BRANSON PINK JEEP EXPEDITION!

When I saw this photo on the 2023 Official Branson Vacation Guide, I knew immediately it was something I wanted to do!  I first heard about pink jeep tours when I was in Las Vegas, and participated in the tour they offer to Hoover Dam.  (See "Hoover Dam Expedition", February 20, 2012, in the archives of this blog)

 The opportunity came to reality when I attended the Select Traveler Conference, at Chateau on the Lake,  in Branson, Missouri, on my birthday.  I can tell you from first-hand experience, that getting to go on a pink jeep adventure, makes for a fantastic birthday outing!

The Branson company brought all seven of their pink jeeps to the Chateau, to pick up our very large group.  Normally, guests go to the Pink Jeep office at 3310 West Highway 76, to start their tour. However, since you can see our hotel in the background in photo above, it is apparent, exceptions can be made!

I was so thankful to get to sit in the front seat--that is me pointing to the door sign.  I also took a photo of our driver, Barry, and my fellow passengers in the back.  The clear vinyl curtains were in use on the day of our tour, since it was still nippy outside.  In warmer weather, the vehicle will be more "open air", so guests can enjoy some Ozark Mountain "wind therapy" on their adventure. 

Did you know there are several legends as to the origin of the distinctive seven slots in a jeep grill?  Several of them  are listed on the official Jeep website, but the one I have heard for decades (I used to own a jeep) is that the Jeep was the first vehicle to drive on all seven continents before any other vehicle.  Remember---Jeep was originally a military vehicle. 

As we left the Chateau, I felt like a celebrity, because a videographer was filming this "parade" of pink jeeps, as we drove down the beautifully landscaped driveway of Chateau on the Lake resort.  Our first right turn took us out onto the land on the north side of Table Rock Dam, called Moonshine Beach, shown in photo below.  It is not immediately apparent that these vehicles start out,  as stock Jeep Wranglers. However, they are then  fully customized, over the course of nine weeks, to equip them to seat passengers on an elevated viewing platform behind the driver. 

Moonshine Beach is adjacent to a peninsula where you can see Table Rock Lake, on both sides, as seen in photo below.  The photo below also shows a row of colorful rubber ducks on the dashboard.    If you are a Jeep aficionado, you probably know the meaning of the ducks lined up on the dash board.  If not, let me explain:  During the depressing days of the COVID19 pandemic, a person who wanted to spread a bit of cheer, started leaving rubber duckies on Jeeps that appealed to them.

The phenomenon caught on via social media "share" posts, and now there is a whole line of merchandise to support these "random acts of kindness". The "Official Ducking Jeep Est2020" page on Facebook lists 71K members, and the Instagram page called "DuckDuckJeep" shows 48.2K followers!  Both of these social media sites list a variety of similar groups, if you look in their search box.

In the photo below, notice the "hand" logo with the two outstretched fingers.  Some say this is the official Jeep "wave" to give to other Jeep drivers.  Legend says it originated when Jeeps were first used for military transport, and the two fingers extended were a reference to a "V" for victory salute, for the U.S. military troops.  If you look closely, you will see the palm of the hand outline is a graphic of the iconic round headlights and seven slot openings on a Jeep front grill. 

Another stop the caravan made was to go to the scenic overlook on Hiway 265.  This is a popular place for both tourists and locals to visit, and its access is open to everyone.  (That's me you see in the mirror, and the long "river-like" body of water in the foreground is called Lake Taneycomo).  Table Rock Dam is visible in the distance, with Table Rock Lake behind the dam.

You can see the for miles from this location, including the beautiful Chateau on the Lake, sitting on a distant hilltop. (See photo below)

Next we accessed the private property on Baird Mountain, through a locked gate.  Several years ago, I took a "Ride the Ducks" tour that also drove up to the top of Baird Mountain, but since then, new "4-wheeling" roads have been developed for customers on the Pink Jeep tours. 

The new roads go through a hardwood forest, that will look completely different, once all these trees are leafed out.  An advantage of going when it is still winter, is you can see the "lay of the land" better than when you are driving through a "green tunnel", where only a few feet on either side of the road can be seen through the undergrowth. 

