First off, sorry for the delay in posts. We have been running non-stop and have had little time for anything other than adventure and driving. To pick up where we last left off, Tuesday we floated the Jack's Fork River again. A local nature photographer, Kevin Sees, told us that there was not a more scenic river float in all the Ozarks than the Jack's Fork from 17th Bridge to Rymers. What great advice!!! Almost every bend in the river produced incredible bluffs, flowing springs, hidden caves, etc. The first day on the river, we decided to take only one canoe for the family. This saved money and was a good chance for Meg to cut her teeth on the dos and don'ts of handling the boat. But this upper section of the river had less water and we decided to take one canoe and one tandem kayak. Except for one little spot, which I described in the earlier caption of the pictures, this decision turned out to be fine. The highlight of this float was our adventure in Jam-Up Cave. Our outfitter had told us to look for this spot about seven miles down river. For most of our float, we saw, much to Meg's dismay, more snakes than people. But as we approached the cave, a man and his son filled us in on the best entry spot to access the trail to to the cave's entrance. As I was attempting to secure our boats to the rocky, steep river bank the man had pointed out as the safe entry, I noticed that he had submerged his canoe in a very tame part of the river. This was not a good sign. For the next five minutes, we trudged through the snakiest little area you could find on the river, looking for this elusive trail. We finally exited our 100 yard death hike a bit downstream and discovered our proper entry site.
The cave was incredible. As Meg recovered from her trauma of walking through the snake pit, the boys and I set out to discover the cave. Huge boulders lined the cave's slippery floor as water dripped on our heads from the damp ceiling above. The mouth of the cave was probably 30' tall and 60' wide, so there was plenty of natural light to advance deep into the cave's abyss. After about 5 minutes of scurrying over boulders and winding through slick walkways, we could hear the sound of rushing water. As we rounded a large boulder, we realized we had reached the end of our journey and were rewarded with an unbelievable site. At the rear wall of the cave, a powerful stream was thundering through an opening about 6 feet above a swimming pool sized hole of beautiful, spring water. Not really a cascading waterfall, more like when the fireman test the hydrants on the street sides - multiplied by a thousand. And to ice the cake, above the crystal pool of water and gushing stream was a natural window of light providing some surreal lighting effects. Not daylight and not too dark, just enough light for a creepy cave experience. After splashing some frigid, spring water on the boys we left the abyss and returned to tell Mom of our discoveries. Another great adventure and fun for all ages. As we approached the "proper" river landing for the trail to the cave, the man who offered up the original route was there and apologized for his erroneous advice. He kindly offered his services to ferry me back to our boats upstream. Feeling a bit adventurous, and remembering his earlier perils submerging his canoe, I politely declined his offer and opted to swim across the swift river, walk back up the rock beach, and then swim back across to get our boats (sounds more risky than it was).
The day ended with a bath for Dad and Jackson in the cool waters of the Jack's Fork at sundown, followed by roasted hot dogs and smores (absent the chocolate because Dad's a knucklehead) for all. Not a bad day at all. The following morning, after a pound of bacon, cooked over the hot fire, and a bag of "sweet sixteens" we were off to explore another cool spot that Kevin had told us about. I won't go into detail but will sum it up with one word ... FABULOUS!! We had the place all to ourselves, which always adds to the sense of adventure and danger, and it was cool. Prairie Hollow Gorge is a "must see" when in Eminence. http://www.spotadventures.com/trip/view?trip_id=196427
After our hike, we shed our wet clothes and packed up the truck to head West. No itinerary or reservations, just some ideas of what we wanted to see. We took the back roads through the small town of Missouri, we even passed an old Griff's Burger Barn still in operation (for my family in KY). We hopped on I-29 outside of Kansas City and headed north towards the Dakotas. The Missouri River was forecast to overflow it's bank in Omaha and Sioux City, so we wanted to make it upstream of the river before stopping. At 1:30 AM we checked into the Baymont Inn (couldn't find a La Quinta Lanny) for some much needed R&R. The next morning, after devouring the free breakfast buffet and then pillaging the remains for daily snacks, we jumped on I-90 for the 350 mile drive to the BADLANDS. We saw some neat stuff along the way...beaver lodges, crazy roadside sculptures, a few antelope, suicide squirrels, prairie dogs, etc., but they all paled when compared to the incredible scenery of the Badlands. It almost feels as if you have been "beamed down" to a different planet when experiencing the Badlands. The unique formations of rock and the vibrant colors created by the stratas of earth from millions of years past are something to behold. The overcast conditions seem to have muted our photos from the brilliant colors that abound throughout the park. Much like the experience of the river float, with every hairpin turn we were provided with breathtaking, long-range views. And although the Badlands are not necessarily known for wildlife encounters, as we exited the park in chilly, misty, drizzling conditions, we were treated to a little parting gift. On a high ridge, rounding a sharp curve, something caught my eye. We exited the excursion, all except Ben who was cozy in his warm truck, and climbed a steep, slippery trail to the highest point in the Badlands (around 3,500 ft. if memory serves me). On the other side of the ridge was a herd of Bighorn Sheep, complete with nine baby lambs. The lambs were playful and were testing their climbing abilities on the steep terrain. Pretty cool moment but the weather prevented any pictures...sorry. Just come see for yourselves.
As a strong storm was approaching, instant weather info provided by my new Thunderbolt, we decided to set our sights on Custer State Park and Mt. Rushmore. Just about an hour away, we arrived at the park entry around 8:00 PM. And although our original plans had been to go to the town of Custer for a bite (we hadn't eaten since raiding the hotel's breakfast bar earlier that day) Meg and I could not resist the temptation to explore the Wildlife Loop in Custer Park during peak evening hours. Great decision and I will let the pictures speak for themselves. Ended our day with a late night pizza and a peaceful night at the EconoLodge in beautiful downtown Custer. Can't wait for tomorrow's adventures...THE NEEDLES...and much more.
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