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VOL. 46, NO. 11
MAY 2019
www.riverhillstraveler.com
Hunting turkeys in the soggy bottom
MISSOURI DESTINATIONS
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By Mike Roux f you hunt spring gobblers long enough you will certainly face bad weather at some point. Spring rains are the most common weather problem this time of year. I have spent many April dawns huddled under a cedar tree or hopefully in a blind. Some of these mornings ended in success. Many others just ended with a towel. On opening day of the 2018 Illinois turkey season the conditions were horrid. It was as bad a morning for turkey hunting as I have ever experienced. It had rained for the previous 48-hours. There was 4 inches of sticky gumbo mud to wade through, and the icing on the cake were winds that gusted up to 40 miles per hour. My Pastor Bob Cowman had agreed to acPlease see TOMS, 19
State park system turns 102
Onondaga Cave
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This breathtaking natural wonder is one of Missouri’s best places to visit By MATTIE LINK
mattie@riverhillstraveler.com _____________
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nondaga Cave State Park is a National Natural Landmark that offers tours of the cave, another cave, camping with electric/water hookups, basic tent camping, three trails, and two-day use access along the Meramec River. “We offer tours daily from midApril through mid-October and we
also feature another cave at our park, Cathedral Cave,” said Maria Potter, natural resource manager of Onondaga Cave State Park in Leasburg, Mo. Limited handheld light tours of Cathedral Cave are offered from mid-May through the middle of September on the weekends. “We have three trails at the main park complex as well as one trail at Vilander Bluff Natural area in Bour-
bon, and our park has two-day use areas along the Meramec River for swimming, boating and general river access,” said Potter.
Please see CAVE, 18
issouri State Parks celebrated its 102nd birthday on April 9.! In honor of its birthday, here is a little history about Missouri State Parks. One hundred two years ago, the!state park fund was officially created, using revenue from the fish and game department. With the fund established, the fish and game department became responsible for the parks once they were acquired. In 1923, the state acquired the historic Arrow Rock Tavern, and 1924, the first state Please see PARKS, 19
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Add this Civil War battle site to your summer travel plans
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By Dennis Bresnahan ne of the most obscure and least-known areas in Missouri is the site of the Civil War Battle of Belmont.! Fought on Nov. 7, 1861, it could have had a major impact on the outcome of the Civil War.! Newly-appointed General Ulysses S. Grant, in one of his first battles, was surrounded, trapped and almost captured or killed.! ! He barely escaped after a quick victory in Belmont, Missouri, but had to retreat to Paducah, Kentucky, after the Confederates reorganized and were reinforced.! The South considered the battle a victory. I first found out about the Battle of Belmont when visiting Columbus-Belmont State Park in Columbus, Kentucky, which is directly across the Mississippi River from Belmont.! It was the site of Confederate Fort DeRussey. At this state park you can find out all about this battle and the Civil War in general.! There is a museum and interpretive center in an antebellum farmhouse that served as a Confederate hospital during
the war.! Besides the usual cannon that decorates most Civil War sites, there is an unusual attraction.!A section of a huge, giant chain is on display that was more than a mile long with 11-inch links and an anchor weighing between four and six tons.! It was originally stretched across the Mississippi River from the fort to Belmont, and held up by pontoons.!It was supposed to prevent the passage of Union gunboats but was soon broken.! It sat at the bottom of the river until 1925 when it was rediscovered.!The
Flowering dogwood
The flowering dogwoods are in bloom and they seem to light up the woods along the Mark Twain National Forest roads. According to the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service’s plant guide, the flowering dogwood is a valuable tree for many reasons. Its bark was used by Native Americans as a pain and fever reducer, skin astringent, and antidiarrheal agent. It is a valuable food plant for wildlife because high calcium and fat contents make it palatable. Many bird and mammal species consume the seeds, while deer, bear, and rabbits have been known to browse the leaves and sprouts. Its wood is hard, strong, and shock resistant and has been used to make tool handles and specialty items like golf club heads, roller skate wheels, and knitting needles. The flowering dogwood is Missouri’s state tree.
Join us on the river! In June the River Hills Traveler will publish its 10th annual Ozarks Float Trippin’ camping & floating guide reaching over 65,000 people! If you would like to advertise in it, or submit a story & photos of your floating & camping trips in Missouri, please contact us by May 22!
