My
friend Jaimee and I left the Sheraton Westport Plaza Chalet in the suburbs of St.
Louis and headed to Jefferson City, Missouri. We were to meet Deb Hendricks of
the Lake of the Ozarks tourism board there to get our itinerary for our adventure
on Fun Lake, as they accurately call the area.
From
Jefferson City it was only a short hour’s ride to the Country Club Hotel and Spa. We were surprised how large the place was, complete with an indoor pool
and banquet facilities. It reminded me a bit of the Catskill Mountain resorts I
stayed at growing up.
Our
rooms were not ready, but that was fine because we were more than ready for
lunch. Lance Utley, the hotel’s director of marketing, joined us at the
Rafferty Restaurant on the property for a wonderful chicken salad with grapes
and pecans.
During
lunch, Lance gave us some basic information about the area he knew well. It was
obvious that he was passionate about Lake of the Ozarks and we were soon to see
why.
We
hopped in the car for a quick trip to the Tan-Tar-A Resort. It was here that we
were to meet the boat for the Tropic Island Cruise.
It
was a bit windy so we stayed inside most of the time. On the 90 minute ride we
learned a lot about the lake.
It
all started with an idea in 1912, but the actual dam off the Osage River didn’t
begin until investigation and funding was received in 1929. It was considered
the largest construction project in the country at that time so there was no
problem getting people to work on it.
In
February of 1931, the water began to fill the lake. It would be finished with a
shoreline of over 1,300 miles, but the Truman Dam (built in the 1970s) would
lessen that amount to 1,100 miles, an amount still more than the coastline of
California.
It was
fascinating to see the variety of houses, restaurants, and boats along the
shore of this massive lake. Since the lake does not freeze, many people don’t
even realize that Lake of the Ozarks is a year round destination. I knew this
was the first, but not the last, time I would visit.
We were
back at the hotellate afternoon. We each had a junior suite which was quite
spacious and included a kitchenette.
Dinner
was quite an adventure as we took a Water Taxi.
Unfortunately, I can’t relay my
experience at The Duck, a fine dining experience accessible by boat, at this
time. Look for my story in the summer issue of Midwest Living Magazine.
I
do have a lot more to say about Lake of the Ozarks, where we still had another
day to eat, drink, spa and explore after a good night’s sleep.
2 comments:
This is really nice info.Thanks for such a wonderful post.
Your Place to Discover the Worlds Wines
Thanks! Glad you liked it.
Marcia
Post a Comment