hiking

You Can’t make This Stuff Up

/ doubledacres / 5 Comments

Being a campground host sure has its moments that leave you shaking your head. This one happened one afternoon, and it was definitely a “Shake your head moment.” I was doing my daily testing of the campground water, and I was approached by a couple that I would guess to be in their late fifties.

The gentleman asked me if I was the campground host and I told him I was. He was quiet for a moment, and he replied I really don’t know how to begin. He said I have really never experienced what happened today in a National Park before. My wife and I were standing on the bridge taking photos and we noticed a man, woman, and a child who was around 8 or 9 walking down the bank of the river. As they got closer, we noticed all they had on was their shoes. They weren’t even wearing socks. When they got to the bridge they started walking toward us. My wife and I looked at each other totally shocked. This was one of those visions that haunts you the rest of your life. It was not pretty at all.

This is the bridge they were standing on but the water was much lower.

He said they were probably in their 60s and he said neither were very attractive and they didn’t know what to do. Scream bloody murder or run were two options that came to mind. They approached us and made casual conversation and my wife, and I felt very awkward talking to them. We didn’t want to be rude, but it was rude of them approaching us completely naked as if it were something everyone did. My wife and I were frozen in place and listened in disbelief as they made conversation as if it was perfectly normal to approach someone completely naked and have a conversation. He said they introduced themselves as Papa Bear and Mama Bear but didn’t mention the child’s name. They asked if it was our first time to visit the park, what we thought of the park and if we had ever been to the kayak races, etc. When they told us their names I decided against running, because they were definitely crazy and I thought if we ran, we might make them angry and they might chase us and do harm to us, so we stood there and tried desperately not to look at them.

After what seemed like an eternity Mama Bear turned to Papa Bear and said Pappa Bear, we have taken up enough of their time and should let them go on their way. They said goodbye and we watched as they walked to their car and get in and drive off. My wife turned to me and sked, what just happened? Were they really naked or had she gone crazy. Then we both gave a big sigh of relief and set out to find you.

He asked me if this sort of thing happens often. I replied only on days that end with a “Y”. Then I assured him that was the first time I have ever heard of anything like that happening in the park. Just when you think you have heard and seen it all you realize you haven’t after all. I honestly don’t know what I would do if I ever encountered a situation like that and hope to never find out. What would you do?

Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to read my post. I deeply appreciate all of you who have subscribed to my blog and thank you to all of you who were concerned about my health.

Another view of the bridge. I bet the day I took this photo they would have been wearing clothes, but then again maybe not.

Silver Mines a Missouri Gem

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Believe me when I tell you as a campground host in Silver Mines, that you won’t become rich in a monetary sense, but you will leave rich in memories. Part of our job was to lock the gate into the Turkey Creek Day Use Area at 10 pm and unlock it at 6 am. I would leave at 5:30 am to go unlock the gate. I loved that part of my job. The deer became use to our golf cart and would let me get pretty close to them. I also saw some beautiful sunrises.

Bulletin Board at Turkey Day Use area. The pay tube is to the right of it.
River Loop Campground Bulletin Board. There was electric at these sites.
Sunrise on the St Francis River in Silver Mines

Steps on the trail leading to the Summit Campground.
One of the trail signs.

We would police the park for trash every day. I wish I had a penny for every cigarette butt we picked up. We probably picked up a coffee can full a week. Soda cans, beer bottles, Wal Mart bags, fast food wrappers, and even dirty diapers along the road were also a problem. We worked hard to keep the park free of litter.

Water over the old highway D bridge.
Flood water rushing over the rocks, on the St Francis River.

It was a weird year as far as the weather. The first week we were there in March we had a lot of rain causing the river to rise. The river came up pretty fast and then it crested. That was a teaser because a couple of hours later, it started rising again with a vengeance, rising 2 foot an hour. We almost had to move the camper to higher ground, it was close, very close, but at the last minute, it started dropping. The river got over the old highway D bridge 5 times this year.

Thanks for stopping by and reading. It is very much appreciated.

Two Years Later

/ doubledacres / 24 Comments

Tomorrow, October 7th will be two years since I had my complete ankle replacement surgery. The recovery hasn’t been that easy but I was able to get through it. I still have some pain and I am always battling the inflammation. However it is bearable and a far better place than where I was.

I don’t have the chronic pain like I had, so my quality of life has improved. I have been doing some hiking trying to build back up to where I use to be. I can do a moderate trail with very little problems but tried one difficult trail and it didn’t go as well as I was hoping. Maybe next year. The healing process goes on.

