DINO's GHOST TOWN BLOG

Hello again my good friends. It is truly frosty that you have chosen to peruse my feeble attempt at describing my outdoor life to you. Please stay awhile. A beverage perhaps on this teutonic of nights? Yes? A Diet Pepsi? A Sierra Mist?  Perhaps something with a little more body. A taste of Jack Black?  The Glenlivet?  Crown?  No? Water?  You have chosen well my good friend.  As you slake your unquenchable thirst let me rip a tale from the annuls of my log.  As you know I have been on a quest to see and explore the great Sunklands in Shannon County in Missouri on the Ozark Plateau. The location is just too large to see in one day even if you get there at first light so I decided to prepare for further explorations into the area by going on an L.R.R.P. to the area.  This is a Long Range Reconnaisance Patrol to gather intel. My departure time was four AM. The trip to highway nineteen was nice and mellow, trancing all the way with the Missouri State Highway Patrol in the background on the scanner. I installed new high powered lighting in the front of the Air-Cav especially for this trip. They are wired into the high beam circuit so they are easy to turn on and quick to turn off. They are for the many and abundant deer that come to meet you on the road to the Sunklands. Also for the many and varied animals that try to commit suicide in front of my car. No no no. I have new brakes for that. Stop on the proverbial dime. Oh yeah mang.      I got to highway nineteen at five twenty eight in the morning. Making good time.  I stopped at the Quik Trip for gas and a couple of those energy shots. I'll save them for later on the way home. I'll need them. I then stopped at the Jack In The Box for two Jumbo Jacks WITH cheese for lunch and a snack on the trail. I must keep my blood suger frosty. I also have these giant Sweet Tarts that come ten to a tube. Great for the trail. Pop one in the mouth and my blood suger is cool again mang. I stopped in Steelville and got twenty dollars from an ATM for Akers Ferry, which must be utilized to cross the Current River into the Sunklands. Six twenty in the morning saw me entering Dent County. I was getting closer. The anticipation was making me travel faster that I wanted to due to the animals so I slowed a bit. The sky was totally clear and dark. Shannon County has the darkest sky of any location in Missouri. The amateur astronomers love it. So do I. At six forty I made it to Salem Missouri. Super nice town. Didn't see too much tho. The darkness and my speed kept me from sightseeing in this little town. On and on into the Plutonian night I went, speed at forty to fifty miles per hour. The Trance was off now and the only sound was the sound of the tires (also new, just for this trip) and the scanner. The scanner was scanning two hundred frequencies, looking for the local police transmissions. The antennas were just singing in the cool air as I was flying along. No moon, just stars. Beautiful.At seven oh nine I crossed into Shannon County Missouri. AT LAST. I was back to my home away from home. God I love this place. At seven twenty one I stopped at the NEW current River State Park to take a whizzzz.  Much needed. This park is not open yet but its coming along. Its Missouri's newest State Park and shall be a wonderful addition to our State Park system. Can't wait for the opening.  Seven twenty nine AM. Entering the Ozark National Scenic Riverways. This area is so wonderful it just gives me the willies just being here.  Now I must get off the wonderful highway nineteen and get on highway K. Six miles down K and you arrive in Akers Missouri. Here is the Akers Ferry, a throwback from the time when things were simpler and much more easy going. Here they still are. Four dollars one way. Four dollars back. Be back by five or you must go the LONG way around to get home. Thats an additional thirty of forty miles added to the trip. No. Not until I camp here. Here is the ferry...


The people here are Amish and have an unusual way of speaking. A little difficult for me to understand but very frosty indeed. Here is a typical Amish farm. If you look closely you can see the buggy they use for transportation tho I did see many of them with large pickup trucks hauling their horses around in style. How do they make money?  Where are the jobs and what kind of jobs are there? Weird.


Wonderful. The Sunklands. My home away from home.







