Big river aventure for Tom and Jessica

  TOM CANE AND Jessica McBenge are going on a trip. It's not by car or rail or plane. It will be in a 30-foot pontoon boat. They are spending the next few months floating down the Mississippi River.

Why?

"Because it's a big adventure," says Tom with a shrug. "And I've always wanted to do it."

Tom and Jessica live in Quincy. Tom works remote as an infrastructure designer. Jessica teaches Yoga. Thanks to satellite internet providers, they can work from anywhere - even a pontoon boat that Tom describes as more of a "floating apartment." It has a 60-horsepower outboard motor, generator, sonar, a kitchen, drinking water and a shower - "Pretty much everything an ocean boat would have," Tom says.

It even has a nice Blackstone grill out on the deck. "I'm gonna eat lots of steaks, my friend," says Tom. 

I met Tom a while back at Luxe Stogie. He's very into music and eventually wants to launch a recording studio in Quincy. He's literally been all over the world - his stories about traveling to Moscow are mesmerizing. Way back in 1992 he was the first internet provider in Quincy - ahead of his time, and launching a big adventure.

Tom actually thought about kayaking all the way down the Mississippi River. So living in the small floating apartment doesn't faze Tom and Jessica a bit. After all, during Covid, Tom lived in a van while he worked. Tom and Jessica call it "van life." So now it's "boat life," or something like that. 

 Tom grew up in Quincy and spent his childhood days swimming in the river. Jessica is from St. Louis. They've been together four years. They both have a pull to the Mississippi River. So maybe the answer to why they are floating down it is because it's there - and they've never been down it.

"Tom and I are big into adventures," Jessica says. "It's our next big adventure together."

Maybe it's the great unknown that draws them down the river. They will know where they are at all times and will keep a close eye on the weather. Tom and Jessica have talked to others, even people from Quincy, who have done similar trips.

But they don't have a daily plan, and that's by design. 

Tom has always been an roamer and has seen the world - all seven continents, even Antarctica. "Let's put it this way," says Jessica. "When he was 15 or 16 he went to Germany and he didn't even tell his parents. He just went and did it." 

"I've crossed the Mississippi over every major highway and interstate in this country," Tom says. "Now I'm going to be on a boat every day, and the day predicts the adventure. The plan is that there is not going to be a plan. That's the adventure part of it, and it's a beautiful thing."

The only sure thing is they are starting in Minnesota on Aug. 1. They don't know how long it will take. There are several ways they could go, paths to take. They might even take part of The Great Loop, which means going up the Atlantic Ocean on the eastern seaboard. They will take it one day at a time and see where they end up.

They will stop and maybe stay in a few towns for a few days. They will also be careful. The trip will center around the weather and river conditions - "We're intelligent people," Jessica says. "We aren't going to do something stupid." 

So Tom will work and Jessica will give Yoga lessons online. She is thinking of starting a YouTube channel to keep friends and family updated on the big float on the Big Muddy.  

And if other people draw inspiration from Tom and Jessica, if they are thinking of the next big adventure, well, Jessica has some advice.

"Just do it," she says. "So many people talk about the things they want to do, but they are stuck on the mindset that they can't do something or it isn't the right time to do something they always wanted to do. It doesn't have to be like that."