Family-Outdoors

Image via Wikipedia MDC and MoDOT sponsor 2011 Trash-Can Decorating Contest. More info at www. nomoretrash.org JEFFERSON CITY Mo –  Missouri elementary, middle and home school students K-8 are invited to help in the fight against litter -- and to have creative and educational fun -- by participating in the  2011 “Yes You CAN Make Missouri Litter Free” Trash-Can Decorating Contest.  The annual contest is sponsored by the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) and the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) as part of the state’s ongoing “No MOre Trash!” campaign to raise awareness about Missouri's litter problem and to discourage littering. “Missourians care about conserving our fish forest and wildlife,” said MDC No MOre Trash! Coordinator Joe Jerek. “Littering isn’t just ugly, it hurts wildlife, it costs Missourians millions of tax dollars each year, and it’s illegal. Birds, fish, turtles and other animals get tangled in litter, such as plastic six-pack holde...

Image via Wikipedia As I sit here on a cool, but not yet cold November evening, I am already contemplating our Winter camping trips. I enjoy them as much as I do any camping trips we take all year long. Of course Winter camping is not for everyone. If you simply detest cold weather , no matter how much preparation you make, and no matter how much gear you own, your trip will likely not be an enjoyable one. However, if the thought of camping in a snowy scene with a full moon and the stillness that snow on the ground brings does pique your interest, then read on. First, it is my opinion that unless you are in a warmer climate region, simply camping out with no attendant activities may not fulfill your wishes and/or needs. We find that we enjoy our Winter camping trips the most when we are engaging in some other activity such as hiking, hunting, or fishing. This is in juxtaposition to trips we take in Fall Summer, and Spring when just hanging out at camp and getting some R&R may b...

Columbia Bottom Conservation Area 801 Strodtman Road, St. Louis, MO 63138 Office hours are Wednesday - Friday from 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.; Saturday - Sunday from 8 a.m. - 4 p.m. November Family Outdoor Events and Activities 14 GPS/Geocaching 101 Sunday 2 p.m. – 4 p.m. (Families) Global Positioning System (GPS) units are fast becoming popular technology. A fun way to learn how to use a GPS unit is by Geocaching. Geocaching is an outdoor activity that uses GPS coordinates to search for caches hidden by others. It is a treasure hunt, hike, and quality family time all rolled into one. Join us for an afternoon of fun as you find some hidden treasures at the Columbia Bottom Conservation Area. (Reservations begin October 31.) 20 Dutch Oven: Just Desserts Saturday 1 p.m. – 4 p.m. (Families) As Thanksgiving nears, a little warm-up for the meal preparation seems to be in order. While the full meal is delicious, let’s face it - dessert is the real celebrity. Have a light lunch, and then join us to t...

Image via Wikipedia Here’s a special opportunity… There’s still time to get in on the 2 nd Annual Discover Nature: Families Confluence Campout at Columbia Bottom next Saturday and Sunday, September 18-19!  This overnight event is going to be a blast for the whole family, and there are still openings available.  A chance to camp out by the confluence of North America’s two greatest rivers . . . learn to cook great campfire meals, explore the Columbia Bottom slough by canoe, sunset and sunrise hikes, geocaching with GPS, bike ride . . . all in one weekend!  Participants are asked to bring their own camping gear, but Columbia Bottom can offer tents to loan those who do not have their own.  The event is perfect for beginning campers, since knowledgeable staff will be on hand to help get everything up and going. Check in begins Saturday at 3 p.m. and all activities will wrap up by 1 p.m. Sunday.  The Discover Nature: Families Confluence Campout is free.  Adva...

Image via Wikipedia All forms can be found on our event website: www.riverfrontamphitheater. com/Earthtones   September 10th Deadline Photography contests – black/white and color Youth Coloring Book contest Great Mississippi River Cleanup registration      Vendor and exhibitor registration (any business, non-profit, agency, or individual can still register; we are at capacity for food vendors) Ad Space in the Coloring Book (Full page: $100 (only 2 opportunities for this size!); 1/2 page: $50; 1/4 page: $25) September 15 th Deadline Plein Air art contest Rain Barrel order for on-site pick-up On-site Recycling Reminder – bring: Hand & power tools in working condition; donating materials to The Habitat ReStore Plastic plant pots; donating  materials to The Nature Institute Cell phones Volunteers needed for the event’s activities: e-mail cfavilla10@sbcglobal.net   or sara@altonmarketplace.com to let us kno...