River Hills Traveler Phone & text: (417) 451-3798 Email: jimmy@riverhillstraveler.com
park also has picnic areas, a campground,!gift shop, and conference center. The Battle of Belmont site can be found by exiting Interstate 55 at exit 58 and going east on Highway 80 through East Prairie, Missouri, until it crosses Highway 77 and then becomes a gravel road and ends at the Mississippi River. Just south of here on Highway 77 is Towosahgy State Park, a small park with Indian Mounds, and Big Oak Tree State Park where you can find some of the largest champion trees in Missouri.!Both are worth seeing while you are in the area. When you get to the Belmont site, don’t expect much.!The town of Belmont was founded in 1853 and was washed away by a flood in 1937.! All that remains today are some interpretive signs commemorating and explaining both the battle and also the
removal of the Cherokee Indians on the Trail of Tears that passed this way.!Columbus-Belmont State Park can be seen across the river.!! There may be more people visiting the Battle of Belmont site this year than ever before because Missouri State Parks is participating in a Civil War Passport program beginning this spring where you can purchase a passport book for $10 and then get it stamped at 39 different Civil War battlefields in Missouri.! This includes the Battle of Belmont along with Civil War-related state parks and other sites.!You will receive a certificate of completion if you get all 39 stamps.! The program runs from April 1, 2019, until December 31, 2020. (Dennis Bresnahan can be reached at (314) 868-7297!or dennisbresnahan@ yahoo.com.)
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Truly blessed to live where the seasons change
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e all have the tendency to wish our lives away, one way or another. “I wished I was older so I could drive a car, I wished Christmas would hurry up and get here, but “man am I ready and I wish for this cold to end.” Well, that’s the last thing I ended with in one of my last articles. I was just tired of the cold and rain and dressing like a wooly worm. We had a trip planned going south to SW Louisiana and I was ready. As we drove down Hwy. 67 south I didn’t see much of a turn in the tips of the grey limbs hanging as they did all winter. Then as we crossed over the border into Arkansas, we drove through the agriculBob Brennecke tural flatlands and ———— past a creek — I believe it was the village creek — and the trees broke into a tinge of green growing along its banks. I felt a warm glow starting even though the temperature hadn’t changed much. The further we drove south, the greener it became. Springtime flowers were sprouting along the roads and when we got close to the Gulf in Louisiana we were seeing the evergreen live oaks and all of the other beautiful greenery. We visited a couple of weeks in Louisiana then came back home. The further north we traveled the trees started to get less green, then finally no green at all by the time we reached St. Louis. Within a week I started seeing signs again of spring. Hallelulah! Fiddle head fern above. Even though the morning was a frosty 31 degrees by 10 in the morning, all the frost was melted off this fresh May apple sprig pushing out of the leaf
litter on the forest floor. The morels were sprouting and you can see them sautéed in butter, which really made a good breakfast. As the sun peeks over the hills it spray paints a fine golden powder of glowing light, enhancing the small green nobs soon to be leaves. As the woods awaken the pileated woodpeckers start their “Who, Who, Who, Who,” dipping up and down in the cold morning air. The small birds start their flitting from tree to tree pecking on the new buds, bugs, or sap. The crows awaken and start harassing the turkey who complain back. The cool woods become more awake and vocal, more interesting. The plants that have been covered with frost now drip with the pure water running from their waxy leaves. Some of the holdout trees on the tops
of the ridges refuse to show the color of green for fear of possibly being hit with the last killing frost, and waiting for just a few more warm days to tackle the spring start. Missouri is a beautiful state and I’m glad to share it with nature, but man am I glad this last winter has lost its hold and I have now seen my two spring starts in one year. I am truly blessed. (Bob Brennecke lives in Ballwin, Mo., and can be reached at robertbrennecke@hotmail.com.)
Share your photos with the Traveler! Send us your travel, fishing, camping or other outdoors photos and we will publish them in our next issue. Text them to us at (417) 451-3798, along with the pertinent info, or email them to
jimmy@riverhillstraveler.com
FFIND YOUUR FAAVVORITTE PLACE Call Joe Pen ndergrass
57 73 368-1402
EACH MOSSY OAK PROPE ERTIES OFFICE IS INDEPENDENTLY OW WNED AND OPERATED.
