Submitted by Teresa and Paul Beebe (and Igor for Day 2 paddle) – April 2024
Paddling, Hiking and Eclipse Viewing at the Eleven Point River
On the weekend of April 6-8, 2024, a group of adventurers from the Bluff City Canoe Club gathered the Camp River campground near Alton, MO. The primary purpose of the gathering was to view the solar eclipse on April 8. This location was in the 100% totality for the eclipse. Pretty cool!
But this group will not sit idle if there are rivers to paddle and trails to hike.
On Saturday, April 6, 14 of us (well, 15 if you include Banana, Bethany’s cute pup), paddled from Greer Recreation Area to Turner Mill South, a distance of about 5 miles. It was about 11:00 am when we finished shuttling vehicles and hit the water. The paddle was fairly uneventful, although there were 2 swimmers. (No names mentioned.) On the first one, a mean ole root ball from a fallen tree reached out and grabbed the paddler. On the second, it was a rock. It just popped out of the water and over the paddler went. They were both prepared with dry clothes, which was good because it was kind of cool. And the water was cold.
Wildlife viewing was pretty good. Saw lots of turtles and birds, including a blue heron. A few of us saw two cute otters. That was pretty cool.
At Turner’s mill, we all hiked up to the old mill site. Gretchen had to show off by sitting down in the spring where the water gushes out of the mountain. If you have never been to Turner’s mill/spring, the water gushes out of the side of a cliff. You can sit down in it and cold, very cold, water flows over you.
We finished the day with an amazing potluck, grill your own hamburger, hot dog, or whatever at the Beebe’s campsite. Oh my gosh. There was so much food. The group had a chance to celebrate Teresa’s birthday with a cake and ice cream. The day ended by many sitting by the campfire and exchanging war stories and memories that no one ever heard before.
Big shut out to Kyle Dixon and Dory for helping with the shuttles.
River Stats
Put In: Greer Recreation Area
Take Out: Turner Mill South
Gage Ht at Bardley gage, # 07071500: 2.88 ft. This river level is okay. Some of us drug a few times, but overall, there was plenty of water.
On Sunday, April 7, 5 humans and Banana had decided that they needed more “river time” and went back to a Turner Mill South put in to paddle to Whitten Access. The Day 2 turned out to be quite adventurous. Few of us decided to do a cave exploration and we saw a bald eagle that was perched right above us patiently waiting for us to pass by and stop disturbing his peace. We were quiet and only took several hundred pictures of him since he was such a beatify creature. Despite an occasional sprinkle or two, it was all worth it. It is worth noting that our little Banana has spent a day in the most comfortable laundry basket that Bethany had affixed on the back of her kayak. Talking about the pure ingenuity! The laundry basket was lined with fine Egyptian cotton towels that made Banana the most comfortable paddlers on the river. After the paddle, couple of us had to head back to Memphis due to prior commitments while the rest went back to camp to prepare for the highlight of the upcoming week – the eclipse viewing.
A huge thanks to Brenda and Scott and Michael Isle for helping with the shuttles.
Not all decided to paddle on Sunday.
On Sunday, April 7, 6 of us and 5 dogs hiked a portion of the Eleven Point Section of the Ozark Trail. We headed north from Greer Crossing, with the intention of hiking to McCormack Lake. After a little over a mile, we came to a creek crossing that would require swimming to get across. So, we turned around and hiked south, back past Greer Crossing Rec area. We hiked a total of about 7 miles….I think. I have no idea. It could have been 6 or 8. Anyway, it was a good hike. The highlight of the trip, at least for me, was a huge field of Bluebells. They were gorgeous. On Monday, Teresa and Paul went back to see them with 4 others who were not hiking with us on Sunday. The dogs had a blast. Well, except for poor Quincy. He snagged his ear on a Greenbriar, and boy did it bleed. Teresa got the blood flow stopped eventually and we all made it back to the cars.
We again dined on leftovers at the Beebe campsite. So much food, but so good.
A note on the campground. Camp River Campground is a fairly new RV campground. They have full hookup RV sites, lots of tent sites, and cabins. The owners are very nice. There is a nice playground for kids. Us older folks can play ladder ball and throw horseshoes. If you are looking for an RV site with hookups, I recommend it. It is located on County Rd AA about a mile east of Hwy 19 just north of Alton, MO.