Sunday 4-12-26 Clarksville, Silo Access Area & Having Fun

 

Clarksville Missouri

Tonight I'm sitting here writing my blog on the Mississippi River. We had an outstanding day. We didn't do too much.

The morning temperature at St. Francois State Park in Bonnie Terre, MO was 61 degrees. The high temperature was 78 degrees in Clarksville, MO. We had overcast skies and a little rain. 

I surprised Larry by waking up at 6:45. We wanted to get an early start. We have to go through St. Louis. I got dressed and we started to get ready to go. We put everything away and secured. Then we had a quick breakfast. We were on the road by 7:30. On the way out of St. Francois State Park we stopped at the dumpster to get rid of our trash and cans in the recycling bin.

Larry drove 125 miles today. He drove on I55 to St. Louis (50 miles), where we picked up I270 to bypass St. Louis. It had six lanes and road construction. After going around St. Louis we picked up I70 West to Highway 79. We crossed over the Missouri River via a huge bridge. Highway 79 is a two lane highway through small towns. There were quite a few signs saying it was part of the Great River Road (Mississippi River). We did the Great River Road back in 2017 and had a super time. We started at Baton Rouge, Louisiana and traveled all the way to the beginning of the Mississippi near Bemidji, Minnesota. 

We stopped in Clarksville, MO to see the lock. While there we walked around by the lock. We saw a barge in the lock and watched it go in the lock. We saw an old Harley Davidson and we talked to its owner a little bit. Clarksville looks like it's barely surviving. Then we got back into the Minnie our final destination was 5 miles down the road.

The sign for the lock in Clarksville

A ship in the lock

The guys roping off the ship to get through the lock

Living in Clarksville

The Judge going in the lock

The final destination is a free camping area run by the U.S. Corps of Engineers called Silo Access Area. It is right off the Mississippi River. It's a beautiful camping area. It's paved and the sites are paved. There no power or bathroom but they do have a port a john. We took a pull-through site #10, which looks over the Mississippi River. It was very leveled.

Camping on the Mississippi River

We parked the Minnie and set it up for the night. It was very comfortable to sit in the Minnie because there was a breeze. We watched the barges go down the river. Occasionally a train went by but it wasn't a problem. We saw four of them I took pictures of three of them. We saw the barges coming from both directions, which was against the current and with the current. The barge we saw in Clarksville we saw it here. The name of the barge and tug was Judge. It had two barges it was moving. The other two I took pictures of were Andrew Cannava and Roberta Tabor. Andrew Cannava waited for the Judge to go down the river before moving on. It was going with the current. Roberta Tabor came a little later going with the current. It had five barges and we saw a worker walking around to make sure everything was ok. We always enjoy watching the barges going down the river and through locks.

The Mississippi River

The Judge coming up the Mississippi River by our camp site

The Judge tugboat

Worker walking the barge 

Roberta Tabor

Look how close the barge and the Mississippi River is to our site 

Andrew Cannava

We kept entertained by reading. I played my games. I did the Daily Challenges of Solitaire and Mahjong. The event was Event: Easy Street Mini of 15 games. It took me 33 minutes and 37 seconds, which put me in 39th place in my group. I played Angry Birds Friends and Angry Birds 2.

I didn't do too many steps because there wasn't anywhere to walk and the campground was very small. I ended up doing 2,200 steps.        

  

Saturday 4-11-26 St. Francois State Park, Ranger Talk & Relaxing

 

Just hanging out with friends

We had another beautiful day in Missouri. The morning temperature was 51 degrees and the high was 74 degrees. It was a little muggy because of the cloud covering. At 1:00 a little rain shower came through. It only lasted a few minutes. 

I got up at 7:30 and got dressed. For breakfast we had a Big Texas cinnamon roll and shared a shake. We didn't do any hiking today because Larry wanted to give his feet a break. One of his big toes is a little tender. 

Instead we walked around the campground a few times. We did a morning walk for 1.25 around both loops. In the afternoon we walked for 2.5 miles, which was the two loops three times. Larry walked the loops once with me. After dinner I walked around the loops three times for 2.25 miles. By the end of the day I had done 15,500 steps.

