8) Good story, had a similar one that happened to me a couple weeks ago. Some friends came in from all over for a few days paddling here on the Current and Jack's Fork in MO. Wanted to paddle the upper Jack's Fork as it had been a few years because the water has to be just right. I ALWAYS do the shuttling, 'cause I'm the "Local." This time, for a change of pace, I stayed at the put-in with the boats and let someone else do the driving. We had discussed a few options, but decided on a 10-11 mile paddle since with the long shuttle, we wouldn't put in until about 1:00 pm. It was a typical Spring day in MO, sunshine, rain, then sunshine, rain, then a little hail thrown in for variety. Lots of bluffs, several ospreys, plenty of fun class I and II runs, but when we arrived at Rhymers access I was ready to get into some dry clothing and rest my sore muscles. My friend looked at me and said "This isn't where I left the truck, it's a few miles further." :o So we dug in and paddled hard. About 6:00 pm the friend whose truck awaited us decided he'd paddle that skinny kayak of his on ahead. An hour later, the remaining three of us start talking about options. Two of us had emergency "Space" blankets, we had a little food and water, and I had a couple of candles. No sleeping gear or tents or tarps, but we all had dry clothes to change into. And there was plenty of driftwood to make a roaring fire. I still thought we MAY make it before dark, but we made the decision to stop before it got too dark to get ready for the night. Paddling after dark is not a very good option on Ozark streams, too many sweepers and strainers, especially this time of the year. About the time the sun hit the horizon we rounded a bend and there was our friend, ready to help load the boats; it was 7:40 pm. His GPS showed our total paddling to be a bit over 19 miles ???. I used to ALWAYS carry a tarp with me. I will resume this practice. I used to always carry extra food, I didn't this time. And from now on, I think I'll continue to do the shuttling to prevent any future misunderstandings like we had. And one thing I've also noticed when I read paddling stories about other states; I'm certainly glad we don't have to negotiate fences in our streams here in MO! Good story, Pirogue.  8) WW