Shootout 2016

A week late, but here are some pics of the 2016 Shootout

Solar Eclipse At the Lake August 21, 2017

Update: As much as I wanted to see the eclipse on the lake, the opportunity to see totality only 45 minutes north was too compelling.  As stated below, totality is what you're really after when it comes to a solar eclipse. For those few brief minutes, when you're able to remove your safety glasses and behold the spectacle with your naked eyes, the wonder of it all takes your breath away.  The picture below was taken in Jefferson City Missouri right at totality. It's not the greatest picture, but no picture can do this event justice.  It must be experienced, and I was more interested in watching the event than capturing it.

If for some reason you missed this eclipse, than you owe it to yourself to see the next one, which fortunately will occur less than seven years from now. It will pass over southeast Missouri on April 8th, 2024. Don't miss it!


One year from now Next month In less than 1 week, the continent of North America will get its first total solar eclipse of the 21st century.  This is something you need to plan a party around, but everyone will have to take the day off as the 21st lands on a Monday next year. A nice excuse for a three day weekend I'd say. I remember the last solar eclipse and it was amazing.  Although the event will be hard to avoid (unless you work in a soul crushing windowless basement), make plans to see this, gather your children and grandchildren. I promise it is something you will never forget.

Below is a zoom in of the path of the eclipse and times in Missouri from Eclipsewise

The thin red line represents the location for a total eclipse, meaning the moon will perfectly form in the center of the sun and when you will likely see the "string of pearls" effect from the sun's corona. This path is also where the sky will be its darkest, almost as if night time. Jefferson City is almost situated perfectly for this viewing and to be honest it would be a more ideal spot, but the opportunity to see the eclipse on the lake is too good to pass up in my opinion. The wider grayed path is also a total eclipse area just not as perfect. Below is a nice animation someone posted on imgur that highlights why Missouri's view of the eclipse will be so special.

For the Lake, the eclipse will not reach totality, but close enough to be equally impressive despite not reaching complete blackness. North Kansas City and South St.Louis areas will get quite a show too.  Missouri won't get longest duration (2mins 40+ secs of total coverage), but again we're close enough get our fair share of time in eclipse. It's going to be amazing but I am torn between the spectacle at the lake or the complete totality of the event just a few miles north. The idea of the sky going completely dark in the middle of the day just takes the whole thing to another level.  As Professor Angela Speck, Director of Astronomy at the University of Missouri puts it "Although a 99% partial eclipse is impressive, it is not 99% of the experience of a total (100%) eclipse. The sun is so bright that even with only 1% showing, it is gives us 10,000 times the light of the full moon".

Totality is very special, and a truly visceral experience. As darkness begins, an eerie silence will follow as everything seems to go still, even animals will fall silent. The temperature will drop, clouds will change, and you may experience a certain anxiety as the most ancient primitive part of your brain screams that something is very wrong. Once you seen a total eclipse, you may begin to appreciate how ancient cultures treated it with reverence, or even as a sign from their gods. But even in these modern times, knowing why it happens, how it happens, and that the sun will return, is not going to spare you from a sense of helplessness that is hard to describe.

Take a look at the simulator if you want an idea of the difference.  Use the lake's zip code of 65049, and Jefferson City's 65101.

The City of Lake Ozark - 50 Years

The City of Lake Ozark was incorporated in August of 1966.

Can you spot this area today?  There are two buildings in this photo that are still standing. I wish I could give proper credit to the origin of this photo but I don't recall where I got it off the web.

This picture was taken some time in the 1930s (1932-1933 would be my guess).  You can see the old White House Hotel and Post Office.  During construction of Bagnell Dam what is now the "Strip" was one of the first developments created to support workers and visiting dignitaries.

There's good food and drink at the Post Office these days.  :)

Why is the Lake of the Ozarks the "Best Lake" in the U.S.?

If you are familiar with the Lake of the Ozarks, by now I'm sure you've heard that for 2016 it was voted the best recreational lake in the U.S. by a reader survey done by USA Today.  It was not stated how many readers took the survey, but the list of ten was whittled down from a selection of 20 lakes.

