Thursday 4-18-24 Humid Day, Natural Tunnel Trail & Having Fun

 

Picnic shelter built by the CCC

We had a hot humid day. The low was 65 degrees and the high was 85 degrees and humidity was 57%. The morning temperature was in the 60's.

I woke up at 7:15 and made cinnamon french toast sticks for breakfast. Then we got ready to go on another hike. We unloaded the motorcycle and started it. Today our hike is at the far end of the park by the nature center. The trail was The Natural Tunnel Trail. There are two trails, a green and blue. The green is 2.75 mile round trip and the blue one goes to the tunnel and back, round trip 8 miles. We started on the blue trail, which took us up the side of the hill, down the hill and through creeks. The trail was challenging because you have to hike over rocks, rocky creek beds and natural things in trail (roots and rocks). When we climbed up the hill it was steep by the time we got on top of the hill we had to rest to catch our breath. The direction we were hiking we didn't catch the breeze until on the way back. We had hiked 2 miles to the connector trail, we could either go to the left, which took you to the natural tunnel (1.8 miles) or to the right, which took you back to the parking lot (1.6). There was a bench there so we decided to rest a bit before going back to the parking lot. After we rested we took it to the right. While we hiked we saw a lot of small butterflies, four turtles, a turkey and heard a lot of birds enjoying the weather. We saw the turkey when we stopped to check out a tree, that had grown around a barbed wire fence. We scared it out of its hiding place and it flew in front of us. It was a big turkey. The turtles we saw were on the trail. Their heads were sticking out more than the other day when we saw them. One Larry saw walking across the trail and up the hill. When we got to it, it was hiding the trees. We walked through one of the creek beds and saw beautiful rock formations and a cave that was created by the creek. The trail came out by the cabins and fishing area on Bennett Spring. By the time we got back to the motorcycle we were hot and tired we had hiked 4.5 miles total. Our hike was very pretty through the forest and up hills. We had a great hike.

 

One of the turtles we saw

 

A natural cave

 

A rock formation

 

Bennett Spring 

As we were riding back to the campground we noticed there were a lot more people fishing today. The ride back cooled us off.

We spent the rest of the day relaxing with a book. I played my Daily Challenge of Solitaire and event. The event was Event: Two Game Tango Mini of 6 games (3 Klondikes and 3 Tri Peaks). It took me 10 minutes and 59 seconds, which put me in 12th place in my group.

After lunch we went over and took showers. Two days ago they put up signs indicating something had gone wrong with the water system causing the pressure to drop and there was a chance the water may have become contaminated and you should boil your water. They sent samples out to be tested and today they removed the signs so the water's ok. 

After dinner I walked around for a half hour to get my steps finished. I ended up doing 17,000 steps, which put me in 1st place in my group.

      

Wednesday 4-17-24 Whistle Trail & Nature Center

 

Fly fishing at Bennett Spring dam

Wow what a beautiful day!!! We had blue skies with the high in the low 80's. 

I got up at 7:15 and made mini waffles for breakfast. After breakfast we got ready for a hike. Today's hike was Whistle Trail, which was 3 miles. We unloaded the motorcycle off it's carrier. Larry started it and let it idle a couple of minutes because it's cold-blooded. The trailhead was about a mile from the campground.

We parked the motorcycle where the fishermen were parked at the trailhead. We started the trail going to the right because it was longer in that direction. The trail went along the banks of the spring and up the side of the hill. At times it was very steep and challenging. We hiked over tree roots, rocks and loose gravel. We were thankful the trail was through the trees. It took us by the hatchery but it's closed right now because the park in that area is under construction. As we hiked we saw views of the spring with fishermen fishing in it. The trail wasn't that long but there were a couple of small trails combined with it, The Bridge Trail (.7 mile) and Oak-Hickory Trail (.3 mile). We hiked them. The oak-hickory trail was a loop and took us up the hill. We had to climb steps that we thought were made by the CCC in 1933. At times the trail narrowed and went downhill and then uphill. When we got there we had to figure the best way through that area. Sometimes we had to take big strides to get on a rock. Larry had to help me a couple of places by using his hiking pole. When we got to the Nature Center the trail turned around and went back the way we came. The center was closed but it gave us a great opportunity to walk around Bennett Spring and watch the fishermen and women fish. Afterwards we got back on the trail. It's strange to notice things that you missed when going the other direction on the same trail. We hiked by rock formations that were formed by the spring years ago, on the way up we didn't even notice them but on the way back we saw them. We saw more and more fishermen showing up to fish. We waved and said hi to some of them. We crossed over a creek a couple of times using a bridge and other times no bridge and no water. When we got back to where we parked the Motorcycle Larry rested while I took a restroom break. Afterwards we continued the hike to the left, there were small paths that the fishermen made to go fishing. We watched the fishermen fish a bit and then went back to the motorcycle. By the end of the hike we had hiked 3.25 miles. It was a gorgeous hike.

