A couple of nights in January by Table Rock Lake, Missouri

**Ozarks Walkabout** · 01-19-2019, 16:01

Camped by Table Rock Lake by Gary Allman, on Flickr

My plan was simple. Hike down to the lake on Saturday, set up camp, sit here for a day on Sunday and then hike back out on Monday.

And that’s exactly what I did. Though camp chores — collecting wood, tidying up, and filtering water — interrupted my resting. I spent a good deal of time admiring the view and a lot less on my planned introspection. I think what I wrote when I was last here still applies, “I need more practice at relaxing.”

The first night was cool, 36°F. The second night was a warm 59°F. With the warmth came wind and rain, but I was nice and snug in the hammock.

Oh, and a saw a young black bear too. It had been ousted from its winter retreat by a pack of hounds who were noisily pursuing it. It gave them the slip by swimming across the lake.

View From My Hammock - Flickr

Table Rock Lake, Piney Creek Wilderness - Flickr

Looking Across Table Rock Lake, Piney Creek Wilderness - Flickr

Table Rock Lake at Piney Creek - Flickr

Back at the Lake - Flickr

Open Spaces - Flickr

Creek Crossing, there were a lot, and they were all cold! - Flickr

**AlanH** · 01-19-2019, 16:24

Nice looking setup and a beautiful spot. Just a couple more trips and you'll get that relaxation thing down, Take care

**ylnfrt** · 01-19-2019, 18:10

Thanks for sharing your walkabout- great looking area to explore/ maybe by kayak or canoe. That is one long lake with a lot of inlets/coves.

**Misterk** · 01-20-2019, 01:03

Nice, what food did you eat?

**BillyBob58** · 01-20-2019, 17:58

Looks great!

**Canoefor2** · 01-20-2019, 18:37

This had to be before your big snow fall but looks like a great place to chill out

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**ofuros** · 01-25-2019, 03:23

Barely a ripple on the lake, feeling calm & relaxed...and I'm thousands of miles away.

**Ozarks Walkabout** · 01-25-2019, 15:24

Originally Posted by AlanH

Just a couple more trips and you'll get that relaxation thing down, Take care

Thanks. It is a great spot, and relaxing is a skill I plan on developing!

**Ozarks Walkabout** · 01-25-2019, 15:37

Originally Posted by ylnfrt

great looking area to explore/ maybe by kayak or canoe. That is one long lake with a lot of inlets/coves.

There's a lot to this Wilderness I've not gottten to yet. It has the advantage of not being too popular once you get off the main trail. Apparently, Table Rock Lake has 745 miles of shoreline. Being in a wilderness mechanized craft are not supposed to enter this area, and it does stay quiet. We've planned but not yet executed a Kayaking/camping trip here. The nearest big put-in (Cape fair) is around 8 miles away via the lake which is a good day's paddle on a lake, but with a huge number of bass boats and party barges probably not a peaceful trip at weekends.

**Ozarks Walkabout** · 01-25-2019, 15:48

Originally Posted by Misterk

Nice, what food did you eat?

I 've been using Mountain House freeze dried packs. Ever since one of the (very sharp) corners of the Mountain House packs holed another bag in a backpack, I tip them into a quart Ziplok bag -- which also let me fishout the ozidizer packet -- which compress down more, have no sharp corners, fit nicely in my pot cozy, and seem to handle the hot water without problems. I'm starting to balk at the number of Ziplok bags I get through on a trip, but I've not found an alternative yet.

On this trip I took the Italian Pepper steak -- one of my favorites. I also take granola mixed with dried milk for breakfasts. I mix up my own almonds and raisins for lunch and trail snacks.