Louis H. Bangert Memorial Wildlife Area

I found myself worn out after a more difficult day than usual at work and having just finished a late appointment in St. Charles. I didn’t feel like sitting in rush hour traffic, and even though I was physically spent and only had my work boots and work clothes with me, I decided to take a short hike instead of battling I-270.  I pulled into the trailhead for this 2.5 mile hike and was pleasantly surprised that there were only a few cars present even though we finally reached 70 degrees today.

I guess the park is considered to be an island and is known as Bangert Island, but all I had to do was cross a 12’ long bridge over a small slough to reach the main body of the park.  The trail surface is completely earthen, and is flat except for the dips and small hills that make the park popular with cyclists.  The trail is well maintained, with no debris blocking the path and every intersection appropriately signed.  The island, naturally, is right on the Missouri River and therefore is very much in the floodplain, and it is apparent by the amount of downed logs and debris found along the trail.

Generally speaking, I am not a huge fan of this type of habitat with the trees limited to Cottonwood, Box Elder, Black Willow, and Box elder, but today I was rather enamored by the sheer size of the Cottonwoods. It seemed like all of them stand well over 100’ tall as they are crammed into a tight space and compete with each other for sunlight.  Also, along with the Fox Squirrels present, it made me feel like I was back home in Omaha, NE where the Cottonwood is the state tree.  I tried to take a few photos of them but completely failed to capture the full grandeur of the trees.

Because the area floods so frequently, there is not a lot of underbrush blocking the views through the woods.  However, wherever there is adequate light the ground is covered with the invasive Garlic Mustard.  I must admit the greenery was a welcome sight after this long winter and slow spring.

I took the trails that basically bring you around the entire perimeter of the park, a combination of the Slough Loop, the Sandy Link, and the Kurtz Loop.  The trail drops out along the Missouri River a few times, offering a scenic view of the Blanchette Memorial Bridge on I-70 over the river.  A few children played in the sand along the shore while their parents sat on a nearby bench soaking up the warm day.  I know I may be repeating myself, but the return of spring weather couldn’t be more welcome.

The short hike was just what I needed, and I was pleased with my decision to take a walk rather than sit in traffic.  This trail would make a great lunch hour or after work hike for anyone in the area.  I also plan on returning to bike it one of these days as it definitely is not too technical, but still has plenty of dips and curves to make it interesting.  In addition, you can access the Katy Trail from the same parking lot offering endless cycling miles for those looking for a longer day on two wheels.  For more information, check out:

https://www.sccmo.org/710/Bangert-Island

Thanks for reading!

PJM

Bird activity was very high, even with no interesting sightings.  There were Robins galore, as well as Bluejays, Turkey Vultures, Mallards in the slough, Winter Wren, Hermit Thrush, Chickadees, Titmice, White-breasted Nuthatch, Kinglet, Starling, Mourning Dove, Downy Woodpecker, Red-bellied Woodpecker, and Pileated Woodpecker.