Burgermeister, yep I'm near Arkansas. Just 30 miles down the road to the line. I'm in the SW of the state just north of Branson and east of Springfield. I think this year has been the best for all the colors, they are usually gone by now as you said, because of the wind. This will probably be the last of them as we have a rain storm coming in tonight and lots of wind today.
Meadowlark, yep wouldn't be the Ozarks without the fire towers LOL. However they don't use many of them any more, and some they had where you could climb up to the top and look out, but they have stopped that too. I guess coz of all the vandals. Some people ruin it for all of us.