It’s been a day of redemption for intrepid canoeists Jay Thurston and Mike Kinziger.

The pair have been putting may miles behind them on the Wisconsin River during a 59-mile stretch that was supposed to end at Portage at 8 p.m.

Instead, Thurston and Kinziger will reach Portage at about 3:30 p.m. and may then start eating up some of the ground they lost dealing with high winds in northern Wisconsin.

They entered the water Wednesday a whole day behind on their itinerary, but Jay’s wife, Diana, said the pair may try to make up anywhere up to half-a-day’s worth of paddling in the afternoon and evening.

Much of that depends on how high the water gets due to flooding on the Baraboo River, which feeds into the Wisconsin River, and other flooding in the Portage area.

“They may try to make it to Lake Wisconsin today, we’ll have to look at the water level and wind to know for sure,” Diana Thurston said from Portage. “Getting to shore may be a problem with the flooding, too.”

The pair are nearing the turn that would send them down the Lower Wisconsin Riverway, which has few portages.

The Broadcaster plans to have another update today at about 9 p.m. 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. Jay and Mike appreciate the support they’ve received from family and friends through the internet posts they’ve received on this chain of stories.