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VOL. 46, NO. 9
FEBRUARY 2019
A memorable first day float O By Richard Whiteside ver the years I have spent the first day of the year on some creek or river somewhere in the Ozarks. Little Black, Current River, Sinking Creek, Big Barren and Eleven Point River are some of the streams I have brought in the new year floating on. This year we were back on old faithful — the Current River. The float would be from Pulltite access to Round Spring access and boy was it a nice one.! I want to encourage anybody that is reading this to consider this experience next year.!You will float with
Journey thru the Ozarks By MATTIE LINK
mattie@riverhillstraveler.com _____________
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wo centuries ago a young mineralogist, Henry Schoolcraft — on his way to becoming a pre-eminent ethnologist (studier of culture) — traveled into the wilderness, which was not at the time known as the Ozarks. Traveling with his companion, another young man in his twenties, Levi Pettibone, Schoolcraft’s three months of documentation are the earliest record of early 19th century culture and resources of the recent Louisiana Purchase. With that being said, Eric “Rick” Mansfield, an author and storyteller in Missouri, has begun the journey of following Schoolcraft’s footsteps, recreating his walk through the Ozarks. “I first heard of Schoolcraft at
and meet some very very neat human beings. Anybody that loves Ozarks streams enough to brave the weather on the first day of the year to float is going to be worth meeting in my book. The entire group number I believe was around 35 people. Meeting in the lobby of Echo Bluff State Park we gathered and sorted out the details and we were off. First order of business was to get people and their vehicles shuttled and that went very smoothly. No shuttle fees were required, everybody just kinda chipped in and one hour later we were all on the water. Feeling the pull of the current was a welcome feeling. Being surrounded by people who truly have a love for
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Ozarks streams was icing on the cake. This trip consisted of paddling instructors, awardwinning river stewards, long-time National Park ServPlease see FLOAT, 18
Absorbed by an Ozarks River
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By Ronnie Moore n a world where everything seems so harsh, it’s nice to find the time to get back to living at a slower pace. But plans don’t always work out and changes are made. We had people considering passing on this trip late in the game. I had the same thoughts myself; nothing seemed to be working out as usual, but still we pressed on. Standing on the bank of the river that Friday morning with a canoe loaded with three days worth of supplies, I still had reservations. But I was with three of the best guys you could possibly float with. We shoved off and let the river swallow us up. It was the same trip we’d just completed a Please see RIVER, 19
Please see TREK, 17 An Ozarks smallmouth takes a breather after being released.
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Winchester .30-30 is my first, and still favorite, rifle
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n the November issue of the River Hills Traveler, Jeffery Shoults wrote the legend of the old .30-30. rifle. What a great article. I happen to have a Winchester .30-30 and it was my very first deer rifle. I moved to Newton County, Mo., in 1985 and at that time I had not owned a rifle other than a .22 cal. When my wife went to work she became friends with one of her co-workers, so we became friends with her and her husband. I don’t remember just when but Jerry B. took me hunting for my first time with a rifle which he loaned me. It was a great time for me and I will not soon forget that time. Some time later the man I worked for, Jerry V., asked me if I would care to go hunting with him. I explained that I did not own a hunting rifle. Tom He had quite a Boydston collection of rifles ———— which he showed me. I was very impressed. He said take your pick, you can use any one you like. Thanks, but I would spend more time worrying about the rifle than hunting. I had done that once before, and did not want to take that chance. My friend had loaned me a rifle once, and I worried about that. Well, that next week he went to Wyoming on a elk hunt. He left me in charge of the shop which, of course, made me feel real special, being fairly
new to the company. That evening after work, when I got to my truck, there on the seat lay a Winchester .30-30 with a box of ammo and a note saying, “This is for you to keep, I do not want it back.” I never did go hunting with him. Soon after that time, he moved to Wyoming. That was my first rifle, and is still my favorite. A couple years ago I bought a .270, but when deer season comes around, guess what rifle I use! Thanks, Mr. Shoults, for that article as it reminded me of this memory. For firearm season, I was out there with my trusty .30-30. Opening day for firearms deer season is always a much anticipated day by many, including myself. It was a beautiful morning even though it was only 18 degrees. The woods came to life about the time the sun came up. Geese flying high heading south, hawks circling overhead, crows moving from tree to tree talking to each other with a lot of noise. Squirrels looking for acorns they had hidden earlier not remembering where they hid them. And myself watching for deer. By 8:30 I had not seen a thing. There were several close shots. As the day wore on I heard more shots, but I never saw a single deer. After six hours I gave up for the day. There is always tomorrow, I thought. The next day I was hoping for some luck. Another very nice day, but the results were the same as the day before. No deer. After seven hours I gave up and went in. Well, it was only the second day. Never give up. Another day for the hunt. Got up early, had some coffee and a bite to eat, and watched some news. Mostly bad news. Stepped outside to check the weather, and it had just started to rain. I was hoping it would stop before I headed for my stand. I really didn’t want to start out wet. Just before I left the house it stopped raining and began to snow. This I did not mind at all. By the time I reached
