6 In Hiking + The Outdoors/ Missouri/ Travel

Day Hike- Rocky Barrens Conservation Area

Last night my boyfriend, Alex, and I went to bed ready for a mini road trip to Arkansas to go hiking, but when we woke up 3 hours later than planned we decided that driving three hours to go hiking, when it would be in the hottest part of the day, was not a great idea.  So, we consulted Alex’s uncle Kelly who’s our expert on all things outdoors and the Ozarks (see his blog on outdoors in the Ozarks here), and he said we should go to Rocky Barrens Conservation Area.

Alex and I loaded our puppy up and headed out that way…. However, about three blocks away, our puppy, Brady, decided to have an accident all over my lap!   I was so broke down, and we had to go back home, wash me and Brady off, change clothes, and get back on the road.

We got to the Conservation Area, and it’s in the middle of this area of homes out in Willard, Missouri, but you walk through a parking lot and back through a grove of trees.  Then your back into an area of glades.  This time of year there are a lot of wildflowers blooming, and they are beautiful!  This was the first hiking trip that we’ve take with Brady (the pup), and he wasn’t quite conditioned for a hike like we thought we was, so we ended up carrying him most of the way.  This area wasn’t exactly what I call a gorgeous area, but it was a pretty and nice little hike, and it’s always good to see what your home state has to offer.

Conservation Area Sign

Conservation Area Sign

Walking through the conservation area.

Walking through the conservation area.

Brady and me on Our first little hike!

Brady and me on Our first little hike!

Baby Brady

Baby Brady

Alex and Brady

Alex and Brady

One of the wildflowers

One of the wildflowers

Looking out on the glades area.

Looking out on the glades area.

Another Wildflower

Another Wildflower

This hike was fairly uneventful, but it was a nice little getaway!  I’ll be back soon with hopefully a more exciting post!  Hope everyone has a great weekend, does something fun, and their puppy doesn’t have an accident on them 🙂

For more posts and travel articles I find interesting ‘like’ the For the Love of Wanderlust page on Facebook. Simply click HERE.

You Might Also Like

6 Comments

  • Reply
    Steve Schwartzman
    July 1, 2011 at 5:56 pm

    The wildflower in your image 5220 is in the genus Monarda. It could be horsemint, Monarda citriodora, but I can’t tell. In contrast, the flower in your image 5222 is not native; it’s mullein, which came here from Europe.

    Steve Schwartzman
    http://portraitsofwildflowers.wordpress.com/

    • Reply
      ashleypaige4
      July 1, 2011 at 10:44 pm

      Thanks for stopping by my blog, and for the info on those flowers! You seem to be quite the expert, and you have some awesome photographs of flowers! What sparked your interest in wildflowers?

  • Reply
    Steve Schwartzman
    July 2, 2011 at 7:56 am

    In 1999 I was putting together a photo CD of Austin and I began noticing all sorts of wildflowers here. I bought some field guides and started hanging around with people who knew a lot about wildflowers. I’ve made the native species a photo specialty. Glad you like my pictures of them.

    • Reply
      ashleypaige4
      July 4, 2011 at 11:10 am

      That’s really awesome! Thanks again for the info!

  • Reply
    Little Finger
    July 8, 2011 at 1:50 am

    Some trips makes it more memorable not because of the place, but because of the people and things you do, I love these pictures and Brady how cute he is 🙂

    • Reply
      ashleypaige4
      July 8, 2011 at 9:16 am

      That’s really true, and I love how sometimes places make you think of those people. That’s how your post on Crater Lake was for me 🙂 Thanks so much for reading, and for saying Brady’s cute 🙂 We love him a lot!

    Join the Conversation!

    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.