I stayed all day exploring my surroundings. I started down this one little path. It looked like the path I needed to take to the bog I was looking for. It looked like the one I had seen on the sattelite image so I went for it. before long I found that it began to go downward and it led me to another path that traveled down deep into the forest. I began marking trees with my Ka-Bar just to be sure to get out. At the bottom I did find a large bog but it wasn't the right one. I sat and enjoyed the day for about an hour. I then began my climb out of the deep bowl that the Sunklands are known for. As I climbed I went by my tree marks to keep me on course. Once back to the main trail I went the wrong way and proceeded to blaze away along the ridge. Nothing seemed recognizable. All was alien. I sped up. The further and further I went the more I became disoriented. I broke out in a cold sweat and my hands became clammy. Realizing that the sun would be down soon I began to get a little agitated at myself for putting myself in this situation. then I found a camp site. BUT IT WAS THE WRONG CAMP SITE! I was beginning to feel like one of the charachters in The Blair Witch Project, alone in the woods with the light fading and nothing except a bottle of water and a Ka-Bar. I sat down. I told myself to calm down and think it thru. I then drank some water and set out back in the direction I had come. After about an hour of hiking I returned to the intersection of the trails and saw the Thermos. I hadn't seen it before. It was like a beacon in the woods that Azazel had missed in his attempt to get me lost. I realized that this part of the trail HAD to be the right way. I left the Thermos to see if it would still be there when I returned half a year later. The trail led me to MY camp site and ultimately to the car, my salvation. Now I had Jumbo Jacks WITH cheese and other goodies to feast on. Yummy. But I was a little fearful for a few minutes. I don't EVER want to be lost in the woods. I shall invest in a GPS for next time.

Why?  Who?  Its been here a long time. Why?

There are slobs where ever you go. This place is no exception. I picked it up and put it in my pack to be disposed of later. Dang #%%@^^#%#!%&&%^#@$%^*&%$!!!!!!
Thats right...I went there.


The beauty of this place is amazing. And there are large animals here. Bobcat, Mountain Lion and Black Bear. Do NOT feed the animals. They may feed on YOU.






This is where I will camp the next time I come to this place. It will be Spring of 2009. The skeeter and the chiggerz will not have come out yet and it will be perfect. This trip was just for Reconn for intel.  Fun Reconn.


I will be back, and when I do I'll show and tell you more of the place that is so dear but not so near to my heart. I have been trying to get here for ten years. I have arrived.
Please join me again my friends as I persue My LIfe In The Outdoors.

Jog On.

Hi. How ya doing?  What are you doing out in this most heinous of nights?  Glad you stopped by. I was getting a little freaked being here all by myself. Would you care for some dinner?  How bout some cheeseburgers and fries?  Some trout?  Some Haggis? Ok, maybe later.  Let us sit with a refreshment and I shall relate to you a tale of gunshots and fear.  You have the time?  Yes well I guess you would. You know my door is always open to you. Sit and I shall begin.
       The time was one oclock in the morning. The place was the Katy Trail. I was hiking down the trail in search of a nice place to sit and relax in the cool of the night. The coyotes are out. So are the wolves. It is of no concern. I walk past a little bridge that was pushed off its foundation by hurricane IKE and continue. The bridge sits on a precarious angle now. No stopping on the bridge anymore. As I continue walking in the dark the night sounds were greeting me.  I walk about a mile and found at last a bench to sit my weary bones on, Taking my heavy pack off, I set it on the bench and then sit on the bench myself. Ahhh, that was nice. Surrounded by the darkness and the trees. There was a slight breeze, making the leaves on the trail shift and swirl about. I pulled a bottle of water from my pack (I always take two, unlike Steve Fossett, who took one) and unscrewed the cap. Being its carbonated and has some fizz it went SSSSSSSSSSSSSSS as the cap came off. Always thinking tactical, I was worried that someone might have heard the noise, giving away my position. I didn't think there was anyone around or any houses or farms or anything. I WAS WRONG.
      So here I am on the bench. It was now two in the morning and all was well. Or so it seemed. The coyotes were yipping and yapping and the wolves were howling. I was sitting with my head back, leaning back on the bench, hoping I would see something in the sky like a UFO, or falling galaxy or perhaps a large meteor. A plane went by, and PEOPLE WERE HOOPING AND HOLLERING OUT OF THE WINDOWS OF THE PLANE. I didn't know planes had opening windows? As the plane went on to land at Spirit I noticed the hooping and hollering was getting more and more quiet until the plane disappeared and with it the hollering. What was that all about?
      The plane was gone and the sounds were quiet. As I watched the night sky a very large meteorite (A meteor doesn't impact the ground. A meteorite does) traced a very bright path down to the ground. I was happier than Bob Hope in Vietnam. I just happened to be looking in the right direction and BAM, there it was. It was most treacherous!
       After about fifteen more minutes I hear a man yelling and hollering. He was joined with another man who began to whoop and yell with great glee. This freaked me. I didn't know there was anyone else here. I could tell where they were but I knew they were close. Then I heard TEN gunshots!  NOW YOU HAVE MY FULL UNDIVIDED ATTENTION!  A woman began crying and screaming. Then another woman, sounding much younger, started to scream and cry. I didn't hear the men anymore. Now I get a little spooked. I'm armed, as I usually am, but that doesn't mean I want to do battle with some unknown entities. I decide the best course of action is to egress forthwith without giving away my position. I packed up and put my pack on. I then hiked all the way back to the car, checking six all the way, without my flashlight, in the total darkness.  I was not concerned of the darkness. The darkness is my friend. Azazel is not friendly but I can manage. Azazel is always scary but managable. When confronted by Azazel you must keep a cool head and calm demeanor. Exit as soon as possible. Always tactical. Always safe. Always alive.
        I made it back to the car with no problems. I left and got home about three thrity. Don't know what happened. Don't wanna know. I scanned the area using Google Earth and found that there is a farm house about five hundred feet further that where I was sitting.
Whatever happened at that farm house was not good but I guess i'll never know what happened.
Here is where I was and the farm house. The Katy trail is the light streak with the little bridge.