my stand it was coming down pretty good. About 7:45 three does came out of thick woods and messed around under my stand for over twenty minutes. I was hoping, possibly, a buck would appear soon. Well, it never happened. I really like the snow, so what if I didn’t see a buck. But finally it came down so heavy all my gear was getting really wet, and I was getting wet and cold. I can’t take it like I use to. So, to the house I headed. When I got there my wife said I looked like a snowman. I went in to get warm and get out of my wet clothes. I wasn’t thinking (as usual) and got snow all over the floor, which did not go over very well with my wife. (Sorry, kid). Our heat is with a wood stove only, which we like very well. When you come in cold and wet, you can back up to the stove and get warm and dry real quick. I have no clue what it would be like any other way. I put all my clothes and
gear on chairs around the stove to dry out, and it didn’t take long. Well, the last day came and I spent the entire day hunting. I would have gladly taken a doe if one came by. But nothing. Now I wish I had shot one of the does I had seen earlier. Well, that’s how it goes some years. Back to the bow. (Tom Boydston lives in Neosho, Mo., and can be reached by text at 417-4396048.)
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National parks suffering due to shutdown
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love our national parks. Some of my favorite memories were created in these national treasures. It’s only natural that my heart breaks when I see the negative impact to our national parks during the partial government shutdown. Images of damage caused by unauthorized off-road use, vandalism, illegal camping, and vast amounts of trash and human waste have upset me. I am not alone; many others who support our public lands are just as heartbroken. Take, for instance, the unsupervised visitors at Joshua Tree. Vandals cut the locks on the entrance gates to enter the park. From there, they proceeded to cut down Joshua trees and off-road in pro- Michelle Turner tected areas causing ———— irreversible damage. Public outrage has been voiced across our nation. It’s easy to feel helpless when stories like this make the news, but I firmly believe that each individual has the power to make a difference. Every good deed, no matter how small it may seem, can add up to create a positive change. Here are three suggestions for minimizing harm and reversing any damage caused by others during times when our public lands remain unprotected: #1 — Donate to the National Park Foundation’s Restoration Fund. This fund will provide support to national parks to help them recover from the damage that has occurred. You can find them at www.nationalparks.org. #2 — When shopping for that perfect gift for yourself or a loved one, check out www.parksproject.us. Parks Project
offers a variety of awesome items for park lovers, with an excellent perk. They give back to the national parks. By working directly with over 30 different park conservancies across America, they do more than simply writing a check. They have restored 3,960 feet of hiking trails in Yellowstone, provided 9,886 Junior Ranger badges in Zion, and helped restore 62 acres in Great Smoky Mountains. This is just a sample of the work that the Parks Project has done and continues to do thanks to purchases from people like you and me. #3 — Use common sense and practice stewardship. When and if a public land is closed, don’t enter it. If you can enter, but find that it is unstaffed, lend a hand. This is YOUR public land, after all! If the trash can is overflowing, certainly don’t try to pack more trash into it. Come prepared with trash bags to not only pack out your own trash, but also the trash that others have left behind. With that said, stewardship is more than removing waste, it is leaving what you find as you found it. Creating your own new off-road trail or campsite disturbs protected areas of our national parks. Just because a ranger or official isn’t there to tell you NOT to do it, doesn’t mean you should. (Michelle Turner lives in Union, Mo.)
Inside these pouches are bracelets that Michelle Turner won from a Parks Project Instagram contest! She and her daughter took them along for a photo op to Cabrillo National Monument in September 2018 just outside of San Diego.
AROUND the WORLD with the River Hills Traveler
Laurel Sexton, of Neosho, Mo., recently traveled to Chicago as part of a Crowder College Upward Bound program trip. 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 somewhere pretty neat. Then email the picture & info to us at jimmy@riverhillstraveler.com and we will publish it an upcoming issue. You can also text your photos & info to (417) 451-3798 or send them to us via our Facebook page.
