Indian Creek at Mark Twain Lake - September 2016

We camped at the Indian Creek campground at Mark Twain Lake. The camp was filled with boaters out to enjoy one last weekend on the lake. This was a campground which I remember from youth. I remember Monroe too, because I think that is where Dad got a speeding ticket, when Mark and I had the caged squirrel, and were hiding from the officer in the bed of the truck for fear he'd ask us why we had a squirrel...

I remember Mom and Dad driving up to Mark Twain Lake many times. What I don't remember is how out in the middle of nowhere it feels. As one who has given up on paper maps in favor of the ever-present Google Maps, it was quite the shocker when the phone reception gave out. Of course Google Maps left us on the shortest route, which did not include any State Highways like 41, but instead abandoned us at the intersection of two county roads between corn fields. Not very descriptive landmarks, once you are that far north in Missouri. Go north of Hannibal and the difference between Missouri and Iowa is purely political, not geographic.

Thankfully, there were signs pointing to the Indian Creek Marina, and the logo of a spear with feathers was a familiar one. We made it in to camp just fine. But next time, I'm going to bring a Rand McNalley with us, if we can still buy one of those.

The Indian Creek campgrounds are near the Indian Creek Marina. The marina store on the docks was open until 10 pm. The store rented boats and sold ice cream. The diner served breakfast, lunch and dinner, to hungry boaters. The marina store sold bagged ice, but not firewood. The docks looked very similar to how they had 25 years ago. More ski-dos less sailboats, but generally the same. I don't think my boys had ever seen so many bass boats all in one place. My oldest seeing what the "good life" looked like decided he wanted a piece of it. He scanned every FOR SALE sign he could, judging how many yard mowings it would take to save up for a boat...and a truck to pull it...

I did snap into "Army Mode" once. The boys were scootering down the road, and I was following with the dog. A Jeep was coming down the road, and the boys being boys didn't exactly notice. Two did, but not the third. He just kept scooting....slowly...in front of the Jeep. Just about the time I was ready to holler at the boy, the driver made a "REALLY?!" comment snidely to my boy. I guess he was too stupid to notice me walking at his fender. I barked back "REALLY?!" at him, and gave him some neighborly advice about how he should drive, and be on the watch for pedestrians, and about how if he didn't like that, then maybe he was in the wrong place. He just turned real red, and drove on.

It was a good life lesson for the boy. He realized that he'd caused the altercation, and apologized to me for it. I asked him to be more aware of his surroundings in the future. It was also a good life-lesson for the Jeep driver...

The weather was wonderful, 80s in the day and 60s at night. The CFO enjoyed our campsite as it overlooked the lake. She also enjoyed her Merlot.

The boys took charge of the fire, and the oldest made breakfast on his own on Monday morning. I was very pleased to see my boys' skills improving. Making a fire without gas or chemicals is a basic life skill. Making your own breakfast is too. Bribing your parents with breakfast already made is an art.

These times are chances for the boys (and the parents) to unplug from our normally very electronic life. Eegads no wifi, no internet, NO YOUTUBE!! The initial shock can be rough, but in the end, the rewards are great. Conflict can be defined as two brothers in the same room. Conflict resolution is therefore a good camping trip. Additionally, while one brother may hassle another brother, woe to the strange boy who attempts to pick on one of the brothers at the play ground. Where there was just one brother, suddenly there are three!

Dad gets a chance to attempt to back in the trailer to a campsite, and do it successfully. Sometimes he makes it on the first try, like this trip. Sometimes, he doesn't. Sometime towing a trailer is easy. Sometimes you have to travel behind the Sunday driver out on a Monday afternoon. And then sometimes a giant combine comes down the road where there is clearly not room for his header, let alone for him to meet traffic. At these times, you just get to stop and watch the laws of physics dictate what happens next. (Both of those happened on the way home...)

Monday turned hot, but we were packed and gone before the weather got into the 90s.

Campground
Loops
The campground is divided into a East and West campgrounds. The East Campground has two loops for electric, and one rustic tent-only loops. The West Campground has three loops for electric hookups. Some electric sites have water, some have sewer. Some don't. You'll need to pay attention to which site you reserve to make sure you get what you want.

Shower Houses & Latrines
There were three latrines on each loop, one of which was a shower house. These were kept fairly clean. All had running water and flushing toilets. Public water spigots were well placed between campsites.

Playgrounds
There was one playground for the East Campground and one for the West.

Trails
There were several short trails that led from the campground loops to the lake shore. These were short and graveled. Hilly portions were landscaped with railroad tie stairs.