A zebra swallowtail

 

 

 The bridge we walked to get over a creek

 

 The arch bridge built by the CCC

 

 

 Rock wall made by Bennett Spring

We loaded back on the bike and headed back to the campground. As we were leaving the parking lot we saw our neighbors from Texas. They had walked down to the trailhead and were just starting their hike and we were done. We like getting an early start before it gets too hot. When we finished it was starting to get warm. 

Before going back to the Minnie we drove around the park. We stopped at the park store again to buy another muffin because we liked it so well. They didn't have the apple cinnamon muffin but they had a banana nut muffin. On the way back to the Minnie Larry noticed the Nature Center was open so we parked the motorcycle and walked through it. Missouri has a lot of beautiful Fish and Wildlife Conservation Centers. Each one talks about the wildlife and fish in the area. The nature center had a lot of great exhibits on the history of Bennett Springs before and after the state owned the land. In the 1846 James Brice built his first mill. He started the small settlement of Brice. His son-in-law Peter Bennett ran it and that's where the spring got its namesake. Bennett Spring was one of the first state parks in 1924-1925. In the 1930's, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) built cabins, a shelter house, roads, trails, the arched bridge across the spring and the dining lodge. The 200-250 workers of the CCC who worked on the projects were World War I veterans. There was wildlife on top of the displays and through out the center.  It was a very nice nature center. The worker was friendly. Once I got back on the bike we went back to the Minnie.

 

The largest springs in Missouri exhibit

 

Wildlife in the springs

Water fountain built by the CCC

Old tools used in the 1800's

Wildlife in the area

We spent the rest of the day relaxing. Larry finished another book and started another one. I did my Daily Solitaire Challenge and event. Today the event was Event: World Tour Mini of 10 games. It took me 1 hour, 9 minutes and 19 seconds, which put me in 18th place in my group. Then I started a new book I asked Larry to recommend. It was The Surgeon's Daughter written by Audrey Blake. It's a follow up on a book I read called The Girl In His Shadow.

After dinner when it cooled off I walked around for an hour to get some of my steps. After cooling off I went outside and finished doing my steps. I ended up doing 16,000 steps, which kept me in 1st place in my group. 

        

Tuesday 4-16-24 Bennett Spring State Park & Motorcycle Ride

 

Bennett Spring State Park

We had another windy day. We woke up to the temperature in the low 60's and got to 79 degrees. 

I woke up about 7:15 and made mini waffles for breakfast. Then we got ready to go. We spent a couple of nights at Pomme de Terre State Park and now it's time to move on. Our next destination is 40 miles down the road to another state park called Bennett Spring State Park.

As we were leaving the park we swung by the dump station to dump our tanks and fill up our water tank. We were on the road by 8:30. 

The roads to Bennett Spring State Park were two lanes. As we were driving was saw a bald eagle hunting for breakfast.

 We arrived at the park at 10:00, this was early for us. We drove around the campground to find a site we liked. We parked the Minnie in the site then Larry went online and made reservations. The site we found was available for the next three nights. While he was on the computer he made reservations for the weekend at Lake of the Ozark State Park. If you make a reservations for a site the day you arrive you don't pay the $6.50 reservation fee. We didn't have to pay the reservation fee for Bennett Spring but we did for Lake of the Pines.

Bennett Spring is a large park with a underground stream that releases over 100 million gallons of clear water a day.  It has a dining lodge, cabins, 5 campgrounds, big park store and hiking trails. One of the five campgrounds has full hook-ups sites, the others have power only and basic no power. The park store has everything you need for fishing, t-shirts, hats, souvenirs, snacks and more. You can buy your fishing license at the store and sign up to take a fly fishing course. In order to fish in the spring you need to buy a fishing license and have it visible at all times. Most of the fishermen put the licenses on their hats.

