Get outside
Things to do
Missouri’s only Wild and Scenic River, its second-largest spring, a collapsed cave called the Little Grand Canyon, and the state’s biggest wilderness — all within the county, plus canoe rentals, places to stay, and places to eat.
The Eleven Point River
Missouri’s only National Wild and Scenic River, and the springs that feed it.
Eleven Point National Scenic River
Missouri’s only National Wild and Scenic River, one of the eight rivers in the original Wild and Scenic Rivers Act of 1968, winding through the Mark Twain National Forest past bluffs, gravel bars, and big springs. It’s a favorite for canoeing, kayaking, jon boats, and fishing. Greer Crossing, just off Highway 19, is one of the most popular launch points: Greer to Turner Mill is a 4.9-mile float, and Greer to Riverton, on Highway 160, is 19 miles. Motors are limited to 25 horsepower.
Greer Spring
The second-largest spring in Missouri, pouring out about 210 million gallons a day in a steep, wooded hollow. Its spring branch, the longest of any of the state’s big springs, runs just over a mile before it joins the Eleven Point. A trail of about a mile drops some 250 feet from the trailhead on Highway 19 to the spring; it’s smooth but steep coming back up. Restrooms are at the trailhead.
Greer Crossing Recreation Area
The Forest Service campground and boat ramp at the Highway 19 crossing of the Eleven Point: 16 single and 3 double campsites with tables and fire rings, vault toilets, a summer host, and no hookups, open all year ($10 a night for a single site). The concrete ramp is a main put-in for floats, and the Ozark Trail’s Eleven Point section starts here, climbing to McCormack Lake.
Turner Mill
The mill is gone, but its 25-foot water wheel still stands beside a spring on the Eleven Point, 4.9 river miles below Greer Crossing. The north-side access is for looking around, not camping; the south side has primitive camping and leads into the Irish Wilderness. The river here is often shallow enough to wade.
McCormack Lake Recreation Area
A small lake in the national forest above the Eleven Point, with picnic sites, fishing, primitive camping, and a trail that links to the Ozark Trail and down to Greer Crossing.
Parks & Wilderness
A collapsed cave and the largest wilderness in Missouri.
Grand Gulf State Park
The “Little Grand Canyon” of the Ozarks: a cave system whose roof fell in, leaving a gorge about three-quarters of a mile long between walls about 130 feet high. Part of the old cave roof still spans it as a natural bridge 250 feet long with a 75-foot-high opening. Trails along the rim lead to overlooks and interpretive signs about how the gulf formed. There’s no official trail to the bottom, so use great caution if you try. The gulf is a National Natural Landmark.
Irish Wilderness
The largest federally protected wilderness in Missouri: rugged oak and pine hills, sinkholes, and hollows with no roads or motor vehicles. It’s named for the Irish Catholic families Father John Hogan brought here in 1858; their settlement scattered during the Civil War. The 18.6-mile Whites Creek Trail loops through it for backpackers.
Historic Sites & Mills
Spring-powered mills and a courthouse town rebuilt after the Civil War.
Greer Mill
Samuel Greer built this mill in 1883 on the bluff above Greer Spring, which powered it from below. It ground grain into the 1920s, and the Forest Service restored the building in 2016. It’s been on the National Register since 2005.
Falling Spring Mill
A small wooden mill beside a spring that pours out of a bluff, built in the late 1920s to grind corn, saw wood, and make electricity. It’s a Forest Service picnic spot now, down a gravel road north of the Eleven Point.
Oregon County Courthouse
Alton was laid out in 1859, when the county seat moved here from Thomasville to a more central spot. In October 1863 Union troops burned its courthouse, and many of the county’s early records with it. The courthouse square is still the center of town.
Food & Drink
Places to eat and drink
Shopping
Antiques, boutiques, and local shops
Camping & Lodging
Places to stay
Gas & Convenience
Gas and supplies
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Verify before relying on this. Compiled from the U.S. Forest Service, Missouri State Parks, the Missouri Department of Conservation, and each venue’s own site. Hours, fees, and regulations change — check directly before a trip, especially for hunting and fishing seasons and limits.