I played my Daily Challenges of Solitaire and Mahjong. The event was Event: Two Games Tango of 20 games (10 Klondike and 10 Spider). It took me 2 hours, 9 minutes and 19 seconds, which put me in 20th place in my group. I played Angry Birds Friends and Angry Birds 2.

Larry started a new book and finished it. I finished Northern Borders written by Howard Frank Mosher before going to bed. I asked Larry to choose another book. He decided on another book written by Howard Frank Mosher called A Stranger In The Kingdom. I really enjoy reading Howard Frank Mosher novels because he is the main character and telling the story of his childhood in Vermont. So far I like A Stranger In The Kingdom.

 

Reading is fun

In the evening we walked to the amphitheater to attend the park presentation on Possums. The gentleman, who did the presentation did a very good job talking about possums. He had a table full of different animal hides found in Missouri (possum, skunks (spotted and stripe), foxes (red and gray) and coyote. We learned a lot about the possums. The kids in the audience asked him a lot of questions and he answered them. We really enjoyed the presentation. The presentation started at 7:00 and was over by 7:40. He had about fifty people there.

Showing the different in size of the skunks spotted and stripe (the smaller one is the spotted skunk)

People at the presentation

When we got back to the Minnie we relaxed with a book until it was time to go to bed.    

Friday 4-10-26 St. Francois State Park, Errands & Having Fun

 

Poplar Bluff welcome sign

We had a great day. 

We woke up to 54 degrees and a breeze at Lake Wappapello State Park (Williamsville, MO) and at the end of the day the high was 75 degrees at Sr. Francois State Park (Bonne Terre, MO). We had a small rain shower at St. Francois State Park. It lasted a few minutes.

Beautiful Day in Missouri

We had paid for another night at Lake Wappapello State Park but decided to move on. We had hiked the trails and enjoyed the campground. In Asher Campground the sites were by Lake Wappapello and we had gorgeous views of the lake. In the morning the lake was flat and very peaceful. While there for three days we watched a family kayaking on the lake even if the wind was blowing hard. We were entertained by four Canadian Geese walking around the campground. We hiked the two trails ( Asher Creek and Allison Cemetery) for a total of 6.25 miles. We had a super time.

I woke up at 7:15 and crawled out of bed. I got dressed and we shared a cinnamon raisin bagel with cream cheese spread and a meal replacement shake. After breakfast we put things away and secured. We were on the road by 8:00. Before leaving Lake Wappapello we stopped at the dump station and dumped the tanks. At the dump station there was fresh water so we filled the fresh water tank. It didn't take too long. 

Today we travelled a total of 120 miles to St. Francois State Park. 

On the way there we stopped in Poplar Bluff to do errands. Poplar Bluff was 20 miles from Lake Wappapello. It was pretty close but the road was a two lane curvy road. It went through the forest where we saw beautiful trees. They have really bloomed in the last couple of days. Our first stop in Poplar Bluff was the UPS Store to pickup an Amazon package, it had a couple of fuel hoses and a thermistor for the refrigerator. We don't really need these parts right now because the refrigerator is working great and the hose to the fuel tank is working out. Larry may not have to do either project until we get home but it's nice to have the parts just in case.

Next stop was Walmart to go grocery shopping, we also bought some safety glasses for Larry. When the trailheads aren't too far away (a couple of miles) from the campground we don't wear helmets on the motorcycle. Larry wanted safety glasses to protect his eyes from the bugs. After going shopping and putting things away we were back on the road.

We had another 100 miles to go. This part of the ride was down a four lane highway, that took us by some some towns and cities. When we got to Fredericktown we stopped because we needed to take a bathroom break. It was lunchtime and there just happened to be a Little Caesar's pizza right at the exit. When we arrived a bus full of elderly people from the local assistant living home had also just arrived. They had stopped at Little Caesar's because the folks wanted pizza. It was a nice size group. A couple told me to go ahead of them because I was there first. It was very nice to see the group having fun on their outing. Some of them haven't had pizza in a long time and didn't know what to order. It was very hard to read the menu sign because it keeps switching on you. They had a couple of people taking care of them. They all decided on having the lunch special of two pieces of pizza and a bottle drink for $6.49 plus tax. This was the first Little Caesar's we can remember seeing where there were some tables inside for you to eat your lunch. I bought a Hot and Ready pepperoni pizza. I took it back to the Minnie where Larry and I had lunch.  

