28 miles on the Ozark Trail: Johnson's Shut Ins to Taum Sauk and Back

With the long Easter weekend, it was time to test myself on a rigorous overnighter (maybe two nights if I couldn't do the miles!). I chose the Johnson's Shut-Ins to Taum Sauk section of the Ozark Trail. I'd been to JSI in 2006 on a cross-country bike trip just months after a reservoir above the park had broken, creating this path of destruction.

The breach happened in December 2005. Had it happened in the summer, there probably would have been fatalities as the state park campground was right in the path of the billion gallons that came through here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taum_Sauk_Hydroelectric_Power_Station#Upper_reservoir_breached 

On a different day, I might have explored the Scour region more, but I'd already driven 2.5 hours to get here and wanted to get started on my miles for the day.

A sign at the trailhead warned of a controlled burn at Taum Sauk, so I dithered at this intersection for a while, checking maps and wondering if I should head toward Bell Mountain instead, but banking on the fact that they would have finished the burn before the long weekend and the resulting increased number of visitors, I headed toward Taum Sauk. The main drawback, though, was that this was supposed to be a really dry section of trail. If I couldn't get to the first water source because of the burn, I'd have to retrace my steps, so I went pretty conservative on my water and decided that I'd turn around if I got below 1 liter before getting within sight of a water source.

The trail was well marked but much rockier than I expected. My feet feel stronger after the 100 miles I put in during March, but I was still pretty cautious and grateful for the assistance of my poles on a number of occasions.

As always, I took it pretty slow on the uphills, my 30-pound pack weighing me down. I hope my pack never reaches that weight on the Superior Hiking Trail, but I was carrying a lot of water/gatorade, a heavy tent (my new ultralight tent hasn't arrived yet), all my cold-weather Minnesota gear, and extra food in case I couldn't finish the hike in two days, so the pack was heavy. Oh well...carrying the weight was good training, but I could definitely feel it.

Spring wildflowers were out, and I saw a couple of snakes and a bunch of little lizards. Parts of the trail were wet with runoff from recent rains, but the rocks were the main feature.

There were a lot of rocks.

At about 6.5 miles, I found a little rivulet big enough to dip water from, so I put some in my dirty water bag to filter just in case I needed it before the real water source appeared. Just 50 yards after that, I came up on a group of 4 women about my age out for a two-night trip headed the opposite direction. They assured me that they'd gotten through the burned section and that there was plenty of water ahead. I was much less anxious after meeting them, but they weren't as happy to learn that there weren't any real water sources until they got to the state park. They were all training for longer trips and had more backpacking experience than I did, so it was nice to chat with them for a bit.

After a while, I started a major descent and happily moved into some more shaded and more gently graded areas. Soon I was within sight of a creek, where I happily gulped a couple of bottles of water after filtering it. I also had a small snack, but I wasn't really hungry. I should have eaten more anyway, but I was more thirsty than anything else. After crossing the creek and leaving the little oasis with its shaded rock, I almost immediately came up on a group of Boy Scouts. They'd just filtered water, too, and asked about other water sources ahead (none before their proposed campsite). The leader kept insisting that he could get out his filter if I needed to get more water even though I assured him I'd just done my own filtering just 100 yards back. Maybe he just didn't want to leave the nice shady spot where they were resting! I wouldn't blame him. It was cooler down in the trees than it would be for them once they ascended out of the valley. One of the boys told me not to worry about water now since there were at least three sources in the next few miles, but they must have been loaded down with water since they needed enough to do the miles I'd already done that day plus camp somewhere in the middle of those miles, make dinner with no nearby source, and hike out to the state park the next day. They looked burdened enough with all their stuff, so I thanked them for the information, relieved I'd chosen the direction I'd come so I could get the harder section out of the way in the morning (never mind that I'd retrace that harder section later the next day in the heat myself!)

I hadn't been paying very close attention to the map since the trail had been so well marked, and there was supposed to be a massive, distinctive geologic feature just over a mile past the water source, but it soon became clear to me that the small creek where I'd gotten water was not the same as the water source marked on my map, so I wasn't as far along on the trail as I thought I was. This was no big deal, really, but I resolved to pay more attention to my location in the future, if only for the psychological benefit of knowing where I was.

Even though I was getting tired, this little pine grove was great. It's amazing how nice pine needles feel under your feet after miles of pointy, pokey rocks. The soft tread didn't last long, just a few hundred yards, probably, but the trail was more gentle and shaded from here forward, so it wasn't too bad.

I was feeling ok at mile 10, rejuvenated by access to more cool stream water and the softer tread. There were still rocks in sections, but part of the trail was just dirt, too. 

By mile 12, though, I was hurting. I hobbled to within sight of the Mina Sauk Falls, the highest falls in Missouri, and quickly forced down some calories, suddenly certain that I hadn't eaten enough during the day. I also drank a bunch more water since I suspected I was a bit dehydrated from being too conservative with my water on the first half of the day. At this point, after my break, I lost the trail for the first time. It looked like the trail went straight up beside the waterfall, and though I didn't see any markers on the trees, I knew I somehow had to get to the top of the falls. I could see other hikers up there. The next morning, I'd figure out that I'd guessed wrong and took a much steeper (but more direct) way up the falls. Oh well.

At the top of the falls, I saw a couple of possible campsites, but they were near where some day-hikers had been hanging out, and I wasn't sure I was allowed to camp there. I hadn't met my mileage goal for the day, but I was tired and wasn't sure I could find a better site. Plus, how often do you get to camp just feet from the top of a great waterfall? I sent Jeff a message from my satellite messenger telling him I was done for the day, but I didn't set up the tent. I was still hungry, so dinner was the first priority.

