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VOL. 45, NO. 4
OCTOBER 2017
www.riverhillstraveler.com
5 fabulous fall floats in Missouri
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When traveling cross-country, Melvin Johnson uses his trusty camper but prefers sleeping out under the starts.
50 states & counting Springfield man accomplishes goal of hiking in every state By MATTIE LINK
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mattie@sextonmediagroup.com _____________
isiting all 50 American states is a pretty good feat, but hiking in all 50 states is quite an accomplishment. Melvin Johnson, 67, of Springfield, has recently accomplished his goal of traveling to all 50 states to hike. “When I was 16 and in Boy Scouts, we went on a threeweek backpacking trip in New Mexico and I thought then that when I was old enough, I wanted to travel,” said Johnson. Johnson is a retired environmental education and environmental recreation leader for the Leonard Wood Youth Program in Springfield, but is originally from Indiana. Johnson has several degrees from different universities in the recreational field and has been living in Springfield for 20 years now. “I love doing anything outdoors. Hiking, camping, floating, kayaking and I’m lucky I was paid to do all the things I love to do,” said Johnson. When Johnson was in college he lead a couple trips to different states and really decided he wanted to explore and travel North America in the late 80’s. “I had several friends that wanted me to go with them
Please see STATES, 18
Please see FLOATS, 19
Washington group tours MTNF for flood recovery
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Melvin at Philmont Scout Ranch with the Tooth of Time in the background, 50 years after backpacking there, near Cimarron, New Mexico.
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By Tom Uhlenbrock all is the best time for a float trip in the Missouri Ozarks. Summer crowds are gone, and the sparkling streams reflect the autumn colors. “It’s also the prettiest time of the year for wildflowers – you have all the yellow and red, even some purple blooms,” said Gene Maggard, who owns Akers Ferry Canoe Rental on the Current River. He said fall colors start showing in early October. “You’ll have your peak anywhere from the 14th! through the 21st,” he said. “You’ve got the rivers to yourself; the hustle and bustle of summer is over. It’s a good time of year for solitude.” Here are five fabulous floats, all of which will take four or five hours, depending on the time spent fishing and picnicking on gravel bars. Most of these stretches are spring fed, which means there’s enough water for year-round floating. All are perfect for
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ark Twain National Forest hosted a flood recovery field visit on Aug. 28-30 with government officials from Washington. Visitors included U.S. Forest Service Deputy Chief Leslie Weldon, Emilee Blount (engineering, technology and geospatial services), Rachael Thurston (assistant transportation program manager), Michiko Martin (acting director, recreation, heritage & volunteer resources and director, conservation education), and Josiah Kim, (Region 9 director of engineering and acting director for recreation, wilderness, heritage and volunteer services). Weldon and her national engineering and recreation directors traveled from Washington, D.C., to view some of the Please see FLOOD, 19
Page 2 • October 2017
RiverHillsTraveler.com
Fishing remains good on the White River
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By Bill Cooper pic floods have been the norm in 2017. Several 500-year floods rocked the Midwest and the Ozarks last spring and Texas recently faced the ravages of a 1,000-year flood. The White River Basin in Arkansas faced heavy flooding in April and May. Flood records which stood for over 100 years toppled. The North Fork of the White at Tecumseh, Missouri, reached the highest levels since August 1, 1915. Bull Shoals Lake is still well above normal pool as a result. Damon Spurgeon and I recently traveled to Cotter, Arkansas, to fly fish the fabled White River for monster Brown trout. The renowned trout stream still ran high as a result of the heavy spring rains and is expected to do so until mid-October, according to local fly fishing guide Larry Babin. “This is the longest stretch of high water I’ve experienced on the White,” the manager of the Natural State Fly Shop in downtown Cotter said. Despite the higher than normal river flows for the summer