Thank you very much & we look forward to seeing your family’s adventures!
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Everyday life customs in the early history of the Ozarks
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iver Hills Traveler staff writer Wes Franklin often opines about Missouri folklore — as he did this month at the bottom of this page. He's not the only one interested in Ozarks folklore and legends, as I often receive email and comments from people telling me they read this or that in the magazine and offering some of their own folklore. Marriage, funerals, hunting and religion were also subject to unique customs in the Ozarks, according to David Burton, county engagement specialist in community development with University of Jimmy Sexton Missouri Extension. ———— Here are some of Journey On thoughts Burton had recently on a variety of Ozarks customs:
MARRIAGE Regarding courtship and marriage customs, early Ozarkers referred to courting as "they're talking." Ozarkers also believed it was best to get married in a room where the boards ran long-ways in front of you if you want to stay married. Wedding garments were white ("marry in white and you'll always be right"). At the bride's house, they had a dinner and although dancing was a religious taboo, they did allow a wedding dance. On the next day after the wedding, there was a dinner at the groom's house. FUNERALS Funerals were long and drawn out and were often held in the home. "Because there was no embalming you had to bury quickly in warm
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weather. The funeral process included a big dinner, singing about 20 songs in mourning over the casket, and graveyard preaching," said Burton. HOSPITALITY There were unique Scot-Irish expressions of hospitality. For example, "Come in and eat a dirty bite," "Come in and see how our poor folks live," and "Come down to our shack and stay. It leaks awful but we let the visitors sleep in the dry spot." Moonshining was plentiful, but there was more of it in Kentucky than in the Ozarks. Alcohol produced in the Ozarks region was often called "White Mule" (called this because of its kick and being almost pure alcohol). "The early Ozarks never resembled the Wild West: they bootlegged but never had the saloons and whiskey killings of the Wild West," said Burton.
BUTCHERING Most Ozarkers lived off the land, taking advantage of the area's abundant fish and turkeys, rabbits and squirrels. Hogs could be butchered and packaged for $5, and turkeys were herded like cattle. In fact, Springfield was a henraising area and Crane annually hosted its Broiler Festival. Country ham was cured using salt and brown sugar. Red pepper was used to keep away the insects. The ham was slowly smoked for two to three weeks with sassafras and hickory bark. After butchering, soaps were made with the renderings and cracklings when mixed with lye (lye was made by pouring water through wood ashes). RELIGION Most religious customs in the Ozarks (baptizing in the river and brush arbor prayer meetings) came from the Baptist and Methodist traditions of Tennessee. Favorite old songs included "Amazing
Grace" and "How Sweet the Sound." Circuit riders (preachers who rode between churches) often used the phrase of May Kennedy McCord to caution their arrival, namely, "If the Lord willin' and the Creek don't rise."
OZARKS REGION The early Ozarks of the late 19th to early 20th century was much more rural than it is now. "Over 3 million people currently live in the 92 counties of Missouri, Arkansas, Kansas and Oklahoma that make up the region known as the Ozarks," said Burton. Four rivers make up the boundaries of the Ozarks: the Mississippi to the east, the Missouri to the north, the Arkansas to the south, and the Neosho to the west. ——— Another topic readers of the Traveler enjoy is trees — specifically Missouri champion trees. Bill Oder wrote an excellent article on page 13 of this issue about a National Champion White Basswood tree at Missouri Botanical Garden in St. Louis. And speaking of trees, the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) back in December crowned a new state champion American sycamore tree in Hannibal. MDC Forester David Vance presented a Missouri Champion Tree plaque to Linda Coleberd, who owns the land where the tree stands along Cave Hollow Drive at the Mark Twain Cave Complex. Sycamores attain the largest size of any deciduous tree in the U.S. and constitute an integral part of Missouri’s streamside habitats.! Vance noticed the behemoth tree when he was visiting the Mark Twain Cave Complex, assisting staff with installation of a nearby nature trail. Vance took an official measurement
Ozarks folklore for making wishes
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.! When you see a cardinal, “throw a kiss and make a Wes Franklin wish.” If you can do ———— that three times beNative Ozarker fore the bird flies off, your wish will come true. But if you see the same bird again, it cancels it out. Or, 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 be sure 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 by email at cato.uticensis46@gmail.com, or by USPS mail at 12161 Norway Road, Neosho, MO 64850.)