I love my little JetBoil. It took less than 2 min. to boil water for my Beef Stroganoff, and while my meal rehydrated and cooked, I peeled off my wet shoes and socks (wet from a big stream crossing a couple miles back), put on my camp shoes, and sat near the top of the falls, finally seeing an official trail marker on the other side of the river and confirming that I hadn't been on the right trail during my ascent to the top of the falls.

After my dinner, I felt better but the bugs were coming out and being annoying. Not really wanting to sit there for another couple of hours until dark, I decided to head around part of the Mina Sauk Loop at the top of the falls and find a quieter spot to camp near the top of Taum Sauk mountain, the high point of Missouri.

However, I started getting kind of worried when, as I kept hiking, the amount of land burned in the controlled burn earlier that week kept getting larger and larger. It was still smoking in a few spots, and I thought I might have a bit of trouble finding a spot for the tent that wasn't directly on the trail, which, because it was mostly rocks, was about the only unburned area in sight.

I made it to the high point of Missouri just before 7 p.m. and saw a grassy clearing nearby where I could come back to camp if I needed to, but I decided to go forward for another 15 minutes to see if I could find something better. That would give me just enough time to get back to the clearing and set up before dark if I needed to.

Eventually, I came on this small unburned area on some rocks with a great view of the sunset. Everything smelled like smoke, but I didn't have enough time to make it all the way around the loop back to the top of the falls where it wasn't burned, so this became my campsite for the night. If I'd had my new non-free-standing tent, I would have stayed back in the larger clearing where I could stake it more easily, but I had our old 5-pound biking tent that doesn't need to be staked, so I quickly pitched it on the rocks, washed up a bit with a baby wipe, made a quick call to Jeff, and was sound asleep soon after 8:30 with about 14.5 miles done for the day.

It had been in the 40s overnight, I think, and I was perfectly comfortable, even a bit too warm, overnight. I got up at 6 and had finished breakfast, packing, and all my morning chores before 7. I'm usually out of camp faster than that, but I'm out of practice. As I headed out, the trail was still about the only unburned part of the area until I got back to the top of the falls.

There, I found the trail I should have come up the previous day. It was pretty rugged, so I wasn't sad about my little shortcut yesterday, but I followed it as it dropped down right to the bottom of the falls. The falls only run in wet weather, so I was glad to see them. Pretty impressive! I managed to keep my feet dry on this stream crossing, but I knew I'd soon get wet on the larger creek crossing, so I didn't worry too much about the muddy sections of trail.

From the bottom of the falls, I'd retrace my steps back to my car at Johnson's Shut-Ins. This time, though, I had the advantage of knowing where my last water source was, so I drank almost a full liter before I left camp and carried minimal water during the morning to lighten my load.

I tried to make good time through this flatter bottom section since I knew it would be the easiest part of the day, but I did stop to look more carefully at the Devil's Tollgate formation in the morning light. When I'd passed through yesterday, I was too tired to explore.

When I hit the last stream crossing, I filtered a ton of water and stayed there for about a half an hour drinking 50 oz., eating a bag of chips, and having a small pile of M&Ms to fuel up for the harder miles ahead. I was reluctant to leave my little spot but confident that I had enough water this time. I could feel the temps rising. With a forecast of 80 degrees, I knew I had to stay well hydrated to keep headaches at bay. I don't do super well in the heat and sun once it gets that warm, but I was paying better attention to the map and being sure to drink at least 10 oz. every mile. I was peeing about every hour, so I was more than adequately hydrated!

I didn't take many pictures on the way back since most everything looked the same as yesterday, but this little guy stood still long enough for me to take its picture.

And this one wouldn't leave me alone during one of my breaks. Shooing it away was unproductive. Shade was in limited supply on most parts of the last 8 or so miles, so where there was shade, the bugs and I shared it. I sent Jeff a few texts from this spot, letting him know that I had 4 miles left and was really starting to drag.

As I rested, another group of boy scouts came by at what seemed like a really fast pace. I could tell some of the boys were hurting, and it sounded like they were getting low on water. I asked if anyone wanted a Duck Dynasty Nalgene bottle I'd picked up off the trail earlier (probably from one of the scouts I met yesterday since I was pretty sure it wasn't from that group of women I'd met), and one of the kids relieved me of carrying it and trying to find it a new home.

Before I left the shady spot, I ate a bunch of M&Ms and some other snacks, drank some Gatorade, and finally decided to power on, hopeful that the worst of the rocky sections were over, but I couldn't remember for sure.

I stopped again with a little over 2 miles to go and drank a bunch more. My feet and one knee were getting sore, my shoulders were aching, and I was ready to be done for the day. The final major descent was a challenge. Descending is usually more painful for me, especially late in the day, and this one was especially so. I had the beginnings of a blister on the bottom of one foot because of earlier descents with wet socks, but I'd changed into a dry pair almost as soon as I felt it, so it never got worse, but I was still babying it.

Just as I crossed into Johnson's Shut Ins, I saw this collard lizard on a downed tree. When I got home, I learned that the fire management in this area is partly designed to help their populations: http://www.nps.gov/ozar/naturescience/lizards.htm

I still had a ways to go to get back to the trailhead, but once I hit the park boundary, I knew I was going to make it.

This trip was the most miles I'd ever done in two days with the most weight in the pack on the most rugged trails, and I didn't feel totally incapacitated by the trip. I didn't feel awesome at the end, of course, but I felt ok. My feet were really sore as I limped into a Mexican restaurant in Farmington for dinner before finishing the drive home, but by the next morning, I was just sore and not in (much) pain, so I feel more ready for my trip than ever.