hank franklin

I'm a bit late to this party. I work for a living I would have loved to see the defense "adjust" and make a stop or two, but this idea that there was some magic bullet that would've stuffed Auburn is just silly. They steamrolled us. A middle-aged dude with X's and O's ain't gonna suddenly stop the steamroller. For a football fan, that was a thing of beauty. Too bad it had to happen to us. I thought Mizzou played admirably in the game. We learned that our defense was capable (at times) but ultimately not up to the challenge. Lest we forget that Alabama and their vaunted D gave up 300 yards rushing to Auburn. We were simply not capable of stopping them. We also learned our offense is very good. We kept taking hits and rising up and hitting back. I thought it was a gutsy game and we ultimately ran out of gas. Nothing at all to be ashamed of. I LOVE the Cotton Bowl matchup. Have we graduated from the Big 12 or are we still just pretenders? Are we really as good as we think we are? I think this is a big pride game, for both sides. I like Mizzou very much in this one, but OK State is for real. Should be a slugfest. The FSU-Auburn game of course is the game we're all waiting for. If Jimbo can figger out them Auburn boys then bully for him. I have a feeling this'll be another slugfest but Auburn's D will wither at the end, and maybe FSU rises. In the end though I'll go with Auburn and the SEC's 8th straight. It has been a great year in college FB. Thank God Mich St did us all a favor and eliminated the OSU charade. This year's version of last year's Notre Dame.

Gavin, I too need to do Goodes Mill to confluence to complete the whole Bourbeuse. Once we were above Mint Springs and it was after a big rise and fall in the river, and there were mussels all over the gravel bars. I was tempted to collect and eat them but wasnt sure if they were "in season." Later after looking into it I'm glad I didn't eat them as you probably don't want to consume what amounts to a pollution filter. I ran the Noser to Reiker stretch in something like six hours when I was 16. River was in flood and we were drinking beer like idiots. When we got to Reiker's we couldn't believe it as we weren't due there until the next day. We camped overnight in some muddy woods and ran down to Mayer's the next day. It was my first overnight trip without my dad. We were literally very lucky to survive.

Al, if you get a chance you might want to run up to Mount Pleasant Ford on the Bourbeuse. This is one of my favorite stretches. Abundance of gravel bars and less silt / mudbank character than what you get as you travel farther down. Below Mint Springs is nice but starts becoming very "Bourbeuse-like" in sections. The upper stretch has an unusual character for the Bourbeuse, kind of similar to the upper upper Meramec.

Al, what's the farthest up the Bourbeuse you've been? One area that I'd love to get to is the lower Meramec, especially from Robertsville SP to Castlewood SP. Maybe this winter. Never been. My grandpa had a clubhouse near Allenton (long gone) and for years I've wanted to see that stretch of river.

The James. Fished it, never floated it. Kings River. Mulberry. Upper Buffalo. Rivers I've floated in more or less in the chronological order I've floated them: Bourbeuse, Meramec, Missouri, Buffalo, Big Piney, Current, Jack's Fork, Huzzah, Eleven Point, Big, Mineral Fork, Courtois, Saint Francis, Osage Fork, Niangua, North Fork, Black, Gasconade. Of these the only "major" stream I haven't floated is the James. If anyone wants to argue a "major" please do. Would Big Creek be considered a "major?" Nah, not quite. Little Niangua? Probably not. Etc... I haven't been on the Osage below Bagnell, does that count as a "major"? Maybe I should get on it.

Just a couple years ago.

