Tuesday, September 28, 1999

Years back, as I was heading out of the city on I-55, I spotted a
hitchhiker with a pack on his back and a lethal weapon in his hand.
Deadly curious, I stopped and offered him a ride. I don't usually give
rides to hitchhikers displaying lethal weapons, but in truth this young
fellow only a had an archery bow. As is the practice, I asked him where
he was going. He said " to camp at the most beautiful place in
Missouri", calling it by name the Pink Shoals and described it as a
shut-in. Since I had my own mental list of the most beautiful places,
and Pink Shoals wasn’t on it,  I was thrilled by the news that there
were other shut-ins besides the famous Johnson Shut-ins.
I didn't have the time to drive the rider all the way to his destination
that day, but pumped enough information from the him, that a month or so
later I was able to locate this most beautiful place. This exploration
led to a regular pursuit of finding other shut-ins. Because a shut-in
occurs whenever a stream cuts through igneous rock, I was able to locate
them by using the Geological Map of Missouri.

Now, with less effort, hikers can use the Geological Wonders of Missouri
to explore the least visited shut-ins. The book lists 47 shut-ins. It
gives directions and describes in detail the more spectacular ones.
There are a half dozen or more that didn't make the book. Of these the
Sonderman Canyon on the St. Francis River is very impressive, and Lower
Rock Creek, the most extensive.  A kayak can be run through Sonderman in
high water, Lower Rock Creek has trails that crisscross the creek. Both
are in Madison County.

The bow hunter’s, Pink Shoals has now been acquired by the Department of
Conservation and named the Amidon Memorial Forest. It is the only
shut-in on the Castor River.

Harry O'Toole
10587 Hobday
S