Campsites
Terrain
The main section of the campground is level, and had good asphalt road between the sites.  The area was generally mowed along the road, but the areas between campsites were filled with abundant poison ivy and aromatic sumac crops. The lack of well mowed area between campsites was disappointing and concerning as this limited the children's play area and presented a concern for skin rashes.

The camp is set next to Mark Twain lake. The hikes down to the lake can be steep, but the trails are well marked, and even have landscape timber stairs.

Pad Space
The pads are generally all of a good length, and are pretty level. These I might even describe as deep, since campers can generally fit a combination of trailer, truck, and boat on the same pad.

Amenities
Each campsite came with one aluminium picnic table , one fire pit, and one lantern pole. The electric site all have electric hook-ups at a post at the back of the pad. The sites are all leveled and have been terraced with landscape timbers and gravel to mark out the main picnic area. There is no camp store. The nearest general store is in Monroe, MO. However, a local farmer off HH sells firewood in generous amounts. We paid $10 and got a whole load of wood in the back of the Traverse.

Camp Staff
Check-in Hosts
The check-in hosts were efficient at the gate. We were allowed to check in early without issue. However, small talk was not in the game plan, as the Labor Day weekend caused several campers to stack up in the check-in lane.

Campsite Hosts
Campsite hosts did check on campers by driving by in a pickup truck. They were identified by polo shirts.

Rangers
We had no interaction with any Rangers.

Programs
The camp offered a nature trivia night on Friday night. We missed it.

Silver Mines Campground - June 2016

(Author's Note 09/05/2016 - this is being posted very late.)

Hot.  That was how to describe this camp out.

Our good family friend, my Best Man, and my Wingman joined us for this trip. The boys were super excited to have Jason along - he's the best Uncle they've never had.

Silver Mines is a camp which I had stayed at as a Boy Scout. The Long Ride was a week-long horseback ride through the Mark Twain National Forest, and this was one of our stops. I remember shooting through the dam like a water slide. I don't know if you can still do that today...we didn't try.

The curve in the creek presented a natural swimming hole. The creek was filled with slipper rocks. You could be ankle deep one moment, and over your head the next. There were a few large boulders in the creek which the boys jumped off of.

Due to the heat, we spent much of the time in the water. And due to the heat, my brain melted, and I forgot to take pictures.

My wife really liked this campground. The camping loop was small, so there weren't too many neighbors. The camp staff was very concerned that all tires fit on the pad, but the pads were fairly small. So Jason had to park in the overflow parking by the showerhouse.

Campground:
Loops -
The campground has three major loops.  The southern most loop is across the river from the other two.  The south loop boasts spacious sites, level parking pads, electricity, picnic tables, lantern poles, and raised concrete fireplaces.  The grounds are grassy, but with ample trees for shade.  The only downside was the lack of site-specific water and the sites on the riverside tended to be pretty sloped off the pad.  The middle loop and north loops were primitive campsites only.  All have ready access to the St. Francis River.  Only the southern loop was in use while we were there.  This was likely due to the lack of electricity at the other loops.
Shower Houses -
There were no shower houses, only latrines.  The south loops latrine was serviceable, but not well kept. The other loop latrines were very clean, but we suspect this was from the complete lack of use of the other loops.
Playgrounds -
There were no playgrounds or activity fields.  The St. Francis River was the focus of all activity.
Trails -
There were few trails in the park.  We did not venture onto them due to the heat.

Campsites:
Terrain -
The ground is relatively flat, as the campground was down in the St. Francis River valley.  The ground and the river was decorated with the purple granite rocks which are characteristic to the area. The river itself had a few large granite boulders in it which were good for jumping and splashing off of.  The river bed was filled with more of the slippery rocks.  River shoes are a must, and walk carefully as you will slip.
Pad Space -
Pads were just long enough to park our popup camper and one vehicle.  Visitors were made to park in the overflow parking by the latrine.
Amenities -
Each campsite comes with one picnic table (not chained down) and one fire pit.  The electric sites also have one electrical post and one water spigot.  The full hook-up sites add sewer.

Camp Staff:
Check-in Hosts -
There is one check-in at the campground entry.  The check-in office is staffed by State Park employees and rangers.  Everyone was very nice.
Campsite Hosts -
The were no volunteer hosts.
Rangers -
We met one ranger. He was gracious enough to check our water spigot and get it working again.
Programs -
none offered

Montgomery Bell State Park, TN - April 2016

(Author's Note 09/05/2016 - This is being posted very late. So, I'll do my best.)