Image via Wikipedia Volunteers with the St. Louis Audubon Society will lead this walk for children ages 6 and up on Sunday, September 12 th at 10 am on the River Trail at Castlewood State Park . Bring your kids (or grandkids) to see and learn about our amazing birds and their surroundings. Follow Big Bend Rd to Ries Rd and turn south. Turn left on Kiefer Creek Rd, go past the office to the dead end parking lot at the River.

In early August 2010 we took our "Family End of the Summer Final Fling Trip."  Here is David's reflections on the events... As we arrived at the put in point, I felt the hottest, stickiest air the midwest can offer. The truck thermometer had just shown a temperature of 96 degrees, and the air was so humid you could pour it in a glass and drink it. This would have been very bad news for the next couple of days had we not chosen to float the Big Piney River. This cool, spring-fed stream, besides giving us a great time, would keep us tolerably cool over the next two days. As we were pushing our canoes in the water I had one thought in mind, the same thing that just about always occupies my thoughts: fishing. The Big Piney is an excellent smallmouth bass river, and I was looking forward to trying my hand at catching them. My Dad and my older brother Daniel were surely thinking the same thing, while my Mom was probably wondering how she was going to survive two days of fl...

Image by ~Prescott via Flickr Missouri's excellent Department of Conservation has a program in place called " Nature Families."  It is an effort to help families get involved with nature in a multitude of capacities and in an array of environments. "Discover Nature Families programs are designed to help adults and children explore nature and master outdoor skills together." There are many excellent resources for you and your family at:  Discover Nature Families Also, visit Family-Outdoors for information on Fishing , Hunting , Camping and other outdoors information for families.        

St. Regis River-Adirondack Mountains Copyright 2010 P. Allen Mann III- Family-Outdoors Part of this effort is a call to action.  I am calling on parents to get their families outside into nature in WHATEVER  capacity they feel so led.  This may differentiate my efforts with those of others, in that I have no strong inclinations as to how people should enjoy nature - that so long as they are truly engaged with their surroundings, and that they are engaged in activities not harmful to the environment (as for example can be some motor sports if done recklessly). There is little doubt that outdoor activities increase the well-being of children . The nature of childhood has changed: there’s not much nature in it. American childhood has moved indoors during the last two decades, taking a mental and physical toll on today’s kids. The negative impact of decreased time outdoors includes a doubling of the childhood obesity rate -- accompanied by an incremental hundred ...

Eleven Point River Near Greer Spring P. Allen Mann III Copyright 2010 Family-Outdoors There is little doubt that there is a marked change, in my mind for the worst, in the interconnectedness between people in modern society and nature .  My premise, and one that I will be exploring over time here, is that this change at least coincides with a marked decline in the health and general well-being of families. I will not make an attempt to show that the slippage of our connection to nature is causative of these declines.  I truly do not believe that this could be done.  What I will attempt to do is show that there is truly a natural solution for families to this problem.  I will be making the case, and hopefully be engaging in discussion with readers that reconnecting with the outdoors, AS A FAMILY,   can have a meaningful impact in a number of ways. I will indeed use anecdotal evidence for this argument, but will try and also support it with science....

Image via Wikipedia We just returned from a three week trip to the Adirondack Mountains. One of the things we did while there was take a three day paddle from Little Tupper Lake to Lake Lila . The route taken involves a chain of lakes and interconnected drainages. Many of these little lakes have some nice fishing opportunities. Here, David has on one of the better smallmouth bass he caught on this excursion. It went around 16". One interesting and sad aspect to the fishing here was that in a couple of the lakes there were supposed to be heritage strain brook trout only. As the story goes, when the state land that this wilderness is located upon was sold to the state, for reasons not clear to me, someone "salted" Little Tupper with smallmouth bass. The less pshychotic rationale for such an act would be to create some local smallmouth fishing opportunities. This seems unlikely as there are ample smallie streams and lakes across the Adirondacks. It is likely t...

ROLLA, Mo. –Oak trees across a broad swath of Missouri are experiencing an unusual outbreak of a common parasite. Tree experts say the parasite is not fatal to healthy trees, even though the condition can look awful. The Missouri Department of Conservation is receiving numerous reports from St. Louis to Branson of oak trees turning brown. The problem is especially severe in the area around Rolla, Lake of the Ozarks, Springfield and Table Rock Lake. The main cause of the problem is a wasp of the family Cynipidae. These tiny wasps deposit their eggs on emerging leaves in the spring. As the eggs hatch and young wasp larvae begin feeding, leaves develop brown spots that grow into “galls.” Each of these button-like growths, which are about the size of a pinhead, provides food and shelter for one wasp larva. In severe cases, entire leaves turn brown over much of a tree. “It looks worse than it really is,” said Conservation Department Resource Scientist Rob Lawrence. “Some people mistakenly t...