Even with the swelling and some pain, I am much better off than I was before the surgery. I am at least hiking and I am fly fishing again. All in all the surgery was worth it and I would do it again. I am once again enjoying camping and some hiking.

I am not going to sugar coat it. The recovery is tough. Don’t ever think it is going to be a walk in the park. It feels good to be able to do things

Devil’s Honeycomb Trail (Hughes Mountain)

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Located in the Hughes Mountain Natural Area is a trail called Devil’s Honeycomb Trail. It consists of glades, savanna, old fields and it is half forest. Polygonal columns of rhyolite make up what the locals call the Devil’s Honeycomb and is located at the highest point of the mountain. It is one of Missouri’s geologic wonders.

Around 1.5 billion years ago the rocks were liquefied by volcanoes associated with the St. Francois Mountains. The molten rock contracted, and as it cooled cracked and created multi-sided columns and created a rhyolite formation that locals named the Devil’s Honeycomb. The Precambrian rock outcrops are among the most ancient, exposed rocks in the United States.

The Hughes Mountain Natural Area is located off highway M, 3 miles southeast of Irondale.

Hughes Mountain Natural Area

/ doubledacres / 10 Comments

Hughes Mountain is located in southern Washington County in Missouri. The area was designated a natural area in 1982. It is made up of a combination of igneous glades and three types of forests. Precambrian rock outcrops found in the area are 1.5 billion years old making them among the most ancient, exposed rocks in the United States.

The area is named after the first European settler, who arrived in 1810, John Hughes. The Conservation Department purchased the land from the Hughes family. The rhyolite formation located at its highest point is known by locals as the Devil’s Honeycomb. Because of my late start and other time restraints I was unable to make my way to this area. Another trip is planned for the near future.

Glades located within the area are natural openings located on the western and southern slopes where native grasses and a variety of wildflowers can be found. Glade plants include little bluestem, broomsedge, poverty grass, flame flower, prickly pear cactus, yellow star grass, spiderwort, and wild hyacinth.

The trail is 1.6 miles long and is an out-and-back trail near Irondale, MO. I found it to be a moderately challenging trail but was fairly well maintained with trail arrows. On average it takes 48 minutes to complete however time gets away from you when snapping photos. The trail is open year round and dogs are welcome but they must be on a leash. The trail is popular among birders, hikers and runners. However, if you see me running, run, because something is chasing me.

NOTE: All pictures were taken by me and the property of Double D Acres LLC and may not be used without my permission.

Do You See What I See

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“To me photography is an art of observation. It’s about finding something interesting in an ordinary place…I’ve found it has little to do with the things you see and everything to do with the way you see them.”

Elliott Erwitt

Elliott Erwitt was famous for his uncanny ability to capture on film the humor and irony of everyday life.

Fortunately, we are all different. The world would be a boring place if we all liked the same things. Ten people can look at the same picture and see it fourteen different ways. As a photographer I want the viewer to see what I see. When I see something that excites me, I immediately begin analyzing the shot trying to figure out how to shoot the picture for the viewer to understand what I see. In this particular picture I would have to ask which came first? The rocks or the tree.

This shot was taken on a ridge that paralleled the St. Francis River inside the Silver Mines Recreation Area near Fredericktown, MO. It is along a trail that runs parallel with the river along the ridge and just to the right a trail takes off up the ridge. My thinking is the rocks were put there many years ago to mark the trail when the tree was small.

More pictures of the trail that runs along the west ridge overlooking the river.

Dillard Mill State Historic Site

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Saturday, February 5, I journeyed to the Dillard Mill State Site located in Davisville, MO. The area was snow covered and the roads going to the mill weren’t in very good shape. There were a couple of times I got a little nervous.

The mill is located along the banks of the Huzzah Creek and is one of the state’s best-preserved gristmills. The mill was completed in 1908 and most of the machinery is still in intact and original to the building. The 132-acre site, even though privately owned, has been operated by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources and was listed on the National Register of Historic places in 2015. The park is under a lease agreement with the L-A-D Foundation.

The first mill was built in 1853 and was known as the Wisdom Mill but unfortunately was destroyed by fire in 1895. A new mill was constructed in 1908 and was named the Mische Mill. The owners altered the course of the stream and used an underwater turbine in place of an old waterwheel. It operated until 1956. Then in 1975, when the state took over management of the site and it was given the name Dillard Mill. Restoration wasn’t completed until 1980.

The site offers its visitors opportunities to fish, hike, picnic or to revisit the past.

If you would like to purchase a print contact me at dwwhite1954@gmail.com. I offer prints as well as framed and matted.

