Bill Black - NPS furnished photo

In announcing Black’s selection, National Park Service (NPS) Midwest Regional Director Michael T. Reynolds said, “The depth and breadth of Bill’s experience both within and outside the National Park Service, coupled with his intuitive understanding of building lasting relationships and partnerships with local, regional, and national communities, organizations, and groups, makes him an ideal choice to lead Ozark National Scenic Riverways.”

Black began his NPS career as a seasonal Park Technician at Cumberland Gap National Historical Park in Kentucky followed by a season position at Castillo de San Marcos National Monument in St. Augustine, Florida. His first permanent position was as a Park Ranger in law enforcement at Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee. Black then went on to become the Administrative Officer at Chickasaw National Recreation Area in Oklahoma and a few years later was promoted into the Administrative Officer and Assistant Superintendent role at Isle Royale National Park in Michigan. His career also included working for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Florida and Alabama as an Assistant Wildlife Refuge Manager.

As Superintendent at Fort Smith NHS since January 1992, Black led the park through major rehabilitation, including the planning and development of its visitor center and exhibits. He has also been successful in developing, improving, and maintaining positive cooperative relationships with local, state, and other federal agencies, Native American tribal governments, land owners, and interest groups. Black served an acting assignment in Las Vegas as the director of one of the largest multi-agency partnerships in the country dealing with both federal agencies and numerous interest and support groups in southern Nevada.

“Having served the acting Superintendent detail at the park, I have had the fortune to meet many of the partners and local people that have a special interest in Ozark National Scenic Riverways, and I look forward to working closely with them in the years to come,” commented Black. “I have been very impressed with the truly world class natural resources of the park, including the magnificent springs and the clear free-flowing Current and Jack’s Fork Rivers.”

An Indiana native, Black graduated from Purdue University with a degree in Wildlife Management. Married to Judi, a first grade teacher with the Fort Smith Public Schools, the Blacks have a grown son and daughter.

Posted by Joanie Straub

PERRY, Mo – A little luck nabbed a record size largemouth bass for 20-year-old Dylan Gilmore of Perry. Gilmore and his friend, Austin Lake, had set their trotline on April 27 using goldfish as bait, hoping to catch some catfish at Ka-Tonka Lake, located in Ka-Tonka Game Preserve and Sporting Clays Club in Ralls County. When they returned the next day to check their line, Gilmore realized they had caught something. When pulling the line to their boat, what he assumed was a catfish instead turned into something a little more.

Dylan Gilmore with fish, Austin Lake (right). MDC Photo

“We knew something was on there,” Gilmore said. “I reached down and grabbed the fish and thought ‘oh my gosh, this thing is huge.’ It felt like a dream at first. I have never seen a bass that big in person.”

Gilmore was not quite sure what to do with the large fish, so he put it in a cooler with aerated water and headed to the Hobby Hut, a bait and tackle store, on Highway 19 in Perry.

“I shop at the Hobby Hut and figured they would know what to do with such a large fish,” Gilmore said. While at the store, Gilmore had the fish weighed. The scale read 9 pounds, 8 ounces. “Once I knew how much it weighed, I looked up the record online,” Gilmore said. “I found the web page on the Missouri Department of Conservation’s (MDC) website. At first, I didn’t think I had broken the record, but that’s when I saw the line for alternative methods.”

The owner of the store allowed Gilmore to keep his fish in a tank until he could contact MDC. On May 1, Gilmore phoned Fisheries Management Biologist Ross Dames and told him about his fish. Dames met Gilmore at the Hobby Hut to get an official weight on the stores’ certified scale. At that point, Gilmore’s fish weighed in at 9 pounds, 2 ounces and was 23.5 inches long; big enough to nab him a new state largemouth bass record for alternative methods.

“When I saw I officially had the record, I was pretty excited,” Gilmore said. “But it also made me think I should have called the Conservation Department sooner!”

