Final Day - Heading Home Early

The constant rain got to be too much. We checked the forecast and there was not much hope for a break in the weather before Friday afternoon. Off and on rain would have been OK, but the constant downpour drove us to pack up and head home. We drove up through Hardy and then stopped at Mammoth Springs. It ended up being just a potty stop since it was still raining pretty hard. The springs looked interesting and worth a return trip. We were just about a mile south of the Missouri border here. Looking north, the sky looked like we might be heading into better weather. Just across the Missouri border is Grand Gulf State Park. It was definitely worth a stop, even in the rain.

Grand Gulf State Park is also known as Missouri's Little Grand Canyon. The park is actually a collapsed cave system. Part of the remaining roof of the cave forms one of the largest natural bridges in the state. We were standing on the bridge for the above photos, but the rain kept us from walking to a point we could see the bridge.

At the lower end of the chasm, the water empties into the remaining underground cave system. It re-emerges at Mammoth Springs, Arkansas, nine miles later.

There was a steep set of stairs heading down to the waterfall. It was still raining, but not nearly as heavy as earlier. I took an umbrella and the G10 and headed down the steps.

It was well worth the effort to see the spectacular waterfall. The walkway takes you to the edge of the falls and with the heavy flow and crashing water, created a dizzying effect.

I'm not sure if the water hitting my umbrella was from rain or the waterfall at this point.

I want to come back and take the trail through the canyon. For some reason, this area made me feel like I was in Central America. This was my first visit to this park, but hopefully not my last.

This was not a typical Missouri State Park. There were no campgrounds or roads through the park. You can overlook the canyon close to the parking lot, but to explore the park, it must be by foot.

I headed back up to the car for the trip home. Sure enough, the weather kept clearing until we reached sunlight. It was really unfortunate that the weather was so bad this week. It looks like next week will be about perfect down there. Oh well, it was still a good trip and we saw enough to know we want to return.