season, Babin has continued to put his clients on fish. “The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission stocks roughly one-and-a-half million trout in the White River each year,” he said. “That is a lot of fish and they are still there despite the high water conditions.” As we walked onto the deck of White River Trout Lodge, Damon and I paused, before placing our bags inside, to look at the river. “This place is mesmerizing,” Damon said. “Look there are trout feeding just off that weed line. There is a really nice Brown, too.” “Calm down,” I said. “You are going to tire yourself out getting so excited. We have three days coming up with the best fly fishing guides on the river. You’ll see lots of trout over the course of those three days.” After visiting with White River Trout Lodge owners Bill and JoAnna Smith, Damon and I headed to downtown Cotter to Natural State Fly Shop, which is located within sight of the famous Rainbow Bridge, which spans the White. We immediately struck up a conversation with renowned fly tier Ron McQuay. He is well known in fly fishing circles and Damon immediately began quizzing him about fly patterns best for the White River and how to fish them. I saw an opportunity. Minutes later I began filming the conversations between McQuay and Damon. McQuay proved to be a wealth of information. Clips from those discussions may be seen on www.Facebook.com/Outsideal-
ways. Shortly, the fly shop manager, Larry Babin, walked into the store. Introductions were short. Conversations took off like a fire doused with gasoline. We had walked into a fly fisherman’s dream come true. Babin proved to be a virtual encyclopedia of trout fishing information and we intended to glean all of it we could in a short amount of time. We planned to hook up with Larry of www.hogsonthefly.com, Matt Millner of Rising River Guides, and Taylor Wooten of www.flippinflyguides.com the following afternoon. Larry, Matt and Damon would float in Larry’s drift boat with Larry at the helm, while the other two guys fly-fished. Taylor and I would follow in a second boat. I would film the action. Damon and I spent the next morning filming pieces with Larry and Matt, and intermittently discussing what we could expect for the afternoon of fishing to come. We were primed by the time fishing time arrived. Everyone chattered nonstop as we readied the drift boats, tied on flies and double-checked the camera gear. The consensus among the fishermen in our party was to tie on a hopper in hopes of catching a big brown of ten pounds plus. I inhaled the fresh air fragrant with river smells as we pushed into the current. I made my last-second checks for light and power on my video camera. Seconds later, Larry, Matt and Damon yelled in excitement. “Did you see that fish blow up on
that hopper?” Damon had a fish on less than 75 feet from the boat ramp. It looked to be a good afternoon on the water. They all posed for photos with the beautifully-colored Brown trout. It provided a great start to the trip, but was not what we were looking for. Damon and I were on assignment for www.southerntrout.com and hoped for a monster Brown trout of 20 pounds or more.
Larry had informed us that the bite had been tougher with the high water conditions. It would be a gamble to target larger fish, but Damon knew he was facing the possibility of catching a lifetime fish. He elected to cast big hoppers and even larger streamers in hopes of hooking that one monster Brown. Respectable Browns up to 22 inches continued to fall prey to the big hoppers, but the monsters weren’t playing. Damon managed one explosive strike from a much larger fish before nightfall approached. “I saw several huge Browns that will haunt me for a long time,” Damon said. “One had to be well over 20 pounds. It is just phenomenal to be on waters that house such huge fish. “I know every cast I make has the potential to turn one of the big ones. I’ll fish until my arms fall off for that one fish.” Damon made thousands of casts over the next two days and caught plenty of trout, but no monsters. “I knew the chances of catching a really big Brown were slim, with the current water conditions, but I’d fish it every single day if I could. The big ones are there.” We were sent to the White River to gather material for a wintertime trout fishing article. With it still being summer, we relied on the guides for information and photos about wintertime trout fishing. Therefore, it proved a great adventure to gamble on catching a big Brown. Big Browns one, us zero. We shall return soon!