Missouri’s previous state record, which stood for 10 years, was an 8-pound, 2.2-ounce, 24-inch fish caught via trotline, using goldfish bait in Country Boy Estate Lake in Boone County on Dec. 16, 2002.

The largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) is a species of black bass in the sunfish family native to North America. Largemouth bass are very aggressive fish and will strike at nearly anything they consider alive. Average size is 3 to 10 pounds, though the fish can reach as much as 20 pounds and can live for 10 to 15 years. Largemouth bass thrive in warm, moderately clear waters with little or no current. They can be found all over Missouri in all types of water including lakes, artificial impoundments of all sizes, permanent pools of streams, and quiet backwaters of large rivers. The fish are most active at dawn and dusk.

Gilmore was not sure what to do with his trophy fish. The owner of the Ka-Tonka club told Gilmore he could always release the fish and let it get bigger. Gilmore thought that was a good idea.

“I took a picture of me holding the fish and really, that satisfied me. So I turned it loose,” Gilmore said. “It made me happy to release it and it made the owner of Ka-Tonka Lake happy too. I hope someday to meet it again, and it will be even bigger. Then, maybe I’ll get a new record.”

It is still sinking in for Gilmore that he is now a record holder in Missouri. “It’s pretty exciting, something I know I can always have and be able to tell my son or grandson about,” Gilmore said. “I don’t know how long I will keep the record, but that doesn’t really matter. No matter what, I have the certificate that shows I held the record at one time, something I can always look back on.”

More information about Missouri fishing records is available at mdc.mo.gov/fishing/reports/records

The Missouri Department of Conservation, the Maramec Spring Trout Fishermen’s Association and The James Foundation proudly present Kids Free Fishing Day at Maramec Spring Park. Kids fish free and there will be no parking fee on this day for cars with kids fifteen and under inside!

The entire upper half of the spring branch will be reserved for kids fifteen years of age and younger. Rainbow trout will be stocked throughout the day to help ensure fishing success. Members of the Maramec Spring Trout Fishermen’s Association and Missouri Department of Conservation staff will be on hand all day to assist the kids with fishing. Kids will need to bring their own fishing poles.

The Maramec Spring Trout Fishermen’s Association will be sponsoring fishing contests from 6:30 A.M. until 3:00 P.M. A casting contest will be held at 11:00 A.M. with trophies to be awarded. Free hotdogs and soda will be provided throughout the day. Prizes galore will be given away all day long and include bicycles, fishing rod and reels, fishing equipment, savings bonds and more! Many attendance prizes will be given away.

There will be exhibits, contests and activities from 9:00 AM till 3:00 PM in the area around the registration tent. These include fish print tee-shirts, critter stamping, scavenger hunt, taxidermy, photographs, fish cleaning and cooking and kid’s games. Fly fishing demonstrations and classes will be held on the stream.

Kids who want to fish must pick up a free fishing tag at the Mill field Shelter located right next to the fishing area. Included with the free tag is a “Goody Bag” containing a variety of fishing related items. Tag pickup will be available the Friday before Kid’s Day and all day Saturday.

Anyone wanting further information may call 573-265-7801 or email at ben.havens@mdc.mo.gov.

The park will open at 5:30 A.M. with fishing starting at 6:30 A.M. and continuing until 8:15 P.M. Come out and enjoy beautiful Maramec Spring Park and let the youngsters catch a fish. This event will be held rain or shine.

Maramec Spring Park, owned and operated by The James Foundation, is located on Highway 8 about six miles east of St. James, Mo

A couple weeks ago when I went to Shannon County for the Current River public meeting, we stayed over because Eugene had work to do on the way home at Montauk on Sunday.

He and Steve Bost, the naturalist there, went off on some A/V maintenance issue, leaving me to take pictures of anglers along the tiny Current River.

When they returned, Eugene was babbling about some owl pictures he had just taken.
Owl pictures? At two in the afternoon? Yes. “I’ve got to get these things to Steve’s office, and then we can go back. I want to go back and get some more pictures.”