Little Caesars pepperoni pizza

After lunch we went the final 40 miles to St. Francois State Park. I was fed and happy, I dozed these last 40 miles. We checked in at the entrance gate because someone was manning it. It's the weekend and it was going to be busy. This park is about 50 miles from St. Louis, MO. Larry made reservations this morning and there were only 11 electric sites left. The lady, who checked us in was very nice and gave us the park map and the hiking trail map. She explained where out site was, which was site #9.

Our site is a pull-through site. Larry thought he might have to put one corner on blocks. But he backed up a little and the site leveled out great. It was about 2:00 when we arrived. We set the Minnie up for a couple of nights. Then we relaxed.

Larry finished his book and did some research on where to go from here. Then he started a new book.

I played games. I did the Daily Challenges of Solitaire and Mahjong. The event was Event: Two Games Tango Mini of six games (3 Tri Peaks and 3 Pyramid). It took me 15 minutes and 10 seconds, which put me in 23rd place in my group. I played Angry Birds Friends and Angry Birds 2.

I finished reading Northern Borders by Howard Frank Mosher. It was a terrific book, I liked it very much. 

After dinner we went on a walk to get familiar with the campground. There are two loops, one power loop and a non-power loop. The non-power loop only had a few campers but the power loop is almost full. Larry walked around with me for about a half hour for a mile. Then he went inside the Minnie I continued walking around for another 2 miles. I did the loops two times. Each loop is about a half mile. By the end of the day I had done 10,000 steps, this is pretty good considering it was a travel day.     

     

Amphitheater

Playground

St. Francois Campground (power)

Thursday 4-9-26 Three Week Summary, Hiking Allison Cemetery Trail & Having Fun

 

Camping at Lake Wappapello State Park

We have been on the road for three weeks. We have had fantastic weather. We have camped in three different states Texas, Oklahoma and Missouri. We camped at Sanders Cove Campground on Pat Mayse Lake in Texas for two nights. While there we did one hike for 3 miles and walked around the campground for 5 miles. We camped at two state parks in Oklahoma, which were Robbers Cave for four nights and Natural Falls for three nights. While at Robbers Cave we did three hikes for the total of 12 miles and walked around the campground for another 11 miles total. While at Natural Falls we did two hikes for the total of 4.5 miles and walked around the campground for 6.75 miles total. We have camped in Missouri for 12 nights so far. We camped at two state parks, which were Roaring River for three nights and Lake Wappapello for three nights. While at Roaring River we di two hikes for total of 6.5 miles and walked around the campground and day area for 7.5 miles. While at Lake Wappapello we did two hikes for 6.25 miles total and walked around the campground 9 miles. We camped at Big Spring Recreation Area on the Ozark Natural Riverways in Mark Twain National Forest for four nights. While there we did two hikes for the total of 8 miles and walked around the campground for another miles. We camped at a Walmart one night because of the weather (wind and rain). We camped at Bass Pro Shop in Springfield for one night. While in Springfield we played pinball and went to the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema to see Project Hail Mary. 

Today was another super day. The morning temperature was 48 degrees and the high was 78 degrees. We slept with the fan going, which made it very comfortable.

I woke up about 7:15 and got dressed. After breakfast we drove the motorcycle a couple of miles to the Allison Cemetery Loop Trail Head, the loop is 2.8 miles. Allison Cemetery is a pre Civil War Cemetery called Allison-Connor Cemetery. The trail took us through the trees and along the banks of Lake Wappapello. We hiked through leaves, over fallen trees and through the creek. Some places we had to venture into the trees because we couldn't climb over the tree or the trail kind of went away. The cemetery was about .25 miles off the trail. It was a lot bigger than we expected. There were headstones of the Allison family in the 1800s and early 1900s. We walked around and I took pictures. Then we hiked back to the trail. The trail continued through the trees. The Allison Cemetery Trail met up with the Lakeview Trail. We decided to hike this trail but we didn't get too far because the trail was washed away. While we were hiking we saw a turtle and a lot of beautiful views of the lake and the forest. We saw a few fishermen on the lake. It was a great hike. 

