Sharing the Adventure Hiking, Camping & Floating

Photos, maps, information and links to sites for parks, trails and rivers Beyond Castlewood Missouri. Photo: Overlooking the Meramec River from the Bluff View Trail on a sunny morning in November.

Hint of a second rainbow in the mist of Shoshone Falls, Twin Falls, Idaho.

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A Guide to the Turquoise Jewels of the Missouri Ozarks

The new Echo Bluff State Park, billed as the gateway to the Missouri Ozarks, is the perfect base camp for a two-day treasure hunt in search of the turquoise springs hidden in the forested hills.

Located halfway between Salem and Eminence on Highway 19, the park’s entrance is the starting point for an easy drive to six of these sparkling gems.

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Yosemite Falls in Yosemite National Park on a hot day in late June 2016.

Broken Arch in Arches National Park June 2016.

Photo: Multnomah Falls, 611 feet tall and located off of I-84 just 30-minute east of Portland, Oregon in the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area.

While researching possible trails in the Jacks Fork and Current River area of Missouri, I almost dismissed Alley Spring because of its shortness at only 1.9 miles. As I stepped onto the trail beginning behind the mill, I realized what a mistake that would have been. The trail is well built and scenic every step of the way. Here's a link if you want to read and see more. OzarkMountainHiker.com

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Photo: Dream Lake, 1.1 miles from the Bear Lake Trailhead on Bear Lake Road in Rocky Mountain National Park. I was passed by skiers and snowboarders skiing down the trail while hiking up to Dream Lake covered with snow April 1, 2017

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Wanting to get away from the crowded holiday weekend in Yellowstone, Friday afternoon my son and I went to a ranger station to register for a backcountry permit. There were several sites available, from a mile to a 10 mile hike in. We chose Backcountry Campsite 2H4 on Hellroaring Creek, two-and-a-half miles from the Hellroaring Trailhead. The trail was easy to follow, crossing the Yellowstone River on a foot bridge and passing small herds of bison and pronghorn along the way.

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Photo: Burden Falls located in Southern Illinois in the Shawnee National Forest May 2015.

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Siesta Key Beach and Myakka River State Park in Sarasota, Florida.

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Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Fall Creek Falls, Cummins Falls and Burgess Falls State Park.

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We took a couple of hikers for their first backpacking campout on the Wilderness Trail at Meramec State Park this weekend. Packed in to a backpacking camp Saturday afternoon with occasional stops to feed the insects. After arriving at the campsite and setting up we collected firewood. The forecast called for evening temps below 80 and we wanted to stay warm. Packed out Sunday morning and ended our weekend with a swim in the Meramec. Seriously, it was a fun weekend. June 11-12, 2016

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Photo: Greer Spring, The second largest spring in Missouri with an average daily flow of 222 million gallons from two outlets about 250 feet apart. The spring is 0.9 miles from the trailhead located about 8 miles north of Alton, Missouri on Highway 19.

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Photo: Devil's Tollgate on the Taum Sauk Section of the Ozark Trail on a great Sunday hike in November.