Once we setup the Minnie for three nights we relaxed. After lunch we took the motorcycle off it's carrier. Then we went on a bike ride through the park. We drove down to the spring and checked out the trailheads. We'll have to ride the bike to the trailheads, it's about a mile to the closest one. We parked the Minnie by the tunnel trailhead and checked it out. When we got back to the parking lot we saw a couple getting ready for a hike. They were in the process of putting their baby on her back in a backpack for kids. The tunnel trailhead has two trails, one that goes to the tunnel, which is 7.5 miles round trip and the other one is about 3 miles. They said they were doing the shorter trail. We got back on the bike and parked it at the cabins by the spring. Then we walked around the area. As we walked we saw a lot of fishermen and women fishing in the spring. They were all fly fishing. There are beautiful cabins to rent there. If you fish you can rent one and just walk over to the spring and fish. When you get tried you can go back to the cabin and rest. This park was built by the CCC and it has a lot of nice structures still standing. The stone building at the spring was built by the CCC in 1934 and is still being used to calculate how much water the spring produces. We got back on the bike and went to the park store. We were surprised how big it was. While there Larry bought me a jigsaw puzzle in the shape of a blue truck. I'll have to wait until I get home to assemble it because we have no room. As we were checking out there were some baked goodies, we bought a apple cinnamon muffin. The lady, who checked us out was very friendly and had worked at the store for 25 years. She said the store was very small at the beginning. Now she can get lost in it. It was a pleasure to talk to her because she was always smiling. Then we went back to our site. Once back we loaded the bike back on the carrier and strapped it down and covered it. Larry only out a couple of straps on the cover just so the wind won't blow it off. We had a great ride through the park.

Stone building built by the CCC 1934

 

Fishing on one of the dikes

 

Two women enjoying fishing at Bennett Spring

Bennett Spring 

 

One of the cabins

 

New jigsaw puzzle

 

After putting the bike up we went inside and relaxed. I did the Daily Solitaire Challenge and the event. Today the event was Event: Two Game Tango Mini of 10 games (5 Pyramid and 5 Tri Peaks). It took me 36 minutes and 55 seconds, which put me in 10th place in my group. Larry read.

Then I walked around for a half hour. I got hot so I stopped my walk until a little later when it cooled off. 

 For dinner I made tacos. After dinner I walked around for an hour. As I was walking I talked to our neighbors, they were from Texas. When I got back I rested. About 9:00 I went outside to finish my steps. I ended up doing 16,000 steps, which kept me in 1st place in my group.

I finished reading The Blood of my Mother. It was a great book. It was about how a lady and her family surviving the rough frontier in the 1800's before and after Texas became a state. Many of the places mentioned were in the Milam county area of Texas not far from where we live.

 

Beautiful sunset at Bennett Spring
 

 

              

Monday 4-15-24 Indian Point Trail & Camping

 

Pomme de Terre State Park

We had a hot humid day. It started in the low 60's and got to 84 degrees. There was a cloud covering with little to no breeze.

I got up around 7:00 and made cinnamon rolls for breakfast. Then we got ready for a hike. Pomme de Terre has one hiking trail, the Indian Point Trail. Indian Point is a 3 mile loop and starts at the entrance to the campground at the amphitheater. It's a moderate trail with a lot of rocks and roots, that go through the trail. It weaves you through a beautiful forest and at times you get a view of Pomme de Terre Lake. As we hiked we saw a couple of small turtles in the trail, the dam, a couple other campgrounds and some wildflowers. We didn't know what type of flowers the purple flowers were so we took a picture. Google told us they were  daylilies. They really didn't look like a lily but I don't know the names of flowers. The first turtle we saw Larry pointed it out. I just looked at it and thought why is Larry pointing out a big rock. I kept looking at it and I finally figured out it was a turtle. While we hiked the trail we had to be careful not to fall when we tripped on a rock. We stopped occasionally to look at the lake. There were a couple of fishermen on the lake. We saw cranes, ducks and geese. As we looped towards the campground Larry tripped but didn't fall. That's where we saw the second turtle. At first he thought he tripped over the turtle but there was a rock right in front of it. Like all turtles when they get scared they put their head and feet in the shell. Both turtles were small and pretty. We had a peaceful hike and we heard the birds chirping away. It was short we were back at the Minnie after 1 hour and 45 minutes.