We were setting up gravel bar camp on the Huzzah one very tranquil and quiet late afternoon, when out of nowhere a dust devil blew up and blew our gear all over the place, into the water, up the gravel bar, scattered everywhere. Tent was not staked yet and almost blew into the river. Folding chairs and assorted other stuff did make the water. We sprung into rescue mode and recovered everything and in a few minutes all was well again. My young boy was on one of his first river trips and developed a fear of wind from that experience which to some degree he still has. Another day we were floating the Meramec and paddled up the Huzzah confluence a bit to fish it a bit. Nothing at all going on when all of a sudden one raft, then another, then another, all packed with Muslims in robes and dark beards and turbans. I kid you not. One after the other, probably 50 or so in total. All men and boys. We didn't pay them any mind and they were friendly. I held up a large spot I had caught and they applauded. Later we passed them on the Meramec approaching Onondaga and the boys were getting rambunctious. Osama! Osama! one of them kept yelling. We felt it was probably time to get on down the river, hearing that.

The SEC has won the last 7 national championships. That, in my opinion, cannot go unrewarded. It's not about record, it's about level of play.

If we beat Auburn in the Georgia Dome for the SEC Championship we should politely bow to Ohio State? Did you watch the OSU-Michigan tangle? It was like watching the JV game with Auburn-Bama and Mizzou-A&M the varsity. The level of play is not even close.

Anybody got a used kayak or know where I might get one? It needs to be youth sized or at least youth-handable. An Old Town would be my first choice but will consider others. Thanks

I'm not SEC-biased, I'm football biased. Baylor was a pretender and I'm glad they're out. Bama and FSU are clearly 1-2. The computers don't like OSU near as much as the voters, wonder why? Bama vs. FSU would be a heavyweight prize fight. OSU in the title game would be like Notre Dame last year. Answer me this: If Mizzou wins out and FSU and OSU also win out, who should play for the nat'l championship?

Ohio State will likely be undefeated and may well play for the National Championship. Yet their only win of any substance was Wisconsin. At home. By a touchdown. FSU has played quality teams and thrashed them. Hopefully they win out. Bama is the best team in the land. But Auburn at home could upset them. Or they could be upset in the SEC championship game. We could very easily see a scenario in which the SEC champion has one loss or more and is standing outside, watching FSU play a fraud OSU in a sham national championship. Such a game would have no legitimacy whatsoever. I doubt that Mizzou would win out but imagine if they did. How could anyone possibly argue that an unbeaten OSU was better than a one-loss Mizzou team that won the SEC championship? Yet no doubt OSU would be the invitee in such a scenario. I watch the games but really cannot take college football seriously. It is an utterly fraudulent system.

I really have no idea what you are talking about.

I just spent some more time reading the actual plan. I think every person who posted in this thread would agree in general with the intent behind Alternatives A and B. If they would actually read it. The more I read it the more I like Alternative A actually. I think it is unrealistic but I like the vision behind it. I think it's helpful that the only alternative that does not close unauthorized roads is "no action." Even Alt C would close the UA roads. It seems at minimum the NPS is serious about doing something about this. As other posters have said, the UA roads have really damaged the river corridor.

That's not what they are recommending, at all.

The plan is open for public comment. The link below should take you directly there. http://parkplanning.nps.gov/document.cfm?parkID=158&projectID=15793&documentID=56208 FWIW, Alternative B is OK with me. I would prefer no motors above Two Rivers also, maybe a seasonal restriction (Mem Day to Labor Day?). I am no fan of the federal government for sure, but our national parks are treasures and they must be preserved. To get worked up over this as some kind of federal encroachment is to lose sight of the facts: the park is not being preserved, it's being abused. The wilderness character of much of the river is being lost. Some kind of "correction" is needed. While Alt A might be nice it's also unrealistic and in my opinion truly does not represent "tradition." The Ozark tradition is making use of the rivers for commerce, fun, and sport. We've been trying to draw people down here to the beauty and wonder for years. You just gottta strike a balance. At some point the beauty and wonder gets spoiled and I've felt that way on trips over the past few years. A camper on every gravel bar. Jet boats buzzing. Trails and ATV tracks everywhere. The Current in my experience (first float in 1989) has gone from a jewel to something of an amusement park. I go other places now when I want to "get away," and that's kind of sad.

