Lower Current

Our first day of floating and exploring the Current River was on the lower section of the river. While quite pretty, this section is not as scenic as the upper Current. In addition, the day we went was, we later learned, the most crowded the river had been all summer. Our outfitter told us a few days later that they had ferried 3,000 people to put-ins along the river that day. Trying to negotiate between the masses of tubers and canoe/kayak enthusiasts was sometimes problematic. Add to this the fact that boats with motors up to 40hp are allowed on the river, and there is the recipe for some unpleasantness.

However, the water was cool and clear and we still had a great time as we negotiated our way downriver. One nice thing about the Current is that it's spring-fed, so the level of the river stays fairly constant when compared to other such tributaries. Thus, it's almost always navigable along its entire length. If you're not paying attention, you might hit a shoal or barely concealed gravel bar that requires you to get out to find deeper water, but by and large you can float unimpeded the entire way.

Loading up and heading out was something of a madhouse. Believe me...this was only a small portion of the crowd that we encountered along the way. Fortunately, the numbers dwindled the farther we went, since there were various pickup spots along the way, and some people traveled shorter distances than we did.

There is a stretch of the Current that is in private hands and is not officially part of the National Park. On this section there are houses, commercial camps, and other such things. This fellow was using his lot to park a hot dog stand. He was doing quite the business.

Again, this was on a stretch of privately-owned riverbank. This absolutely cool house was perched on the precipice of a cliff face with staircase down to a private dock (down on the lower right). I do believe that the water here was deep enough to allow for jumping from the deck into the river.

Not long before our takeout at Big Spring Campground. This is the remains of an old railroad trestle that once crossed the Current River. Today it's a good landmark to let you know that the canoe ramp is nearby.

Heading back to our travel trailer in the evening after our canoe trip, the deer were grazing in the grass beside the campground.

Dr. Diehl's Folly

One very interesting spot that we hit was while we were on our favorite part of the Current River (upper section). We both wanted to see the ruins of the old Welch Hospital, a sanitarium built for TB sufferers. The hospital ended up being a financial disaster for its owner and it closed for good in 1945, 32 years after its construction.

When we got to the put-in spot we had a number of canoes to choose from. As we'd had a good experience with an aluminum canoe on our first float on the Current, we picked one of those. It turned out to be a moderately bad choice. After we'd left the launch area and were about a half-mile down the river I noticed that the canoe was taking on water. I quickly saw that the bottom had a very small puncture that was allowing water to come in. We had to stop a couple of times on the float to dump the water out. The leak wasn't severe, but it was a minor pain to have to clear out the water.

We stopped at this gravel bar to have lunch, go swimming, and to empty the water we had taken on. This was a really nice place to stop. We watched the fish, took a fair amount of time to swim in the clear water, and generally just took it easy and soaked up some sun.

After a couple of hours we came to Welch Spring, which produces over 105 million gallons of water a day, making it a first magnitude spring. There's an extensive cave system just inside the spring opening, although it's closed to anyone who doesn't have a research permit to explore it.

Built right on the shore of the spring run is the old Welch Hospital. I'm always amused at the impermanence of Mankind's buildings. There were several cabins adjacent to the hospital and I couldn't find any trace of them at all. Anything that was wood that was associated with the old sanitarium is long since gone. All that remains are the stone walls and the poured concrete.

Dr. Diehl went to a lot of expense and trouble to construct this place. The walls still seem to be in relatively good shape, although it's only a matter of a few more decades before the trees start to topple them over.

This plaque has a representation of what the hospital looked like when it was still intact.

I climbed up on a rocky bluff to take this photo of the building. You can just see Carole on the far right behind a small tree.

This was the staircase leading up to what was once the main door. You wonder about the patients who made the long journey to this place to seek treatment for their tuberculosis. I tried to imagine them walking up these stairs to what they hoped would be relief from suffering.

There is the constant sound of rushing water as the spring flow makes its brief way downslope to the Current River. Beyond the spring run, the Current River becomes even more clear than above, and noticeably colder.

When we paddled past this spot, this was our last view of Welch Spring as we moved on down the Current River.

Off!

Well, this will likely be the last post I make for at least two weeks or so. Unless I luck upon a a spot with free WiFi. We'll see.

For now, though, we're off to go canoeing the Ozark National Scenic Riverways! See you guys!

Later dudes!