 

First turtle

 

Daylilies or ditch lilies

 

Pomme de Terre Lake

 

Second turtle

 

Indian Point Trailhead sign

We spent the rest of the day relaxing under the air conditioner with a book. Larry finished one and started another. I continued reading The Blood of my Mother. I did the Daily Solitaire Challenge and event. Today the event was Event: Two Games Tango Mini of 10 games (5 Klondikes and 5 Spiders). It took me 1 hour, 13 minutes and 50 seconds, which put me in 15th place in my group. I walked around the campground for an hour. While walking I visited with one of the camp host. By the end of the day I did 18,000 steps, which put me in 1st place in my group.

For dinner we barbecued up some pork chops. They came out good. 

We had another great day.

  

    

Sunday 4-14-24 Pomme de Terre State Park & Doing Errands

 

Camping in Missouri

We woke up to temperatures in the low 60's. 

I woke up at 6:45 and got dressed. Then we got ready to leave. We put things away and secured. We were on the road by 7:15. Our next destination was Pomme de Terre State Park. It was about 58 miles away. But we did a few of stops on the way in Bolivar.   

 

Sunrise over Stockton Lake

The drive to Bolivar was a two lane highway with no shoulders. We drove by ranches with horses and cattle. One actually had a donkey. It was a nice drive. 

We have been on the road for three weeks so it was time to do laundry. The first stop was at Bolivar Express Laundry Center.  Larry did a little research on the laundry and found they got great review. The laundry was opened for four years ago and is very clean and well managed. When we arrived a gentleman opened the door for us and a lady greeted us with a beautiful smile. The lady was very friendly and helpful. She saw we had small loads so she suggested we use the smaller machines. She also said the machines can handle being full to the top. The cost for one load was $2.00 and it took 18 minutes. We had two loads. Then when it was time for the clothes to go in the dryer. The lady assisted me again. She asked what temperature I was going to be using. I said warm so she said it would take thirty minutes, which is five quarters. I put six quarters and had 36 minutes. I only needed one dryer. After the washers had been used the lady was there and wiped them down with a clean rag. We had a super experience, I would recommend Bolivar Express Laundry Center if you happen to be in the area and needed a coin laundry. They offer doing laundry for you if you drop it off. There's plenty of parking for rvs.

 

Bolivar Express Laundry Center

Next stop was Walmart to pick up a few items. Larry wasn't sure when was the next time we would be close to a Walmart. 

After putting the groceries away we went to Gum & Go to top off the Minnie's fuel tank. We didn't need fuel but it was easy to get in and out.

Now back on the road. Pomme de Terre State Park was 34 miles from Bolivar. We got there at 11:00 and our site wasn't occupied so we parked the Minnie. We're going to be here a couple nights.

Pomme de Terre is a gorgeous park with a lot of trees and gives you a lot privacy at your site. The only problem is where the bathrooms are located. There was four loops and only one set of bathroom so you have to walk a fair bit to use them. Each site has 50 amp and 30 amp, picnic table under a covered roof and a fire ring. Pomme de Terre State Park is one of five parks on Pomme de Terre Lake. The lake is managed by the Corps of Engineers, the park we are in is a state park. It has 240 sites, hiking trails, fishing, boat ramp, beach, boating and something for everyone.

We spent the day relaxing under the air conditioner because it got to be 83 degrees. Larry finished a book and started another one. I played my daily Solitaire challenge and the event, which was Event: Easy Street Mini of 5 games. It took me 10 minutes and 11 seconds. This put me in 32nd place in my group. I continued reading The Blood of my Mother.

While we were having lunch we was a gorgeous Pileated woodpecker.

 

Pileated woodpecker

Before dinner I walked around for an hour, which was the four loops of the campground. After cooling off I barbecued hamburgers for dinner.

 

Pomme de Terre Lake

 

A Yurt to rent on the lake

 

 

One of the cabins to rent

After dinner when it cooled off a bit around 6:30 we walked around the campground. Larry walked with me for a half hour and then I walked another half hour. By the end of the day I had done 18,000 steps, which put me in 7th place in my group for the week with 100,050 steps. I was surprised I completed the weekly challenge of 100,000 steps. 