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Bennett Spring offering tours of CC buildings
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ome to Bennett Spring State Park Nature Center and pick up a selfguided tour brochure including a map and description of buildings built by the Civilian Conservation Corp (CCC). The CCC program was established by President Franklin D. Roosevelt to create manual labor jobs during the Great Depression. Between the years of 19331937 several structures were created at Bennett Spring State Park. The Bennett Spring State Park Company 1772 of the CCC consisted of over 200 men that served in WWI. Jimmy Sexton This brochure, ———— created by a local Journey On resident and previous park interpreter, Becky Day, will guide you through the park to see these historical structures. An exhibit display in the nature center gives more information and pictures of that time period and houses historic artifacts. It is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Wednesday through Sunday, Feb. 27Oct. 31.! Visitors today cross the historic CCC stone bridge when going to the historic restaurant in Bennett Spring State Park. The park restaurant is within a CCC structure and is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner daily from 7 a.m. until one hour after fishing for the day ends during the months of March-October.! Bennett Spring State Park is on 26250 Highway 64A in Lebanon. For more information, call the nature center at (417) 532-3925. ——— On Saturday, May 11, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., the public is invited to step back in time at Montauk State Park during the park’s Old Mill Days celebration and explore some of the lost historical skills and traditions from a time many have forgotten.
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The annual celebration will bring the valley to life with historical re-enactors, traditional artisans and other local Ozark crafters to celebrate the historic mill and the region’s rich Ozark heritage. Montauk State Park is located at 345 county road 6670 in Salem. For more information about the event, call the park at (573) 548-2225. ——— Travelers eager for the end of a long, cold winter will find plenty to do in Missouri this spring. Communities across the Show-Me State are ready to welcome warmer weather with a variety of festivals, events and celebrations.
Southeast • Dedicated to honoring the memory of America’s soldiers and their families, Missouri's National Veterans Memorial in Perryville will celebrate its grand opening May 18-19. The memorial’s crowning achievement is a full-scale, exact replica of the Vietnam Wall in Washington, D.C. (This is something my family is really looking forward to seeing this summer.) • The French Heritage Festival in Ste. Genevieve is set for June 8-9 in the historic Mississippi river town. The annual festival celebrates 300 years of French culture in North America and recognizes Ste. Genevieve as having the greatest concentration of authentic French Colonial architecture in North America. The festival will include music, dance, storytelling, French cuisine, reenactments and more. Southwest • Silver Dollar City's Bluegrass & BBQ Festival, May 2-27, will bring more than 60 bands together for 24 days of music and food at one of the nation's top theme parks. One of southern Missouri's most popular bluegrass bands, The Baker Family, will be performing at SDC on May 8-10. Northwest • Celebration at the Station, the Kansas City Symphony’s 17th annual patriotic concert event is the largest, free Memo-
rial Day weekend festival in the Midwest. The May 26 celebration will honor veterans from all generations and include Kansas City’s grandest fireworks display. The event will offer pre-concert musical acts, food trucks, a Family Zone, the Honeywell Veterans Place with services for veterans, plus activities inside Union Station and the National World War I Museum and Memorial. Central • The Salute to Veterans Celebration in Columbia, May 25-26, offers a free air show and parade. For 31 years, this annual Memorial Day weekend event has been held to recognize, honor and thank all veterans and active duty members of the Armed Services of the United States and its Allies, past and present.