It's a national park, treat it like one. I've skimmed the regs too and it seems to strike the right balance. I've been floating Cedar to Akers for years and yes, the streamside vehicle use is just ridiculous. Like anything, a little is OK, too much ruins it for everybody. It's definitely gone too far. Thanks to River Hills Traveler for having great info on this. http://rhtrav.com/wordpress/draft-gmp-issued-nps-prefers-alternative-b/?utm_source=TravTalkNewsletterlist&utm_campaign=01e14d52f3-TravTalk_No_32_11_8_2013&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_31a644a2ae-01e14d52f3-346264441

Excellent stuff fellas. Thanks for posting.

Based on...? Are you kidding me? How about the last seven NCAA titles going to the SEC? Do you even WATCH college football? Come on. I actually think MU to the SEC was a bad idea, EXCEPT in football, where if you want to get real that's where you go. So good for Mizzou to go for the gold. If we (somehow!) win the SEC this year and don't get a berth in the national championship............ I don't even want to go there.

Al, I think a more likely heartbreak scenario is we get to the SEC Championship game with one loss and then miraculously beat Alabama and win the SEC title. But because we have one loss we lose out to Ohio State-Oregon. IMO whoever wins the SEC title should play for the national championship. One loss, two losses, doesn't matter.

Al, I completely understand your aversion to radios on the river, and in general I feel the same way. We NEVER have it on during the day or on the water at all. I cant stand that either and if a partner inisted on it I too would never do that again. The only time we pull the radio out is late in the evening, after dinner, and the only purposes are Cardinals ballgame or old-time country music. WSM out of Nashville, Grand Ol Opry, is our favorite. We've also picked up some good country gospel. Several years ago Houston MO had an FM station that played country oldies, some of it just crazy backwoods stuff. Awesome. We play it real low so that's it kind of background music to the night sounds. I'm sure I'm not converting you but I do love my Grand Ol Opry on the gravel bar. Regarding campfires, we've never had a problem finding wood. Summer fires are simple and don't take much more than some scattered deadfall. In winter we will pick less traveled spaces and also bring backup (wood purchased along the way) if need be.

Love this thread. GOOD dry bags are a must. I have several Seallines that have lasted me years. Campfire grill. I can't believe you guys who just eat sandwiches or other cold food. It is nothing to cook a bratwurst or a steak over a small fire. Tip: Start a separate cooking fire, a few feet apart from the main campfire. Dig a little hole for the cooking fire, and keep it stoked with coals from the main fire. Make sure you have an extra paddle. We like to bring along a good AM radio. Listen to ballgames or country music. Coffee pot, the percolating kind. Dress your campsite up with some battery powered Xmas lights. Oh yeah, DUCT TAPE. Never forget. Regarding campsites, I scout with Google Earth ahead of time, and try to print me a topo map to take on the trip. Don't stay on a gravel bar that's marked no trespassing or has vehicle ruts all over it. I have a big canoe so pack space is not an issue. I do bring a lot of stuff but nothing that's not necessary. I definitely try to minimize my fishing tackle, keep it simple. Have fun!

The river is open, any federal access points are closed. This according to RH Traveler, which is an excellent source of information. http://rhtrav.com/wordpress/clearing-up-riverways-rumors-river-open-park-closed/?utm_source=TravTalkNewsletterlist&utm_campaign=f7495be99e-TravTalk_No_28_10_11_2013&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_31a644a2ae-f7495be99e-346264441

I will gladly eat a bit of crow as I didn't see much to get excited about in that game against Ark State. And while I couldn't watch the Vanderbilt game beating ANY SEC team on the road is a good thing. But I don't think we have the defense to be much more than "pretty good." Elite? Not even close. But I will grant you, "pretty good" in Year 2 of the SEC aint bad. Of course it's a long season yet. I don't think Mizzou football has ever reached "elite" status. Yes, some will say the year we were ranked #1 going into Big 12 championship but let's face it, we got thrashed by Oklahoma. Not quite ready for prime time.

We ALREADY pay for all sort of other people's healthcare via Medicaid and Medicare. My church does all sorts of things to help the homeless, and yes I pay my church. So....?