Millstream Gardens on an Autumn Day

/ doubledacres / 2 Comments

I headed to Millstream Gardens in Madison County about half way between Fredericktown and Arcadia, Missouri. It is connected to Silver Mines Conservation Area via a trail that runs along the St. Francis River. It’s part of the Mark Twain National Forest. I was to meet a friend and his daughter. We met up around noon. They have a paved trail accessible by wheelchair that goes a mile down the trail to a scenic overlook.

We had a perfect day for a hike. We headed out down the trail. It is an easy hike to the overlook named Cats Paw. Not sure how it got its name but it didn’t disappoint as you an see by the photo below.

We decided to take a trail down to the river. Now this part would be considered hard. Steep and rocky and we had to climb over rocks but it was certainly worth the effort. The scenery was breathtaking. Mother Nature’s beauty at her finest. When they have the kayak races here in the spring the water is usually up quite a bit from the spring rains. I stood there trying to envision the kayakers trying to maneuver their yaks through this swift water around the big boulders that littered the river bed. I think I will lave that up to the professionals.

We didn’t want to leave. It was so peaceful sitting there on the rocks listening to the water rushing past the boulders. We reluctantly started our way back to the parking lot and our vehicles. It is a damn good day when you can share an experience like this with friends. It was a grand day.

Following are a few of the 127 pictures I took. I hope you enjoy them and can feel what we felt being there beside the river. We will definitely be going back for sure. Dogs are allowed but must be kept on a leash.

Camping In Missouri

/ doubledacres

“Earth and sky, woods and fields, lakes and rivers, mountain and the sea, are excellent schoolmasters, and teach of us more than we can learn from books.” – John Lubbock

Camping has become very popular for many Missourians. Camping venues, state and private, fill up rapidly on the weekends and some places are booked weeks in advance. They bring everything from RVs loaded with all the conveniences of home to the simple tent. Whatever makes them happy.

At the age of 66 I still prefer tent camping. I have been known to just roll out a pad and sleep on it. The simpler the better. I have a one man tent and a 3 man. I use the one man for one nighters and the 3 man for extended nights in one place.

3 man tent
Food taste better when cooked at camp.

There are so many choices for campers in Missouri. There are 41 state parks with over 3600 campsites. From lakes, rivers to trout parks there is a campsite waiting for you. Fun for the whole family. mdc.mo.gov

You can also find an abundance of privately owned parks throughout the state. Campers have so much to choose from in the state of Missouri.

Kayaking on Bismark Lake

Mother Nature and Respect

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“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.” – Walden Henry David Thoreau

The definition of nature is the material world, especially as surrounding humankind and existing independently of human activities. It is also defined as the phenomena of the physical world collectively, including plants, animals, the landscape, and other features and products of the earth, as opposed to humans or human creations. One could say that nature is everything.

There is a saying “Stop and smell the roses.” Relax and take time to enjoy or appreciate the beauty of life. Stop stressing out, overthinking or complaining. My version is “Stop and drink of the beauty of nature.”

As spring draws near camping season comes into view. The weekend warriors who live in the cities and suburbs will begin their assault upon the campgrounds. They appear in the parks pulling their 30 foot campers loaded with all the amenities of home. I don’t think this is what Thoreau had in mind when he advocated that people leave their urban and industrialized areas to explore nature. He felt that “modern life” robbed people of their best selfs and that living in harmony with nature was essential. In today’s society the campgrounds are so overpopulated that they are nothing more than smaller communities of which they were trying to leave behind.

In Missouri the rivers and Ozark streams become heavily congested with weekend floaters occupying rafts, inner tubes, kayaks, and boats. Sadly the amount of litter left behind is mind boggling. Thoreau often wrote about the importance of preserving the wilderness and the importance of living in harmony with nature. His ideas are completely lost on the minds of the majority of weekend revelers. One can see the evidence if they float the rivers on Monday morning. Sandbars and gravel bars are littered with aluminum cans, trash, and an occasional tent. It doesn’t have to be this way. If you pack it in pack it out. It is that simple. My motto is is,”Leave it better than you found it.”

We as a whole need to learn to respect Mother Earth and what she has given us. Preserve the magnificent beauty of Mother Earth so that future generations can enjoy it. We don’t know what we have until it is gone.

“I love nature partly because she is not a man, but a retreat from him. None of his institutions control or pervade her. There a different kind of right prevails. In her midst I can be glad with an entire gladness. If this world were all man, I could not stretch myself, I should lose all hope. He is constraint, she is freedom to me. He makes me wish for another world. She makes me content with this.” – Henry David Thoreau’s Journal