After a slight delay, the story came out. Apparently a pair of barred owls are raising owelets in a public area at Montauk. Young owls are interesting birds. They have a “teenage stage” where they cannot yet fly because they don’t have flight feathers, but they can and do leave the nest. At this point, they are called “branchers.” This usually happens when they are about four weeks old. Mom and Dad keep bringing the teen food until it can fly on its own. Sound familiar?

A small boy peers up at the small owl. Wonder what is going on in both young minds.

This owlet, according to Steve, went out on a limb and fell off into the Current River.
Once on the ground, since they cannot fly, owelets are easy prey.

Someone noticed the owl, fished it out, and got Steve. With the help of a ladder, the owl was restored to its tree, or at least a nearby one. The campground hosts check on it periodically. The parents apparently have found their wayward son (or daughter?)
and are continuing to feed it, so there is a good chance the owl will make it to adulthood.

The owl poses after noticing us photographing it.

Needless to say, this owl has attracted a fair amount of attention. It’s rather unusual to be able to get owl photos in the daytime, but this fellow seems rather bold, and adapted to her or his human neighbors. Even so, (and like human teenagers) naptime falls whenever the mood strikes. Owls, like most birds, can sleep on perch because when their weight is on their claws, the tendons automatically clench to grip the branch.

Sleeping standing up in the daytime is easy for owls.

One day soon, at about 7 to 9 weeks of age, the flight feathers will out from this fluffball, and then he or she is on their own. After a little supervised training, the young owl will be both mobile and know how to get its own food, and will move out to its own tree and territory.

Until then, this may be the the most famous teenage owl at Montauk.

Wake me when I'm grown, please...

There will be an Elk Zone Landower Field Day May 19 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Quo da Riva Club near Paint Rock on the Current River. Sponsored by the Missouri Department of Conservation, the session is intended to educate landowner how to manage their property as elk habitat. This management includes woodland restoration, prescribed burning and food plots designed for elk and other wildlife, according to Private Lands Conservationist Mike Gaskins.

Because 93% of all land, and 85% of all forested land is in private ownership, MDC takes very seriously its outreach to landowners. Lunch will be provided, and registration is required by May 14 at 573-226-3241.

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Radeena Proffer, a 29-year-old Doniphan woman, was found not guilty of felony charges coming from a fatal boat collision July 5, 2009, on the Current River at Doniphan.

The case had been moved to Carter County on a change of venue. The three day trial returned the not-guilty verdict after three hours of deliberation.

Proffer operated a boat traveling downstream that collided with a boat being piloted upstream by Chad Mikel, 26 of Poplar Bluff. An 11-year-old boy, Jerry Mote, was thrown from Proffer’s boat because of the collison, and drowned. Josh Burson, 25, was a passenger in Mikel’s boat and died as a result of injuries received in the crash.

Proffer had been charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter, three counts of 2nd degree assault with a boat, and first degree endangerment of a child.

Witnesses said Proffer had drunk some beer before the accident, but she was not proven to be intoxicated nor impaired. She also suffered injuries in the crash.

Current River State Park has been in a contentious limbo since a 780-acre portion of the old Alton Club/Jerry J. Presley Center was transferred from the Missouri Department of Conservation to the Department of Natural Resources-Division of State Parks in March 2008.

Bill Bryan (midleft) takes question from Shannon Countians

At an open house/picnic on April 28, State Parks Director Bill Bryan, Deputy Director J. C. Kuessner, and other park officials addressed, then took informal questions from approximately 60 mostly local, and mostly male attendees for two and half hours.

The opening of the park has been delayed several times. The plans themselves changed between the administrations of Governors Matt Blunt and Jay Nixon. A poor economy, and drop in state park revenue resulted in insufficient funding to transform the property from small groups accommodated by the historic Alton Club facilities to the hundreds who visit a state park on a typical weekend.

Jane Lale, planning director and District Supervisor Denny Bopp cook hotdogs for the crowd

The state is still $3 million short of the $8 million needed to upgrade the infrastructure for public access. Even so, development under a plan similar to that proposed in 2008, is expected to begin in 12 to 18 months.

