Monthly Newsletter of the Eastern Missouri Group
NOVEMBER 2014
Eastern Missouri Group Website | Join | Group Leadership
November 20, 2014, General Meeting
Annual Members' Photo Show - See great photos taken by our members. Meeting starts at 7 pm and will be held at the new Sierra Club office at 2818 Sutton Blvd in Maplewood. (map) If you are interested in presenting 5 minutes of your photos, contact Mark Ostendorf at (417) 850-0064. Limit 8 presenters.
December 6, 2014, Holiday Party and Potluck Dinner
Celebrate the season with your long-time friends and meet new friends! Bring your beverage and a dish to share. Call for time and directions. Barb Wall, (636) 529-0477, Marilyn Harlan, (314) 966-8797, or Ann Eggebrecht, (314) 725-1560. Sierra Club calendars will be available for purchase at the party.
It's NOT too late to register for Trivia Night!
Enjoy a fun Trivia Night and Silent Auction on Saturday, November 15, 7 PM at 8001 Dale Ave, Richmond Heights (map). There will be games, prizes, and a 50/50 raffle, as well as an excellent silent auction ... get started on your holiday shopping or grab a little something for yourself! You can register a table (seats 8) for $160 or you can register as an individual for $30 and join up with others when you arrive. Register here and support Eastern Missouri Group's work to protect our natural areas! Our sponsors again this year are The Alpine Shop and St Louis Brewery, Maker of Schlafly Beers.
This year we have explored Missouri’s eight Wilderness Areas via a series of articles. There are other areas in Missouri that also deserve the protection of wilderness designation which we will explore in the next few months. We start with Big Spring which is part of the Ozark National Scenic Riverways.
The Big Spring Wilderness Study Area
Big Spring by Becky Denney |
by Becky Denney
Many visitors to the Big Spring area of the Ozark National Scenic Riverways (ONSR) fall in love with Big Spring. The spring area and trails connecting Big Spring to the campground, the CCC built dining hall, cabins, and the Chub Hollow group camp offer beautiful views of the spring branch and the Current River.
After enjoying Big Spring, you can drive uphill behind the CCC cabins, park next to the water tower and visit Big Spring Pines Natural Area which is an important part of the Big Spring Wilderness Study area. Enjoy the large old shortleaf pines along the CCC Loop trail as you hike the ridge which divides Chub Hollow and a hollow draining into Spring Valley. This is a unique upland forest experience through old native pines and the few young pines regenerating because of disturbances along the trail. In at least one of those openings you can see the fire tower on the horizon which you can visit if you follow the trail toward Highway Z.
Before you reach the fire tower you will come to a stone bench where the trail splits with a trail (Connector Loop) heading off to the west and winding away from Chub Hollow ridge. As you hike west from the stone bench you will soon reach the boundary of ONSR and Mark Twain National Forest. Ozark Trail connector signs reach an intersection and sign with arrows pointing west for the OT (only about 2 miles, not the 10 miles the sign says) and pointing north and south toward other trailheads in the Big Spring Wilderness Study area.
When you hike east from the stone bench you will soon reach the little used road to the fire tower. You can’t climb up the fire tower, but in the spring you can look out over the southern part of the wilderness study area toward Kinnard Hollow. The little used road past the fire tower is also the trail called Lookout Loop and winds around the hill to Highway Z. This trail is also the southern boundary for the Big Spring Pines Natural Area.
Hwy Z is the eastern boundary for the wilderness area. Further south within the wilderness study area are trails through Kinnard Hollow and along Chilton Creek. Choose a time when there is not much summer growth to hike the trail along lowland fields, along and across Chilton Creek then up Kinnard Hollow.
There are four easily reached trailheads for the 3,434 acre Big Spring Wilderness Study area. The trail can be used for day hikes as well as a connection to the Ozark Trail. The combination of land types, easily accessible trailheads and numerous cultural features add interest for adults and families.
The ecological health of the wilderness acres as well as the adjacent acres of the Mark Twain Forest Service is paramount to the health, beauty and economic value of the connected Ozark Riverways and the Current River.
Visit a Missouri Wilderness Area To Celebrate the 50th Anniversary
Dec 5-7 (Fri-Sun) Bell Mountain Wilderness Backpack. Celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Wilderness Act as we enjoy the crisp fall air and the impressive views. On Saturday we will bushwhack to Lindsey Mountain. 10 person limit. $10 donation requested. Paul Gross, 816-285-6563, wildwoodp@hotmail.com
Jan 23-24, Fri-Sat: Backpack in the Irish Wilderness, 20 miles. Rating: Moderate/Strenuous. Call Jim Wilson, (636) 677-4909 home or (636) 375-2136 cell for meeting time and location.
Jan 28, Wed: Paddy Creek Wilderness Area located in Texas County. We will enjoy scenic overlooks as we hike through forests along the Southern Loop of the Big Piney Trail. Contact Doug Melville, (636) 288-1055 or for further information.
Paddlers on the Current River Photo by Jim Rhodes |
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Ozark Trail Work Week Photo by Becky Denney |
Folding Chairs
We
need folding chairs for the new office to accommodate
membership meetings there. If you have sturdy folding chairs that you
can donate to the Sierra Club, please call 314-644-1011.
Schnucks Donates to EMG
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2015 Sierra Club Calendars Make Great Holiday Gifts |
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Green Time TV - Watching Out
Green Time
appears in four Missouri areas. In the St. Louis area it airs at noon
on Saturdays on Channel 24-1 and at 8 pm on Mondays on Channel 24-2 on
these dates:
December 6 & 8: “Antibiotic Overdose” Nearly 80% of antibiotics
sold in the United States are used on factory farms. At the same time,
two million Americans get an antibiotic resistant infection annually.
Alyssa Hartman and Don Fitz discuss the FDA’s being aware of these
problems since the 1970s but continually failing to act.
December
13 & 15: “The Criminal Injustice of Cannabis Prohibition” John
Payne and Don Fitz discuss effects of an arrest and conviction for a
cannabis offense for the individual and society. They look at how
decriminalization laws (such those in Columbia and St. Louis) have
helped address these problems. Should we advocate full legalization?
December
20 & 22: “Harambee 101 (Rain Drops)” This episode of Harambee 101
on Green Time examines the necessity of caring environments for black
children. Xavier Silva and Darryl L. Wise discuss the many services
that Annie Malone Children & Family Service continues to provide to
children and youth in the St. Louis area.
December 27 & 29:
“Just Energy Policies” Childhood asthma is epidemic in the African
American community. This could be because 68% of African Americans’
live within 30 miles of a coal-fired power plant. Adolphus Pruitt and
Sam Cummings discuss the NAACP’s new report “Just Energy Policies:
Reducing Pollution & Creating Jobs.”
December shows include
the trailer from “Reefer Madness” and the movies “Down to Earth
Farming,” “Rain Drops,” “Asheville Beyond Coal – Green Jobs,” and “The
Cost of Coal: Michigan.”
To volunteer to help produce Green Time call 314-727-8554 or email Don. Like Gateway Greens on Facebook and click Get notifications.
Eastern Missouri Group Outings Calendar
Sierra Club members and non-members are welcome to join Club members on our outings.
Visit the Eastern Missouri Group website for more information about outings, activities, and issues.
Please consider making a donation to the Eastern Missouri Group today!