On the Cover Richard Whiteside’s canoe gets away from him near the Riverton access on the Eleven Point River. (See story on page 8)
using a uniform formula to assess a point value to big trees. The formula, which accounts for the tree’s height, crown spread, and trunk size, scored 389 points for the sycamore on Coleberd’s property – with a 244-inch circumference, 108-foot height, and 146-foot crown spread. If a tree is within four-points of a current champion, it becomes a cochampion. Two other American sycamore trees in Missouri currently share the title of co-champion with this tree in Hannibal – one on Pacific Palisades Conservation Area in St. Louis, and the other on private property in Perry County.! Coleberd’s family has owned the property where this tree grows for more than a century. Prior to her family’s purchase of the property, Mark Twain frequently visited the cave complex which provided inspiration for his stories, including The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. “There’s no way to tell exactly how old the tree is,” said Vance. “The closest way without cutting it down is to multiply the diameter by the growth factor – sycamore has a factor of four – and you get 311 years.! "Since there are many different environmental factors that play into how fast a tree grows, you could probably add or subtract 50 years. So it’s possible that this tree was around when Mark Twain was exploring the area.” (Jimmy Sexton is owner and publisher of the River Hills Traveler. He can be reached by phone or text at (417) 451-3798, or jimmy@riverhillstraveler.com.)
River Hills Traveler 212 E. Main St., Neosho, MO 64850 Phone: (417) 451-3798 Fax: (417) 451-5188
www.riverhillstraveler.com Email: jimmy@riverhillstraveler. com Owner & Publisher Jimmy Sexton Managing Editor Madeleine Link Circulation Manager Rhonda Sexton Staff Writers Wes Franklin • Mike Roux Bill Wakefield • Bill Oder Judy Smith • Michelle Turner Dana Sturgeon • Bill Hoagland Richard Whiteside • Ronnie Moore Advertising Jimmy Sexton & Madeleine Link
River Hills Traveler, established in 1973, is published monthly by Sexton Media Group and Traveler Publishing Company. 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 © 2019 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.
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VINTAGE OZARKS:
McMurtry Spring Head of Flat Creek
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e acquired this outstanding real photo postcard after the publication of James Fork of the White or it would have been a halfpage illustration in our book. The front identifies the spring as being two-anda-half miles south of Cassville, Mo. Like many real photo postcards of this era, it is exquisitely exposed and sharp focused. Flat Creek is the longest tributary of the James River. Access to it is limited and it isn’t much fished or floated compared to the James between Springfield and Galena. Quoting from our book on the James (page 94): “Cherokees rested here on their Trail of Tears journey, and it was a well-known camping spot for settlers
5 years ago • We had planned this Missouri River trip from Kansas City to Rulo, Neb., for several months. Walter, his brother Carl, and I originally planned to go with the Kansas City Boat City Boat Club, but due to a severe storm and heavy rains between St. Joseph and Kansas City, the club canceled. Our plans had ben fermenting for months. Come driftwood or big water, we were still going to go. (Fred Ohrazda) • When I was a kid, and just had to go fishing, my bait store, regardless of the season, lay just outside my front door — a worm or a grasshopper… or maybe a crawdad or minnow from the creek across the road. Or even a locust if the hatch was right. And before I owned my first rod and reel, I made do with a cane pole. I strung it with a length of baling twine, hung a rusty bolt or nut for a sinker, and attached whatever hook I could scrounge up. Let me make a confession before I go any farther. I never was much of a fisherman. Never intended to be. But I had the love. (Steve Parsons) 10 years ago • They’ve been associated with misfortune and death, wisdom and prosperity. Some Native American tribes have associated them with evil and witchcraft; other tribes have considered them to be the carriers of the spirits of tribal elders. Owls have played a part in human history and mythology since prehistoric times when men depicted them on cave walls. Maybe owls have so many cultural roles all over the world because they are so ubiquitous. Owls are found in all regions of the earth except Antarctica, most of Greenland, and few remote islands. They are successful in so many areas
Real photo postcard. Postmarked “Cassville, September 17, 1910.“ Hinchey Photo.