Our driver told us about a new road that has been built (shown in photo below), that he was not yet allowed to use, because he had not been "tested and certified" for it yet.  According to their website, the drivers are Smith System Driver Safety Trained.  The new road (see the white upward incline through the driver's side window) has a degree of incline steep enough to qualify as a "sky climb", and will be equally thrilling crawling downward!  Notice our driver has a microphone, so that the passengers in the back can hear the geographic and historical tidbits he shares during the tour. 

We drove to the top of Baird Mountain, where there is a flagpole.  Our driver told us their sunset tour includes a very respectful flag lowering ceremony each evening. 

There are great views from the overlook.  The very tall bluff in the foreground of photo below, has been made through the removal of tons of rock from this site, because this mountain was turned into the quarry, to supply the cement, needed to build Table Rock Dam.  The rock was transported via a one-mile-long conveyor belt, between the mountain and the dam site. 

Baird Mountain is said to be the highest summit in Taney County, at an elevation of 1, 234 feet. 

In a nod to "Old Man Baird", an early prospector who lived on the mountain that now bears his name, a replica Ozark log cabin has been built at the site.  One can go inside and see examples of pioneer furniture and tools that a prospector would have needed for a subsistence life, in this remote region.

Seeing a Pink Jeep Tour logo on this old-fashioned wagon, is a reminder to say that the company got its start in 1960,  by a land developer Out West, who would drive potential clients around the area, to show them property for sale.  Our guide told us that this land developer went on a vacation to Hawaii, and was so impressed by the eye-catching, bright pink color of the Royal Hawaiian Hotel in Waikiki (nicknamed the Pink Palace of the Pacific), he returned to the Sedona area, painted his vehicle bright pink, and called it "Don Pratt Adventures".   He had changed his focus from selling real estate, to selling off-road tours, because he realized people were calling him up to schedule appointments---not because they wanted to buy land, but because they wanted to go off-road riding with him!  Later, after the vehicles were all painted pink, the name was changed to Pink Jeep Tours.  The company is now owned by Herschend Family Entertainment (www.hfecorp.com).   Locals may remember that it was the Herschend family that originally developed Silver Dollar City, so it is not surprising that they added Branson to the Pink Jeep tour locations.  The other locations are Sedona, Grand Canyon, Las Vegas, and The Smokies in Tennessee.

I never want to pass up an opportunity to lift up my arms in gratitude to God, giving thanks for the opportunity to see this magnificent view.  By the way, "city folks" may not know the "barricade" I am standing in front of, is called a "split rail fence", and was a common way for the pioneers to set boundaries for their property and livestock, using the readily-available timber of the Ozarks.

Probably under normal circumstances, there are not this many people at the top of Baird Mountain at any one time, but this was a special event.    Check out the Pink Jeep  website at www.pinkadventuretours.com for details on tour options available in Branson, including customized tours, such as the one I was on. 

The photo below shows the "rock crawl" hills that have been built, on the base of the quarry, to give the Jeeps a four-wheel "work out". 

Although you can't tell it in this photo, the terrain on these hills is not smooth, rather made of up very big rocks that require the driver to proceed very slowly!

At one point on the rock crawl, the driver said I would need to tell him when to turn the steering wheel, because the at the angle he was, he could not see the trail.  That definitely made me sit up and pay attention!

The flat surface at the bottom of the quarry had served as a basin to collect a shallow pool of water from recent rains, so we had fun splashing around in that for a while!

Notice we were even "making waves" for the other Jeeps coming behind us!

There was still a piece of heavy equipment in the bottom on the quarry, that I am assuming was used to make the recently-built "short cut" incline to the top.

 

 

Another stop we made was to the base of the Table Rock Dam, to see the somewhat rare sight of all the flood gates being open, to bring down the lake level.  This is an illustration of why this dam, and others along the White River, were originally built---FLOOD CONTROL!  Table Rock Dam was completed in 1958, at a cost of $65 million.  It was made possible under the Flood Control Act of 1938.  The long delay between Congressional approval and completion, was because of The Great Depression economic struggles, and World War II.  The Flood Control Act was a response to the MISERY caused by The Great Flood of 1927, plus subsequent floods in the 30's and 40's.  I am using that key word "MISERY" to serve as an aid to help me learn one of my First Place 4 Health (www.FirstPlace4Health.com) memory verses that says, "And when they heard that the Lord was concerned about them and had seen their MISERY, they bowed down and worshiped."  Exodus 4:31  Considering the Corps of Engineers estimates that at least 960 million dollars of flood losses have been avoided,  because of the series of dams and lakes in the White River basin, we can be thankful for their development. 

