Branson trip

Well...just made it home from a nice long vacation week in Branson, where we stayed in a little cabin on Lake Taneycomo. We did ziplines, Silver Dollar City, and some shows, but most importantly I managed to get some fishing time in and gave trout fishing a try. Back in 2008 we'd stayed here and I managed 1 little fish. This time, between my daughter and I we probably caught a little over 20 during the week, which is a significant improvement over my last experience. :)

We made a quick stop at the Buffalo River on the way by and took in the view. Beautiful place, but the water was pretty chilly.
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Also stopped at a scenic overview area and enjoyed the hilly landscape
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Natalie and I both caught a limit (4 each) early in the week, so with what we caught the rest of the time, we were able to bring some fish home for later. The trout we catch off the dock aren't trophy size, but they're beautiful fish and I enjoyed catching them.
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Also saw a few birds, but some days the fog off the cold water didn't help the pictures.
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I saw a couple of eagles a few times, but could never catch a picture of them. Also saw some minks playing on the dock at night. Three of them were chasing each other...looked just like solid brown ferrets. First time I've ever seen one.

Some other stuff....
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Aside from fishing, we had a lot of other fun too. My wife has always been interested in the Amish culture, so we went riding through the countryside in Seymore, MO and found a community. We saw these little haystacks in a field, and have no idea how they were piled...
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We found quite a few homes, and most had a similar appearance like this one.
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Also saw a couple of wagons with women and children riding, and there was a couple walking down the road that turned their back to the cars that drove by. The last of these pictures had a young guy driving the buggy, and he was coming straight at us at first, then stopped and turned around. He didn't go far before pulling up and stopping completely, and as we passed I said hello. He just smiled real big at me. :) The women and children we saw waved a lot. They had chicken houses on property, laundry drying on wires, and one home had men and boys loading hay in wagons behind the barn...another man was milking a cow and feeding horses. We found it very interesting to see a bit of a sub-culture that still holds on to the old ways.
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Anyway, had to leave this morning and drive home...back to reality!

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Awesome post and pics. I love spending time in Amish country. Felt like I was on the trip. Did you go to BPS in Springfield?

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Originally Posted by "D"

Awesome post and pics. I love spending time in Amish country. Felt like I was on the trip. Did you go to BPS in Springfield?

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Nah, never actually made it to Springfield. We were on the way, but stopped at Lamberts restaurant and ate a big meal, then the waitress told us about Seymore, so we just headed up the road and drove around looking. Wife and I had a blast joking about following the horse poop. lol Beyond the waving and the one comment to the young man, we didn't interact with them, but it would have been pretty cool to sit and talk with them.

I've been to the BPS in Springfield before, and we've now got one in Bossier, so I was ok skipping it. Maybe next time.

Double awesome post, thanks for the write up and the post! I really enjoyed it!

Wow. Great post Awesome trip!!

Good trip....Thanks for sharing with us

Great post...really enjoyed it.....

Those pictures are awesome! Really enjoyed this!

Wow... thanks for taking us along

Oh well, BPS......throwed roll. I would prefer the roll myself. lol

Great pics! That area is so pretty and the trout fishing can be fantastic. If you live in North Louisiana, you can be in the mountains in just a few hours.

Excellent post! Really enjoyed that. Thanks.

Enjoyed the post....how did y'all catch the trout?

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Originally Posted by MO Slab

Enjoyed the post....how did y'all catch the trout?

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Glad you all enjoyed the pictures. We took a lot more, but this was a sampling. Also went to a few shows, a couple of wineries, and drove go karts at 40+ mph. That was a hoot.

Mo Slab, to catch the trout, I used an egg shape slip weight, bead, and swivel...attached to a 2-3 foot leader of 4 lb line with a small bream hook. For bait I had picked up Gulp floating Salmon eggs in a chart. color. Two of those would float the hook up fine, and the heavy weight got the line out far enough from the dock, but allowed it to slip easily so I could see the bite. Every fish we caught swallowed the hook. I was told the water from Table Rock lake comes out at 47 degrees, so where we were fishing, it was around 50-60 degrees, so the fish stayed fresh in baskets, even if they died. It was fun, and like crappie, we had to be patient. Looking forward to cooking some up!

All I can picture is a open fire and a grill, cold beer and a few fish with lemons on top. Beautiful fish

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Looks like you guys had a great trip. Been a few years since we have made the trip, but always enjoy our time up there. We enjoy visiting The College Of the Ozarks (hard work U) when we are up that way. Those kids all have a job to pay for their college. Good food in the resturant also. Great place to buy some take home gifts in the gift shop. When you are up that way stop by Mountain View Arkansas and stay at the Ozark Folk Center and take in one of the shows. Enjoyed the photos of your trip.

Great story and great pictures. Thanks for sharing.

WOW! Great post and pictures. Thanks for taking us along with you and your family on vacation. As a matter of fact, I am going to show these pictures to my wife and tell her we have been on vacation. Maybe she will let me stay home a fish next week. LOL. What do ya'll think?

Nothing like trying.
"gene"

Nice Scott! I love going to Branson! We went to Tennessee last week only b/c we have been to Branson several times and wanted to try somewhere new. Tennessee was cool but it's still hard to beat Branson in the fall! Thanks for the post and pictures!

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Originally Posted by shadow

Nice Scott! I love going to Branson! We went to Tennessee last week only b/c we have been to Branson several times and wanted to try somewhere new. Tennessee was cool but it's still hard to beat Branson in the fall! Thanks for the post and pictures!

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Dwyane, a number of years ago we bought a time share week in Branson (partly because we love the area so much), but we can exchange it at their other resorts, so we tried to go to Gatlinburg...no openings...Williamsburg...no openings...Branson...no openings. LOL Guess we should have planned it earlier, but we weren't sure what was going to happen with Tammy's mom (she passed in April). Anyway, we'd spent a week at Blue Haven Resort back in 2008 and enjoyed it, so we managed to get a cabin there. Very rustic, but peaceful and has everything you need. Reasonable prices too...and the fishing is pretty decent! :) We'd like to go back to Branson around Christmas, but it's hard to take a week off during budget season around here.

WE have many thoughts of vacations this fall and Branson is one of the places. Scott looks like y'all had a rip roaring time.
"gene"

Looks like a fun trip! i enjoyed reading about it.i went to Branson earlier this year but only made it to silver dollar city it was only half as fun as your trip looks!