The trail was (2) natural surface dirt, mud, gravel, loose rocks, slippery surface and etc., (3) rocks, roots and ?or downed vegetation on the trail, (7) steep grades and inclines over 10% and (12) road and highway crossing.  

In Memory of Grace Allison (first grave you see in the cemetery)

Hugh P (May 25, 1815 to April 17, 1881) and Sarah (1825 to May 1877) Allison graves 

Other graves in the Allison Cemetery

Other graves in the cemetery

Turtle on the trail

Lake Wappapello from the trail

When we got back to the Minnie Larry did a small motorcycle project. When it is cold a small amount of fuel will leak from the fuel filter. Today he decided to secure the lines with tie wraps to stop the seepage.

Motorcycle Project

The rest of the day we relaxed in the Minnie. Larry started a new book and I continued reading Northern Borders. 

I played the Daily Challenges of Solitaire and Mahjong. The event was Event: World Tour Mini of 10 games. It took me 44 minutes and 46 seconds, which put me in 8th place in my group. I played Angry Birds Friends and Angry Birds 2.

After dinner I walked around the campground for an hour for 3 miles. While I was walking Larry went over and took a shower. When I got back I did the same.

By the end of the day I had done 17,500 steps. 

           

Wednesday 4-8-26 Hiking Asher Creek Trail, Walking & Relaxing

 

Lake Wappapello State Park

We had a gorgeous day. The morning temperature was 45 degrees and the high was 76 degrees. There was a little breeze, which kept it cooler.

I woke up about 7:30 and got dressed. Then we had a cinnamon raisin bagel with cream cheese spread and a meal replacement chocolate shake. Larry figured because it was going to be cooler today then tomorrow we should do the more difficult trail, which was the Asher Creek Trail. I put my pouch together. We got our hiking poles. We were ready to go about 8:15. Our neighbor across from us came over and wanted to visit. We met him and his wife yesterday, they're from Missouri. We talked about places we have been in Missouri and he said we have been to the best places. He's a fisherman and he has been here three times and love it here. 

After saying our good-byes we started our hike. The trailhead is close, it's just down the road from us about .12 mile. The trail was Asher Creek Trail Loop for 2.80 miles. The hiking maps suggested we hike the trail counter-clockwise so that's what we did. We were glad because the steepest climb was there. The total climb was 441' to the top but this section was most of it. There were peaks and valleys throughout the hike but they were gradual after the first one. The trail took us through the trees and is moderate. As we hiked was saw a turtle on the trail sunning, beautiful views of the lake and gorgeous forest. We climbed over a couple of downed trees, which were on the trail. We hiked over Asher Creek via a couple of wooden bridges. The creek didn't have any water in it. About halfway into the hike the trail Yd off to another trail, which is Lake Wappapello 12.75 loop trail. We continued on Asher Creek trail. We got to another place the trail Yd off and takes you back to the campground but we wanted to hike a little further. We hiked to the park entrance sign and the trailhead parking lot, which was .25 mile. This section had a little bit of water on it, we walked around the water like other hikers did. Once at the sign we turned around and got back on Asher Creek. This section of the trail took us along the banks of Lake Wappapello, where you can see beautiful views of the lake. We were about .25 mile from the campground and there was a bench so we took advantage of it and rested. When we were rested we both said maybe we should have just continued because our legs were starting to stiffen a little. By the end of the hike we had done 3 miles for two hours. We had a super hike.

Turtle on the trail

Trail through the trees

A bridge that crossed over Asher Creek

Lake Wappapello from the trail

  

The trail map tells you what to expect while hiking the trail. It said (2) natural surface dirt, mud, gravel, loose rocks, slippery surface and etc., (3)rocks, roots and/or downed vegetation on the trail, (6) wood or stone steps, (7) steep grades and inclines over 10% and (9) bridges and/or structural crossings. I know this sounds bad but it wasn't that bad. There were a couple of connector trails where you can shorten the trail distance. They are where it Ys. The trail had red colored hiking signs we followed. Asher Creek trail is just for hikers.