Weird.
Farm On.

Hey Nan2sing.  I noticed your friend on your page. I have one just like him.

 Her name is Pookie.

FROSTY!

THE SUBJECT WANTED  FOR KILLING A UNIVERSITY CITY POLICE OFFICER IS IN CUSTODY.

It started like any other night. It was midnight and I was sitting on the group W bench of the handicapped parking area in Lost Valley.  The weather was superb. The sky was clear and dark and the stars were out big time. I was sitting there in the darkness listening to the coyotes and the fish and the bobcats. Sitting there eating trail mix and drinking a diet 7UP. The Great Horned Owls were not doing their thing. I was also listening to the scanner that is always with me along with my cameras. All was so nice. It got to be around 3 in the morning so I gathered up my stuff and went back to the car. The drive back to 64 was uneventful thank God. The deer were all lined up along the side of the road waiting for me to come by and wave. And wave I do. I proceeded to get on 64. All is good. My speed increased until I was doing 75 MPH.  I know...I speed way too much but I get caught too. So here I was trancing along happily, just getting ready to go under Boone's Crossing. As I sped by a blue van got on 64. I seem to notice something strange about him so I slowed to get behind him. He began to swerve. He could not maintain a single lane. Hell he couldn't even maintain a single highway!  I followed him at a distance as we got on 270 North. At that moment a white Jeep came up next to me at the same speed I was doing and also noticed the drunk. We watched as the van swerved from the number 1 lane to the concrete median and back, CLEAR ACROSS ALL LANES OF TRAFFIC. He almost hit the wall several times. At this moment I turned on my hazard lighting and the Jeep did the same. I pulled out my emergency cell phone from the center console (Its only for 911. The phone cost me 3 dollars and the 911 calls are free.) and contacted Saint Louis County Police. They went Point To Point with Weldon Springs State who , with Saint Louis County, broadcasted on the scanner that the drunk was being followed by a white Jeep and a white Cavalier with antennas all over it. As I heard the broadcast we were approaching highway 70 at 70 MPH. I was gonna terminate the pursuit at 70 cause I was getting tired. The Jeep got off. I flashed my lights and he flashed his. I decided I was gonna persue this guy into Illinois if I have to and beyond. Speed stayed steady at 75. We went under McDonnell BLVD. As we went under I looked in the rear view mirror hoping I would see some red lights. I was a good mile away from McDonnell when I saw them crossing McDonnell. RED LIGHT!  ALLRIGHTYTHEN!!  I continued after this guy.  The lights were getting closer and closer FAST. Then he was on my tail. Then he pulled up along side of me. Missouri State!!  Man was I glad to see him.  I flashed my lights at the van in front and he got behind him and lit him up. I stayed behind the Trooper as all three of up pulled over. I got out and as soon as the Trooper came back to his car I advised him how long I had been following him and what I saw. He told me the guy had told him that he was eating and that what caused the swerving. I laughed and so did the Trooper. He advised me that he was going to give the suspect a Field Sobriety Test. I said thanks and told him to be careful and have a safe night and he thanked me for getting involved. Getting Involved?  Heck thats all I do. I GET INVOLVED.
I watched the Trooper get him out and give him the test. He failed miserably which gave me much delight as I watched one of Missouri's Finest put the nickle plated bracelets on the suspect and proceed to stuff him into the back seat. As I left I waved to the Trooper and he waved back. All was good again.
If you see a drunk driver on the road do yourself and all of us a favor...GET INVOLVED. Get the plate. Get the color. Get the make and model. Describe the number of occupants and the color of the occupants...black,white,or green.  The life you save may be MINE. 
MAKE THE CALL.  SAVE US ALL.
Troop On.

