I grew up near Elephant Rock State Park, my favorite place in the world, which is only 13 miles away from Johnson’s Shut-Ins State Park, my second favorite place. I have so many fun memories of those two places, as a kid and with my kids.
This is news because the shut-ins park was destroyed back in December when the dam at the Taum Sauk reservoir collapsed, sending 1.3 billion gallons of water gushing through, destroying everything in its path. That the ranger and his family survived is amazing to me. Clean up efforts have been ongoing, removing piles of trees and up to six feet of silt, nearly 15,000 truck loads of debris.
There won’t be camping there this year, but if you live close enough to make it a day trip, you should go. See the E
