Camping Float Trip

“Camping float trip, that is where I want you to take me before I go to school.”  Katie, my 18 year-old college bound oldest child, made a request that I could not refuse.  Down to one of the last few weekends before she goes, we scheduled an overnight float and camping trip on the Meramec River in Crawford County.

BACKGROUND

Katie has always been a good sport about spending time outdoors with dad.  She is usually up for a hike, dabbled in hunting, will fish when given the opportunity, and is at home wandering in a meadow of wildflowers with her camera.  However, Katie is ALWAYS up for a float trip and has never turned down an invitation to go camping.  So combining a float trip with a camping trip promised to be a perfect plan.

THE ROUTE

We have floated several ‘legs’ of the Meramec River, and are rarely disappointed by the scenery or the water quality. It is not the rapid, clear water like the Current or Eleven Point, but there is usually enough water to avoid dragging and the tall limestone bluffs provide spectacular scenery.

Since we were going to be using our own gear and our own transportation, we were looking for a route with a short drive between launching and take out locations.  We found the perfect location between the Campbell Bridge and Blue Springs Creek Conservation Area.  Both put in and take out sites were located on Highway N south of Bourbon.  The sites were only a 10-15 minute drive apart, yet the float was a solid 5 river miles long.  We dropped Katie’s car off in the lot at Blue Springs CA, then continued onto the Campbell Bridge to start our camping float trip.

THE GEAR

Our vessel for the journey was none other than the family canoe, actually a Coleman Scanoe that the kids gave me as a Father’s Day gift several years back.  Roomy and stable, the scanoe works well on the flat water of small ponds and slow rivers.  Just don’t expect it to be exceptionally maneuverable or quick.  We loaded the scanoe down with a cooler, small tent, sleeping bags, camp stove, and far too many camping accessories.  Sometimes I have been known to overpack, especially when it comes to food.  I wasn’t about to risk ruining my reputation at this point.

THE JOURNEY

Katie and I hit the water shortly after 1:00 on a beautiful Saturday afternoon.  As expected, the river was full of fellow floaters soaking up the sun on canoes, kayaks, rafts, and intertubes.  Also as expected, most of them were soaking up the booze as well, and spirits were high among the droves of people.  The partygoers gathered at every likely gravel bar, played music, tossed Jell-O shots to friends, and basically partied like they were at a frat party.  Apparently I picked the perfect float to give Katie a taste of college life.  While not my speed, I must admit that the show was mildly entertaining and everyone was friendly.  As the day wore on, though, I was happy to see the crowds moving on back to their take out at Riverview Ranch or Blue Springs Ranch.  By 6:00, we had the river completely to ourselves.

THE CAMPSITE

We floated about 4 miles, settling on a large gravel bar just past the big horseshoe bend in the river.  The river returned to its peaceful self, we could hear the birds singing, green and blue herons stalked quietly along the bank.  Suddenly I was reminded exactly what it is that I love about a camping float trip.  I cut up some potatoes, and fried them in oil in my old cast iron pan on the camp stove.  The next burner was used to sear a few rib eyes, and dinner was served.  Katie has always been my steak and potatoes girl, and I like to think that this dinner on the bank of the river with the sun getting low was as meaningful to her as it was to me.

After using the waning daylight to set up our small 20+ year old Coleman tent, we relaxed to the sounds of the Missouri outdoors.  Katie and I hung out and talked until the darkness and the long day got the best of us.  The food, the river, the campsite conversation, all of these things complete the camping float trip.

I woke up early as always, and used my alone time to fish along the gravel bar.  Barely even out of my tent and with sleep in my eyes, I caught a nice pan-sized channel catfish on a white marabou jig on my first cast.  I followed that up by foul hooking some type of river sucker that put up quite the battle.  I was also lucky enough to catch a few smallmouth bass, the fierce fighter of the ozark riverways.  Knowing that rain was in the forecast, I tried to get Katie to stir by frying a pound of bacon right outside the tent.  Once she finally woke up, I scambled some eggs and we ate our last meal on the river in complete peace and solitude.

THE LAST MILE

We broke camp and started the long slow mile back to her car.  There was no reason to rush, and we were able to drift slowly all the way in.  In fact, the water was so slow we actually had to paddle fairly hard at times just to keep moving down river.  The lush forest, the towering cliffs, and woodland wildflowers gave us every reason to appreciate the float.  Again, we didn’t see another person on the river all morning.  This was true all the way up to the ramp at Blue Springs where we finally saw another small group setting afloat. All good things must end, but our camping float trip was just what I needed with my little girl.  I treasure our time together outdoors, and building this memory with Katie is priceless to me.

If you want to plan your own Meramec River float trip, you may find this link helpful in order to locate river access points and float trip mileage.

https://www.missouricanoe.org/river-maps/meramec.html