Northeast • The St. Louis area will play host to several art events during May, including the Art Fair at Laumeier Sculpture Park, May 10-12; the Schlafly Art Outside Festival, May 25-27; and the St. Louis African Arts Festival, May 25-27. • Mark Twain and some of his most famous characters will be featured at the Twain on Main Festival May 25-26 in Hannibal, the boyhood home of Missouri's most famous author. The event includes storytellers, street magicians, arts and crafts, and children's games in the historic downtown area on the banks of the Mississippi River during the town’s bicentennial anniversary. Other events and activities happening around the state: •!May 4 - Truman Day at Harry S Truman Birthplace State Historic Site, 9 a.m. •!May 4 - Wings Over Weston, Weston Bend State Park, 9 a.m. •!May 10-11 - Old Mill Days at Montauk State Park. •! May 11 - Camping and Hiking Safety Demonstration at Annie and Able Van Meter State Park, 2 p.m. ——— The public is invited to!annual informational meetings to share comments
Everyone should read ‘Tom Sawyer’
f you’re feeling particularly Tom Sawyerish this summer, try making and using your own whitewash.! I recently did this with the youngins’ as a way to keep them busy and to spruce up a garden fence. It’s extremely simple: All you need is about 6-8 cups of masonry lime, 2-3 cups of salt, and 1 gallon of water. At first I didn’t think it was going to be enough for the job, but the thing Wes Franklin about whitewash is ———— it is extremely thin. Native Ozarker It’s not like paint, but more like gray water. In fact, gray is just the color it will be when you mix it, which at first had me wondering if I did it right. I wondered even more when we applied it to the wood pallet slats that make up my fence. It went on clear. It looked like we were doing nothing more than wetting the posts. However, by the time we made it all
the way back around to where we started, the whitewash had dried and the wood was a nice pale off-white. I went ahead and applied a few more coats.! Now, of course, whitewash will last longer if used in interior spaces, such as inside barns and sheds and chicken coops and whatnot. However, I figured if Tom Sawyer whitewashed a fence – or rather tricked his friends into doing it – I’d whitewash one, too, and see how long it lasted in the elements. I can testify that after several hard rainstorms, with some warm days in between, it hasn’t faded as yet. I figure it’s probably an annual job – and most likely was in Tom Sawyer’s day, too.! Most of all, it was a fun outdoor activity for my two boys, and kept them out of trouble for an hour or so, although toward the middle of the job I did find myself alone. Huh. Come to think of it, maybe the boys pulled a Tom Sawyer on their ol’ man. It was supposed to be THEIR project, after all.! Well, I had fun anyway.! Speaking of Tom Sawyer, it was the first “real” book I ever truly read as a
young child, after an uncle gave me a copy. I mean the Samuel Clemens’ (Mark Twain) original, unabridged version, of course. My six-year-old son wants to read it, as a short kids’ version of the same book has hooked his interest. In fact, when I told him we would be whitewashing a fence, he immediately said, “Just like Tom Sawyer?” What boy wouldn’t love Tom Sawyer and his adventures? Samuel Clemens really captured that “boy spirit.” I’m glad he remembered it as an adult. I really recommend reading it even now, if you never have, and passing it along to a boy you know in your family. The reading level is probably about middle school.! After that young boy in your life reads “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer” he just MIGHT want to help you whitewash a fence someday. Or trick you into doing it all yourself. (Wes Franklin! can be reached by email at cato.uticensis46@gmail.com, or by USPS mail at 12161 Norway Road, Neosho, MO 64850.)!
about!Missouri!state!parks and state historic sites!and!their operations. Park and state historic staff will be on hand to provide information and to answer questions. These informational meetings, which are being held in all state parks and state historic sites, give park staff the opportunity to let people know the current status and future plans for the parks and sites!and they offer visitors the opportunity to comment on the facilities. Upcoming public meetings: •!May 9 - Bollinger Mill State Historic Site and Trail of Tears State Park, 6:30 p.m. •!May 16 - Lake of the Ozarks State Park, 6 p.m. •!May 17 - Bennett Spring State Park, 6 p.m. •!May 18 - Finger Lakes State Park, noon. •!May 18 - First Missouri State Capitol State Historic Site, 1 p.m. •!May 18 - Grand Gulf State Park, 10 a.m. •!May 18 - Montauk State Park, 4 p.m. •!May 25 - Crowder State Park, 2 p.m. •!May 31 - Pomme de Terre State Park, 6 p.m. •!May 31 - Harry S Truman State Park, 8 p.m. (Jimmy Sexton is owner and publisher of the River Hills Traveler. He can be reached by phone or text at (417) 4513798, or jimmy@riverhillstraveler.com.)