already from not being in the woods and in the wind and sun. Here we are getting ready for our first cold blast of the season and the official ending of the growing season and already I am losing my mind from being indoors too long. My wife pleads with me to take a Xanax just to cut the sharp edge off me. I take an Ativan instead. I been getting the old launch complex and associated bunker here in the ghost town ready for the coming brutal winter. I tell ya...get your stuff together NOW.  While you can at a reasonable price. Christmas stuff is already out on the shelves and the price of rock salt is gonna hit an all time high so don't say I didn't warn ya me bucko.
In the meantime (the name of a fantastic CD by one of my favorite bands, HELMET) as I was in the area, we saw this......


 This is the entrance to the Allison Cemetary trail. Its on Lake Wapapello property and is worth a visit if you like to see old stuff as it is and imagine how it was. I'll tell ya how it was....IT WAS HARD!  HARD I TELL THEE!  Not hard like diamond or dylithium crystals or like the USMC. It was hard just to live day to day on meager earnings from crops and cattle or super pure crank.  It was a hard life for you and your family on the old homestead. Homestead I SAY!


 Here is a creepy, surreal and sublime shot that my wife took of me being stupid.  Gave me a weird feeling. MY GOD!  ITS FULL OF STARS!

 The full monty. This is an old area from the 1880's. There is a beautiful bench just over there that lets you sit overlooking Lake Wapapello and ponder the question.....WHAT IN THE GREAT HIBERIAN GODS AM I DOING HERE?  I am glad I am here.  I wish I was there now.

We spent a good 3 hours here just looking and studying the stones and the inscriptions and just  wondering.

Just like i'm doing now.

Death On.

How You doin?  I am so happy that you have chosen to stop and read about my life at the Bonne Terre Mine.  I took the wife to the mine cause we have been wanting to see this great wonder for ourselves for many many years so we finally did it. It is wonderful and you must see. Here, sit and take a load off or I will hang ye from yon mizzen mast ya salty sea dog AYE!

This is deep in the mine. West End Diving which is right here in Bridgeton owns and operates the BTM. Unreal.



 What do you see in this image that is strange?  Can you see it?

 It cavernous in there mang. CAVERNOUS I TELL YA , YA SEA WENCH.

 This is some of the dive gear that is here.  You can learn to dive here also, from beginner to getiing your master diver certificate.  Big money in that.  Especially extreme technical divers and mixed gas divers.  Just raking in the booty. Dangerous. I cant't swim. Forget it!!
 I stay above the water surface. The heck with that.  I'm not having that in MY life!  Oh no no no no!

Here you see various forms of mining stuff.  Cool to the max!  EXTREMELY FROSTY MINE GOOD FRIEND.



Verticle shaft with water at the bottom.



Dark mine.  Even with the lighting its still dark.  I find that comforting in a Blair Witch sort of way.

 Going up some stairs. Darkness envelopes everything. My flash reveals the ORB.

 Here is picture of Bonnie, the ONLY living fish in BTM.  There were about 25 or so but they all died due to the extreme hardness of the water. All except Bonnie.  She has been there at the mine about 15 years. They feed her everyday. Wonderful.



 Up on top. The gift shop and mine store of some sorts. Very very nice.




