"We're making some progress, but with this wind the only thing missing is the 'F' word, and by that I mean, 'fun,'" Mike Kinziger said from south of Rhinelander, Saturday at noon.

Kinziger and Jay Thurston are in the early stages of a 436-mile canoeing trip down the Wisconsin River. They were heading straight into a strong southwesterly wind for the second day.

Kinziger said he felt strong and was physically doing well.

"I know my girls are worried about me, but I'm doing fine," said Kinziger, who is married, has three daughters and three step-daughters. "If we could get the wind out of our faces, it wouldn't be so hard going."

Kinziger said that he and Thurston had made some good decisions on the water, taking lines that saved time. However, the direction of the river is headed into the wind, so paddling into it is inevitable. Kinziger had a good night's sleep, Friday, pitching his tent and falling asleep in "about a minute," he said.

Thurston's evening, Friday, wasn't so peaceful. He got little sleep and said he was bouncing back after an evening of feeling ill.

"I think I had too much (sports drink) and ended up getting too much electrolyte in my system," Thurston said. "But I've been drinking water and just ate a bowl of oatmeal. I'm feeling much better than I did this morning. Mike helped me diagnose the problem and change my diet around."

The pair was headed toward Whirlpool Rapids, the biggest rapids on the Wisconsin River. They were also headed into a chain of lakes near Tomahawk, where high waves might pose a problem.

"The canoe has been just fabulous," Kinziger said of their 18-and-a-half-foot We-no-nah carbon fiber canoe. "We did hit some really big waves last night and took on water, but we were able to keep going."

When the pair is out of the wind with the current, they're hitting speeds of up to six miles per hour. However, in the stiff headwind, sometimes they're only making about a mile-and-a-half an hour.

"I know we might be losing some time now, but it's time I hope we can make up when we get to the Lower Wisconsin Riverway," Thurston said.

The pair was about an hour-and-a-half behind schedule at noon on Saturday.

The Broadcaster will try to post one or two additional updates Saturday as the journey continues. Website updates will be available subject to cell phone reception and the support needs of Thurston and Kinziger as they head downstream. Jay Thurston, 75, of Viroqua and Mike Kinziger, 60, of Moscow, Idaho, are attempting to paddle the length of the Wisconsin River. Their itinerary calls for them to finish in six days and 10 hours, which would set a new speed record for canoeing the river.