RiverHillsTraveler.com
October 2017 • Page 3
Schools impacting Missouri’s summer tourism
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icture it: an unseasonably cool mid-August day at a popular Missouri State Park. The campground is NOT full and the few campers present are from out of state. For a state with a passion for the outdoors and summertime fun, this seems odd, doesn’t it? Welcome to the new normal in Missouri thanks to many schools starting in early August.! Gussie Schmitz is a mother of two in Union. She has noticed this trend as well.! “Our school has gradually started earlier during the eight years I have had kids in school. It adds up to about one week earlier than when my oldest started kindergarten,” Schmitz shared.! Michelle Turner While a one-week ———— shift in eight years may not seem like much, the consequences of an earlier start date has been felt by Schmitz and her family. It has specifically had an impact upon their Missouri State Fair experience.! “When I was a kid, we went to stay with my grandparents the week before school to attend the state fair every day. Great memories! With my children, we have to make the state fair a one-day thing. Anyone who has been to the state fair knows you can’t see it all in one day,” Schmitz added. “We couldn’t go to all the events we would have liked to because of school starting.” Schmitz is not alone. Kim Siem and her husband, Bruce, operate Siem Farms in Augusta. The school district they reside in has also pushed back their start date, which conflicts with the state fair.! “As far as the kids with their 4-H and FFA projects, I know of several families that were unable to go and take their projects even though they had been county-level winners because the kids were already back in school,” Siem said. As more and more schools across Missouri are pushing for Project Based Learning and obtaining real-world 21st century skills, Siem feels the Missouri State Fair experience is just as educational as the classroom setting.! “Getting up in front of a panel of judges and giving a demonstration, showing an animal, or presenting a project is a huge boost for their confidence and helps them with their ability to speak with others down the road into adulthood,” Siem explained. “These kind of experiences should be encouraged. It certainly helps build a more well-rounded adult.” When schools start earlier, it doesn’t just conflict with the Missouri State Fair; it has an impact upon summer tourism in Missouri. Meramec Caverns has a rich history and often hits the record books as Missouri’s “most-visited” cave. Meramec Caverns president Lester Turilli said he has felt the side effects of the shift in the school year.! “The schools starting back earlier is having a negative impact on business,” Turilli said. “We used to have from Memorial Day to Labor Day, but schools are getting out later and starting earlier each year, which shortens
our season.” Another area touched by early school start dates is Missouri’s float trip industry. Franklin Floats is located in Lesterville and is one of the oldest canoe outfitters on the Upper Black River. Owner Bob Franklin has been in business for 40 years and enjoys seeing the grandchildren of some of his first customers return. However, he doesn’t enjoy the change in what many Missouri schools call “summer” these
days.! “They say that tourism is king in Missouri, but they keep pushing back the start of school. The little restaurants in Lesterville can’t pay their electric bills during the off-season with people drinking coffee daily. They depend on the tourism season, just like all the other businesses in our community,” Franklin explained.! While there are people who feel that starting school earlier in August has benefits for working parents and individuals who prefer to vacation in lateMay or early-June, the economic impact felt in communities like Lesterville is nearly palpable.! “August should be one of our peak months, but the decline starts during the back-to-school tax-free holiday. Then, as soon as schools go back, that’s when the weekday tourism dollars disappear,” Franklin added. “Those are the dollars that carry us through the rest of the year. Now, you see more and more places pushing fall weekend specials trying to recoup lost tourism dollars, thanks to the legislature in Missouri allowing schools to start too early.” According to the Missouri Department of Secondary and Elementary Education (DESE), for schools to start
more than ten days prior to the first Monday in September, there are requirements the school district must meet.! “The local school board must first give public notice of a public meeting to discuss the proposal of having an opening of school on a date more than ten days prior to the first Monday in September and the majority of the board votes to allow an earlier opening date. Public notice should specifically state the intent of the district to have an opening date that is more than ten days prior to the first Monday in September.” This information is stated in the Missouri DESE School Calendar Requirements document.! More and more individuals are speaking out against the shift in many school calendars across our state and the impact it is having. If you are one of those individuals, the big question to ask is this: Is your local school district following the above policy? Consider contacting school board members to express your concerns. If they are unwilling to examine your school district’s compliance, or lack thereof, consider contacting the Missouri Department of Education or your state representative. (Michelle Turner lives in Union, Mo.)
AROUND the WORLD with the River Hills Traveler
Karlene Hoch, 12, of Union, Mo., traveled to North Point Lighthouse in Milwaukee, Wisc., over the summer. She took a friend along with her. ——— If you're going on a trip or vacation, please take the River Hills Traveler with you and have someone photograph you and the magazine in front of a landmark or particular setting. Then email the picture to us at jimmy@riverhillstraveler.com and we will publish it an upcoming issue. You can also text photos & info to (417) 451-3798 or send them to us via our Facebook page. Thank you very much and we look forward to seeing your family’s adventures!