 Having fun in the BONNE TERRE MINE.  You gotta see this place. Cool in the summer and warm in the winter.


Thanks for following me to the great underground. You won't believe all this is UNDER the WHOLE TOWN of Bonne Terre. Have fun.


Mine On.

THE LARCH!
No really mang...I kid to be sure mang....please to check out my newest additions to the laboratory.......


Foundem in an old antique shop somewhere on the road.  I just gotem and I can't remember WHERE I gotem.
I must be going fast.  I don't know.  Howz it feel to be going fast?  I mean I travelled at 119 MPH and that was fast, is going fast going even faster than that? As fast as a bullet?  As fast as the Space Shuttle?  As fast as a photonic particle travelling at one hundred eighty six thousand miles PER SECOND?  As fast as a Tachyon travelling thru the very fabric of space and time, exploding onward thru the barriers of time as if there not even a concern?

But I regress.  Again.

Here is an image of a Pentium II 266 that I built on a wooden board out of some spare parts galore. 8 Gig hard drive, Rage video card, PCI sound card, On board video, 256 Meg of memory, 40X CD-Rom drive, 5000 watt power supply,AGP video, Nice KDS monitor, so many beautiful things. Works good.Good I say!  It now has a job.


All the puters here have seperate jobs. And they all get along swell. SWELL I TELL YA!

Lab On.

Thats Blue Spring.  It was getting dark when we got there but that was cool. The forest takes on a whole different feel at dusk. Some might say sinister. Others say scary. Some say its way too dark and get the heck outa dodge. Me?  I welcome the dark in the forest.  The ARE things in the dark woods that can hurt you. Some say its Azaezel.  Some say its the dark force that is prevalent in the woods. I call it the Monsters Of The Dark Forest. Its there. Don't kid yourself. Getting used to the dark woods takes a good while. Some never get used to it. The fear is just too great. I know that fear. It can overwhealm you and have you running out of the woods at top speed. You must prepare to push the darkness back with light. If not you must find a way to come to grips with the blackness of the deep forest and the sounds of the many things that live there including things that you don't wanna know about. Thats what this place is like. Tucked away in the deep woods. It gets dark fast here and its always darker than normal due to the remoteness of the location. Its worth it tho.  Look at this....


BLUE!

They call Round Spring The Blue Eye cause of the roundness and the blueness. This is more blue than blue.

This place is fantastic. The solitude is complete. There was no one there. The road to get here is very rough and keeps the masses away cause they dont't want to get there SUV dirty or scratched or they don't want to get mud on their wheels (RIMS. Rims are on my bike. Wheels are on my car.) They buy the SUV to get around in the mud and snow but they are too afraid to go where you actually MIGHT get mud or snow on the thing.  Its purely a status thing.  Well let me remind you.....You Have No Status With Me.  You Blog With Me You're Blogging With The Best!


NO SWIMMING!  NO WADING!  NO CRACKING!  LEAVE IT ALONE.  JUST LOOK, DON'T TOUCH.


Mr. Hager's work here is quite evident. Please tread lightly.



These are the places I gravitate to to be alone with my mind. These places allow my brain to slow down so I can take stock of my life and my problems. lets me think and solve the problems of the day.


There are two viewing platforms for your viewing pleasure. Let me tell ya, this spring is 310 FEET DEEP!  The Statue Of Liberty would be completely submerged. AMAZING!


This is one of the places you MUST see before you die. I will see it more than once. You should too.

Blue On.

Here I am again to say BIG SPRING!  This is a cool place. The largest spring in Missouri with 185 MILLION gallons of water per day issuing forth with a splash. COOL.


 There is a little cave here and my wife went in and took this image...

This is my future home.

Someday I will move there and live out the last of my days in complete happyness. Shannon County is, for the time being, my home away from home.  There is no where else I would rather be.


 840 MILLIONS GALLONS A DAY!!  Can you get a drink from that?Here is my wife again having a happy time. It was a fun day.



Thats some cold water. But oh so nice to watch and listen to and to touch and smell.

Here the water comes out with a rush. It roars like Neptune.

Getting that perfect shot.

Here is the Lodge at Big Spring State Park. Constructed by the CCC.


This little house I couldn't figure. I think its a well house. I'll figure it next time I am sure.