On the Cover Richard Whiteside details his hunt of Phantom Tom. (Story on page 12)
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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Bathing at Camp Clark (Galena)
VINTAGE OZARKS
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e recently acquired this gem of an image of summer play a century ago at Camp Clark in Galena (not the Missouri National Guard base near Nevada). It is addressed to Miss Nettie M. McComb, Lamar, Mo., who apparently had vacationed the previous year at Camp Clark. Rather than pay for a real photo postcard from George Hall, the owners pasted a snapshot on a blank Postal Card and handwrote their “pitch” to customers from the preceding summer: “Feb 28, 1910. Dear Friend: We remember how well you enjoyed your outing with us last year so we send you this card to remind you of Camp Clark, trusting that it will stimulate you to get up a party of your friends and come down and camp with us again this year. Your friends, Mr. or Mrs. A.L. McQuary.” A June 1913 newspaper ad for the “well known Camp Clark” assured readers: “Only people of good morals are accepted. It is a beautiful mountain camp on the James river, with pure air, grand scenery and fine spring water. A fine place for ladies to boat, bathe, fish From the May archives of the River Hills Traveler: 5 years ago • The Missouri Conservation Commission approved regulation changes at its meeting in Jefferson City that will reduce the availability of firearm antlerless deer hunting permits from “any number” in most of the state to one in most of the state. • Al Agnew’s first float fishing craft, back when he was a teenager in the 1960s, was a beat up 12-foot aluminum johnboat. Since then, he has floated and fished out of rafts, drift boats, kayaks, folding canoes, inflatable kayaks, paddle johns, pontoons, and well over a dozen different makes and models of canoes. He has floated rivers in more than 30 states and has been on nearly every floatable stream in the Ozarks. With all that experience, he has come to plenty of conclusions about the merits of various craft for floating and fishing our Ozark waters. • The spring turkey season lasts through May 11. Not many hunters will be pursuing them because they have either got their limit of two or given up and went to catch a mess of crappie before squirrel season opens May 24. Or perhaps groundhogs, as the season on them opens May 12. (Bob Todd) 10 years ago • The equivalent of 3,000-plus truckloads of grout — a mixture of cement and water not unlike that between the ceramic tiles in your kitchen, minus the sand — has been injected into the structure of the Clearwater Dam. Part B of Phase 1 nears completion as the installation of grout proceeds both upstream and downstream within the dam. (Rick Mansfield) • The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced that it would dedicate between $10-24 million of the federal Recovery Act funding to clean up
Promotional postcard with handwritten message. Postmarked “Galena Mar 1, 10 AM 1910”
and recreate.” All the Galena resorts pitched the idea that women were welcome — camping, fishing and floating were not male-only, stag affairs. Dr. A.L. McQuary, former traveling evangelist who also prescribed eyeglasses, owned the resort, consisting of a set of bungalows and tents on a hill overlooking the James. He had been a farmer, run a saddlery business, and within a few years of moving to Galena in 1908, became the county collector.
REMEMBER WHEN
lead-contaminated properties in the Fredericktown area. • The weather guy was predicting rain but it hadn’t started yet and the river looked good for an evening of cat fishing. This is the perfect time of year for catching catfish. The temperature is just right, with no bugs flying around to bother you. The mosquitos are still a few weeks away. And there is no doubt that catfish seem to bite best during the spring. (Howard Helgenberg) 20 years ago • When you think of invaders, you think of something really foreign. But there is an invader of the Meramec River Basin that is right at home just across the drainage divide to the south. We’re talking about the spotted bass, a species that is invading the streams of the basin, wreaking havoc on the native smallmouth bass population. (Bob Todd) • Mysterious deaths of bald eagles in Arkansas was not on the news in the past winter. It didn’t happen. But whatever the unknown cause of eagle deaths for the previous years, the cause may just have shifted targets. Pathologists from the National Wildlife Health Center have found dead mallards, pigeons, and ring-necked ducks in North Carolina that display the same pathology as the eagles and coots did in Arkansas. • American Airlines has donated $21,000 for improvements to trails in the vicinity of Big Spring, in Ozark National Scenic Riverways. Work is already underway on something called the Slough Trail, part of the old roadbed that came from Van Buren to Big Spring.
(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 discovery that both the Osage and James rivers had Lover’s Leaps. Their most recent book, James Fork of the White, was published in 2017. Some pages from this book can be seen on www.beautifulozarks.com. Their earlier river book, Damming the Osage, can be at seen www.dammingtheosage.com.)
30 years ago • Ol’ Craz lives! He is the stupidest old gobbler that ever drew breath and was the subject of a slightly exaggerated story in a previous issue of the Traveler. Neighbor Bob Douglas believed Ol’ Craz must have died during the winter, but that was not the case. Bob Todd tangled with him on opening day where he came between two men, one of whom was running a chainsaw a quarter-mile away. He called and Craz answered, then the chainsaw called and Craz answered. He ultimately chose to gobble in the direction of the chainsaw. • The Conservation Department is entering into an agreement with the City of Poplar Bluff to develop a boat ramp and access to Black River in the city. The Department also approved the purchase of an 80-acre addition to Big Cane State Forest near Poplar Bluff. • Persons planning a trip to Clearwater Lake this season to camp in an underdeveloped area of the project are required to obtain a Primitive Camping Permit in
advance of actually camping. 40 years ago • Efforts to restore ruffed grouse to their former range moved into southeast Missouri last fall with a stocking in the Castor River State Forest in Bollinger County, but Bill Hunyadi, a biologist in charge, said it won’t be a rapid program of expansion like the turkey program was. • The fish kill toll reached 104,000 fish below the new Truman Dam on the Osage River. This was the second year the new dam has produced this kind of massive fish kill, caused by air supersaturation. Air is trapped in water falling over the high dam and causes something called “fetal embolism” in fish downstream. • In May and June a wise fisherman looks for mayflies flitting over the water, a sure sign that the fish are feeding. The gossamer-winged insects are a favorite food of many kinds of fish including bass, trout, bluegills, and even catfish. (Emma Comfort Dunn) (compiled by Laurel Sexton)
Share your trip photos!