Road development is contested issue

And then came the issue of a rejuvenated (or new in the view of some) road which crosses state property for a mile, ends in the woods, creates a second park entrance and which was revived (or cut) by the Shannon County Road Commission in 2009 without permission or knowledge of the state park. The road crosses a fen, uses a creek for roadbed, and passes close to an area where the state wants to put a youth group camp.

The disputed road, just a few feet from Hwy. 19

The county and state attorney general’s office have been at an impasse over the road since. It escalated last spring when Chris Koster filed an injunction against and asked for damages from the Shannon County Court.

“I’d like to apologize for the way we got started on this park under a previous administration,” began Bryan. “We’re holding this open house to meet the neighbors,” he said, “and to listen to your concerns. We may not always agree, but we will listen. That’s why we’re here.”

Deputy Director J.C. Kuessner addressing the meeting in rec hall

And the locals had an earful for Bryan, mostly about the road.

“We want these roads kept open,” said Max Gorman. “We’ll help you with your state park, because otherwise we’re all going to end up with a dirty face. I remember back before the Park Service took over the state parks down here. They were nice. But we don’t want that road closed.”

Locals at Current River Park April 28. Max Gorman, seated

“Look around here,” said William Piatt. We don’t use state parks. We live here and we want it kept as it is. We’re here to figure out why every time they take a foot, we have to watch to make sure we’re not giving everything up. It wasn’t supposed to change. They promised us that. But it did anyway. So we want to know what this is going to cost us.”

All ears respectfully listened as each person had their say. William Piatt at far right.

Bryan did a little pleading: “Dealing with state parks is different. National Park Service people may be from anywhere. But we’re from here.” Gating, keying, and rerouting the primitive road away from sensitive areas were proposed.

Talking and listening: unidentified, Bill Bryan, Shannon County commissioner Dale Counts (in camo cap), J.C. Kuessner, unidentified

The residents seemed to soften a bit, but solving the road issue remains key to locals embracing the new park. “This park was bought with conservation money. That means we can still hunt here. Now, I’m older and I need to drive my truck down there in deer season. How can we be able to do that if you take away the road?” said one older man who declined to be identified.

Park will be open to managed hunting

Managed hunting has been permitted at Current River SP even when generally closed to the public, and will continue after the park is officially opened, said Park Superintendent Jim Newberry.

In this case, MDC will manage youth and regular hunts in spring and fall for turkey and muzzle-loading and regular deer hunting. Other hunting seasons will be permitted when they can be managed in a manner consistent with visitor safety, in the more remote parts of the park.

Old hunting regulations remain posted in the park.

“We are going to continue the hunting tradition here,” he said. “The local people expect it. We would have had a youth spring turkey season, except none of the kids with permits showed up. If you are interested in hunting here, you will have to apply through the MDC website, just like other youth, managed and special hunts. But it won’t be any more difficult than that.”

What the park will look like

Rumors over the years have turned the park into a high-end, high-dollar state resort park similar to those elsewhere, a limited access park utilizing the buildings for their original purposes for a few by reservation, as well as into another commercial canoe access point on the Current River.

Jane Lale, state parks director of planning and development, was on hand to answer questions, with a flipchart document still dated 2008.

Planning flipchart presented April 28 at Current River State Park

“What limits us are the [National Park Service scenic] easement, and the reality of wastewater treatment,” she said. “The highest cost of development relates to properly dealing with wastewater.”

“We plan to turn the lodge into park offices, and remove some of the later dormitories, taking the structure back to its original size,” she said. We want to keep many of the public buildings as they are, or take them back to their original purpose, like the rec hall, and the boathouse and the barbecue house. We want to interpret what we have as what it was.”

One major change will be the draining of the upper lake, which will hold both family and camper cabins. The area which the Alton Club used and is near the river will be a day use area, and this upper lake area, nearer to Hwy. 19, and away from the scenic easement will accommodate overnight use. Regular camping, and a youth group camp are planned.