coming to Cassville to trade. Missouri highway 37, which runs next to the spring, was once the Old Wire (telegraph) Road. Both sides in the Civil War traveled this road and watered their horses here.” The little stone springhouse is still
there, but the spring today is enclosed by a circular rock and concrete wall. (This feature is courtesy of Leland and Crystal Payton at Lens & Pen Press, publishers of all-color books on the Ozarks. Their next book, Lover’s Leap Legends, was inspired by their
REMEMBER WHEN
because they have adapted to be extremely skillful hunters. (Josephine Cozean Styron) • We had come to Ponca, Ark., in midafternoon, four men from St. Louis down to float the Buffalo — a wild river flowing between rocky cliffs in the Ozark Mountains. It was Mother’s Day weekend, and I meant to be home in time to take my wife to dinner. The sun played cops and robbers among snowy clouds, and breezes turned willows into wind chimes. Our group included Wayne, a doctor; Tom, a dentist; Jimmy, a trout-farmer; and me, a newspaper columnist. (William Childress) 15 years ago • I’ve often wondered what would happen if both of us had good fish on and we were being swept into something by the current. Now, I know. It isn’t heroic. The Eleven Point River, like all Ozark rivers, was very low as we moved over into October. Between Riverton and Highway 142, where Roy ad I were floating, there was still more than ample water for floating. But regardless of the size of a stream, low water forces most of the flow into a narrower chute when you come to a riffle area. That was the case this day. Instead of picking an easy way down through the shallows, we had to run the canoe pretty close to the main current if we wanted to keep our feet dry... and use some care if we wanted to keep everything else dry. (Bob Todd) • Take a look at the cover this month.
It had two crappie on it, and if fishermen could tell the difference in them as easily in the field as they can on the cover, life would be easier for Conservation Department Biologist Mark Boone. The two crappie on the cover are two separate species. Black crappie are more spotted. White crappie have spots that tend to line up in bars. But both are managed under a single regulation and this creates a major complication for Mark, who is trying to manage crappie in Lake Wappapello. (Bob Todd) 20 years ago • It had been mid-May when Roy and I got into a pack of hungry largemouth bass on Current River. It was one of those 45-minute sessions that justified an otherwise slow fishing day. As we floated from Round Spring to Jerktail, we hoped for a repeat. It was May again, the right time, but we found only limited success. Current River is better mown for smallmouth bass, of course, but we have a theory on those largemouths. Because there is so little suitable spawning habitat for largemouths in this swift, spring-fed river, at spawning time the largemouths that do live in the river congregate in just a few places. Find them there, feeding, and it is one of those situations where you have a hard time getting a lure back to the canoe without a strike. (Bob Todd) • Black silhouettes hung in the sky above us like so many ebony ghosts. Unmistakeable wing flaps gave the invaders away. Mallards! Few sights and sounds in the wild conjure the emotions of ducks, with cupped wings, settling toward a decoy spread. Seldom do moments in hunting spur the anticipation created in an early morning duck blind. Duck blinds are made to share with companies of both the two- and fourfooted persuasion. I have shared blinds with several of each of the highest qual-
discovery that both the Osage and James rivers had Lover’s Leaps. Mark Twain’s satiric comments on those legends added motivation and they have found Lover’s Leaps across the country.)
ity. Yet, sharing a waterfowl blind with a single companion, a Lab, is one of my ultimate foibles, as it is among most serious waterfowlers. (Bill Cooper) 30 years ago • Taking a January float trip requires a great deal of planning and weather watching. Taking a combination January float trip, trout fishing trip and overnight campout requires a great deal more planning and weather watching! Three friends, Bob Laney of St. James, Bob Wheeler of Doolottle, and Phil Eudaly of Rolla, and I started in December planning a float/camp trip on the upper Meramec for the second weekend in January. (Bill Cooper) • When one thinks of grace and beauty the swan has to be one of the first things that come to mind. Missouri was once visited by hundreds of these magnificent white birds during migration, but now...? Young swans were produced at Mingo National Wildlife Refuge this past summer. And although additional stocking has ended there is hope swans will be part of the Missouri scene into the future. 40 years ago • In 1809 an English naturalist by the name of John Bradbury was commissioned by the British Botanical Society to research plant life in the United States. He was apparently the only scientist present in the vicinity of New Madrid two years later when the great earthquakes of 1811-1812 began. (Bob Todd) • In the country, every day has a meaning. These snowy and icy days have a particular meaning all their own. It is impossible to do any work outside, and we have had so many of these days back to back that just about all the inside work has completely drifted down to the local restaurant and just sit and talk. (Jack Leiweke) (compiled by MyraGale Sexton)
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What I learned at the fishing show in January
