Keokuck, Civil War Reenactment
April
27th & 28th
This event in Keokuck Iowa includes a Dinner Theater, a band concert and a Military Ball, in addition to the two-day battle. However due to the rain, this event marked the official founding of the 1st Wisconsin Cavalry Mounted Marines.
Friday afternoon, most of the unit arrived and began pitching camp on what looked like the start of a nice weekend. However, early Saturday morning the rain arrived and dug in for the weekend.
In spite of the rain, we started the morning by making a valiant attempt at lighting a fire. But shortly after the fire started, the nearby creek over flowed and our camp began to float away. Eventually the battle was called and the majority of the unit fell back to the safety of a nearby laundrymat, where clothes were dried and naps were taken.
Dinner and a movie finished up the night... Almost!
On returning to our camp, we found many of the roads flooded and the water level had literally risen to the edge of our tents. Then just when the rain seemed to be at it's worst, suddenly it stopped and a wicked wind began to howl. However, due to the structurally-sound construction of our tentage, the remainder of the night was without incident.
Sunday morning it was quickly decided that the weekend was a literal washout and it would be a better bet to get back on the road. But just as luck would have it, the moment that we left, the sun came out and things cleared up.
Next year we'll either head for the high ground or make sure that we bring life jackets.
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