RiverHillsTraveler.com
Page 4 • October 2017
ONSR announces proposed fee increases for 2018
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zark National Scenic Riverways (ONSR) is proposing an increase in cave tour fees for the Round Spring Cave and camping fees for the rustic backcountry campgrounds within the park.! Additionally, the Jerktail rustic backcountry camping area is proposed to be added as a fee area. ONSR officials say the proposed rate increases are necessary in order for park camping fees to remain comparable with local privately owned businesses.!The current camping fees have not been raised in the backcountry sites since 2008.! In addition, cave tour fees have not been increased since Jimmy Sexton ———— 2003 and are signifJourney On icantly lower than other area caves. The new rates would take effect April 15, 2018. “Under the current rate structure, the camping fees and cave tour fees at Ozark Riverways are lower than some privately operated campgrounds and show caves, and we do not want to undercut these local business owners,” said ONSR Superintendent Larry Johnson. “This rate increase will help us avoid that, and will also help provide additional funding that will be used for ongoing improvements. The installation of the new concrete shower house at Alley Spring campground in July 2017 is just one example of the types of projects that can be accomplished with recreation fee revenue.” The proposed camping fees are: • Basic family backcountry campsites (limit 6 people) will go from $5 to $10 a night.
• Cluster backcountry campsite at Big Tree (7-20 people) will go from $15 to $20 a night. • Round Spring Cave tours (adults) will go from $5 to $10. • Round Spring Cave tours (children 12 and under) will go from $2 to $5. The existing rustic backcountry campgrounds are located at Big Tree, Grubb, Gooseneck, Bay Creek, Blue Spring, Rymers, Shawnee Creek, Two Rivers Primitive, Logyard, Sinking Creek, Cedar Grove, and Dee Murray. This rate increase does not apply to front country campgrounds at Alley Spring, Round Spring, Pulltite, Two Rivers and Big Spring, which will remain the same. Johnson said ONSR is able to keep the fees collected from its campgrounds and cave tours to use for improvements to visitor facilities and services such as upgrading restroom and shower facilities, maintaining trails, improving campgrounds, and educational programs for students.! To comment on the proposed rate increase, please respond by Nov. 20 to Lisa Figge at lisa_figge@nps.gov or (573) 323-8144. ——— Congratulations to the Traveler’s very own Bill Cooper, who was inducted into the 2018 Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame back in August. Cooper was born in 1949 along the banks of the Black Bayou in the Mississippi River Delta of southeast Missouri. He has experienced fishing at its finest across much of the globe. In the process he has educated and entertained countless thousands of anglers and helped them dream of those far away fishing destinations. Above all, he taught them the personal values of fishing and how to preserve the resources. As an outdoor communicator Cooper has published
over 1,500 fishing articles. He has hosted television programs and been a radio show host. In 2016, Cooper was recognized on the floor of the Missouri House of Representatives for a long and productive career of promoting hunting, fishing, and outdoor recreation through his outdoor communication efforts. Cooper has been writing for the Traveler for over 20 years, and I get comments often from people who’ve read something he’s written for us. I know I speak for our readers when I say thanks, Bill, for being part of the Traveler team. ——— Fall floaters and anglers are reminded to check on the status of Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) river accesses before heading out on a canoe trip or an evening of gigging. More than 184 MDC accesses and conservation areas were damaged in historic spring flooding. MDC staff has been working to prioritize repairs across southern Missouri. Currently, only four river accesses remain closed due to extensive flood damage. One of the accesses still not open is the Jerome Access in Phelps County. This site remains closed while MDC discusses future options for this popular Gasconade River access that has been in the bull’s eye of several recent flooding events. Most recently, the site was the victim of flooding in April. The damage report included an entrance road washed out by a deep scour hole, a parking lot surface washed away entirely, a privy’s concrete apron flipped over and moved by floodwater, a boat ramp buried under deposited gravel, and multiple scour holes at the site. Though the cause of this particular damage was a weather event the National Center for Environmental Infor-
