Six Days in Branson, Missouri: Day Three, The Fish Hatchery and the College of the Ozarks!

This is the fourth post of a new travel series to Branson, Missouri.  To start at the beginning, go HERE!

Shepherd of the Hills Fish Hatchery

After spending the morning at the  Top of the Rock, we headed over to the Shepherd of the Hills Fish Hatchery.  Now, neither my husband nor I are fishermen, but everyone we spoke to when they heard we were going to Branson said "You have to go to the Fish Hatchery".  So since we had the time, and it was FREE, we decided to check it out and see what all the fuss was about.

You begin your experience at the Fish Hatchery by first going inside and watching a movie and then an employee gives a short talk and answers questions. 

There are a few displays of snakes, spiders, and fish and their habitats inside the building.

They have two very special animals in the Fish Hatchery:  one is a two headed snake and the other is a turtle whose shell is indented in the middle from getting stuck inside a plastic soda ring.  The two headed snake can't survive on his own so it lives in the hatchery, the turtle is just an example of yet another reason why we should not pollute.

I will spare you all the details of what a fish hatchery is because if you're really interested you can just enlarge the photos below where it explains the entire process.  In a nutshell, it is a place where they make and produce fish and then release them in the water for the fishermen to catch.  I did ask the employee why they go through all this trouble instead of just letting the fish reproduce naturally.   He said when they created the Table Rock Lake by building the dam, it warmed the waters and trout couldn't reproduce or survive as well.

When you are done educating yourself about the Fish Hatchery you are then welcome to go outside and see and feed the fish.  They have them in all stages of development from tiny little sardine sized to this big one pictured below.

Even though the hatchery is screened in, fishing birds come in and try to eat them!  Somehow they manage to get inside.

The Shepherd of the Hills Fish Hatchery is the largest hatchery in Missouri.  The Hatchery produces between 350,000 and 400,000 trout a year, and 80% go into Lake Taneycomo.

I was relieved to find out that the people who fish are the ones who primarily pay for this operation and not just the taxpayer.  

So was visiting the fish hatchery worth all the hype?  To us, "no", but as I said earlier, we are not fishermen.  A lot of sports enthusiasts go to the hatchery and are just fascinated with it.  But it didn't cost us anything, and we learned something new, so I have no complaints.  I also think if you have small children they might really enjoy it feeding the fish.

Scenic Overlook

After visiting the Fish Hatchery, we hit the road again to drive over to the College of the Ozarks.  On the way there, we saw this amazing scenic overlook:

College of the Ozarks

Our main reason for going to the College of the Ozarks was to eat dinner at their restaurant.  We read on TripAdvisor that it was the #1 restaurant in Branson.  We had no idea there was so much else to see and do on the campus.  Although you do have to check in with a gate guard when you arrive, you are free to explore the entire campus.

I had never heard of the College of the Ozarks before this trip, but I sure wish I did!  This is such an amazing place!  It is a Christian college for both sexes with over 30 different majors in the Bachleors of Arts and Sciences.  And here is the best part:  NO STUDENT IS CHARGED TUITION and EVERY STUDENT graduates DEBT FREE!  Can I get an "Amen"!  It is nicknamed "Hard Work U" because every student is required to work on campus and the items they make are sold on campus and on-line.  When you eat at the restaurant or buy some products, you are helping to pay for a college student's tuition.  

We went into this Mill and General Store and purchased a delicious chocolate chip sea salt cookie and some swan food.  They were making baskets while we were there.

In the back of the mill is a beautiful pond filled with swans and ducks.  As soon as they saw us, they swam over for food.

Across from the front of the mill is another pond with a gorgeous fountain.  This one also had hungry swans but we had to apologize to them and keep on walking because we already gave all our food to the swans in the back pond. 😀

I love stained glass, so I was excited to see this building.  Next to it was a bunch of greenhouses which my hubby checked out.  I wasn't as interested in the greenhouses because it was the end of the summer and I didn't want to buy anything. 

All the students were hard at work making stained glass art.  What fun! I would have loved this as my job when I was in college.  

The Crapemyrtle were in full bloom while we were visiting the campus.  What a beautiful bush! I wish we could grow these in Wisconsin.

The campus church is absolutely gorgeous and open for tours!  

We got to hear a little bit of their church bells while we were there. 

How stunning is this architecture?

Perhaps my favorite spot on the entire campus was the Scripture Garden.  It is located on the edge of campus and has a fabulous scenic view.

The garden is filled with these rocks which all have a different scripture on them.  Now this is something I would have loved to have for my own garden, but I didn't see them for sale.

Here is the panoramic background of this beautiful garden.

I didn't know until after we had visited that there were also two museums on campus we could have visited.  I was bummed about that, but I'm sure we will go back because would you believe that even though we went there for dinner we ended up not even eating there?  😁. I know, crazy right?  We just had such a huge lunch, we weren't hungry for dinner.  We thought we would work up an appetite while touring the campus, but we never did.  So, we have to go back next time we're in Branson, and we will be sure to bring our appetites.

Anyhow, pictured below is The Keeter Center.  This is where the restaurant is located.  It is also a hotel, conference center and has a gift shop and a creamery---that we did enjoy!  We may not have been hungry enough for a full meal, but we shared a handmade ice cream!

The front porch has old fashioned rocking chairs to sit and rest a spell.

The inside of the Keeter Center is just stunning.  It has that rustic-lodge look Branson is famous for.

There are so many cozy spots to sit and enjoy.

And this fireplace...oh my goodness..so gorgeous!

The gift shop seen in the background sells clothes, quilts, jams/jellies, and so many products made from the students on campus.  If you want to buy a handmade quilt cheaply, this is the place to get one! I make my own quilts so I didn't need one.

Here's the creamery.  I can't believe I never took a picture of our ice cream cone!  It was so good.  I'm a sucker for handmade ice cream.  If I see it advertised when we are traveling, I almost always stop for it,

After our visit at the campus, we were toast for the day so we headed back to our hotel for the night.  The next day, we were off for a tour of The Titanic!  I'll tell you all about it next week!

For more posts on Branson, Missouri, check out these posts:

Six Days In Branson, Missouri:  Silver Dollar City, Day One

Six Days in Branson, Missouri:  Silver Dollar City, Day Two

Six Days in Branson, Missouri:  Day Three, "Top of the Rock"

Day Four of Our Vacation in Missouri - A Visit to Branson

A Return to Branson, Missouri, Part One

A Return to Branson, Missouri, Part Two

Have A Great Day!  Amy

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