This camp was an enjoyable, but strangely cold, time. My mother camped with us, and the boys were very excited for that. The CFO and I have been to this campground once before, when there was just one boy.

If all State Park organizations modeled themselves from the TN State Parks, the world would be a pretty good place. Clean campsites, friendly staff, a convenient camp store. The only slight thing was that the voters of TN apparently think that parents are not free to decide whether or not their children need bicycle helmets or not. For one who grew up when I wasn't too good to go through the front windshield with the rest of the family, this seems like a tremendous overreach. Children peddling through campgrounds at 10 miles-an-hour cannot possibly benefit from a helmet. Either the helmet is an unnecessary style statement, or it is woefully under whelming protection. But, the TN voters have spoken, the boys wore their helmets, and yes, we had them.

Having just come off a chilling and snow Missouri camp, we were hoping for the warmer weather that more Southern climes guaranteed us. Imagine our surprise when again, we saw it snowing...in April...in TN! This time we did have a space heater in the camper, and it did its part - Mom and the dog happily snuggled together next to the heater on the middle bed. Us on the outside beds had a more chilly time.

All in all it was a great camping trip. We will try TN again, but this time in warming weather.


Campground:
Loops -
There is one large campground loop that is subdivided into a few sub-loops.  Each loop caters to a different level of camper.  The tent sub-loop provide a spacious, grassy area to camp beneath cathedral like pine trees.  The electric sub-loop provides moderately spaced gravel pads with electric and water hook-ups.  The sewer sub-loops packs camper tightly together, with full hook-ups.
Shower Houses -
There were three shower houses. One had coin-operated washers and dryers. The facilities were kept very clean.  The dumpsters were kept at the far end of the loop. (TN recently moved from keeping individual trash cans at each side to dumpsters at the end of the loop.)
Playgrounds -
There was a large play ground and a large activity field, suitable for football games, baseball, kites, or any other sort of field sport.
Trails -
There were several trails in the park.  These range from short nature hikes directly from the campsite to several mile backpacking trails with back country campsites.

Campsites:
Terrain -
The ground is hilly, "hills and hollers" with steeps climbs and babbling creeks.  Middle Tennessee is where the earth begins to change from Mississippi river bottom land to Appalachian foot hills.  This makes for a beauty but hilly area.
Pad Space -
The pads are different depending on the sub-loop type.  Tent sites allow parking parallel to the road. Electric sites offer generally deep gravel pads that contain parking space, picnic tables, and a fire pit. Full sites offer deep pads, but space is minimal to help tight-pack in the RVs.
Amenities -
Each campsite comes with one picnic table (not chained down) and one fire pit.  The electric sites also have one electrical post and one water spigot.  The full hook-up sites add sewer.

Camp Staff:
Check-in Hosts -
There is one check-in at the campground entry.  The check-in office is staffed by State Park employees and rangers.  Everyone was very nice.
Campsite Hosts -
The were no volunteer hosts.
Rangers -
We met one ranger. He was gracious enough to check our water spigot and get it working again.
Programs -
none offered

Rules of Campsite Courtesy

1. Camp on the campsite which you have rented.  Don't squat on a campsite for which you did not pay.  Arrive on time and leave on time.

2. Leave the campsite better than you found it.  Defacing the campsite or leaving it trashed is ugly behavior.

3. Dispose of trash properly.  Do not stuff trash into the fire pit.  Do not leave trash on the site.

4. Keep public water public.  Pitching tents around the public water spigot is rude.  So is running a water hose from a public spigot to your RV.  If you want a private water supply, rent a campsite with one.

 5.  Treat someone else's campsite like you would treat someone else's home.  Don't walk through their site uninvited. Ask permission before entering another campsite.

6.  Treat rangers, hosts, and volunteers with great respect.  These individuals are a camper's greatest resource.

7. Do not allow your smoke alarm to beep through out the evening, night, and early morning. If campfire smoke is blowing into your RV or trailer, either close the door, or power off the smoke detector. No one likes a false alarm when they are on a vacation, especially repeatedly.

8. Share the camp road. Drive like it is your kids you are meeting on their bikes...chances are it is. If you drive slowly, and smile, and wave, you are guaranteed to make a new friend. Campers are generally the neighborly kind, and enjoy kindred spirits. However, they can be defensive toward rudeness.

Meramec State Park - March 2016

I took the family camping this last weekend.  It was supposed to be the first camping trip of the summer.  And it was...if one ignores the snow and overnight freezing temperatures.  Of course the CFO did NOT ignore the cold.  She didn't like it at all.  But she made it through.