 

Beautiful way to end the day with the sun setting on the lake

Saturday 4-13-24 More Hiking on Lakeview Trail & Having Fun

 

Having Fun

We had another gorgeous day. It started out with clear skies until the afternoon clouds blew in. When the clouds came in the wind picked up. The wind was out of the southwest 15 to 25 mph but at times it was stronger. It got up to 82 degrees.

We woke up it was 52 degrees with a lite breeze. I made cinnamon rolls for breakfast. Then we got ready to go on a 5 mile hike. We started the hike at 7:50 and were back by 10:15. Our hike was again on the Lakeview Trail. We started from our site and walked the road to the west campground where we picked up the trail. As we walked the park road to the west campground we saw a beautiful woodpecker. We hiked about 2.5 miles and then went back the way we came. It was a great hike but a little more humid then yesterday. It still went through the trees and by the lake. As we hiked the trail we heard the birds enjoying the spring day. We saw a fisherman fishing on the lake. On the way back we said hi to a couple and their dog, the dog was wearing a vest that said don't touch, they said he is not always friendly. We also said hi to a couple of ladies. We had a peaceful hike.

 

Woodpecker

 

Fishing on Stockton Lake

When we got back to the Minnie we relaxed. I made soup for lunch. We spent the rest of the day reading. I did the Daily Solitaire games and the event. The event was Event: Pyramid Adventure of 20 games. It took me 1 hour, 53 minutes and 23 seconds, which put me in 17th place in my group. 

After dinner I walked around the campgrounds for 45 minutes. I ended up doing 19,000 steps, which put me in 7th place in my group.    

I finished reading Virgil Wander: A Novel by Leif Enger. It was a good book about a small Midwestern town on a quest of revive itself. The book has a lot of humor, the main character, Virgil Wander, is trying to find himself after surviving an accident. Then I asked Larry to chose another book for me. He choose The Blood of My Mother: A Novel by Roccie Hill. 

We had a great day.  

 

Friday 4-12-24 Stockton State Park New Trail

 

Awesome Day

We woke up to 42 degrees. There was wind but not as strong as yesterday. The sun was shining and no clouds in the sky. It's an awesome day for a hike.

I crawled out of bed at 7:15 and got dressed. Then I made pancakes for breakfast. After breakfast we got ready to go on a hike. 

Stockton State Park has an 8 mile loop called Lakeview Trail. The trail goes through the forest and at times you can see a view of Stockton Lake. We started from our campsite.,We walked the road to the bathrooms and a wide utility road. We hiked to the trailhead and hiked the trail to the white connector cutoff trail, we hiked the white connector cutoff trail back to the Lakeview Trail. The trail weaved through the forest, at one spot we saw the highway bridge, that goes over the lake. The trail was well maintained and used. We saw a gentleman riding a bike, he warned us he was coming around. It was a moderate/easy trail. The terrain wasn't too steep, there were a few muddy places, loose rocks, gravel, roots, drops over the side of the trail and road crossings. While hiking we saw birds, a beautiful forest and the lake. We didn't see any deer but we saw a couple meadows, that would be a great place for them. We were near the end of the trail when we saw a deep hole. We weren't sure what it was. We thought maybe an old well or an old mine or just a sinkhole. There was no signs. By the time we got back to the Minnie we had hiked 6 miles. We had a super hike.

Hiking trail 

 

A view of the lake and the bridge

 

A beautiful day in the forest

 

The deep hole

One nice thing about Stockton State Park hiking trail map is that each trail is color coordinated with trail markers. We hiked the Lakeview Trail, which was orange and moderate. Natural surface (2), rocks, roots, and/or vegetation on trail (3), bluffs or drop-offs next to trail (8), occasional water over trail (11), and road/highway crossing (12). This is great because then you know what to expect while hiking so there's no surprises.

We spent the rest of the day relaxing with a book. I played my Daily Challenge in Solitaire and the event. The event was Event: Hard Road Mini of 5 games. It took me 34 minutes and 40 seconds, which put me in 21st place in my group.

After dinner I walked around for a half hour, which was both campgrounds. I ended up doing 19,000 steps, which put me in 7th place in my group.