And what about the river?

“The Canoe Landing is not intended for commercial operations but for those floating to have an access to stop in and visit the park. Also, park users who have their own canoe/kayak can utilize this access for launching. This could be used as an emergency access as well,” Lale said.

Despite the efforts of reenactment commissions, a modern Civil War encampment can never be anything but an (ironically) more civil replica of the real thing. There are the wives and the children around, for one. Hardly anyone is filthy, tired, out-of-sorts or stinks, not to mention actually injured or dying. And despite the period clothing and cooking and crafts, the effect is often more of a bucolic 19th century picnic with people very seriously and respectfully portraying their forebears in an effort to help the strolling tourists understand a way of life far different than ours.

Having been to several “Battle of” reenactments, the tableaux presented last Sunday in Jefferson City’s Binder Park was one of these more relaxed events. Instead of being all sharp military drill, this event showed more of the culture of the 1860s, and less of the faux horror of war. Maybe the unseasonably hot temperatures in the mid-90s cause more of the open-collar attitude. Here are some captioned snapshots of the event.

Abe Lincoln poses with admirers

Confederate encampments dominated the field. Sterling Price's battle flag.

Whirling on the grass to a string band

Fighting a war is hard work

Removing a bullet to the bone is messy

A wad of chewed tobacco was state of the art antiseptic

Playing a mule jawbone

Visiting is an important part of these encampments

Teaching the parts and use of a vintage gun

Bonnetheads listening to the music

Sitting around the camp

Endersby is the director of the museum, which is in the State Capitol building in Jefferson City, and she knows all the surprises found in its 30,000-piece collection.
Ella Ewing was known as the “Missouri Giantess.” Born in 1872 in La Grange in northeast Missouri, she reportedly grew to be 8 feet, 4 inches tall by age 22. The museum has a pair of shiny black high-button shoes, donated by the company that made them for Ewing.

Ella Ewing's size 24 shoe

“Her parents tried to keep her out of the limelight, but did realize they could make money from her size,” Endersby said. “She went out on tour with the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus.”

The Missouri State Museum, which is part of the state park system, houses it treasures at the Riverside Collections Facility, a secured warehouse a mile east of the capitol building. The museum has exhibit space in two wings on the first floor of the capitol.

“Civil War Missouri: A House Dividing” currently is on display at the capitol and runs through May 2015. However, the museum also offers behind-the-scenes tours of the Riverside building. From June through October, the tours start at 2 p.m. on the last Friday of every month.

Legislation created the museum in 1919, when it received military artifacts that had been collected by the state adjutant general. The museum has memorabilia from the Civil War, as well as German guns, daggers and helmets from later conflicts.
“We have unique Native American artifacts from Missouri,” Endersby said. “We also have over 600 flags, everything from the Seminole War in the 1830s through current conflicts in the Middle East.”

Visitors touring Riverside will see the usual collection of vintage tools, clothing and furniture. Asked for the 10 most unusual items, Endersby began with Ella Ewing’s shoes, and easily came up with nine other oddities.

Civil War era sweet gum mortar

Mary A. Owen ventured across the Missouri to Sac and Fox encampments. She collected beautiful Indian beadwork.

Gatling gun: “It’s one of the earliest Gatling guns, which was a rapid-fire gun from the 19th century,” Endersby said. “This actually wasn’t used in the Civil War; it came directly from the company.”

Nazi daggers: “We have several German pieces. The United States got war booty after World War II and divided it up among the states,” Endersby said. The weapons include two German Minenwerfers, which are mortars from World War I, as well as daggers bearing the Nazi insignia from World War II.

Bomb shelter kit: “We got it from the State Emergency Management Agency,” Endersby said. “It has everything from packets to purify water, to women’s sanitary napkins to medical tools. There also are chemicals used to set up portable toilets.”

