Tags
american bottom, barge, bluffs, Magnolia Hollow Conservation Area, Mississippi River, photography
I love Google Maps. Although I have and use a number of guide books to the local area for my explorations, many of my favorite discoveries have been found simply by highlighting St. Louis on Google, zooming in and finding a patch of green in place I don't know.
Today I found Magnolia Hollow Conservation Area in this way.
It's a wooded hilly area, part of the Missouri side of the Mississippi bluffs a few miles north of Ste. Genevieve. I arrived in the middle of deer hunt with hunters, wearing the odd combination of camouflage uniforms and bright orange caps and jackets, slipping down into the heart of the woods. I did not hear any shots this afternoon, but a deer almost ran into me as I drove along the entrance road!
Still, I decided it might be wiser to stick to the main trail and go to the look-out point rather than ramble through the woods. I'm glad I did. This was one of the finest look-outs I have come across over the Mississippi from the Missouri Bluffs. The whole American Bottom area on the Illinois side of the river was laid out before me.In the far distance I could see the bluffs, with the square quarry holes dug into them clearly showing.
A barge was slowly making its way northward, always a lovely sight to my eyes.
I got a lot of pleasure from this panoramic view of an area that I have recently been exploring, and I could make out roads and villages I had visited. Once again, it was a warm, friendly day – very satisfying.
No Longer The Only One 
Thanks, YP – another lovely fall day!
Nice November pics along the big muddy!
Lovely faded colors. Over here, November is unusually warm. Looks like we will go through all of November without frost at all – which has never happened before.Your November looks much like our.
It's been unusually mild here too, Allan, with the average monthly temperature well above normal and no hard frosts.
So in that 4th photo, the bluffs, is a white mountain area that has been dug into? Very interesting. I thought they were buildings of some sort.
Pretty cool, Richard. I really like to explore like that. Clears the mind and completely refreshes the lungs.:up::smile:
Wow, what a little gem of a place. Good thinking about the Google Maps thing. :up:
Yes, those quarries are interesting, Jill. I'd love to go exploring in them but they are off-limits. Mind clearing it was, Star, and Google Maps is amazing, Edward.:)