If you are ready to start your own adventure in this beautiful part of the Ozarks, go to www.ExploreBranson.com to check out the hundreds of attractions this area has to offer.  You may be sure that my first outing with the Branson Pink Jeep Tours, gave me "MILES OF SMILES"!

BRANSON "PHOTO SAFARI" EXPEDITION!

If the only image that comes to your mind, when you hear the word "safari" is an exotic wild creature like the one shown in this photo (which can be seen at "Wild Branson"), then hopefully these photos will get you to think "outside the box" when you hear the word "safari".

My Webster's dictionary had a surprisingly simple definition of "safari":  The tome simply said it was "a  hunting trip".   Although one has to pay an admission fee to get a photo of the giant reptile that introduces this article, there is no admission fee to take a photo of the giant reptile painted on the outside of their building, providing a fantastic backdrop for a group seated at the adjacent palm tree-shaded picnic tables. 

The safari I am talking about in this blog eschews hunting live animals.  Rather, it involves motoring all around Branson to do a "PHOTO Safari"!  This safari will not require attraction admission fees, and could be done with your group, in the form of a scavenger hunt, or a timed event between two teams.  You can add or subtract photo opportunities to these suggestions, but for the purposes of this blog, all the photo opportunities had to be done at locations that do not require an admission fee, and are open to the public. As an example, the gigantic octopus at the entrance to the Branson aquarium can be photographed as much and as often as you want---no admission fee required!

I was able to take many of these photos when I was attending a Branson Tourism Promotional Trip, sponsored by Myer Hotels (www.Myerhospitality.com).  The Myer family operates several wonderful hotels, which I was able to visit.  However, the actual Myer Hotel where our group stayed, was the Comfort Inn, adjacent to the Thousand Hills golf course/condominiums.  I screen shot this photo of the property that was on their website:

Since the property has the phrase "Thousand Hills" in its name, I am using the Bible verse that references a "thousand hills", as the memory verse for this blog post. 
The Bible verse explains how all the cattle on a thousand hills belong to the LORD.  And, after you have been in Branson for a while, you will come to understand that it does indeed, have a THOUSAND hills!  Likewise,  the Myer family wants their hotel to honor the LORD, and I was thankful that they lived out this goal by having a Gideon Bible in the drawer of the bedside table in my room.  (The exact Scripture reference is Psalm 50:9-10 that says, "I have no need of a bull from your stall or of goats from your pens, for every animal of the forest is mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills.")

I am not putting the address of the photo "props" used in this blog on purpose, so that folks will get out and explore all the thousand hills for themselves!  Also, if one really does want to conduct a "competitive" team event for a photo safari, having all these locations listed together in a single link to my blog would take away from the fun of discovering them on your own!

Once you have arrived at the easy to find Branson Ferris Wheel, you only have to look across Highway 76 to find a plethora of photo props!   There is a pedestrian crosswalk, that leads across the street to the (cracked facade) of the Ripley's Believe it or not Museum.

There are so many delicious restaurant choices in Branson, that one may get a glimpse of what they will look like if they do not use a bit of self discipline, by putting their head in the photo prop of a VERY rotund, overall-wearing tourist, that is in front of the Ripley's museum.

Everyone knows that the superhero that is big and green and bulging with muscles, LOVES to have his picture taken with admirers, so snap away!

If your photo safari group is made up of retired folks, there is no better photo illustration of the word "re-tire", than this gigantic woolly mammoth, that is made from tired-out tires, that have been "re-tired", to cover the form of an extinct mammal!

