Descending the Missouri
Christine January 28th, 2009
This is a painting called : Fur Traders Descending the Missouri, 1845 George Caleb Bingham (American, 1811–1879) If you click on the painting it enlarges quite a bit.
The figure of the cat catches the eye. And, the relaxed position of the passenger is captivating. I know a portion of the river and it feels just like this. Who knows perhaps it was painted at Pelican Point? I do love this painting, but gone are those day of the frontier and the explorers who paddled the Missouri unhindered. The Missouri River now has fourteen dams built upon it. The first dam is located at Toston, Montana and the last is at Gavins Point in South Dakota plus hundreds of towns and cities along its banks. Still, there are yet many miles of uninhabited river mostly in Montana and North Dakota.
We are planning a trip in July to see the wild and scenic portion of the river and perhaps paddle into eastern Montana. It will take close to a week – camping as we go. Here is the Easy Rider Raven; the red canoe we acquired recently which will be the primary vessel. It holds a lot of gear. We have two seats to replace and some buffing to do but right now it is cold so she is spending the rest of the winter in our garage. The Raven looks a little misplaced, a bit high and dry here on our snowy front yard. The biggest project is going to be trying to convince one of our cats to assume her rightful place at the bow and in July our own version of this painting will be complete! Yes, right.
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Yes, I like the painting, too, though when I look at it up close, I can’t say I like it as much as, say, J. M. W. Turner. A bit flat. But very American. Very 19th Century America, when the Wild West was. Do you like Albert Bierstadt? One of my favorite painters from that period. Originally from Germany, I think.
Wow, that sounds like a great exploratory trip. I once stayed in a hotel in St. Louis and saw the Mississippi. That’s my viewing of the West! Other than two trips to Vancouver, which is Canada.
Look forward to hearing more about the trip.
Good luck reproducing the painting. May you have a wonder paddle in Raven. Sounds like fun. Take lots of pics to share.
I paddled the Platte River in Nebraska one time between Schyler and North Bend. Actually, it was more like, paddle, drag the boat, paddle, drag the boat. After all, the old timers complained the Platte was too thick to drink and too thin to plow!!
Your expedition sounds like great fun. I’d love to join you but then, there would go the serenity!!
Don’t count on the cat, Christine. Our little dog used to ride in the boat like that, though. Sounds like a fun trip. I wish you good weather for it.
Love the painting ( I opened it up to see the full image). The cat is a charming addition. I wonder if it was based on an actual trip or merely fantasy? Obviously, the cat was in it for the fish, so if you can convey that to yours I’m sure they’ll be “in”.
Have you ever read any E. Pauline Johnson? She was a native-Canadian poet who loved to canoe. This comes across in a number of her poems about the Muskokas, here in Ontario.
Hope your trip is fun (avec ou sans les chats).
Kat
Sounds like a fabulous trip! Like ‘geogypsy’ said, do take lots of photos so that we can come along for the ride without spoiling the ambience! (-:
Dear Christine–
I have a carved oak cat in that position–would you like to borrow it? Might be easier than the clever conniving you’re going to have to do to get a flesh and blood one as a hood ornament!
Sounds like a great trip, and worth the effort to get the Red Boat to your home a bit back…
Thanks for keeping us informed of the gypsy in youse–