4/10/2006: Springtime is an excellent time of year to set out on a river journey. And that’s exactly what a German gentleman named Prince Maximilian of Wied was preparing to do in April of 1832. The journey would take the Prince and his two assistants to the heart of North America before they would reverse direction and return to Europe two years later. This was no pleasure cruise. It was a serious scientific expedition with some inherent risks.