TRAIL OF TEARS FLOOD REPAIRS CONTINUE

Trail of Tears State Park officials said it probably will be next year before the park's flood-damaged electric campsite and day-use picnic area along the Mississippi River can be repaired and reopened.

The area was extensively damaged by this year's prolonged flood.

"In all probability, the electric campsite and the day-use picnic area along the river will not be open until late spring or early summer," said Assistant Park Superintendent Greg Henson.

"We still don't know the extent of damage to the sewage lagoon that serves the electric campsite area," he said. "There's a lot of debris on the berm, and we don't know how much sand and silt will have to be removed from the lagoon to get it back in operation."

Henson said the access road to the day-use picnic area, electric campsites and riverfront boat ramp was also damaged by the floodwater and must be repaired before it can be reopened.

Said Henson: "We're going to try to reopen the access road as far as the parking lot and boat ramp in time for the fall waterfowl season, but that depends on the weather and the river. What we need right now is a lot of dry weather and for the river to stay down."

Henson said a heavy equipment crew from Jefferson City is scheduled to be at the park this fall to repair damage to the road, replace damaged culverts, and remove some 4-6 inches of silt from the parking lot and boat ramp.

Henson said damage to the electric campsite area was limited to about two or three of the lower campsites nearest the river. However, the day-use picnic area was heavily damaged by silt and water erosion. At least 4-5 feet of water covered the access road and picnic area at the height of the flooding.

"We'll have to do a lot of landscaping and reseeding to get the picnic area back in shape," said Henson. "We were within a couple of days of starting work down there in September when the river came up for the last time. We had the straw and grass seed all ready to put down. It's very fortunate that we didn't get started; we would have lost everything."

Henson said that at Castlewood State Park in west St. Louis County landscaping and reseeding of a flooded area was nearly complete when the rising Meramec River wiped everything out.

"It's too late now to try to do the landscaping and reseed the picnic area. The seed will not germinate before cold weather. When we start landscaping next spring, we'll use the silt and dirt on the boat ramp for fill in other places. We have plenty of dirt; it's just in the wrong place," he said.

Henson said floodwater also damaged the septic systems at the electric campsite showerhouse and at the nearby assistant park superintendent's residences. "Both of these systems will have to be cleaned and repaired before they can be used again," he said.

Despite damage in the lower area of park along the river, Henson emphasized the rest of the park is still open and will remain open throughout the winter.

"The non-electric camping area near Lake Boutin and the day-use picnic area around Lake Boutin are open. With the cooler weather and the turning leaves, now is a great time to camp out in the park or come out for a drive or a walk," he said.