Wishmaking hints from the old Ozarks
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ost of us are familiar with wish-making. As children we pulled apart turkey “wishbones” or pinned our hopes upon a falling star. Kids in the Ozarks used to do the same sort of stuff, but might have been even more creative with it. Thanks to the late great folklorist Vance Randolph, those old wish-making ways haven’t been forgotten, even if nobody practices them anymore. Here are a few: Wes Franklin • When you see a ———— cardinal, “throw a Native Ozarker kiss and make a wish.” If you can do that three times before the bird flies off, your wish will come true. But if you see the same bird again, it cancels it out. • If you see a cardinal in a tree, make a wish and then throw a rock toward, but not AT, the bird. If the redbird flies upward, the wish will be granted. If it flies downward, you’re out of luck. • If you see a snake trail in the dust, make a wish and spit in the track. • When you hear the first turtledove in the spring, make a wish and spin
three times on your left heel. Then take the shoe off and look for a hair inside it. If it’s the same color as your significant other’s hair, your wish will come true. • When you see a buzzard up in the sky, make a wish. If it soars out of sight without flapping its wings, your wish will be realized. • A simpler method is to make a wish and spit in your hand when you see a newborn colt. That’s all you have to do. The little colt doesn’t even have to do anything. • Also, always make a wish when you see a spotted horse, but then don’t look at the horse again, and tell someone about the wish as soon as you can. • When you see a star before dark, close your eyes, spit over your left shoulder, and make a wish. • When you’re passing train tracks and there is a yellow boxcar halted upon the tracks, make a wish. If it’s moving it won’t work, though. • If you make a wish at the bottom of a steep hill and don’t stop or look back until you walk to the top, your wish will come true. • If you’re walking somewhere you have never been before, make a wish. • When you see a woman wearing a man’s hat, make a wish. • When a wife or sweetheart is sewing a button on a man’s shirt, she
should make a wish about that man’s future and it will come true. • If you drop a comb by accident, immediately put your foot on it and make a wish. • Next time your shoelace comes untied, ask a friend to tie it for you and make a wish while they are doing it. • If you find one of your eyelashes, put it on your thumb, make a wish, and blow it away. • The first louse you ever find on a child’s head, pop it on the family Bible while making a wish about the child’s future. That’s what my mother did to me, except I think she must have mumbled. I’m just kidding about that. You can find more wish-making hints in Randolph’s great compilation, “Ozark Magic and Folklore.” He wrote many other books about the Ozarks he lived and died in, but that book is the best of his works, in my opinion. (Wes Franklin can be reached at 417658-8443 or cato.uticensis46@gmail. com.)
On the Cover
Mike Roux says decoy placement is important on opening day and becomes even more critical as the season progresses.
(photo courtesy of Mike Roux)
mation termed a “once in a millennium rainfall,” Jerome Access’ flood troubles have been much more frequent. There have been multiple closings of the site due to flooding in the past decade, the most notable being in 2013 and 2015 when the site was shut down for extended periods while significant damage was repaired. While Jerome Access is closed, the nearest MDC accesses on the Gasconade are Bell Chute Access in Maries County, near Vienna, and Riddle Bridge Access in Pulaski County, near St. Robert. Accesses currently closed for repairs due to flood damage include: • Paydown Access on the Gasconade River (Maries County). ! • Warren Bridge Access on the North Fork of the White River (Ozark County). • Cook (Flo ) Access on Bryant Creek (Ozark County). • Mrytle Access (Oregon County) on Eleven Point River (only boat ramp is closed). Mitschele Access on the Gasconade River in Pulaski County is also closed, but this closure is due to construction on Missouri Highway 7, not flood damage. ——— As always, if you have any story suggestions or something you’d like to read about in the Traveler, please call or email me. I’d love to hear from you! (Jimmy Sexton is owner and publisher of the River Hills Traveler. He can be reached at (800) 874-8423, ext. 1, or jimmy@riverhillstraveler.com.)
