Apr 13

Spring Magic: Wildflowers in Missouri State Parks

 By Tom Uhlenbrock Missouri State Parks  A little magic is happening in Missouri’s woods. The show will go on through much of April. After a seemingly endless winter, the sun shining through the leafless trees is warming the forest floor, causing spring wildflowers to awaken. Like little jewels, they poke through the leaf litter and dot the drab landscape with bouquets of white, yellow, pink and blue. Blossoms appear about mid-April on the wild azaleas in the uplands at Hawn... Read more »

Tags: Hawn State Park, Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park, Lake of the Ozarks State Park, Long Branch State Park, Meramec State Park, St. Francois State Park, Trail of Tears State Park, Washington State Park, wildflowers

Apr 2

Katy Trail opens to Machens

By Tom Uhlenbrock Missouri State Parks   Already the nation’s longest rails-to-trails conversion, the Katy Trail just got longer. The Missouri Department of Natural Resources, which operates the trail as a state park, has completed a 12-mile extension on the east end that takes the trail from St. Charles to Machens. Gov. Jay  Nixon and First Lady Georganne Nixon used a giant pair of scissors to snip a red ribbon Saturday (April 2) and officially open the section, which marks the... Read more »

Tags: Katy Trail State Park