Took my two sons and three of their friends on a float trip this week. We try to do this every year, spending the night on a gravel bar. With little rain in Missouri this year, the only thing really floatable is the Eleven Point River which is one of my favorites. None of these young men had ever done this river except my oldest son, so I was looking forward to showing it to them.
Here's the group, minus me, (behind the camera):
The Eleven Point is a National Wild and Scenic River as opposed to a National Scenic Riverway like the better-known Current River. It is managed by the U.S. Forest Service and is about as wild a stream as you can find these days. There's only 4 canoe outfitters on it, and a large portion of the way flows past the Irish Wilderness. There's just one cabin on the 20-mile stretch from Greer to Riverton.
We put in just below Greer Spring, the second largest in Missouri. Most of the river is a trophy trout area but we weren't fishing. This would be the first trip my sons used their Warbonnet Blackbird hammocks and New River under quilts I bought them for Christmas. I had my homemade hanger and one of the other boys had an interesting bridge hammock he bought off the Internet, no idea what brand it is.
Me and my two sons:
We spent some time at Turner Mill, a really cool site. All that is left is the 30-foot diameter wheel, sitting in the middle of the spring branch. Taking 5 young men on a float trip is a daunting task, but seeing their excitement while exploring this spring made it all worth it. I'm pretty sure these guys don't get too far from the Playstation except for this annual excursion...
Here's a few Turner Mill photos:
We were doing 20 miles in two days, not a difficult feat on this river which really moves. But I wanted to get some distance in on the first day because it slows down a lot down by Riverton, our take out. However, we came to the base of this island, saw the copious amounts of sand and the ample hanging trees and decided this was the place to camp. Good decision, I've never had a better camp site anywhere. Both sides of the river provided water music, bugs were few, firewood plentiful...nearly perfect. If you know the river, this is just above Horsehoe Bend float camp.
Warbonnet Blackbird in its native habitat!:
We got the hammocks hung, with the boys deciding they didn't need under quilts or tarps. (Tarps were superfluous, however the UQ would have been a good idea.) I cooked sirloin burgers and brats the night before, so all we had to do was warm them up. Had a good feed, drank a few beers and told stories until late at night.
Lots of trees for four hammocks:
I got my hammock dialed in better than it has ever been so had a great night sleep. I used my SOL Bivy sack, a Thermolite mattress pad and nothing else, it was just barely adequate. These are great, it's more thermal than an emergency blanket and super light weight. They don't make noise which is another huge plus.
Here's my home away from home. I am still using the ENO bug net.
Here's a look at that bridge (guess that's what you call it) hammock that one of the boys brought. No idea who makes this but it has a Boy Scout emblem on it. Comfortable, and it has lots of places to attach things inside and out. Not super well made though, not sure it's going to last long:
Boys loved their Warbonnets. Two of them used a tent, and I think they are wanting hammocks too. I woke up with an amazing view of the river, with the sun just peeking over the hills. I let the boys sleep, fired up my Jetboil and watched the morning get started.
Another view of the river, with my hammock at left:
It was a great time. I was really worried we wouldn't find enough trees for this crew, but the site proved ideal. The Eleven Point does not have a lot of gravel bars. There are several float camps set up by the Forest Service which would have worked for us. But I've found these to be buggy and overgrown with weeds sometimes. Another great option if you hit this river is Boze Mill. There are picnic tables, a crude latrine and the most amazing deep blue spring I've ever seen.
Here's a look at the dam, with water shooting out of the hole in it. The turbine is still there. You can camp to the left of this photo:
A few more pics:
Best float trip ever, and hammocks are certainly the way to go when floating.
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