Moon rocks: The museum has two small framed displays of black pebbles from the moon, along with miniature Missouri flags that were among state flags on the Apollo flights. “The second set was given to then-Gov. Kit Bond, and it had been missing for years,” Endersby said. “Sen. Bond gave it to Gov. Nixon in December 2010.”

Mastodon tusk: “We have a tusk and a tooth; it’s a molar about 4 inches by 4 inches,” Endersby said. “The tusk is not quite 3 feet long. They came to us early on as a donation in the 1930s.”

A piece of President William McKinley’s curtain: “It’s not that exciting to look at, but it’s a bizarre story,” Endersby said. “The curtain hung in the Blue Room of the White House. After McKinley was assassinated in 1901, his wife gave a piece to each of his cabinet members. It came to us from a family in St. Louis.”

No. 10 is easily the nastiest looking artifact on Riverside’s shelves. Brown, rounded mounds in an apothecary jar.

“It looks disgusting,” Endersby said. “People on behind-the-scenes tours come in and say, ‘Yew! What’s that?’ They usually assume it’s a body part, like animal intestines.”
What is it?

Tobacco twists: “In the 19th century, that’s how tobacco would be sold,” Endersby said. “You’d have seen a jar like this in a general store.”

The Missouri State Museum will hold free “Museum After Hours” events throughout 2012. Staff will conduct special programs in the museum galleries from 5-9 p.m. on the first Wednesday of each month. Evening entry will be through the carriage entrance on the south side of the building underneath the grand staircase. For more information, call (573) 751-2854, or visit missouristatemuseum.com.

We try to treat everyone equally well around here, but occasionally a special request from a special person gets a special response.

Old sign used to have neon lettering.

About a week ago, Rich Orr asked when we were going to take a picture of the old St. Clair Motel sign. He said he thought that was all that was left.

A mystery. Jo loves mysteries. I’m not that familiar with the St. Clair area yet…it’s a place I’ve passed through, headed for parts southwest for decades, but until this Traveler move, couldn’t think of a reason to stop. On the way out I had places to go, and on the way home…well it was close enough to home that we could almost smell it, and unless running low on gas, pressed on.

Well, I need to find out something about St. Clair…how to get around town, where to eat, things like that. So attending to Rich’s request fulfilled a couple of needs.

Now, unlike most readers who are friends I haven’t met yet, Rich is a caver friend of long duration (no, I won’t say “old”) which makes him part of the big family.

So guess what? Here is the sign he requested. And the new sign. And another. And a picture of the motel, still open. You can rent a room, if you want. With hot and cold running water. And the old roadbed of Rt. 66 curving into memory.

U.S. 66/I-44 and the Meramec Valley has always been the northern border of Traveler Country. And now that we’ve made a run for the border, there’s no telling what Trav will uncover around here.

Motel for Sale sign.

Elk testing in KY -2012. MDC Photo

The elk are scheduled to arrive at the refuge area of Peck Ranch on May 18 from a capture site in eastern Kentucky. The elk are making the 400-mile overnight journey in a livestock tractor trailer. They will join 31 adult elk transplanted from Kentucky in 2011 and five calves born at Peck Ranch last spring.

MDC is again working with the Missouri Department of Agriculture and the U.S., Kentucky and Virginia departments of agriculture, along with the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Services (KDFWS) and Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (VDGIF) to ensure the health of all captured elk.

Missouri-bound elk will also be fitted with radio collars in Kentucky to help monitor their movements in and around the restoration zone.

Virginia is beginning elk restoration and joined MDC and KDFWS in capturing this year’s elk. The 54 elk captured this year will be divided between Missouri and Virginia.

Peck Ranch CA covers 36 square miles in the Ozarks and has been MDC’s site for the restoration of various native plants and animals since the early 1940s.

MDC has temporarily closed the 12,000-acre refuge area at Peck Ranch to public access until mid-summer to minimize disturbances to elk arriving from Kentucky and to resident elk that are calving. Public and media access to the release location and activities will also be prohibited in an effort to minimize stress on arriving wild elk.