Missouri's highest point is found in the ancient St. François Mountains. These gentle, rolling peaks are actually the roots of volcanoes that dotted this land around 1.5 billion years ago, and the abundant samples of intrusive granite (magma) and extrusive rhyolite (lava) point to an explosive past. Erosion has resolved, over the years, to dwindle these peaks down to a mere shell of their former height. The peaks in this area are very similar to Oklahoma's Wichita Mountains, however, a difference in vegetation has allowed Taum Sauk to maintain a more solid shape, whereas the Wichitas are composed of a loose conglomeration of eroded boulders.

The name Taum Sauk likely derives from an old Native American name, Sauk Ton Qua, which was later corrupted by the white settlers. The translation of the name, "Big Tom," is fitting since this is Missouri's highest mountain!

Taum Sauk Mountain is also the highest point in Missouri's Iron County, however nearby Wildcat Mountain also possesses real estate above the highest topo contour (1760'). The St. François Mountains are a sub-set of the lengthy Ozark Range, which is one of only a few West-East trending ranges in the U.S. including the Unitas of Utah and the Alaska Range in Alaska.

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2004.12.30 - Carol and I had concluded the previous day's adventures on Arkansas' Magazine Mountain before spending the night in Mountain Home, AR. I was very familiar with this town since my grandparents used to live there. However, it had been almost 10 years since my last visit, and quite a bit had changed! What was once a sleepy retirement community had blossomed into somewhat of a college town (Arkansas State opened a campus in 1998) with a Chili's, Home Depot and everything in between.

On the morning of the 30th, I gave Carol a mini tour of town, showing her some of the places that my family used to visit. By around 10:00 AM, we were ready to begin driving toward Taum Sauk Mountain. What I thought would be a fairly short trip turned into a lengthy endeavor; even though we were only ~120 miles away, the narrow roads and numerous small towns caused the drive to take 4 hours. Well, I should also mention that we stopped along the way for lunch and to visit Mammoth Springs. Regardless, it was just after 2 PM when we reached Iron County Road AA.

Based on topo map research, I thought that we would be able to hike to the Ozark Trail via a side trail that began at the end of CR AA. We would intersect the main trail close to the Devil's Tollgate and would then be able to continue the scenic walk past Mina Sauk Falls on our way up to the summit. After driving around for close to half-an-hour, it became evident that a house had been built where the trail formerly was, preventing our plan from taking shape. Disappointed, Carol and I drove to County Road CC, which is the normal access point to Taum Suak Mountain.

Upon reaching the summit parking area, we noticed signs for the nearby Mina Sauk Trail, which descended to the falls in 1.5 miles. We still wanted to get some hiking in, and since the state's highest waterfall was an easy objective, Carol and I decided to hike down and back up to "Earlize" this summit.As we didn't know how soon darkness would be approaching, we went ahead and took all of our summit pictures before starting the hike, in order to be sure that the pictures would be somewhat visible. We later found this to be a good decision, as we eventually drove away from Taum Sauk State Park under the light of a beautiful sunset.

The trail was listed as strenuous, however, it began as a wide grassy track through the woods. I should have know better, but, I made the comment that whomever had listed the trail as strenuous didn't know what they were talking about. Shortly thereafter, as the route began to really descend, it turned into a narrow, uneven track hewn from the side of the mountain. Carol had hurt her knee a day earlier, so the slick and loose rocks weren't helping matters much. We made quick progress since we were racing the sun, and after 20 minutes we were at the falls.

Mina Sauk Falls is usually just a series of cliffs during the drier months, however, it had snowed in the area a few weeks earlier, which created a beautiful spectacle. Water cascaded down the cliffs past several persistent ice sculptures which clung tightly despite the cascading snowmelt. Carol and I took several pictures, though the lighting didn't help any of them to turn out well. After spending 5 minutes or so looking around, we began hiking back up the trail to conclude our Taum Sauk hike. Carol's knee continue to bother her as we hiked back, but despite this would-be setback, she still made great time toward the summit.

As we looked up to the skies, I became a bit worried that some rain or snow might be in store for us, though we were prepared with water-proof jackets if necessary. Our concerns were relieved, however, as the clouds began to part a short time later. When we finally made it back up to the paved summit trail, the last rays of daylight were beginning to blanket the mountain. Happy to have not needed out headlamps, we tossed our gear in the back-end of the car, and began our retreat toward civilization.

During the descent, we passed an overlook, where Carol pointed out a beautifully scenic vista; the sun was finally peeking beneath the clouds, showing us a dramatic sunset. Always striving to put the best possible pictures up on the website, I pulled over for several great shots. We were anxious to get back home, however, so I jumped back into our rental, and sped off down the wonderfully twisted road.

The drive home went by surprisingly fast. After several days on the road, we wanted to actually stop for a true sit-down meal, so Memphis, TN seemed to be an opportune stopping point. Much to our frustration, however, there were no restaurant other than fast-food joints in the entire city! Well, at least the 7 exits that we explored. Somewhat frustrated, we retreated back to Arkansas for Subwayú at a truck stop. We drug our tired bodies into the apartment at 6:45 AM, and proceeded to sleep for the next 8 hours. I felt like a college student again!

Reflecting back on the trip, it was a wonderful excuse to go on a roadtrip with my beautiful wife. These were the first successful highpoints that I had not done solo, and I must say that its great to have company. Having a loved-one or close friend with you, really adds to the experience of being in the wilderness!