If you’ve driven past Cooper’s Landing this week and wondered why the water looks lower than usual, you’re not imagining it. The Missouri River gauge at Boonville read 7.03 feet Sunday morning, well under flood stage and still falling. That’s the backdrop for one of the biggest weeks on our stretch of river: the Missouri River 340 canoe and kayak race starts Tuesday.
Racers check in at Kaw Point Park in Kansas City from noon to 8 p.m. Monday, then push off Tuesday morning — solo boats at 7 a.m., tandems and teams at 8 a.m. — for the 340-mile, nonstop paddle to St. Charles, according to the MR340’s own race information. They’ll have 88 hours to finish, putting the cutoff at 9 p.m. Friday, July 31. The race draws up to 500 boats and 700 racers most years and doubles as the main annual fundraiser for Missouri River Relief.
The timing puts racers right up against a heat advisory. A National Weather Service advisory in effect through 9 p.m. Monday covers Boone, Cole, and Moniteau counties, with heat index values climbing as high as 112. The advisory technically lifts a few hours before Tuesday’s start, but hot days, warm nights, and high humidity don’t tend to vanish overnight, so paddlers pushing through our stretch Tuesday and Wednesday should plan as if it’s still in effect. The NWS guidance is the same advice that applies to anyone working outside this week: drink plenty of fluids, get out of direct sun when you can, and push the hardest efforts to early morning or evening.
The river itself is the one piece of good news. A falling, below-flood gauge means fewer of the debris and current hazards that come with high water — no small thing on a river that doesn’t stop moving for anyone. Conditions can still shift fast this time of year, though, so paddlers and support crews near Franklin Island should keep checking closer to race day rather than leaning on Sunday’s numbers.
For anyone planning to watch the race pass through — Rocheport sits along the route between the Kansas City start and the St. Charles finish — the same rules apply to spectators as to racers: water, shade, and a plan for the worst hour of the afternoon. Expect to see racers consistently starting Wednesday.
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