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Mist on Table Rock Lake
Mist on Table Rock Lake. Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. -
Through the veil
Through the veil – looking across the lake, the mist was lifting. Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. -
Day Four – Misty campsite
Day Four – Misty campsite. Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. I’m used to seeing fog and mist on the lake here, but today’s mist was extra thick. So thick that at first I couldn’t see across the lake.
Now, that’s a good food bag hang! 15′ – 20′? Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. The mist was fairly low-lying, though. About 50 feet or less higher up the hill, where I’d hung my food bag, there wasn’t any mist to speak of, and the sun was beginning to break through, which is a great excuse to show my food bag hang.
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Day Three – Feet up, enjoying the Campfire
Day Three – Feet up enjoying the campfire. Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. 
Campfire. Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. -
Late-night visitor
Who is this then? Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. Hearing something wandering through the brush, I jumped up to scare it off (in case it was the raccoon I saw earlier). Instead, I made a discovery. Bright lights transfix armadillos. Who knew! It is also a much better explanation of why so many get run over. I’ve been told it’s because they jump in the air when startled. I’ve seen them do that too, but I think being transfixed is a more likely cause.
It was off as soon as I released it from the grip of my headlamp. There was another rustling through the undergrowth nearby, but it refused to be tempted by the light.
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View from the lake
View from the lake. Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. -
Air dry
Air dry – well I forgot to pack the tumble drier. Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. -
Fun and frolics at the lake
The lake was warm, almost bath temperature. I didn’t bother to count how many times I took a dip. It was a lot. Swimming out into the lake was the only way to watch the sunset (so no pictures).
It was particularly nice in the evening and first thing in the morning. It was then, when the air temps were lower, that the water felt particularly warm.
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Journaling
Journaling by the lake – I did a lot of thinking and scribbling. The problem is I came away with more questions than answers. Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. 
Journaling in camp – I did a lot of thinking and scribbling. Unfortunately, I came away with a lot more questions than answers. Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. -
Enjoying the view
Enjoying the view – between interludes of journaling and swimming. I even completed some camp chores. Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. -
Day Three – Morning coffee
Morning coffee. Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. Click on the picture to view a larger version, and you can see the scratches on my legs showing how well Cat Briar Meadows lived up to their name.
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Breakfast – Biscuits and gravy and a cup of coffee
Breakfast – Biscuits and gravy and a cup of coffee. Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. In my opinion, Mountain House biscuits and gravy for breakfast is a great way to start any day when you are camping or backpacking.
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Day Two Campfire
Day Two Campfire. Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. -
Day Two – Piney Creek lakeside vistas
The view across Table Rock Lake towards Buck Hollow at Piney Creek Wilderness – I never tire of the play of light on the trees here. Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. 
Buck Hollow at sunset. Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. 
Last of the sunshine for the day. Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. -
It’s good to be back – Camped in Piney Creek Wilderness
Camped in Piney Creek Wilderness – It’s good to be back. Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. I was last here on a day hike with Katie and Lanie back in April. It’s good to be back and I’m planning on staying for three nights in a repeat of my visit over Independence Day Weekend last year. I’m not going anywhere, I plan of a bit of swimming and a lot of looking at the lake. Sounds good to me.
If you read my rant about leaving a mess in the wilderness, you may be thinking I’m being hypocritical, as here I am camped in the wilderness with a fire ring and a rock table/chair. Well, maybe. But both the fire ring and table were here when I discovered this spot back in 2018. All I’ve done is kept them serviceable. The only sign that anyone has been here when I leave, is fresh ash in the fire ring.
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First glimpse of the lake
First glimpse of the lake – View of Table Rock Lake from Piney Creek Wilderness. Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. My first glimpse, but not my first encounter. I checked the lake level before I left, and it was five feet above standard pool. When I was here this time last year, I think it was eleven feet above pool. Anyway, the lake was high enough to have covered the trail in places. Not too deep, mid-calf or so, but enough to make it impossible to see where the trail went.
Sunset was due in thirty minutes, so I had to get moving if I didn’t want to be setting up camp in the dark (again).
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Leave no trace – How NOT to camp in the Wilderness
How not to camp in a wilderness. Piney Creek Wilderness, Missouri. Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. Got your own land? Go for it, cut down trees (wear high heels1), and make as much mess as you like. Public land? Leave no trace. Let’s not trash the wilderness.
Leave only footprints, take only pictures.
It would appear that a couple of would-be Alone contenders or Bear Grylls wannabes have been camping out by the lake. They must have missed the sequences in Alone, where they clear up the campsites when they leave. I don’t know what to say … The basics of wild camping are simple, use a fire ring if it’s there, as it was in this case, but don’t make one, and leave everything as you found it or in a better, more natural, condition. I can understand leaving the skillet behind for others to use, but don’t cut down trees, living or dead, to feed your fires or make furniture. And take all your trash, clothing, and tarps with you when you leave. Leave only footprints, take only pictures.
I guess while I’m having a rant, I should also give a shout-out to the hunter who, a few years ago, dressed a deer and left the carcass next to the fire ring at my favorite wild campsite in this wilderness. I have a sound recording of coyotes arguing over the remains. I camped a couple of hundred yards away that night, but the noise was still quite impressive.
1 Warning, 1960s’ British humor. For the uninitiated, check out this YouTube video.
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‘Top-up Creek’
‘Top-up Creek’ – On my trips to the lake at Piney Creek I almost always stop here to get water. So I’ve decided to name this feeder-creek ‘Top-up Creek.’ Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. -
Feeding the obsession
A new and ‘antiqued’ leather journal cover. Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. 
Gary and hat, both beginning to look ‘antiqued.’ Copyright © 2020 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. It’s not really an obsession, more of a passion. I like leather journals. I enjoyed my new Field Notes sized journal so much I decided to buy another one.
I’ve been ‘antiquing’ the journal cover (right). It looked just like the one on the left when it was new. I like the worn look. It matches me and my hat. 🙂
New Goodies – Another leather cover, plus I thought I’d try out some genuine Field Notes notebooks. Expensive things, we’ll see how well they work out. Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. -
Trail journal
Trail journal – don’t knock my writing. It’s not easy to write neat notes while you are hiking. Note the tiny mechanical pencil I bought just for hiking. I included a normal-sized one in the picture for comparison. Copyright © 2021 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.