Fiddling with my tripod in the sun and the cool breeze. The grandness of it all. The purity. The Farfigneuton.

And more of the rush and roar of the spring waterness.


The water is so clean and clear that it makes you wanna jump right on in but don't.  Its cold enough to stop your heart and give you hyperthermia. BLAM...you're in the hospital.

Come to this place when you can. You will be amazed at what you see and what you MIGHT see.

Spring On.

Howz it going mang? I been traveling again. Here is a few pics of Alley Spring. Wonderful place to be in the fall or whenever. Super frosty.




 This is the second largest spring in Missouri. The water comes out in a torrent and is ice cold.

Wonderful!


 Here is my wife at Harvey's. Its a little general store. She was on vacation from her job so I took her all over the Lower Ozarks. Shannon County. Someday we hope to move there.



 This is a place at Alley Spring called Watercress Park. Right at the spring. She is standing there next to the spring and she is quite happy to be there. I am too.


You can see the watercress at the bottom of the image. Yes it is edible. Try some on a salad, on a hamburger, in your crack pipe. Very tasty indeed mang.

Taste On.

Whats all this I hear about Fox 2 and KPLR-TV joining forces?  I can't find it on the site.

Help?

So which one is it?  The page says the house fire was in Normandy Missouri but it goes on to say it was on Lilac in Riverview. ?????????????????????????????????????
Burn On.

Thats what I get mang. I was able to get with Saint Louis County and talk with them about the poor service I was getting from Veolia ES. Veolia got with me and found that even tho they had told me that my trash pick up day was thurs day it was a mistake. Its really friday so that explains why I was not getting my trashed picked up on time.  It was picked up on time, I just didn't know it mang.  Now all is good and I am a happy mang.
Trash On.

Aye me bucko, tis I once again mang, here to relate to you a tale of bombastic fear and a fight to the almost death me sea hag.  You see, conjure a vision of me sitting at the concrete haven for the handicapped in the Lost Valley yee wench of wenches me hearties.  I sit and take in the massive radiation of our closest star. The vitamin D was streaming in and the photons were the brightest.  I was sitting on the group W bench having a nice and mellow time. Then without warning the largest bumble bee in existence came to me and began circling me in a menacing fashion.  I hate bees but I won't kill em even after they sting me but I DO NOT like getting stung.  I got up and let him have my pack. It seemed to be what he wanted.  He circled it 4 or 5 times, stopped, then started in my direction.  He raced to me with a vengeance and began the attack in earnest. This bee was about the size of a half dollar and was ticked off at me to the max mang. It was not feeling very frosty.  He got into my hair and I could hear him screaming into my ear.  I could not get him out of my hair and I knew any moment I was going to be stung on the face or neck or scalp. I grabbed my hair brush from my pocket which is always with me and brushed him out with great enthusiasm.  He dropped to the concrete. I felt good. But not for long. Most people would have just stomped him.  Not I my faithless furry friend.  I watched for a moment when, just as before, he took off again and came after me again.  I ran to the other side of the concrete pad and faced him again.  I saw he was making a straight line right to me so I took stock. What are my defenses?  Am I super strong? NOT.  I'm invisible?  NOT.  I'm able to fly with the greatest of NOT!  I have a hair brush in my pocket and a large Ka-Bar on my belt.  As he met me I went for the hair brush. Figures. I didn't want to kill the bombastic battle bee deluxe.  I just wanted it to stop.  I began to wave the brush in a vertical fashion in front of me, as hard and as fast as I could, hoping his flight path would intersect with the brush.  It did. I head a small click and I watched the battle bumble bee hit the tarmac at a severely accelerated rate.  He must have absorbed 50 G's.  He was down.Still would not even think of stomping him.  He got up, crawled a little, flew about 2 feet, crawled a little again and slowly crawled into the bushes.  I had enough of the life or death battle for truth, justice, and a whale of a sting.  I went back down the trail and called it a day.  I hope the battle bee was ok.  I didn't want to kill him.  Why he wanted to kill me is unknown.  Maybe his wife left him for another bee.  Maybe he's hooked on crack honey.I dunno.  Fair thee well my battle opponent.  Till we buzz again.
Sting On.