Mile 189.0 - Miles 189-184: LBD Gabaret Island

John Ruskey

20 Apr 2026

189 - 184 LBD Gabaret Island

Long Narrow Island behind Mosenthein, now connected to Chouteau Island. During Low/Med water a giant sandbar forms in the back channel against Gabaret Island (opposite the bottom end of Mosenthein Is). This bar makes good picnicking and camping if the weather is friendly and the winds calm. In inclement weather seek better protected campsites on Mosenthein. In high water, you might find shelter in the woods at the bottom end of the island. The Underground Railroad crossed the Mississippi from slave state Missouri into free state Illinois at the bottom end of Gabaret Island. “Big Muddy” Mike Clark calls this stretch of river “The Freedom Trail” because amongst other things it was Huck and Jim’s road to freedom.

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