Surf the Great Mississippi River Flood of 2011 with John Ruskey

Flood waters surround the Isle of Capri casino in Lula, Mississippi, located immediately across the bridge from Helena, Arkansas. CNN reports the closing of casinos due to flooding will represent an $87 Million hit to the local economy. Photo from American Blues Scene Magazine

By Magical Madge

With all these 10-year remembrances going on about the massive, destructive and deadly storm called Katrina, I am reminded of another storm which left it’s mark on some of us here in Northwest Mississippi.

It wasn’t that long ago I struggled to sleep at night — I couldn’t get the thought of all that water rushing by such a short distance away across a few cotton fields or two with only the levee standing between me and the river.

Flooded Mississippi River, Isle of Capri Casino, & Helena Bridge. Lula, MS May 5th, 2011
..This is twenty miles from my house. Photo by Piper-at-the-gates

The Great Mississippi River Flood of 2011 left an indelible mark on us in the Mississippi Delta. The event birthed numerous posts on the DB, including several from our friend and Guest Bohemian writer Driftwood Johnnie, aka John Ruskey, founder of Quapaw Canoe Company.

The DB released an article about a very unique canoe journey Ruskey took on the river at the height of the flood which included many of his photographs. Soon after posting the article, OUTSIDE magazine put the squeeze on us and Ruskey. They were fearful we would steal their thunder so they asked us to take the popular post down. Hodding Carter was John’s VIP companion representing OUTSIDE and he was down to write a story about the trip…..too!

Our DB article had already garnered many, many comments, which used to be more of a common occurrence back then. Little ole Delta Bohemian and Quapaw Canoe Company were a threat to OUTSIDE magazine. It makes me chuckle to think back on how that made us feel at the time. We deleted our article and lost all those comments because we were nice. As soon as the Carter article was published in OUTSIDE, we reposted the article. It never garnered the buzz it did after the first posting. Oh well.

Birthed a short while after the flood, John released his documentary, in association with Community Foundation of Northwest Mississippi. This historic trip called “Surfing a 300 Mile-Long Wave” chronicled his canoe expedition from Memphis to Vicksburg during the Mississippi River Great Flood of 2011. Guests at the Delta Bohemian Guest House often enjoy watching the DVD. River man Layne Logue recently made me aware of it’s availability now on YouTube.

WATCH THE VIDEO

A look back at articles on The Delta Bohemian®
about the Great Flood of 2011

Mississippi River Dispatch 2011 Flood Update No 3 by Driftwood Johnnie (includes Ruskey photo gallery)

Mississippi River Flood 2011 – DISPLACED DELTA WHITETAIL DEER (includes video)

Photo Images After The Flood of the Mississippi River 2011 by John Ruskey and The Delta Bohemian PLUS Poor William Swims The Great Divide (includes video and photos)

Mr. April 2011 – Watching the Mississippi River Rise (includes video)

Mississippi River Flood 2011 Delta Update plus Mr. April REDUX in May Video (includes video)

Taming the Mississippi River: A God-Given Mandate? (includes video)

Water Matters (includes photos)

The Mighty Mississippi – Follow up to The Great Divide

After the Flood – Driftwood Johnnie’s Lower Mississippi River Dispatch (includes photo gallery)

PLEASE REMOVE YOUR LITTER – Mighty Quapaw Mississippi River Flood 2011 Cleanup Aftermath (includes Ruskey photo gallery)

Driftwood Johnnie – aka Delta Bohemian John Ruskey – is featured in the Oxford American SoLost: Flood Zen (includes video)

Highwater’s Rising Report from Driftwood Johnnie (includes photos)