If you’re going on vacation in Missouri or anywhere in the world, we’d love to see photos from your journey and publish them in an upcoming issue of the River Hills Traveler. You can send photos to us at jimmy@riverhillstraveler.com or post them on our Facebook page or TEXT them to us at (417) 451-3798. And don’t forget to take a copy of the Traveler with you and pose in front of a landmark or somewhere of interest on your trip holding the magazine. We look forward to hearing from you!
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Check the water level before you go H ave you ever packed up for a big fishing trip or float trip and then driven three or four hours and then, upon arrival at the river or stream where you had planned to catch a stringer of record-breaking fish or enjoy a nice float trip, discover that the river or stream was flooded or in such bad shape that fishing or canoeing was completely out of the question? It’s happened to all of us and it is really discouraging after you have thought of nothing else but that big trip all week, thinking that Friday was never going to get here and when Friday finally arrives and then you hit the road and after a long drive, have to undergo a big letdown upon arriving at your destination. But there is something you can do to keep this frustrating experience from Bill Oder getting you down. ———— Thanks to the USGS (U.S. Geological Survey), who have placed monitoring sites at various locations across our state, we can check the water levels at many of our favorite fishing holes and float streams before you even begin to start backing out of your driveway. These water levels can be checked any time of the day, even at two o’clock in the morning. First, go to their website, “USGS Water Data for Missouri.” There you will find a map of Missouri dotted with small squares and circles. Click on one of these dots until you find the stream or river that you want to investigate and you will go to a screen that shows you all you need to know about your favorite stream or river. As you scroll down the page, first you’ll see a graph showing water temperatures and precipitation for the past few days, and then discharge in cubic feet per second and finally gauge height… which is the one that I pay most attention to. It will show the height for the day you are checking plus the figures for the past six days. All of this information is very helpful, and keep in mind that it is available to the public at no cost. Since I’m a trout fisherman, I check out the trout streams before we leave to go fishing. There is a monitoring site at
Montauk State Park, our favorite spot, so I’m always checking that one even when a fishing trip is not being planned. There the normal height for good fishing is between 1.5 and 2.0 feet. I should make it clear right away that the monitoring sites do not provide any suggestions as to whether fishing is any good or not, or whether a float trip would be a safe venture. The 1.5 to 2.0 feet figures for Montauk are what fishermen have learned, from their own experience, provide the most success at catching fish. If it gets up to around 3 feet, the water could be murky, still fishable, but requiring different types of flies and more weight on the leader to get the fly down deep, so I need to prepare my fly boxes for that particular situation. I don’t like the murky water because when I’m wading, I want to see the bottom of the stream so I don’t inadvertently step off into a deep hole of water but I usually go anyway, even though I’m not really comfortable. If the height is in the area of 4 feet or
MOWING AND MAINTENANCE FOR LOST CREEK WATERSHED DAMS The Lost Creek Watershed is seeking bids for the mowing and general maintenance of eight (8) flood control dams located in the Seneca-Racine area. Mowing MUST be done between 1 June to 1 November 2019. A four (4) wheel tractor with either a cab or roll bar and seat belt is required. Liability insurance for $1,000,000.00 as well as a negative drug screen test for all persons working on the dam site is mandatory. In order to place a bid, it is mandatory that the bidder attend the site showing on Thursday, 23 May 2019 starting at 10:00 am. We will be meeting at the USDA Service Center located at 1900 S. Business 49 (formerly Business 71) Neosho, MO. The Lost Creek Watershed Board of Trustees reserves the right to extend the contract for more than one mowing season. For more details or a bid packet, contact the Lost Creek Watershed office at 417451-1007 ext. 3 located inside the USDA Service Center at the above address. All bids must be received, in hand, to the Lost Creek Watershed personnel no later than Friday, 24 May 2019 by close of business (4:30pm).