Our camper's AC/Heater unit did put out heat, if barely.  The 5000 BTU unit had been made to just take the chill out of the morning air, not actually defrost five frozen human beings and one dog.  It did keep things from freezing, so there was that.  We decided we would bring an actual space heater for any future spring or fall camp-outs.

(Now look - before you go poking fun at me, yes, I have camped out in a tent in the cold with both the Boy Scouts of America and the US Army.  I've seen it snow INSIDE my tent as my warm breath rose, cooled, froze, and then fell back on my face.  Been there.  Done that. Got the polar bear patch.  But, I'm paying my own fare now.  I don't have to skip the heat just to prove to some jack-wagon who signed up sooner than I did that I can suffer as much as he did when it was his turn...OK moving on...)

This was the first weekend that Meramec State Park campground was open.  The electricity was turned on, and there was one working water spigot for the whole camp.  While recent river flooding had left several dump truck's worth mud covering the park roads, all surfaces had been scraped and washed clean. There were some uprooted trees that had floated on the floodwaters into the camp and were left lodged precariously 30 feet overhead in the branches.  That was not something to camp under, and the park management had cordoned off those sites.  Over the previous week, MO State Park employees had been hard at work repairing the damage.  Most of the electrical boxes were repaired, and all the picnic tables were still chained to their concrete pads. New grass had even been planted around the shower house.  The camp site water was lacking, but the system hadn't been certified clean yet.

(This brings up a good point: April 1st is when MO promises to have all the amenities turned on, not before.  So if you pay for a full-hook-up site for March 15th, and nothing is on, you just paid top dollar for a tent site...sorry...And if you reserve a campsite during flood season, don't be surprised if you can't camp at all.)

One of the benefits of going camping this early in the season was the limited number of people at camp.  A campground with about 200 sites feels very roomy when there are just a few campers.  The ones who came and camped were like us, serious campers testing out this season's equipment to ensure it works as desired.  Two of our weekend neighbors had just bought new campers.  For us, it was seeing how well our new 2016 Chevrolet Traverse LTZ (yeah baby!) towed the camper.  Even the campsite host was testing equipment: after the flooding he was testing and repairing every single one of the electrical boxes.  These folks were wonderful neighbors.

There always seems to be somebody who comes to camp just to cause a ruckus.  This weekend that was the 50, or so, college kids who thought that it would be a good idea to try to take the group campsite away from the Boy Scout troop already encamped there.  If you happen to be one of the hooligans who came down to camp expecting to party hardy over Spring Break WITHOUT paying for a campsite, I have no sympathy for you.  Getting lippy with the camp host (not even a Park Ranger) about the lack of water at your campsite gains you no friends.  Leaving your trash behind for the host to pick up shows your juvenile arrested development. All you did was frustrate the camp host who was a retired sailor who was actually trying to get the campground back in working order.  Have you ever cleaned up after a flood? Try it sometime.  I'm a Guardsman. I know.  I've been there. Done that. If you are one of the hooligans' parents, shame on you for not instilling better manners in your children. Now the world has to suffer with more child-adults who can't cope with real life.

Our new Traverse worked very well for towing our 1999 Viking pop up camper.  The Traverse even has a stabilizing system in it to help take the shakes out of towing, giving it a nice smooth feeling when towing.  But, the Traverse was a bit susceptible to having its tail lifted up as the trailer bounced up and down.  Having driven an Envoy before, getting my butt lifted occasionally was a bit of a surprise.  Another down-tick on the Traverse are the moving mirrors.  The mirrors aim at the rear tires when backing, "Park Tilt Mirrors".  This is likely handy for backing into a parking spot, but it gave me sea-sickness when backing the trailer.  Not fun.  I'm turning that option off as soon as I can figure out how.  An enjoyable surprise was that the Traverse appeared to get BETTER gas mileage while towing than when slick.  The Envoy dropped to a terrible 10 mpg average, but the Traverse seemed to rise up to an over 25 mpg average.  I can't explain it.  I'm not sure I can repeat it, but I liked it.  And I'm hoping for good things on the next trip too.

This is our third season with a pop-up camper.  By now, everyone knew their job, and packing was a breeze. The CFO had everyone packed by the time I got home on Friday. I hitched up and the boys stowed gear.  We were away from the house within an hour's time.  We had some McDs on the way through St Clair, and we pulled into the campsite, just as the sun went down.

