Kayaking The Mississippi Backwaters


By Maureen McCollum | May 2, 2018

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  • Yu Ting Fu gets into the Mississippi River backwaters to kayak with the rest of the crew.

Yu Ting Fu gets into the Mississippi River backwaters to kayak with the rest of the crew. (Maureen McCollum/WPR)

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As Maureen McCollum begins her new journey as the producer of Wisconsin Life, we thought it’d be fun to revisit some of our favorite pieces that have aired over the last eight years.

We begin with her first feature for the project, which involves her maiden voyage in a kayak. Once she got the green light to do the story, she threw her recorder in a waterproof pack and headed south of La Crosse to Goose Island and the Mississippi River backwaters. There, she encountered a group of passionate kayakers more than happy to share their love of paddling.

Maureen McCollum

Maureen McCollum

Maureen McCollum is the host and producer for “Wisconsin Life” on Wisconsin Public Radio and the “WPR Reports: Uprooted” podcast. Her work has appeared on NPR and has been honored with national and regional awards. She loves live music, the bluffs along the Mississippi River and eating too much cheese.
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