River Hills Traveler 212 E. Main St., Neosho, MO 64850 Phone & Fax: 800-874-8423
www.riverhillstraveler.com Email: jimmy@riverhillstraveler. com Owner & Publisher Jimmy Sexton Managing Editor Madeleine Link Circulation Manager Amanda Harvel Staff Writers Heath Wood, Wes Franklin, Mike Roux, Bill Wakefield, Bill Oder, Bill Cooper, Michelle Turner & Dana Sturgeon Advertising All of us River Hills Traveler, established in 1973, is published monthly by Sexton Media Group and Traveler Publishing Company at 212 E. Main St., Neosho, MO 64850. Postmaster: Send change of address notices to: River Hills Traveler, 212 E. Main St., Neosho, MO 64850. Subscription prices: $22 per year; 2 years, $40. Back issues available up to one year from publication, $5 plus sales tax & shipping. COPYRIGHT © 2017 No part of this publication may be reproduced without the express written permission of the publisher of the River Hills Traveler or his duly appointed agent. The publisher reserves the right to reject any advertising or editorial submission for any reason.
RiverHillsTraveler.com
October 2017 • Page 5
VINTAGE OZARKS: Table Rock Bluff in the 1940s, before the dam
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able Rock Dam was not built at Table Rock, but about two miles upstream, a site the Corps of Engineers considered would be better from an engineering standpoint.! Empire District Electric had announced soon after the completion of Powersite Dam, creating Lake Taneycomo, that they would build a larger dam at Table Rock. Shown here is a photo from Table Rock Bluff in the 1940s. Still no dam. The federal government ultimately took dam building away from private compa-
nies in the late 1930s. World War II and then Korea delayed construction of many projects. Again, local dam advocates became nervous that the feds would repeat the stalling tactics of Empire District Electric. (This feature is courtesy of Leland and Crystal Payton at Lens & Pen Press, publishers of all-color books on the Ozarks. Their new book, James Fork of the White, is available from the publisher at www.beautifulozarks.com. Some pages from this book can be seen
From the October archives of the River Hills Traveler: 5 years ago • Do you believe in ghosts? Do I? Maybe I do and maybe I don't. My husband, Howard, believes — as is dad and grandpa before him. All were of English and American Indian ancestry and were of the opinion that deceased spirits roamed the earth. Let me remind you how different families spent their evenings in that long, long ago. After supper, men and boys retired to their private world while women and girls cleaned up the table. Howard often recalled stories his elders told. (Verna Simms) • It's not your normal hunting club. The clients have far more stalking and marksmanship skills than most of the guides. Everyone shares a common bond of former military service. And, oh yeah, all who hunt, fish or simply enjoy wandering the property have experienced a traumatic, life-threatening injury to assure our freedom to enjoy such pastimes. (Doug Smith) 10 years ago • On a lark, I turned right instead of left to take a different path to work. It was winter and sunny, and a nice day for a drive. My mind was roaming from one thought to another as I looked up and down the street. Suddenly, I saw her. She looked like what I was wanting and she looked cheap, too. She was standing in front of Three Amigos Cycle, Ski and Boat Shop. A 14-foot john boat; an older model with a nice trailer and an older 10-horse motor. I watched her in the mirror as I sped down the street to work. I couldn't get my mind off her. I had been thinking of getting a boat for some time now. As I paddled around in my canoe exile duck hunting, I would see other hunters, nice and cozy, sitting on their cushy seats with cam netting draped around them, sipping their coffee and warming their hands over small propane heaters. (Zenon Duda) • The Friends of Marble Creek Campground have
on www.beautifulozarks.com. Their earlier river book, Damming the Osage, can
REMEMBER WHEN
done an outstanding job in keeping this wonderful Forest Service campground open this past summer. This new group has a number of outstanding volunteers cleaning and maintaining the area. The dry, hot summer did not keep the campers away. Although never close to capacity and without any potable water or electric, the campers were able to have a great time enjoying the park, the adjoining Ozark Trail and, of course, the cool water of Marble Creek for swimming, wading and small stream fishing. (Robert E. Sliger) 15 years ago • I'm not a bad fisherman, but I didn't hook a single bass on Saturday night of Labor Day Weekend. Larry Umfleet, fishing with me, caught about 20. Larry has Piedmont Meat Processing and he works hard. Well, he fishes hard, too, for he gets out pretty regularly to challenge Clearwater Lake's bass at night. (Bob Todd) • Josh was brimming with confidence when he came to get me from my deer stand. Earlier that morning, he had borrowed my climber to bow hunt over a fresh scrape on a nearby ridge. A gimme shot at an eightpoint buck was the source of his giddiness. He was so sure of his shot, he elected to leave his bowhunting gear behind rather than carry it back out the ridge. The morning was warming quickly, and he said he didn't want to be burdened with gear once we found his buck. (Charlie Slovensky) 20 years ago • Climbing over, under and between jumbo geological formations is an unforgettable hands-on history lesson. Worn granite bedrock in the Ozark heritage region
be at seen www.dammingtheosage. com.)
