Shadowrock Park re-opens!

Forsyth MO - While driving by Shadowrock Park, located just to the east of the town of Forsyth Missouri, I noticed that the gates were no longer closed and so drove on through.

I did spot a few electric coop trucks effecting repairs and that was encouraging, in of itself. After many months of having been flooded, the park infrastructure didn't look all that bad. I mentally made plans to go on an impromptu picnic early next week. (That was assuming that it stayed open).

River Run Park, over across Bull Shoals still had a ways to go, it would seem. The lake level, on the day of this post, was 672.86 feet above msl. I was guessing that it would be another week or so before it too became accessible to auto traffic.

You can reach the people who man this Park by calling 417- 546-2876...

Area parks had dried out, yet remained closed!

Forsyth Mo. - As the summer of 2019 drew to a close, I was happy to see the flood waters in the Bull Shoals Lake area receding to levels that were closer to normal. On the date of this post, the water level had dropped down to 673 feet msl and was dropping at a rate that averaged a third of a foot per day. At that average rate, it was still going to be another 49 days before levels got back down to the normal level of 659 feet! But it was at about 677 feet that Shadowrock Park was pretty much clear of water. (That occurred toward the end of August and so a couple of weeks later, most of it was high and dry). And, there had been evidence that park personnel (or perhaps volunteers) had gotten much of the debris removed to debris piles for removal or burning. I drove down there to snap some pics and to maybe walk around a bit. Sadly, the park remained locked down.....

I made a call to the Park people about when the park might re-open and was greeted with a message informing me that the park was closed 'indefinitely'.

Shadowrock Park emerges once again!

Forsyth needs its own Park/Tourist Center!

After spending yet another spring and summer season languishing beneath the waters of Bull Shoals, the one popular park located just to the east of the city of Forsyth, MO has emerged. And, as you may have guessed, there's a boatload of assorted debris that will now need to be hauled off.

With the final holiday of the summer just a day or so away, Labor Day will have to be celebrated at some other area park should one be so inclined. Empire and Shoals Bend are the two closest that I can recall. And while Empire Park does only have a few amenities, it still shines brightly when compared to Shoals Bend. Here's a very short rundown on all four;

Shadowrock Park - May become available a few days toward the middle of September.
River Run - I'm guessing the the Corps will keep this park shuttered until perhaps next year.
Empire Park - Open for business
Shoals Bend - This is actually not a park. It's a fair ground that few seem to want to go to... I definitely don't like going there after dark.

If I might be so bold as to say WTF? is the town of Forsyth so strapped for resources that we can't develop a fully functional and equipped park somewhere in the city limits? And, I'm not talking about a few picnic tables dumped on some vacant field with a porta potty. I'm talking about a fully landscaped area that could support such amenities as; flush toilets, a stage, a public indoor swimming poll and meeting hall, vendor sites. Well, you get my drift. All that's lacking is the public's will to plan and develop what I feel would be a true visitor attraction that could also pay for itself over the long haul. Will this ever happen... no, probably not.

A Pittsburg salad with fries? And at the Frosted Mug? Uh no...

Forsyth Mo - Here’s the real deal, salad lovers. Sometimes we all want to eat a salad that’s simply full of lettuce and vegetables. Other times we want to eat a salad that’s full of lettuce, vegetables, shredded cheese, croutons, Ranch dressing, more cheese and more croutons.

But we had no idea we wanted to eat a salad that’s full of lettuce, vegetables, cheese and FRENCH FRIES.

That’s right. There’s an actual real life salad that’s topped with our favorite French cuisine — fries. WTF??

I had the occasion to observe this creation served, recently, at a local venue and had to admit that the patron who ordered it (special) seemed to enjoy the experience totally!

So, is this so-called salad now on the menu at the Mug? No. It would seem that only the intelligentsia has access that mere mortals, such as myself, can only dream...

Shadowrock Park may soon reemerge!

Park at 678' or just after it was closed for the 2019 season!

Forsyth MO. - After spending the bulk of the spring and summer resting beneath the waves of Bull Shoals Lake, a popular area park may once again make an appearance by early October or just in time for the end of the Summer season. The graph below is based on water level trends and assumes a relative dry month of August (dotted trend line). The more aggressive purple line represents the most recent trend based on higher release rates at the Bull Shoals dam.

Bull Shoals Lake level

What's missing regarding restaurant condiments?

I think that most everyone who lives in and around Forsyth Missouri has likely had a chance to  visit one of the many fine sit-down styled restaurants that my small town supports; Long Horn Family Dining, Fat Daddy's, Thrive and Mountain William's Pizza to name a few. All offer a great dining experience and my only, as of late, concern has been with the table condiment selections as of late...

Most venues have the basics always in place at each table; table salt, pepper, sugar and sugar substitutes being the most common. Other venue's table side condiments reflect the food that is served with places like Fat Daddy's also having a nice selection of sauces to go on that shredded pork sandwich or BBQ. But, there is most always something(s) missing, and I wanted to address that point in this post.

Even if unused, these open tubs must be tossed!

The picture above was taken at the Long Horn on the date of this post. Notice that there is no salt substitute or packaged jellies. Whenever I dine out that this venue, I often have to request the jelly and always have to bring my own ' fake salt'. Seriously, in a town with a pretty large population of older persons, you'd think everyone had gotten the message about why per capita salt intake is at record high levels! Likewise, I prefer that the jelly be in sealed packages along with the salt and pepper. Please see my other post on 'The Gross Reason You Should Never Pepper Your Food in Restaurants'!   

Friday, Aug 16th Back to School Party!