Branson, Missouri

Saturday, April 15, 2017 through Monday April 17, 2017

We arrived on Friday and "the plan" was to stay three nights and then we added a fourth because of the weather. We, okay Tom, would rather not be driving in the rain. According to one of the websites I visited Branson is rated 5th as far as family vacation destinations and we can see why. There is a lot to see and do here to keep everyone entertained. There are amusement park activities, restaurants, live shows, wineries, distilleries, an Imax theater, shopping (lots and lots of shopping), you can take a ride in the ducks,  museums, zip rides and this is just a brief description of the "stuff" to do. I am sure most people come and have a really nice vacation but this is not necessarily our type of place. I felt like I was in sensory overload. This is the second time we have been here, the last time was about 38 years ago, and there was a lot then now there is just more. I will say it is all kept up and you can see ongoing improvements in the area. I also know when our kids were younger they would have loved coming here and for a young family this would be a fun destination. For us, we were looking for a place to land for Easter weekend and this was not a bad choice and we spent a quiet day here in the campgrounds taking the opportunity to talk with family and relax. Plus, we listened to the rain and played cards.

(We were curious about Table Rock so this is a bit of the information, below, I found on the Internet.)
Table Rock Lake is an artificial lake or reservoir in The Ozarks of southwestern Missouri and northwestern Arkansas. The lake is impounded by Table Rock Dam constructed in 1954-1958 on the White River by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Table Rock got its name, from an actual rock formation that, today, is the scenic overlook on Highway 165.
It is a large, flat rock that was to be the original dam site. The Army Corps of Engineers, after drilling and taking core samples, learned the ground below Table Rock was too unstable for a dam of that size. There are caves and sinkholes in the immediate area.”
The dam site was moved a mile and a half upstream to its present location. The lake filled to capacity in 1961 — almost a year ahead of schedule.

September 3, 1941: Construction of Table Rock Dam authorized by Congress.
October 10, 1954: Ground-breaking ceremony for Table Rock Dam.
October 1954: Contract for construction awarded to Morrison-Knudsen and the Utah Construction Company.
May 24, 1955: Ceremony for pouring the first bucket of concrete.
August 1958: Table Rock Dam completed. Powerhouse still under construction.
June 14, 1959: Table Rock Dam dedicated.

We did take a ride into Branson on Saturday.

Driving over Table Rock Dam

Riding over to Branson.

Coming down the hill into the Branson Area.

The Curling Vine Winery.
We did stop here and do a wine tasting and purchase a
couple bottles of wine...:) 

The wax museum.
There is a whole long street of attractions and when I looked
this was the only picture I took. 

We stopped for a late lunch at Danna's Bar-b-que and Burger Shop, we had one of the pork sandwiches and it was really quite good. We checked out Dicks 5 & 10, reminiscent of the downtown dime store,  and picked up a couple of items.

Heading back we can see the sun setting off to our right.

Driving over the auxiliary spillway.

The dam in the distance as the sun is setting.

We stopped at the turnout to watch the sun set over Table Rock Lake.

Our site, number 25.

It rained most of Sunday and into Monday. When the rain did let up on Monday we took a second ride over towards Branson to check out the Branson Craft Mall and leave some of our dollars behind.

Table Rock Dam’s spillway capacity was evaluated as a result of a dam safety program in the 1990’s. Using improved weather data and more modern technology and safety requirements, engineers determined that the lake would rise ten feet higher during the worst-case flood than previously calculated. An event of this magnitude would overtop the earthen embankment and destroy Table Rock Dam with catastrophic losses in downstream areas including Branson. To prevent the potential loss of life and property damages, congress approved and authorized construction of the Dam Safety Project. After considering several options and gathering considerable public input, an auxiliary spillway was determined to be the best solution. The auxiliary spillway was completed in 2005 at a cost of approximately $65,000,000. (Information from the Internet)

Top right the auxiliary spillway.

Going down that same hill into Branson.

Driving back to the RV park we took US 65 and the sun was trying to make an appearance between the clouds.

Looking across over the fence as the sun light is leaving us. 

Then a little gift of pink as it slips behind the horizon.

So ends our time here. This morning as I write this Tom is making coffee, yes he makes the coffee and I feel very spoiled,  and the sky is very overcast and we are getting ready to leave. The prediction is for only a 7% chance of rain and we are hoping it doesn't happen. We had considered staying another day but the campgrounds is now filled and this site is reserved for today. So north we head with fingers crossed the rain stays up in the clouds.

This is one of my favorite quotes.

Hope you have a perfect day...that is what we are planning.

If you have time to leave a comment we would love hearing from you.