Enjoy Free Fishing Days in Missouri June 12-13 Share a pastime that can last a lifetime. Along with the fish, you may catch some priceless memories. JEFFERSON CITY MO – Discover the lure of Missouri outdoors with Free Fishing Days on June 12 and 13.  Each year the Missouri Department of Conservation designates the weekend after the first Monday in June for permit-optional fishing. The goal of Free Fishing Days is to encourage people to sample the state's abundant fishing opportunities. During Free Fishing Days, anyone can fish in the Show-me State without having to buy a fishing permit, trout stamp or trout park daily tag. Missouri is blessed with more than a million acres of surface water , and most of it provides great fishing. Fly fish for trout in a spring-fed Ozark stream or trotline for monster catfish on Missouri’s Big Rivers . Our waters hold ancient paddlefish and sturgeon , ferocious muskies , wary bass and tasty bluegill, crappie and walleye . More ...

Help discover and document plants, butterflies, birds, mammals and more on a remnant of Missouri prairie. STOCKTON, MO – Missourians with a passion for nature can help document some of Missouri’s vanishing biological diversity at a “BioBlitz” sponsored by the Missouri Prairie Foundation. On the afternoon and evening of Saturday, May 29, and the morning of Sunday, May 30, professional biologists whose expertise spans everything from ants and orchids to birds and butterflies will lead volunteers across Penn-Sylvania Prairie in Dade County. They will survey and inventory as many species as possible in 24 hours. Amateur naturalists are welcome. Following the afternoon activities on May 29, participants are invited to stay for a potluck picnic supper, stargazing and free tent camping on the prairie. “Public involvement is an important part of the event,” said Carol Davit, the Prairie Foundation’s development coordinator. “We encourage anyone with a strong interest in nature to j...

Spring turkey harvest tops predictions Hunters were aided by a slight improvement in turkey reproduction last year and mostly good hunting weather during the three-week spring season. JEFFERSON CITY –Hunters made the most of the final week of Missouri’s 21-day spring turkey season, shooting 8,263 birds. The last week’s harvest boosted the regular-season tally to 42,254, an increase of 429 from last year. Top harvest counties for the regular season April 19 through May 9 were Franklin with 872, Texas with 755 and St. Clair with 701. Missouri’s spring turkey season has two parts. Hunters age 6 through 15 shot 3,945 turkeys during the youth season April 10 and 11. This boosted the combined spring turkey harvest to 46,199, which is 1,491 more than last year. Resource Scientist Tom Dailey had predicted the total harvest would be approximately 44,000. He attributed the 5-percent larger harvest to two factors. “We had the usual mixed bag of weather during the hunting season this year...

Image via Wikipedia There is an art to approaching a stream that you have never fished before, and truthfully, fine art is not created by beginners. However, any art student begins with certain fundamentals and then creates his or her own techniques by building on these fundamentals. I would encourage the reader of this article to look into other advice beyond that related here to devise his or her own approach with which they are comfortable. This is how the author advises those whom are new to the sport and are fishing a new area and looking for a methodical approach. Initial Research Know as much about the trout stream as you can. Know what hatches may be occurring at various times of the year. Know which species of trout are present. Try to develop a knowledge of fly types that work on the water you will be fishing. Whether streamer flies, nymphs, or dry flies, try to get as specific information as you can get. Know specific colors and sizes and have as many of tho...

Missourians need to be bear prepared Black bears seldom bother humans, but attacks do happen. Follow these tips to help avoid or repel aggressive bears. JEFFERSON CITY –What would you do if you rounded a bend in a trail and came face to face with a bear? The Missouri Department of Conservation has advice about what to do in that scenario and, even better, how to avoid it. Missouri is home to a small number of black bears, the only bear species found here. The statewide population is estimated at only 300 to 500 bears. However, the number is growing slowly, thanks to natural reproduction and immigration from Arkansas. One of the most useful things for avoiding bear confrontations is knowing where you are likely to see a bear. The Conservation Department has confirmed bear sightings in 61 of the state’s 114 counties. However, 90 percent of the state’s bears live south of Interstate Highway 44. “You could see a bear in the northern two-thirds of the state,” said Resource Scientis...

Some times a simple picture says a lot. Springtime reminds us that nature has a way of outdoing anything that we could hope to create. If we could get out of the way and stop constantly trying to improve on what is all around us - pause and appreciate what is already perfect - we would be much more content. That's all.