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.


Also stopped at a scenic overview area and enjoyed the hilly landscape


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.



Also saw a few birds, but some days the fog off the cold water didn't help the pictures.

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....



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...


We found quite a few homes, and most had a similar appearance like this one.


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.




Anyway, had to leave this morning and drive home...back to reality!