So why exactly does the Lake of the Ozarks rank so highly when compared to other popular lakes such as Lake Powell (#10), Lake Tahoe (#5), or even Lake Michigan(#7)?  What makes a lake popular? What makes a lake ideal for "recreational use"?

Why is the Lake of the Ozarks the "Best Recreational Lake"?

Black Bears at the Lake of the Ozarks?

June 2019 Update - A bear was captured on video swimming in the Lake of the Ozarks. LakeExpo has it here.

LakeExpo - I know, it looks more like a giant otter in this screen grab

I've also checked the Missouri Dept. of Conservation for the map I've referenced in the original article and they seemed to have updated things a bit. Here's the current map of bear "interactions" for the state. It's interesting to compare with the map from my original post. The seem to be moving north and westerly. The original post map has them mostly concentrated in the southeast. Apparently bears are on the move and finding the Lake area attractive. The "mortality" part of the graph presumably means the bear, not people. I've never heard of anyone being killed by a black bear but it could certainly happen I suppose (mother bears are particularly protective). I'm a little surprised by how many are in the St.Louis area.

On Saturday June 25th 2016, a black bear was spotted in a tree near the Grand Glaize Bridge at the Lake of the Ozarks.  We do live near the largest state park in the state, so it is little surprise that mountain lions and bears have found favorable habitat here.  This bear was pelted with bean bags by the conservation department to goad it into leaving the area, but was otherwise unhurt.


Everyone may now freak out.

Done?  Good, because it's not a big deal.  Black bears are very common in Missouri these days, especially in the south and southeast where there is plenty of undeveloped land. The Missouri Department of Conservation tracks many bears, but it does not appear that this one was tagged or monitored.

To me, this does not look like a healthy animal.  There's a spot of mange on the back side and it looks malnourished. But don't let that fool you, any bear is a formidable animal when agitated and should never be approached. It is very likely that this bear is living off human refuse.  Homeowners in the area would be wise to take steps to minimize the appeal of their areas to a black bear's appetites. No one need go out and buy bear proof trash receptacles, but there are some simple things that can be done to discourage their prowlings.  Eating garbage isn't any better for animals than it is for humans.  See specimen on the left.

The Missouri Department of Conservation has a geolocation system for black bears so if you know a particular bear's tag number you can see its territory.  Below is a heat map of all the bears MDC is tracking.  As you can see there are no hot spots around the lake area despite several sightings over the years.

This isn't the first time a bear has been spotted in the lake area recently.  In July of 2014 a black bear was found dead in the Gravois Mills area after becoming entangled in barbed wire fencing.

June 2016 Lake Levels and Flow Rates

Lake levels and flow rates for June at the Lake of the Ozarks were mostly on the low side compared to the five year moving average, ending at a comfortable 659.27', less than a foot from full pool. With the memory of the floods in 2015 still fresh in everyone's mind it was a little comforting to see some capacity available with all the rains forecast for the 4th of July holiday weekend.  Daily power generation (indicated in green by flow rates above 5000 cfs) was typical for summertime energy demands.

The Big Niangua River Trail Is Here!

This is really excellent news for kayakers and canoeists in the area. The Lake Ozark Watershed Alliance, the Missouri Department of Conservation, and the Missouri Master Naturalist program, have sanctioned a new recreational waterway for usage by kayakers and canoeists.  The Big Niangua River Trail starts just downstream of the Tunnel Dam and ends at Ha Ha Tonka, representing a run of about 13 miles along some very beautiful terrain.  If I had to guess I would say it's likely Class I-II all the way.

I've paddled from Ha Ha Tonka upriver to the Onyx Cave, and all around Lake Niangua, but was never brave enough to make the full run downriver from the Tunnel Dam to the Lake of the Ozarks. One of the first things you see below the Tunnel Dam is low water bridge (Whistler?) that is impossible to navigate by water, and not knowing just how many of these there are my concern was that the run would require several portages. Thankfully that doesn't seem to be the case and kayakers and canoeists travel is now authorized (but you do need to put in below said bridge).

The Missouri Master Naturalist website created an annotated google map of the area so you know what you're getting into, but it looks like a great way to spend the day on the kayak. I'm looking forward to making the run myself as soon as I can and will post some pictures.