The point of no return

Pop quiz: The following photo was taken in which county?

(A) Madison County, MO
(B) Ste. Genevieve County, MO
(C) Union County, IL
(D) Scott County, MO

Tricky, huh? Here's another photo showing the sandstone rocks along this creek:

It looks like somewhere in the Shawnee National Forest of Southern Illinois.

But, nope, this is actually in Scott County at Tywappity Community Lake. It's a small side creek feeding into the lake. A trickle of water flows through a jumble of sandstone rocks. Sure, this isn't quite as spectacular as an Ozark shut-ins, but it's still photogenic -- and closer to Cape.

Tywappity Lake was created in the 1950s as a lake for fishing, but the conservation area offers plenty of surprises.

A moderately difficult 2.5-mile trail circles the lake, providing access to all of the nooks, crannies, inlets, and tributaries surrounding the 37-acre lake.

At times, the trail is right next to the water. Sometimes it strays into the woods away from the lake. Elsewhere it meanders around the various tributaries of the lake, crossing the little creeks on wooden bridges.

After crossing a bridge at the far northern edge of the lake, an unmarked side trail branches away from the lake. This rutted trail connects to the adjacent Tywappity Towersite Conservation Area, eventually climbing to the top of a ridge where a fire tower once stood. Just before reaching private property at the crest of the ridge, the trail offers views (in winter) of the flat bottomlands west of Chaffee and Rockview.

I also caught a glimpse of the Emerson Bridge, almost ten miles away to the northeast, but the trees make it difficult to see much without trespassing.

Back at the lake, the main trail continues to offer views of the water from almost every angle.

At one overlook, I spotted a turtle enjoying the sunshine.

Following the trail clockwise, the sandstone creek can be found roughly three-quarters of the way around. It's on the left just before crossing two wooden bridges. If you see tree graffiti that says "JENNIFER WILL YOU MARRY ME", you've missed it.

The trail eventually crosses the dam and returns to the parking lot.

A sign at the trailhead says that the loop can be completed in 1 hour and 15 minutes "at a leisurely pace", which seems about right.

The sign doesn't explain the origin of the peculiar name. Tywappity, sometimes spelled Zewapeta, is the original name for the town of Commerce, as well as a general name for the Mississippi River bottomlands below Commerce.

It's possible that the name shares the same origin as "Tyewhoppety" in Todd County, Kentucky, said to be based on a Shawnee word for "point of no return." This isn't to say that the place is dangerous, but that it marks the half-way point from which it wouldn't make sense to turn back home.

Or something like that. The trouble with Indian placenames is that the first Europeans had a tendency to completely butcher the names, making it hard to figure out the original meaning -- if any.

Driving directions

[Google map] [Conservation Atlas map and info]

From Cape Girardeau, take I-55 south to the Scott City exit. Turn right on Route M and drive to Chaffee. At the main intersection in Chaffee, turn left on Route A, cross the railroad tracks, and make two zigzag turns to stay on Route A. Just outside of town, turn left on Route RA. This road ends at the Typwappity Lake parking area.