higher, I look for another place to go fishing or stay home until the water goes back down. Montauk can flood fast and I’ve been there before when that normally crys-
tal-clear trout stream turns into a roaring, muddy river necessitating evacuation of the campgrounds. Montauk is surrounded by hills and it catches all the runoff from them. It usually doesn’t take long for the water to go back down, maybe 2 to 4 days. Sometimes not that long. But I can always check the level in the comfort of our home on our computer before another trip is planned. At Bennett Spring State Park, the normal height for good fishing is 1.6 to 2.3 feet. For fishing the Meramec River below Maramec Spring Park (the gauges are at Steelville), the normal height is 1.5 to 2.5 feet. For the Current River below Montauk State Park (the gauges are at Akers), a good height is between 2 to 3 feet. I find it convenient to take advantage of these monitoring sites of the USGS. It is also important to consider that all streams and rivers have different characteristics and the suggested heights for the trout fishing areas that I have mentioned above may not apply to your favorite stream or river. Four feet might not be good for Montauk but it may be ideal for your favorite place. Like I have said, these suggested heights for good fishing are what trout fishermen, at the areas I have mentioned, have found to be most conducive for a successful fishing trip. If you have any questions, feel free to send me an e-mail. (Bill Oder can be reached at oderbill@yahoo.com.)
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New gun case pending before the Supreme Court
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suppose most people who own a gun have at least a passing interest in what might happen over the next few years regarding our constitutional rights to own and use a firearm. And that would presumably apply to most people who read the River Hills Traveler as well. Recently, we have seen an increase in legislation at both the state and local levels attempting to further regulate gun rights. In fact, in the states of Washington and Colorado, for example, local law enforcement personnel have publicly announced that they will refuse to enforce some of this new legislation because they believe that this new legislation violates our constitutional rights under the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. In short, there is a growing need to clarify Second Amendment rights beyond our basic right to “keep and bear Arms” within the confines of our own homes. And this need for clarification ultimately falls upon the U.S. Supreme Court to address. You may not be aware of it, but in the past 75 years, the U.S. Supreme Court has heard only three cases inBill Hoagland volving the Second ———— Amendment; the first case was in 1939 and the last two cases were decided more than eight years ago. These last two decisions, rendered in 2008 and 2010, respectively, are District of Columbia vs. Heller (holding that we have a basic right under the Second Amendment to have firearms within the confines of our homes) and McDonald vs. City of Chicago (holding that the rights guaranteed by the Second Amendment extend to statutes and regulations enacted by state and local authorities). After a long wait and numerous conflicting decisions in the lower courts, the U.S. Supreme Court, on January 22, 2019, finally agreed to hear another case involving our rights under the Second Amendment. This case is “New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, Inc. vs. City of New York,” which is scheduled for a hearing during the October 2019-2020 term of the U.S. Supreme Court. Before we get too far into a discussion about this new case, I should mention that I have been a practicing attorney for more than 50 years. I am not, by any means, an expert on constitutional law; rather, I am simply a gun owner and hunter who, as with most gun owners, has an interest in what might happen to our gun rights in light of the recent legislative actions at the state and local levels. I was initially surprised that the U.S. Supreme Court decided to use this particular case to address unresolved issues under the Second Amendment. By that, I mean the facts in this case did not seem to be so outrageous that the situation demands action by the court. But as it turns out, 22 states have joined together in an amicus curiae brief addressed to the court, asking that the court find in favor of the petitioners, who are challenging specific restrictive regulations enacted by the City of New York on the ownership and usage of handguns by city residents.
