10MAY2012 @ Leavenworth, KS - Today so much was seen that it is hard to know where to start.
So let's start with water pollution.  The four strange discharges that I saw today were ... #1 was seen from 1/2 mile away looking like a boat ramp.  It was a light colored and sloping toward the river.  As I drew closer it was apparent that it was not a boat ramp ... but what was it?  It is white/yellow/orange while all other rock looks beige; it looks like paint was poured on the bank and ran to the river coating the rocks as it flowed.  Well, water was flowing over the rocks as I floated by, and it was clear.  Despite it's clarity it is obviously causing discoloration ... sort of like some Yellowstone Park features.  #2 was a brown ooze (William Clark's words) coming from, I perceive, the Kansas City water treatment plant.  My guess is that this is mud being returned to the river - filter backwash.  #3 was a smelly below water-line discharge that frothed up and maintained it's froth downstream for about 200 feet.  The location of this discharge is Missouri River's right bank, in Missouri and also on the right bank of the Kansas River.  #4 is the same as #3 and about 500 feet downstream from the #3 discharge.  About the time I was reestablishing my senses from discharge #3 and #4 I began 1/2 mile of smelling - you're not ready for this - butterscotch.  No joke, I'm floating a river smelling butterscotch.  Does the world's supply of butterscotch start in Kansas City?
Visually, approaching Kansas City only bridges and occasional buildings give even a hint that a city is coming.  Both riverbanks remain covered with greenery.  At mile 371 it seems like a nice suburban/country float.  At mile 370, however, the entire downtown skyline spreads out before you.  Building peaks make a fairly decent bell-shaped curve and features 17 meaningful rooftop points.  Proceeding SW for the next 3 miles there are trees on the right and an interstate highway on the left.  Across the highway is the downtown airport with small airplanes coming and going.  The city approaches bigger and bigger as you wind a bit SW so that by the time the Kansas/Missouri river merge the view is from the NW, giving perspective of each building.  That view from the NW is a city promoters dream view ... water foreground, topped by rail cars across the entire scene, topped by highway ribbons topped by the buildings and ending with puffy loittle clouds and airplanes setting forth on the light blue sky.      
I lost count of the bridges but there were probably about 12.  They ranged from standard truss to rotating section railroad to deep beam prestressed concrete to modern suspension.  The newest is a suspension bridge with cables attached to a central rhombus-like concrete piece.  I was impressed by how thin the rhombus looks; such is the wonder of modern design. 
Today I paddled from river mile 397 to river mile 353, a distance of 44 miles.  I arrived at the La Benite Boat Ramp where my book states one may camp.  Wrong on the camping.  As I was fretting about that discomfort and hearing statements such as "No way would I want to sleep around here anyway" I was approached by Forrest Schreiner offering a spare bedroom in his house ... and he would carry my boat with us.  He was involved in demonstrating a motorboat for sale, so it was dark before we left the boat ramp and after 2300 before I hit the sack.  How wonderful of him to be helpful!  How entertaining to shower while not quashing a submarine or any of the other 15 tub necessities.  An owl, geese, ducks, turkeys, herons and a bald eagle (in Kansas City even) was seen today.