Any group members of your safari who went around their neighborhood as kids collecting Roosevelt dimes, to fill up their "March of Dimes" card for polio research, can appreciate a photo op that happens to be an automobile, COMPLETELY COVERED IN DIMES!!  (One reason dimes were chosen as their fund-raising symbol, is because President Franklin D. Roosevelt was afflicted with polio, which caused paralysis of his legs)

The only clue I will give about locating this postcard-themed wall mural, is that it is in the downtown area!  (Notice that in four of the artsy letters that spell "Branson", you can see a hill.  That means, you only have 996 more, and you will have seen ALL of Branson's 1000 hills!)

Moving father downtown, above Lake Taneycomo, you can see the original "Rainbow Bridge", that crosses Lake Taneycomo.  A newer modern bridge sits beside it:

While you are downtown at Lake Taneycomo, you may want to see who in your group is able to catch the best photo of the fountain at Branson Landing spurting out water ( and sometimes flames!)

Anyone in the group who is looking for their "Knight in Shining Armour" can end their search at one of Branson's many lodging options:

And, did you know Branson has  WINDMILL??!!

In recognition of the "Bible Belt" nickname for this area, did you know that at the Shrine of the Holy Spirit, there is a stone replica of the Ten Commandments, that Moses brought down from one of those "original" thousand hills, aka, "Mt. Sinai"!!

 

On a more secular note, there are numerous interesting automotive props that can be seen outside the car museum, located at the Dick Clark Theater. 

As a word of caution, if you are doing this Photo Safari as a Scavenger Hunt or competition, participants will need more than just a photo of the item listed on the Scavenger Hunt items to locate.  They will need photo selfies of the person or team WITH the item in question.  When this event was done a while back, the organizer did not specify that the photo had to include the person doing the activity.  Hence, some Internet savvy participants just googled the item, then took a screen shot of the item, then turned in their results, without ever venturing out of the "starting gate"!  Hence, the need to specify "current selfie photos" of items listed!

Movie fans will recognize a vehicle that looks like the one used in The Blues Brothers movie.

This yellow school bus gives new meaning to the phrase "Short bus ride"!

 

Wouldn't the photo below be a great photo prop for a group picture of dentists??!!

If you are conducting a Photo Safari around Halloween, what better location for a photo than the Ghost Busters vehicle??!!

If you are looking for a different kind of "horse power", than what you find under the hood of an automobile, check out the bronze horses, in front of one of Branson's many theaters:

If your trip is all girls---sometimes called a "Chick Trip", what better place for a group photo, than in front of this giant chicken found along Highway 76!

If your Branson visit includes "Man's Best Friend", you may want to check out this very photogenic weiner dog tunnel in one of Branson's "Bark Parks":

Even before the famous movie by the same name, The Titanic was remembered as a sad and tragic maritime disaster.  As it happened, one of the ladies of the group that did a photo safari with me last March, had a family connection to one of the passengers who perished when the Titanic sank.  We remembered her descendant with a brief memorial service at the bow of the Titanic replica that sits at the front entry of the Titanic Museum. 

 

Like many other cities, Branson has an arch that provides the perfect location for a group photo  The arch denotes Branson as the "Center Pointe of Entertainment".

No photo safari would be complete, without a photo of the GIGANTIC fingers, holding a GIGANTIC camera!

When you are traveling around Branson, on The Red Route, The Blue Route, The Green Route, or The Black Route, you will come to MANY forks in the road.  However, only ONE of those forks is sticking into a GIGANTIC meatball!

To make the point that a Branson photo safari can be done year round, I am including many photos I took when a group I was with, did a rainy day photo safari.  We knew in advance that rain was a likelihood, so colorful umbrellas were encouraged.  However, if this activity were being done as a promotional event for a particular corporation or location, matching umbrellas with the appropriate logo, could be used for all the shots.  Here is an example of a "Nature Conservancy" logo umbrella:

The Branson area is a photographer's delight, and anyone reading this blog will probably have some additional locations that would like to add to their photo safari.  Most of the photos above were taken in the main area of Branson, but because I wanted to end this blog with a DAM GOOD PHOTO, the last photo shows our group when we ventured a few miles south of Branson, to the bottom of Table Rock Dam.  Therefore, I can say this Photo Safari Expedition gave me "MILES OF DAM SMILES"!!  Tricia