After the hike we relaxed in the Minnie. Larry continued reading his book he started yesterday and finished it. He kept on current events and other news groups he follows.

Reading is fun

 

 While Larry read I played games. I played the Daily Challenges of Solitaire and Mahjong. The event was Event: Tri Peaks Mini of 5 games. it took me 10 minutes and 59 seconds, which put me in 16th place in my group. I played Angry Birds Friends. In the evening I played Angry Birds 2.

After playing games I continued reading Northern Boarders.

After dinner I walked around for an hour for 2.75 miles to get more steps. As I walk I saw a lot of beautiful green bushes with red flowers. I asked Google and Google said it was a Red Buckeye. By the end of the day I had 18,000 steps.

Red Buckeye

Railing on a cabin porch

Tuesday 4-7-26 New State Park, Driving & Motorcycle Ride

 

Asher Creek Campground at Lake Wappapello State Park

We spent four days at Big Spring Recreation Area in Mark Twain National Forest. We did two hikes for total of 8 miles on Big Spring Loop Trail and Chubb Hollow Lookout CCC Loop Trail. In the evening we walked around the campground for about an hour per night and did total of 13.5 miles. We had a great time.

We decided to move on down the road 60 miles to Lake Wappapello State Park. We weren't in any hurry so I made cinnamon rolls for breakfast. While letting the pizza stone cool down we read and got the Minnie ready to go. We put things away and secured. We were on the road by 9:00. Before leaving Big Spring we got rid of our trash and cans. 

The drive to Lake Wappapello State Park was mainly a four lane highway. About five miles from the campground we turned on a curvy two lane road. The road went through a beautiful forest, which made the drive very pretty. We arrived at Lake Wappapello State Park about 10:30, along the way we stopped and filled the Minnie with gas.

Lake Wappapello State Park has two campground Asher Creek and Ridge. We decided on Asher Creek because it has outstanding views of Lake Wappapello. We parked the Minnie in a site and then Larry went online and looked at what sites were available for four nights. He wrote the sites down and we walked around looking at the sites. While doing this the park host was starting her rounds and stopped to talk to a couple across from one of the sites we were looking at. The park host asked if we needed any information and if we were just walking around looking at sites. She was very helpful and gave us a hiking trail map and a map of the campground with the sites on it. The couple, who was talking to the host said they were celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary by traveling around all this year in their RV. They were also very nice. 

After visiting we continued looking at the sites. We decided on site #72. The sites weren't too level but this site was better and we can get the motorcycle on and off with no problem. We had to block the front passenger wheel one block up. 

We had to setup our Star link mini because the cell phone signal is very unpredictable. The host said it will come and go and on the weekends with more people in the campground it will not work at all, the folks across the street are on Verizon and said they didn't have a signal, Verizon works slowly for us but AT&T is unusable.  

After setting the Minnie up for four nights we had ham sandwiches for lunch.

A bit later we took the motorcycle for a ride around the park. It is a huge park with multiple boat ramps, a beach, picknick area, two campgrounds and lots of cabins spread throughout the park.

Later Larry started a book and after about 20% he quit, said it was not good. He started another one and he likes it. I continued reading Northern Borders.

   Having fun reading

I played the Daily Challenges of Solitaire and Mahjong. The event was Event: Two Game Tango Mini of 6 games (3 Spider and 3 Pyramid). It took me 14 minutes and 51 seconds, which put me in 11th place in my group. I played Angry Birds Friends and Angry Birds 2.

After dinner I walked around the two campgrounds for an hour and fifteen minutes for 3 miles. I started by walking the park road to the Ridge Campground. I knew it was going to be steep and it definitely was. By the time I got to the top I thought was going to die. But I kept on going because I knew it would be easier on the way back. This campground has some cabins. The cabins have a view of the lake. I looked in one of the cabins windows and saw that it was fully furnished. It had a couch, table, kitchen and bedroom with a full bed in it. The bed had spread on it. It looked very nice. I walked around both loops in Ridge Campground. Then I started my walk back to Larry. When I got back to Larry after walking our campground, which is Asher Creek Campground I had walked 1.5 miles. I told Larry was going to walk our loop a couple more times to get my three miles. When I got back I told Larry was going to stay outside to finish my steps, which was 12,000 steps.

