They call it the “Fun Lake.” With 54,000 acres of water, 1,150 miles of shoreline and fishing and boating opportunities from Gravois Mills to Camdenton, it’s hard to argue that the Lake of the Ozarks deserves any lesser designation.
Still, in this summer of our discontent, with $4 gas, many of us are looking for something more to draw us away from home. As in cheap. Or, even better, free.
In that spirit, we offer a list of 10 free or inexpensive diversions for your trip to the lake this summer.
1. Hit the strip
The Bagnell Dam Strip, a collection of souvenir shops, candy stores, arcades and other tourist-minded businesses along Bagnell Dam Boulevard in Lake Ozark, has been attracting visitors for more than 75 years.
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“We’re on the third or fourth generation of people who are coming back to the strip,” said Mike Page, president of the Bagnell Dam Strip Association. “That’s something that appeals to people, the sameness, the tradition.”
In many ways the strip is a throwback to the times of those earlier generations. One of Page’s businesses, a store called Dogpatch, showcases an old-fashioned player piano, a mechanical fortune teller and an elephant skull, along with a hodgepodge of T-shirts, coffee mugs and other souvenirs.
Other popular businesses include Miss Angie’s 1891 Haunted Hotel, bumper boats at Two-Bit Town and the Rebel Arcade, where skeeball still costs a dime.
Find the Bagnell Dam Strip along Business U.S. Highway 54 in Lake Ozark. For a list of stores, restaurants and more, go to www.lakelinks.com/shop
ping/bagnell(underscore)dam(underscore)strip.
2. Learn some history
By the time Bagnell Dam was completed and the Lake of the Ozarks began filling with water in 1931, Willmore Lodge was already there.
The picturesque log building, on a bluff overlooking redbuds, dogwoods and, of course, the water, was completed in 1930 by Union Electric (now AmerenUE), the utility company that built the lake. The 6,500-square-foot lodge was built in Oregon, then disassembled and brought by train to Missouri, where it was rebuilt. Originally it was an administrative and entertainment facility for Union Electric.
These days the lodge, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is filled with displays about Bagnell Dam, historic towns lost to the lake and the area’s geology and geography.
Willmore Lodge is at 1 Willmore Lane, Lake Ozark, off Business U.S. 54 just north of the dam. Admission is free. Open 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. weekdays, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. weekends. 800-451-4117 or www.willmorelodge.com.
3. Shop, shop, shop
With all that water, you might think boating or fishing or swimming was the No. 1 activity for lake visitors. You’d be wrong. It’s shopping.
In Osage Beach, U.S. 54 is lined with places to give your credit card a workout. But no place draws a crowd like the Osage Beach Premium Outlets, a collection of 110 stores, most with familiar names.
Besides discount shopping, the outlet center should be thought of as an entertainment destination, said assistant general manager Candy Wilson.
“We’re always trying to create some kind of event that is family-friendly and encourages people to have fun,” she said.
Osage Beach Premium Outlets is at 4540 U.S. 54 in Osage Beach. 573-348-2065 or www.premiumoutlets.com.
4. Take a hike
Don’t forget, shoppers, the lake’s natural beauty is one of its biggest assets. No place shows it off better than the 17,441-acre Lake of the Ozarks State Park.
Twelve trails practically beg hikers and backpackers to get out and explore the forests, filled with oak, hickory and dogwood trees. Some of the trails overlook the lake.
Bicycle riders can enjoy the trails, too, and guided horseback rides are offered. Camping is available.
Lake of the Ozarks State Park is accessible from various points around the lake. 573-348-2694 or www.mostate
parks.com/lakeozark.htm.
5. Back in time
The rich history of the Ozarks, before and after the lake, is reflected in the Camden County Museum at the former Linn Creek School.
“Old Linn Creek was the county seat before the dam was built,” said volunteer Joe Clark, who, with his wife, Dianne, shows visitors around. The old town, now under water, was about four miles north of the current town of about 280.
Each room of the museum carries a different theme. In one, pictures of onetime Linn Creek students line the wall next to rows of desks. In another area, focusing on medicine, sit a mortician’s table, an optometrist’s chair and doctor’s instruments.
The Camden County Museum is on State Road V in Linn Creek, north of U.S. 54. Open 10 a.m.-4 p.m. weekdays March-November, by appointment in winter. Admission is by donation. 573-346-7191 or www.camdencountymuseum.com.
