another round at RITO
I had an absolute blast at Rendezvous in the Ozarks (RITO 5) last year! Made a great group of friends from the event. Went on a cool adventure through the Ouachitas and had an even colder time on what we called “The Polar Bear Run.” So, I was really excited about RITO 6 this year!
Rendezvous in the Ozarks is an overland rally held each year by the Natural State Overland group.
The first big change for this year’s event was a change in venue. I guess a change back would be more accurate. RITO6 was moved back to Mulberry Mountain Lodge & Event Center where it was hosted prior to RITO4 (I think.) If last year’s theme (unofficially of course) was rain, then this year’s was dust! The lack of rain this year also meant that there was a burn ban in effect. Weather, what can ya do?
This year started with our group arriving somewhere between Sunday & Wednesday. There was a hodge-podge arrangement of campers, tents, etc. in the dispersed camping area. The group has camped out up here in the past, so we have a general area that we really like. However, kudos to the group that figured out how to make the small stage work for their use. That was a great setup!
I was able to get up to Mulberry Mountain around 10:30, so that I could setup camp before we went out on what I suspect will become a RITO kickoff event. That would be a trip over to none other than Oark General Store! Not gonna lie, their food really is as good as people say it is and I managed to find a cool sticker spot! RITO week was off to a great start and after lunch it was time to hit a quick trail ride.
This was the first run with a new tent and overall I’m really happy with it. I’ve got lots of dust to clean out, but the Gazelle T4 doesn’t disappoint one bit. The extra height is a huge bonus! The only real downside to the event was that there was a burn ban so we were limited to propane fire pits. This was a better fare that the week that followed where all fires were banned.
As the week rolled on there were a couple more trail rides, really cool vendor meets, checking in with old friends, lots of dust, great food, and good times all around. For all the time in the Ozarks that the event presents I never seem to find as much trail time as I anticipate. A great time, to be sure, and I laugh when I think back to the previous year as it had around the same amount of trail time.
There’s something to be said for time with family & friends out in nature. While it’s a lot of fun adventuring for new trails, it’s also great to sit around a camp fire and catch up. Even when that camp fire is an old military surplus ammo can! That’s the stuff memories are made of and this year was no exception!