While walking around I took pictures. 

A site in Ridge Campground

One of the cabins

Historic landmark (Lake Wappapello crest at 400.01 feet May 3, 2011)

Fishing at the boat ramp

 

    

Monday 4-6-26 Chubb Hollow, Lookout, CCC Loop & Camping

 

Current River at Big Spring

We had a gorgeous day with sunshine. We woke up with a temperature of 38 degrees and the high was 74 degrees.

I crawled out of bed at 7:00 and had Rhodes cinnamon rolls for breakfast. Then we got ready for a hike. We went outside to start the motorcycle but it wouldn't start. Larry wasn't surprised because everytime it's cold outside he has trouble getting the motorcycle to start. So we went back inside the Minnie and waited until it got warmer.

About an hour and a half Larry went back outside and it started right up. We rode to the CCC buildings and cabins parking lot. It was a cold ride but it was only 2.5 miles. Once the motorcycle was parked we got ready for the hike. There were two different ways to start the hike, which were either at the CCC Dining Lodge or the cabin areas. We decided to do the cabins because it's looked the steepest. We started the hike at 10:00 and finished at 12:30, it was 4.3 miles. We climbed 564' in elevation. The first .25 mile was the steepest for 300' in elevation. When we got there I took off my jacket. The rest of the elevation was very nice you didn't know you were still climbing up. When we got to the top of the mountain it started to level off. The trail took us through the forest, which was beautiful. We hiked through a lot of leaves. The trail wasn't marked very well but you could tell where the trail was. We were about 2 miles into the hike when the trail Yd off. There was a nice bench there so we sat on the bench to rest. We did rest a few other times but we either found a fallen tree to sit on or stood to catch our breathes. After resting we went to the left and continued on the hike. There were a couple more hills to hike up be they weren't as steep or long. Larry had downloaded the trail map so we followed that trail. There was one point it ventured off the trail down a road. So we decided to do the same. We were glad we did we saw the Lookout Tower, it was once used to watch for forest fires. Now it's fenced off and has a sign that said use only for fires. The staircase is still there. The tower is well hidden in the trees, you can't see it until your right on top of it. We weren't too far when Larry pointed out there was a turtle on the trail. It looked like the one we saw yesterday. The trail took us over the creek via a small wooden bridge. We ended up at Chubb Hollow Campground and a CCC Shelter, where we sat and rested. After our rest we had to back track through the campground because the section of the trail at the shelter was washed away. We got back on the trail. We hiked along the Current River for about .25 mile to the CCC Dining Lodge. This section of the trail was very narrow and rocky but the views of the river were beautiful. There were very nice rock hangover and a bench in Memory of Harry B. Hawes.After the bench the trail took us to the dock area and the CCC Dining Lodge. We rested on the steps for a little bit before walking to the bike, which was just in the parking lot. We had a super hike.

Harry B. Hawes (November 15, 1869 - July 31, 1947) was an American lawyer and politician. He served as a Democrat member of the U.S. House of Representative and Senate. He was known for the Hare-Hawes-Cutting Act and earlier helped get the Republic of Hawaii as part of the U.S. territory. 

One of the CCC cabins for rent

Trail on top of the mountain

Resting at the Y on a stone bench

Lookout Tower

Turtle on the trail

CCC Shelter at Chubb Campground

Harry B. Hawes' bench

By the time we got back to the Minnie it 12:45. We rested for a little bit and then had a ham sandwich and chips for lunch. 

Larry spent the rest of the afternoon reading a book he started yesterday and finished it. I went up above the cab and took an hour nap. 

Taking a nap

I played my Daily Challenges of Solitaire and Mahjong. The event was Event: Easy Street of 30 games. It took me 59 minutes and 45 seconds, which put me in 16th place in my group. I played Angry Birds Friends and Angry Birds 2.

After doing all my games I continued reading Northern Borders.

After dinner I walked around the tent loops three times for a total of 3 miles. Then Larry and I walked over to the showers (about quarter of a mile one way) to take a shower. The showers were great and free. By the end of the day I had done 21,500 steps.