The Western States Sheriff Association also filed an amicus curiae brief with the court in support of the petitioners. In other words, there appears to be a nationwide interest in this case that on its face, would seemingly impact only residents of the City of New York. Although numerous constitutional issues have been raised in this case, the key issues, boiled down, are whether the rights guaranteed by the Second Amendment to keep and maintain a handgun in one’s own home extend beyond the home and whether a state or city can prevent a resident from transporting a firearm beyond the boundaries of that jurisdiction. By agreeing to hear this case, it appears that the U.S. Supreme Court is now willing to address one or both of these issues. Let’s look briefly at the pertinent facts in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, Inc. vs City of New York. By virtue of a variety of city ordinances, and supportive state law, the City of New York requires that all private owners of handguns living within the city be licensed with either a “premises” license or a “carry” license in order to own and maintain a handgun within the city. The “carry” license is extremely difficult to obtain and is not pertinent to this discussion. As to the “premises” license, there are rigorous requirements for applicants who want to own and maintain a handgun within the city limits. And if you are lucky enough to acquire a “premises” license to own and maintain a handgun within the city limits, you are not allowed to remove that handgun from your premises except under very limited circumstances. Generally speaking, the only time you can remove the handgun from your premises is to use it at one of several specific firearm ranges within the city limits. In addition, during the time when the gun is being transported to these firing ranges, it must be encased in a locked container, unloaded, with the ammunition for that gun being stored and transported in a separate container. In short, if a gun owner with a “premises” license living in the city wanted to carry a handgun for protection outside his home, he could not lawfully do so. But this law goes beyond that: if you are a premises licensee, you cannot remove that handgun outside the city limits under any circumstance, even if the handgun is in a locked container,
unloaded with the ammunition stored separately. By the way, this appears to be the only jurisdiction in the U.S. where a local governmental entity prohibits resident gun owners from removing a gun beyond the jurisdiction of the local entity. The New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, Inc., as the lead plaintiff in this case, filed a petition in federal court against the City of New York claiming that the pertinent ordinances, as described above, violate rights guaranteed by the Second Amendment to “own and bear Arms” because handgun owners cannot effectively protect themselves outside the confines of their own home if their handgun is encased in a locked container and unloaded. They are also challenging the city’s absolute prohibition against removing the registered handgun beyond city limits. In case you are wondering, the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution is pretty brief; it provides, “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.” Obviously, this language is not specific enough, standing alone, to clarify whether this right “to keep and bear Arms” includes the right to have a handgun in your possession outside the home for protection or for any other purpose for that matter. Nor does it address the question of whether a state or local government can legally prohibit you from removing a gun beyond the jurisdiction of that particular governmental entity. Generally, most courts have held that the right to possess and use a firearm, including handguns, outside the home is more limited than inside the home; this is because public safety interests are often deemed to outweigh individual interests in protecting one’s self outside the home. And specifically in the New York State Rifle & Pistol Association case, the appellate court reviewing this case (before the Supreme Court agreed to hear it) held that the ordinances in question are constitutional because they merely “regulate” rather than “restrict” rights guaranteed by the Second Amendment. Moreover, the appellate court felt these ordinances constitute nothing more than a “minimal” or “modest” burden on rights guaranteed under the Second Amendment. In other words, rights under the Second Amendment are not absolute. And
in determining whether a particular statute or regulation violates the Second Amendment, those rights allegedly being violated are to be “weighed” or “balanced” by the court against a public interest in maintaining a safe public environment. Attempting to predict how the Supreme Court will rule on a specific issue is somewhat like attempting to predict the weather. With the recent Republican appointments to the Supreme Court, however, it is generally anticipated that the majority of the current court will be inclined to declare that the City of New York ordinances in question violate Second Amendment rights and are unconstitutional to some extent. How far the court will be willing to go in this direction remains to be seen. Justice Kavanaugh, in particular, has indicated in a prior dissenting opinion that he does not favor the approach used by lower courts in Second Amendment cases to the effect that there should be a “balancing test” between individual rights to protect oneself and the interests of society in maintaining a safe environment. Rather, he believes that the test as to whether a particular gun law is constitutional should be determined by the issue of whether the rights being restricted are rights that historically have been allowed. For example, historically, hunters have been allowed to take their guns on hunting trips; this usage would appear to be protected by the Second Amendment under Justice Kavanaugh’s historical test. On the other hand, fully automatic firearms have not been historically regarded as legal for hunting or any other purposes and would not be entitled to protections under the Second Amendment under Justice Kavanaugh’s test. It seems to me, in attempting to predict what might happen in this case, that the court would not have agreed to hear this case if they were simply going to affirm the decision of the lower court in holding that the city ordinances in this case are constitutional; that could have been accomplished by simply refusing to hear this case. Unfortunately, the parties in this case have not yet submitted briefs on the substantive issues in the case; this makes it even more difficult to predict the probable result. While it is possible that the court is going to hold that the Second Amendment includes the right to protect one’s self beyond the confines of one’s home, that seems unlikely in this particular case. It seems more likely that the court will hold that the Second Amendment and the constitutional right to travel freely within the United States, construed together, render unconstitutional the City of New York’s ordinance prohibiting a gun owner from taking his gun outside the jurisdictional boundaries of the city. The case has not yet been assigned a specific hearing date before the U.S. Supreme Court other than to say that it will be held during the October 20192020 term. After oral argument is held, a decision will not likely be rendered for at least three months and possibly as long as nine months after oral argument. Stay tuned. (Bill Hoagland can be reached at billhoagland70@gmail.com.)