Float trip to the Ozarks

We finally got a weekend to head south and visit CJ's relatives who live in Southern Missouri. We really don't see them very often, so to say they were overjoyed to see the kids would be an understatement. His Grandmother always insists on cooking these big country meals for us everytime she see's us, we all eat till we're sick to do it all justice.

I think they'll love a copy of this picture, the kids were all well behaved and respectful of their grandparents, I was really proud of them.


We left West Plains and headed a little bit north to the Current River in Eminence, MO. The whole area is part of the Ozark National Scenic Riverways, which is beautiful and unique area. This river in particular is spring fed, ice cold and beyond beautiful. The first day we just went and played at the gravel beach near our cabin, it was pretty cold but the kids still had a good time. Here is a picture of Sissy crawling up Daddy to get out of the cold.

The next day was our float trip, the kids decided to jump off this rock after seeing some other rafters doing it. I insisted they jump feet first, the other folks were diving and doing flips and I was having no part of that. You can get to help with a broken ankle, a broken neck would be a whole different (read tragic) story.

This was one of the many beautiful sights we saw along the way, a natural cave, carved by the water. The picture really doesn't do it justice, it was gorgeous.


Here's the guys floating while Hunter, Sissy and I manned the raft. They floated along quite awhile, the water was a little cold for me.

This is one of the many springs that feed the riverways of the Ozarks. You can't see it very well, but water was just pouring out of this cave structure and it was icy, it is such an awesome display of God's power. These rivers are some of God's most beautiful work in the Midwest, I'm so glad that they are respected for the Gift that they are. You could tell that people respect the rules, even though there are alot of canoers and rafters, you saw little to no trash anywhere in or around the rivers. Everyone is very careful to leave the area as they found it or better, you really can't ask for more than that.

We saw some truly wonderful wildlife, I was stalking this Heron? to try to get a good picture. It's a little blurry but you can tell how beautiful he is.
Last but not least, a picture of everyone on the deck of our cabin before we headed home. Can you see the beautiful, blue-green water in the background, the rivers in this area look like this. I think it is the limestone that the springs bubble up from that lend this color to the water. It was a quick but wonderful trip.