Saturday was a beautiful day.  We started it with Mickey Mouse style eggs in a basket, bacon, sausage, and OJ.  From there we took a walk through the campsite, saying hello to our weekend neighbors.  The host was an old SeaBee who could blacksmith, blow glass, and rewire just about anything.  One set of neighbors had just impulse-purchased a like-new 2008 JayCo pop-up camper. GOOD PURCHASE. The next set of neighbors was a cav scout (11th AACR) family with strong ties to Germany and had seen the Wall come down. They had just purchased a fixer-upper Class A RV. Nice family. Dog lovers. Polite teens who'd look you in the eye when they spoke. Good raising. The RV came with 47 states filled in on the rear-side map.  I hope they fill in that North Dakota spot real soon. The BSA Scout troop made a parade-like convoy when entering and exiting the camp.  They drove slowly and waved at my boys as they went by. Nice folks. We finished the afternoon with a hike along the half-mile nature trail.  It was a nice trail with a short detour to a nearby open cave.  We photographed what I think is a Little Missouri Brown Bat.  Could be an Indiana Bat, but he didn't have any State registration papers on him.  By then the sky had gone overcast, the temperature dropped, and my back was starting to tire out.

We started our Dutch oven for jambalaya and a campfire for s'mores.  The CFO doesn't like shrimp and isn't much for sausage. BUT when it's cold enough she loves jambalaya, shrimp and all.  We don't do ours terribly spicy, since our oldest son doesn't like that too much.  But it was hot enough to warm us up, and we did have a 5-nose sniffle chorus while eating.  We threw on all three packets of fire wood to roast s'mores, but the temperature dropped too much and everyone was soon inside the camper.  Overnight, it dipped below freezing, and early on Sunday morning, I found myself walking through sleet and snow to get to the latrine.  The dog, being from Labrador, thought the weather was great.  (By the way Labrador is a real place, in Canada. At one point it was its own separate dominion.  Kind of like Texas.  This place is the only place the German Nazis ever made an armed incursion in North America, installing an automated weather station. Wikipedia has a whole page on it: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labrador.  )

Sunday morning, my oldest and I cooked cinnamon rolls in the Dutch oven, while the others stayed inside.  The lack of a good space heater took its toll on group morale, and everyone returned to their sleeping bags after breakfast.  The morning saw larger and larger snow flakes and the cold continued. I gave up hoping for sunlight at 11 am.  We dropped canvas wet and packed up.  The trailer can dry at home.

Campground
Loops
There are three main sections to the camp.  We've decided that we like the far left side of the camp best.  But if you are a tent camper, then you would probably like the middle section best.  And if you have a big diesel RV, you'll probably want the middle or right side.

Shower Houses & Latrines
The shower houses were closed in the pre-season.  There was one vault toilet (aka latrine) open.  It was spotlessly clean, but smelly (it's a latrine).  Regular camping season starts April 1st.

Playgrounds
There was one playground.  There was also a big open field for football and baseball.

Trails
There is a short half-mile nature trail near the camp.  We took it this time.  The trail leads to a small overhang cave, which contained live bats (don't touch...rabies, protected species, etc.)  Early spring is a great time to see the small and delicate Ozark wild flowers.  It is also a good time to go hiking without all the undergrowth.  The trail leads around, up. and over the hill over the main Fisher Cave entrance.

Campsites
Terrain
The main section of the campground is very level, and has good asphalt road between the sites.  The area is well mowed providing nice areas between the sites.  This is probably the best tent-camper state park near St Louis.

Be aware of the Centennial Tree which hangs over the main road.  More than one RV has lost AC or a dish to this low hanging monster.

Pad Space
The pads are generally all of a good length, and are pretty level.  The pads are just pads; they don't cover the campsite.  There are a few handicap campsites with wide pads big enough to hold the pinic table and the fire pit.

Amenities
Each campsite comes with one picnic table (chained down), one fire pit, and one lantern pole.  The pits and poles have likely been in service since the late 80s, but are in good repair.  You can pay for electric hook-ups, water hook-ups, and sewer hook-ups, depending on the size of your camper and the type of site you want to rent.

Camp Staff
Check-in Hosts
There were no check-in hosts this time.  The MO State Park employee, handyman extraordinaire, was the camp check-in and loop host.  The gentleman was knowledgeable and friendly.  Between rewiring the electrical boxes, he frequently checked on us, and was disappointed when the weekend campers began to leave.  He was hoping we'd stay an extra night.

Campsite Hosts
There were no campsite hosts during the spring pre-season.

Rangers
We had no interaction with any Rangers.

Programs
The camp offers cave tours during a limited summer season, and nightly amphitheater programs. These weren't offered during the spring pre-season.