6. Gone fishin’
From a fisherman’s perspective, the Lake of the Ozarks generally means crappies, bass and catfish. So why is Dennis Van Landuyt surrounded by thousands of rainbow trout?
He’s a trout farmer. Van Landuyt and his wife, Merritt Van Landuyt, own Troutdale Farm at Gravois Mills.
“This is a trout farm primarily from eggs to harvest,” he said. “If you like to trout fish, you definitely don’t want to buy a trout farm because there is no time to go fishing.”
By the time they’re about 14 months old and 11/4 pounds or so, most of Van Landuyt’s fish are sold to area restaurants. But the farm’s ponds also attract people who want to fish or learn to fly-fish for trout.
“We get a lot of families,” he said. “A lot of times we get three generations. They can catch as much as they can afford.” Rates start at $10 per fisherman and include the first 2 pounds of fish. Family rates are available.
Troutdale Farm is in Gravois Mills. From the south, turn left at Lake Road 5-12 (Troutdale Road), and follow the road to the end. 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Saturday. 573-372-1900 or www.trout
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dalefarm.com.
7. Mother’s day
When you’re looking for a few minutes of quiet contemplation, the Mothers Shrine in Laurie may be the answer.
Behind St. Patrick’s Catholic Church, the shrine (officially the National Shrine of Mary, Mother of the Church) focuses on a revolving, 14-foot stainless steel sculpture of the Virgin Mary.
She is surrounded by lush grounds, fountains, reflecting pools and ponds. An amphitheater provides space for masses, weddings and other services.
St. Patrick’s Church is on Missouri Highway 5, Laurie. 573-374-6279 or www.mothers
shrine.org.
8. The castle
On the south side of the lake near Camdenton, Ha Ha Tonka State Park boasts 15 miles of hiking trails, savanna landscapes, a natural bridge, sinkholes and caves.
Besides its unusual name, the 3,710-acre Ha Ha Tonka is perhaps best known for its castle, or the ruins of one. A Kansas City businessman, Robert McClure Snyder, started building his dream home on a 250-foot bluff in 1905, but he died the next year. It took years to finish Snyder’s palatial home, and his family never lived there. In 1942 it burned.
Ha Ha Tonka State Park is on State Road D about five miles west of Camdenton. 573-346-2986 or www.mostate
parks.com/hahatonka.htm.
9. Go underground
Missouri is cave country. The Show-Me State boasts more than 5,600 caves.
At the Lake of the Ozarks, would-be spelunkers have their choice of three caves to tour: Ozark Caverns at Lake of the Ozarks State Park, Bridal Cave north of Camdenton and Jacob’s Cave between Versailles and Gravois Mills.
Ozark Caverns offers a traditional hour tour, a more technical tour for adults and a children’s tour. Admission is $6 for adults 20 and older, $5 for youths 13-19, $4 for children 6-12 and free for younger children.
Ozark Caverns is at 823 Ozark Caverns Road, Linn Creek, about nine miles northeast of Camdenton. Call 573-346-2500 or see www.mostateparks.com/lakeozark/cave.htm.
Bridal Cave is best known for the more than 2,000 weddings that have taken place there, dating to the legend of an American Indian wedding in the 19th Century. Guided tours last about an hour.
Tickets cost $15 for 13 and older, $7 for children age 5-12. Open at 9 a.m. daily; closing times vary.
Bridal Cave is on Lake Road 5-88 off Missouri 5, north of Camdenton. 573-346-2676 or www.bridalcave.com.
Jacob’s Cave offers hour tours. Open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily through Labor Day, 4 p.m. the rest of the year. Tickets cost $12 for adults, $6 for children age 5-12, free for children 4 and younger.
Jacob’s Cave is on State Road TT off Missouri 5, between Gravois Mills and Versailles. 573-378-4374 or www.jacobscave.com.
10. All wet
It’s all about the water. If you’re not skiing or fishing, you need to find a beach. Many lake resorts have private swimming areas, but there also are two free public beaches, both at Lake of the Ozarks State Park.
Public Beach No. 1 is at the end of Missouri Highway 134, which can be reached from Missouri Highway 42 east of Osage Beach. Public Beach No. 2 is about 11/2 miles south of the Grand Glaize Bridge on U.S. 54, Osage Beach. 573-348-2694 or www.mostateparks.com/lakeozark.htm.