They go to parts per trillion, which is incredibly sensitive. You get that low, you’re talking drops in an Olympic swimming pool,” Martin said. “Part of the reason why it was chosen is because it’s a primary drinking source or potentially could be a primary drinking source. We’re just finding them in places we never expected to find them. We’re finding them almost everywhere and being that it is new, there’s just a lot of ‘I don’t know’ that goes with it.”
It’s too early to know what this complete snapshot will reveal, but we know this powerful river is part of our community, economy and health.
“Maybe you don’t use the resource yourself, but maybe you know someone who does or future generations of your own will,” Martin said. “In Minnesota, we’re just trying to be the best stewards we can be.”
The data from this testing will be available early next year. Researchers will use that data and compare it to 10-year pollution averages to determine which parts of the river are improved or impaired.
A full report will be released in 2026.
Mississippi
Who should be SBLive’s Mississippi high school player of the week? (Aug. 25-31)
![Who should be SBLive’s Mississippi high school player of the week? (Aug. 25-31) Who should be SBLive’s Mississippi high school player of the week? (Aug. 25-31)](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_1280,h_720,x_0,y_0/c_fill,w_1440,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/voltaxMediaLibrary/mmsport/high_school/01j5m63arexrvt6r9tmr.jpg)
Here are the candidates for SBLive’s Mississippi high school Athlete of the Week for August25-31. Read through the nominees and cast your vote. The poll will close Sunday at 11:59 p.m. If you would like to make a nomination in a future week, email Tyler@scorebooklive.com. For questions/issues with he poll, email athleteoftheweek@scorebooklive.com.
Editor’s note: Our Athlete of the Week feature and corresponding poll is intended to be fun, and we do not set limits on how many times a fan can vote during the competition. However, we do not allow votes that are generated by script, macro or other automated means. Athletes that receive votes generated by script, macro or other automated means will be disqualified.
Kohl Bradley, DB, George County: Racked up 17 tackles and returned an interception 80 yards for a touchdown in a 33-7 win over East Central.
DaJuan Colbert, DB, Natchez: Recorded 15 tackles, forced one fumble and returned another one 75 yards for a touchdown in a 58-50 win over Hancock.
Garrison Davis, QB, Holmes County Central: Completed 14 of his 21 pass attempts for 375 yards and three touchdowns in a 20-6 win over Vicksburg.
Xzavion Gainwell, DB, Yazoo County: Recorded nine tackles, an interception and an 80-yard interception return for a touchdown in the Panthers’ 20-16 win over South Delta.
Elijah Jones, RB, West Jones: Had 24 carries 226 yards and four touchdowns in a 34-6 win over Laurel.
Kingi McNair, WR, Pearl: Caught four passes for 160 yards and two touchdowns in a 26-20 win over Neshoba Central.
Ashton Nichols, DB, Clinton: Recorded six tackles to go with two big pass breakups, a blocked punt and a return for a touchdown in a 26-20 win over Warren Central.
Ethan Prater, RB, Pisgah: Rushed for 132 yards on 27 carries with three scores and caught a 60-yard touchdown pass in a 33-32 win over North Forrest.
Glen Singleton, RB, Madison Central: Rushed for 174 yards on 18 carries with all four touchdowns in a 27-20 win over Ocean Springs.
Damarius Yates, RB, Kemper County: Rushed for 193 yards on 17 carries and returned a kickoff 75 yards for a touchdown in a 38-15 win over Kosciusko.
Mississippi
‘If they cannot play Thalia Hall, they cannot play in Mississippi at all’: Broadway in Jackson speaks out about possible show cancellations
![‘If they cannot play Thalia Hall, they cannot play in Mississippi at all’: Broadway in Jackson speaks out about possible show cancellations ‘If they cannot play Thalia Hall, they cannot play in Mississippi at all’: Broadway in Jackson speaks out about possible show cancellations](https://gray-wlbt-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/3KMJQZPKGBHNRCT7NENQ3O72YY.png?auth=8e7e3183f489f41a63616389bdae4dd45efc187856d208138265c67183c736b4&width=1200&height=600&smart=true)
JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) – It’s been one month since Thalia Mara Hall closed its doors due to a mold outbreak.
Innovation Arts and Entertainment is the company responsible for bringing Broadway productions to Jackson.
Representatives from the company visited Jackson after hearing the building had been closed.
CEO Adam Epstein says the City of Jackson did not inform them of the news.
“We did not find out from anybody within the city. We found out by reading news clippings forwarded to us by other people in Jackson,” Epstein said.
Certified Industrial Hygienic Testing reported visible dirt, debris, and suspected mold growth on many surfaces.
Epstein fears this could change the possibility of bigger shows coming to the capital city.
“They’re going to skip over us because of this mess. We need to show as a community that Jackson cares about this valuable asset and that we demand our elected leaders to support and treat this really, incredibly valuable asset with the TLC it deserves,” he said.
Thalia Mara Hall is the only venue in the state that can host a Broadway production due to the technical needs and accommodations required.
“Touring theatrical shows. If they cannot play Thalia Hall, they cannot play in Mississippi at all,” he said.
Broadway in Jackson is not only a great source of entertainment in the city, but it’s also beneficial economically.
“Those other businesses don’t benefit. The city doesn’t earn tax revenue from events that we present. They don’t earn rental income from the events we present. They don’t earn facility fees from the events we present. This is a real tragedy. It’s unacceptable.”
The well-being of the potential audience is the company’s main priority.
“I will not risk our ticket buyers’ health and safety and comfort. Our shows can and will cancel before we’d ever put somebody in jeopardy. We’ve issued a 100% guarantee of a full refund if the venue is not given a clean bill of health,” Epstein said.
All shows will be canceled on a case-to-case basis.
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