This is where we stay when we go "Home"; we both love it here. Bob is a volunteer workcamper while we are here. Indian Creek Campground is one of several U.S. Army Corp of Engineer parks in our area that was built when the Mark Twain Lake was made and developed. Mark Twain Lake was formed in 1984 when the $308,000,000 Clarence Cannon Dam Project was completed, transforming the Salt River Valley into the Missouri's fifth-largest reservoir. Each year, close to 2,000,000 people visit the recreation areas around the lake.
Mark Twain Lake first reached normal pool of 606 feet above sea level on March 17, 1984. Boating, fishing, camping, hiking, biking, hunting, waterskiing, canoeing, swimming, picnicking, geo-caching, are all popular outdoor activities here at Mark Twain Lake.
The lake is located in Monroe & Ralls counties in Northeast Missouri and has 18,600 acres of surface water at normal pool. The lake is surrounded by 38,400 acres of land managed by the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers. The lake is approx. 27 miles in length and has 285 miles of shoreline.
The Mark Twain Lake is not built up & commercialized like the Lake of the Ozarks, as there are building restrictions in place where nothing can be built along the shoreline. Mark Twain Lake is a more peaceful, nature loving area.
The lake has a variety of fish, with crappie, bass and catfish being the most sought after.
There are two marinas on the Mark Twain Lake. The Indian Creek Marina is adjacent to the Indian Creek Campground. There is also the Indian Creek Beach which is open to the campers of Indian Creek Campground. The Indian Creek Recreational Area is located off Hwy. 24 (7 miles south of Monroe City),
turn on Route HH, and then turn left off Route HH to Indian Creek Recreational Area. The other marina, Black Jack Marina, is part of the Ray Behrens Recreational Area. It is approx. 1 mile South of the Cannon Dam on Route J. There is a campground near that marina, Ray Behrens Campground that is also popular. There is a beach in that area, John F Spalding Beach. There is also the Frank Russell Recreational Area that has a campground, and is closer to Perry, MO. There are a couple of group campgrounds. There is a visitor center near the Clarence Cannon Dam called the M.W. Boudreaux Memorial Visitor Center. The Mark Twain Lake Project Office is also in the area near the dam.
I grew up in the little village of Indian Creek, MO., and Bob grew up nearby in Monroe City MO. Bob, his parents, family and friends did a lot of camping, hunting, fishing, and driving around of their four-wheel drive jeep/vehicle(s) in much of the area of the Salt River before the land was developed into the dam and the Mark Twain Lake. They spent most of their recreational time at the Salt River and area. I remember them being apprehensive about the dam and recreational areas when it was being developed because it was going to mess up their "stomping grounds". He has a lot of memories of the river, land & good times they had before it was developed into the recreational area.
I remember us taking photos of our oldest daughter with the dam under construction in the background.
The area's population & employment boomed during the construction of the dam and the recreational areas; and plummeted afterwards.
Anyway, since we arrived "Home" on Aug. 20th, we have been very busy visiting and being with family. We went to Monroe City to visit my parents and Bob's mother soon after parking our RV and getting it situated.
The next morning, (Friday), we had some errands to run in Monroe, and went to our daughter's, Kara, to return the deep freezer that we borrowed for our Alaska trip and picked up our couch, end tables, coffee table, several outside folding chairs, my car, etc. We loaded and unloaded everything, and soon afterward were back on our way to Monroe City to pick up our two grandchildren after school. They were going to spend the weekend with us. Our youngest daughter, Kelsey, who lives in Warrensburg MO also came home later that night for the weekend, and stayed with us in our RV. So, we ended up having a full-RV for the weekend. I prepared some food that night for the weekend.
Saturday, I took Kelsey and the kids to town (Monroe City) to visit Bob's mother and my parents. Kelsey hasn't been to Monroe City for quite a while and it had been a while since she had seen her grandparents. We came back to the campground, and visited and prepared for our family get-together/dinner in our RV that we had that evening. The family got together for dinner and visited inside Saturday evening. Monica, one of Kelsey's first cousins, came to the campground and visited with Kelsey and the rest of us outside later that evening. Another friend, Heather and her nephew and baby niece, also stopped by the campsite to visit with Kelsey. It got so muggy outside, we all moved inside to visit. It was too hot outside for the 2 month old, for sure. Kelsey and her friends visited for quite a while; and I got to hold the baby...such a cutey! After her friends left, it wasn't long before we all crashed.
Kelsey left early Sunday afternoon. The grandkids stayed overnight again because their mom had to work and close, which would mean the kids would get to bed real late on a school night. Late Sunday afternoon we took the grandkids to Indian Creek Marina to get a ice cream treat. We sat outside on the deck of the marina while eating ice cream. Then, we took a ride in all of the campground. We let the kids ride in the bed of our truck in their little outside folding chairs since we drive slow in the campground. The kids think that is quite fun. We saw a couple of does with their fawns while on our ride. After getting back to the campground, we ate some dinner and then got the kids their showers and watched a little TV. At 8:00 pm, I made the kids go to bed since they have school tomorrow. I had a miserable night's sleep; Terryn woke me up and was scared, so I moved to the bed they were sleeping in....there's not enough room in that bed for both the grandkids and me.
The alarm went off this morning way to early for my liking. I got up and dressed for the day, and then woke up the grandkids. They got ready good, ate some cinnamon toast that Bob made for them. and then it was time for us to leave in order to get them to school on time. Bob called the Corp to pick up the keys, etc. but the guy he called was not in, so we decided to go on to Quincy IL, and then back to Hannibal to make it to a 1:00 p.m. appointment Bob had made for oil change & repairs to the truck. The repair shop gave us a loaner to use while they worked on the truck. We went to a few stores and we decided we were tired of shopping/killing time, so at 2:30 we went back to the repair place. We sat in the waiting room for a while when one of the repair guys said he had to order a part and it would be tomorrow or the next day before they would be finished. They offered to us, the loaner van, to use until they complete the work on the truck.
So, we left and came home and relaxed the rest of the quiet evening.
It has been extremely hot and humid ever since we got back home; it just about takes your breath away when you step outside. In addition, this time of the year is usually lousy with horseflies. There are a lot of them and then they start swarming you and will bite. We have not seen much of the outdoors due to those conditions since we have gotten here. The weather forecast tonight said that we will have one more super hot/humid day and then it will gradually start getting cooler.
Tomorrow, I hope to do, absolutely NOTHING......or close to it. I am exhausted from being on the go the past several days & keeping up with the grandkids. The day we got back here, my previous employer had left a message with one of my daughter's, that they were needing some part time help and if I was interested in working while I am back, to call them. So, I called, and this Wednes, Thurs,. & Friday I am going to help them out...not sure what days I will be working next week. I told them I was interested in working 3 days/week for the next seven weeks (until we leave for Oklahoma & Texas). I figured it wouldn't hurt to re-coop some of the money we spent on our trip to Alaska, not to mention, Christmas is not that far away.
That about sums up the last five days since we returned home from our trip. Like I mentioned earlier, our life is boring, (but busy), when we are not in the traveling-mode. We are happy to plant our feet in one place for a while; it's nice to be back "home".
Until later.....
Have a good day!
jl
