Back to the start and some notes – From here there is just a short thirty-minute hike, south, down the Ozark Trail to get back to the trailhead. That’s it, trip over, though there’s still the two-hour drive home to complete.
May 23, 2021
Mark Twain National Forest
May 23, 2021
Only two or three miles left to go.
May 23, 2021
The view from my chair – Stereo image.
May 23, 2021
And very tall trees too.
May 23, 2021
Trees, trees, and more trees.
May 23, 2021
Lunch break, and I’m showing a bit too much thigh – I had a choice of routes to take today. The short route takes the North Fork Loop east back to the Ozark Trail, where I could get back to the trailhead. The longer route goes south, and into the Devil’s Backbone Wilderness, and returns to Highway CC via the McGarr Ridge Trail. One-minute read
May 23, 2021
Day Three – Back on the North Fork Loop Trail
May 23, 2021
Nothing but trees – Camped in Mark Twain National Forest, it was a wonderful morning in a rejuvenating spot.
May 23, 2021
Dappled.
May 23, 2021
Hammock Camping. +2
May 23, 2021
Stereo Image – Just Trees – It’s difficult to see the trees for the woods in a normal forest photograph, you need your full 3D vision to be able to separate things.
May 22, 2021
Eight O’Clock and I’m finally camped for the night
May 22, 2021
Glimpse – A glimpse of the sky, and the river can just be seen through the leaves. +2
May 22, 2021
Steam Mill Creek Crossing – This is where the main North Fork Loop Trail crosses the creek in Steam Mill Hollow. One-minute read
May 22, 2021
Overhang, not very spectacular, but the sides of the hollow were impressively steep. It looked a bit too low and damp to make a good camping spot for anyone with a tent.
May 22, 2021
Spring on Steam Mill Hollow – closer inspection of the map showed that I’d missed this spring when planning my trip. It wasn’t a raging torrent, but it was putting out several gallons a minute.
May 22, 2021
Lunch break by the creek in Steam Mill Hollow. Not that I knew it was the creek in Steam Mill Hollow at the time. It seems I need to learn several more lessons in checking my compass and map before I assume I know where I am. Two-minute read, +1
May 22, 2021
Nice Trail (but you may have trouble following it) – The map I was using was slightly under twenty years old (and the best I could find online). I should have cross-checked it against the trail map at the trailhead. If I had, I would have seen that the objective for my day’s hike was no longer on the trail system. One-minute read
May 22, 2021
Trail junction, there goes the Ozark Trail – Here I leave the Ozark Trail. +1
May 22, 2021
Cairns, cairns, and more cairns – there were lots in this area, but I couldn’t see any side trails or other blazes.