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have been attending the Let’s Go Fishing Show in Collinsville, Illinois, for many years. For the last couple of years I have had the privilege of working with the Sexton family in the River Hills Traveler’s booth. Attending the fishing show is something that I look forward to. The attendees that come to this show are an eclectic group of people. There are obviously the hardcore fisherman. This group usually comes in pairs. These two friends have probably been fishing together for years. They wear faded, well-worn hats, flannel shirts and blue jeans. Their faces and hands are still tanned from the many hours they have spent on the water chasing their favorite quarry. If you look closely you could see a slight smile peaking out beneath Bill Wakefield their beards as if ———— they know secrets that no one else knows. Many do not carry the tote bag offered by show officials to carry the many pamphlets and products that the 130-plus vendors at the show are passing out or selling. They know exactly what they are looking for and there is no need to carry a bag around. Then there is the group that have been fishing for a relative short time or would like to get started. Some arrive in packs of three, four or five individuals. There is always discussions within the group on what to do and where to go. Some want to explore the many boats on display, others what to cruise the booths that have the latest and fancy fishing rods, reels and tackle, and then there are those who want to go to the beer garden for food and drink. In this group also falls the individual person who may be accompanied by either his wife or girlfriend. This group will visit almost every booth and the tote bag that they carry is full of information and some of the latest tackle and baits that he or she hopes will improve this newfound passion for fishing. Sometimes they purchase a new fishing rod and it becomes an instant device to point out the different types of spinners, jerk baits, soft plastics and topwater baits to his companion and they marvel at how pretty and realistic they look. Members of all the various groups attend the informative seminars that are
presented by some of the most knowledgeable and experienced fishermen around. The people that I enjoy watching the most are the families. Father, mother and two or three children that are under 12 years of age. The boys are glued to their father’s side. Some are even dressed like their fathers. They explore the hundreds of displayed lures and fishing rods, pointing out the one that they think could help dad or them catch that special fish. Every once in a while you see a child carrying a fishing rod and reel that the parents have bought for him or her. You can see the happiness and pride on their faces as they carry their new fishing pole for everyone to see. There was an exhibitor that performed facepainting and many of the young girls had their faces done with unique and colorful designs. Both the boys and girls were attracted to the exhibitors that had on display mounted fish, such as large striped bass, crappie, trout and muskies. There was a booth across from where I was sitting that had a mounted large cock pheasant on display and almost every child that walked by had to stop and admire this brilliantly colored bird. As in every crowd there is one individual that stands out that you will remember for a long time. For me it was a little girl, maybe 18 to 20 months old. The little girl was wearing a walking harness the mother needed because the girl did not walk but ran everywhere. The little girl must have recently learned some new words because she said “goodbye” and waved to everyone — and I do mean to everyone. This youngster had so much energy and a smile that was so infectious that every person she waved to and said
Wyatt Sexton, son of River Hills Traveler owner Jimmy Sexton, spent much of the show handing out January issues of the Traveler to vendors and show attendees.
goodbye to responded back with a wave, goodbye and a big smile. My partner and wife, Carol, asked me why I like going to the fishing show so early in the year when I usually don’t go fishing until March, and why I like sitting in the River Hills Traveler’s booth for hours talking to people. The short answer is the show itself and what it has to offer, and I also like to help in promoting the River Hills Traveler magazine. The long answer is the Let’s Go Fishing Show offers me POSSIBILITIES. And I believe that everyone needs hope and possibilities. The first possible opportunities exist in the River Hills Traveler’s booth itself. I have been a reader of this magazine since Bob and Pat Todd were the publishers and primary writers. Emery Styron became the publisher after the Todds decided to retire. When Emery wanted to sell the magazine and
move back to Iowa a man from Neosho, Missouri, named Jimmy Sexton stepped in to keep the magazine alive. If a person happened to stop by the River Hills Traveler’s booth on Saturday they had a chance to meet Jimmy Sexton and some of his children — Mattie, Myra and Wyatt. The possible future of this magazine may lies with them. I had the privilege of visiting with Bill Hoagland when he stopped by the booth. Bill is one of the writers for the Traveler who has multiple talents, knowledge and experiences concerning the outdoors, hiking, fishing and people. There is a good possibility that he will share this information with the readers of the Traveler. I also had a conversation with Captain Ben Goebel who runs the River City Catfishing Guide Service. The young Captain Goebel has many possibilities to offer. Fishing with Goebel a person has the possibility to catch a really large fish, somewhere between 75-100 pounds. The Captain also preaches and practices sound catfish conservation which supports the possibility of providing more and larger catfish in the future. There is also the possibility that Cap-
Please see SHOW, 16