Hiking in the Desoto Wildlife Refuge

The beautiful thing about nature, especially weather is that we have yet

to predict it's temperament accurately. Just when you think there's no end in sight to Winter, nature gives you a beautiful Spring day in January.

(Be sure to watch both the video of the hike below and the condensed video this GIF was created from at the end.)

Today Jan. 27, 2018 was one such day. Having Cabin Fever myself and seeing the resigned boredom in Nietzsche's eye's and demeaner, I decided on a road trip, but to where?

I have found the best free resource for finding a trail near you is AllTrails.com. This site hands down has the most comprehensive listings and is very user friendly.

Scanning through the listings, Desoto National Wildlife Refuge caught my attention. Three years ago, my research into Survivalismbranched into Mycology. When asking the locals where the hot spots to find Morel Mushrooms, Desoto National Wildlife Refuge

is among the top recommendations. This was where my first successful Morel Hunt was conducted.

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(video of my hike)

DWLR didn't come to mind before my search, because in the summer it's a very popular Recreation Area, which makes it almost impossible to allow Nietzsche to run off leash.

In the Winter this isn't an issue and my last visit here left some of the area unexplored, so we had our desination. Another great fact about visiting State and Federal Custodial lands in the winter is, they are free.

The Refuge was recognized in 1958 for its importance as a resting area for migratory birds, especially Snow Geese, other migratory birds such as Mallard's and even Bald Eagles, which follow the geese.

This area gives them full protection according to the 1929 Migratory Bird Conservation act and encompasses about 7,800 acres. If it wasn't for this designation, hunter's from around the world would gather there to hunt them.

Immediately to the south of the Refuge is Wilson Island State Recreation Area.

This is where you'll camp and access the river, if you so choose.

Wilson Island is a Sandbar Island in the Missouri River. It was established as an island in 1900 C.E. and was later to be named after Iowa's 28th Governor George Allison Wilson.

The Missouri River or the Mighty Mo' as the locals call it, is the longest river in North America and is best known as the water trail for Louis and Clark.

They travelled the full length of the River. There is not one public space along this river that doesn't have a plaque claiming to be part of their travels.

The Mo' begins in the Rocky Mountains of Western Montana and flows 2341 miles, where it merges with the Mississippi River just north of St. Louis, Missouri.

The river has been extensively engineered in many ways to control it's flow. Before the many artificially straightened channels, which now controls about 32% of the rivers path, the river would fluctuate greatly and at times could be up to 10 miles wide in some spots.

If you just wanted to explore the trails in these two areas you would need one full day or two leisurely days to hike them all. I have been here on two different occasions and haven't been able to take it all in.

If you've read any of the links provided above you'll see the area is great for bird watching, hiking, fishing, and especially Moral Hunting.

If you've never had a Morel mushroom, you are missing out. A large portion of the Mycological Community consider these mushrooms to be top choice.

Directly on the opposing side of the river is Boyer Chute National Wildlife Refuge. This area adds another 4000 acres of protected habitat for all the wildlife, which lives within it.

Boyer Chute is home to many more trails for hiking and is about 20 miles north of Omaha. The Riverfront trail starts in Downtown Omaha and ends at Boyer Chute. I have riden this trail on a few occasions and love the nice quiet, moderately trafficked ride.

(45 minutes of the sunset condensed to 4.5 minutes.)

I hope you enjoyed the photographs and video's from my hike.

Thank you for sharing your time with me.

Please make sure to get outside and record it for other's to enjoy.

#PayItForward because someone has done right by you.

And most importantly, help keep our area's clean by practicing Leave No Trace Principle's.

Here are some more of my adventure blogs:

Forest Lakes Trail- Rollinsville, CO

https://mspsteem.com/blog/@notconvinced/my-four-day-adventure-hiking-the-forest-lakes-trail

Sandia Tramway- Albuquerque, NM

https://mspsteem.com/blog/@notconvinced/sandia-tramway-as-seen-through-my-eyes

Rio Grande River Gorge Bridge- Taos, NM

https://mspsteem.com/dtube/@notconvinced/2kbivjer

Living A Mindful Life Using Leave-No-Trace Principles

https://mspsteem.com/nature/@notconvinced/living-a-mindful-life-using-leave-no-trace-principles

The Beautiful Sights Along Omaha Riverfront Trail
https://mspsteem.com/travel/@notconvinced/beautiful-sights-along-the-omaha-riverfront-trail

Line Dividers provided by;
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