of Missouri, now shaped into impressive boulders, affords a keyhole's view to nature's and man's past. (Kathy-Jo Facteau) 30 years ago • A year ago, I publicly voiced skepticism that many hunters would apply themselves sufficiently to be able to take two turkeys during Missouri's first two-bird fall season. I based my prediction on my own experiences in hunting fall turkeys. My success rate hadn't been much over fifty per cent during the two-week, one-bird seasons, so I didn't figure I'd get two birds without a lot of hard hunting and some fabulous good fortune. (Bob Todd) 35 years ago • We could write a book about what to do when it rains, following our experiences this season. We had planned a float on the St. Francois River but as we headed to our put-in, it was apparent we'd have to do something else. Second-terrance fields are the high ones in a river valley that never flood. Deep water in them tells you there's been another cloudburst and that water will soon be going down the river as another flood. (Bod Todd) 40 years ago • We started out on the hike with the objective of gathering some fine, scenic views and to report to you on the features of the new hiking trail at Crane Lake. But frequent rains during September soon diverted our attention. For rains had produced a bloom of mushrooms, toadstools and other fungi that commanded our attention. (Bob Todd) • By a treaty of questionable validity, the Osage sold nearly all of southern Missouri to the U.S. government in 1808. It was supposed to be a permanent settlement, and for a little while, it appeared to be just that. It was working to the satisfaction of both the Osage and the new U.S. government. (Bob Todd) (compiled by MyraGale Sexton)
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Plenty of uses for hickory nuts
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To the Editor, received this question from a gentleman in Neosho, Mo., in response to one of my columns in this publication, and thought I would share it with you, along with my answer. • Question: Just wanted to ask you a question about hickory nuts. I have several hickory nut trees in my yard and I was wondering if there’s anything useful that I can do with the nuts, whether it’s as bait for squirrel hunting or whatever. Or, maybe I should just rake them up and dispose of them in the burn pile? It is something I’ve been wondering
about for a while and I thought you would be the person to ask. I don’t like having possible resources going to waste. • Answer: It is good to hear someone say that. Today’s generation wastes so much. For instance, there were 14 male cousins in my family and we would save all hickory nuts, and when we got together for Thanksgiving at my grandparents farm, we would divide up into two or three groups and have hickory nut fights, throwing them at each other! We also used persimmons, rotten apples, etc. Here on Lightnin’ Ridge you could never have a good hickory nut fight at
Thanksgiving because the darn squirrels have decimated them by then. Back during my boyhood, Grandpa harvested squirrels enough to save some hickory nuts somewhat and we often ate “hickory grove chicken” for dinner, except on Sundays when we ate real chicken. Go to a computer somewhere, (many neighbors will have one) and look up “hickory nut harvesting and use” and you won’t believe what you find. It is amazing. There is even a hickory nut
pie recipe. They give all kinds of uses for the meat and the shells both. It’s pages and pages of great hickory information. But I am not sure that the best thing a hickory tree offers isn’t the squirrels it attracts. I would like to forget the uses my Grandma made of small-diameter hickory limbs she referred to as switches! Larry Dablemont, Southwest Missouri