Condition Report — Mile 668.3 — John Ruskey

Fawn Island number two has been destroyed by high water 2025! The upper of two identical islands, Long a landmark, gone. For decades, Paddlers entering the back channel of Buck Island passed a pair of small Willow covered twin Islands that locals called "the fawns," -- in reference to the big island below known as Buck, and a much smaller island around bottom end known as doe island. This island could also be called "Bourdain Island". In 2015, John Ruskey, Mark River Peoples, and the mighty Quapaws guided celebrity food chef Anthony Bourdain, to this same island, and cooked a river rat feast, consisting of tenderloin cooked on the coals, fresh greens, and corn on the cob, roasted on the same coals.

Mile 668.3 RBD

Gauge reading: Helena: 19.7 ft