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SWIMMING HOLES / RIVER ACCESSES -2

Access to several rivers are within a day’s travel of West Plains! 

Points of Interest West Plains, Missouri
  • 3.3 Ashley Creek on right.
  • 6.5 Parker Hollow on left, fed by Schafer Spring, .2 miles upstream.
  • 8.0 Cedargrove Access. Low-water bridge and campground.
  • 8.9 Big Creek on right.
  • 11.6 Medlock Spring on right.
  • 12.4 Welch Landing Access.
  • 12.7 Welch Spring, sixth largest in state, on left.
  • 15.7 Akers Ferry Access on Hwy. K. Campground and store.
  • 17.8 Lewis Hollow on right at ford.
  • 20.9 Cave Spring on left.
  • 23.2 Rock House Cave on right. It is now more like a natural bridge than a cave and makes a good shelter.
  • 25.2 Pulltite Access. Campground and store.
  • 26.0 Pulltite Spring and branch on right.
  • 27.0 Boyds Creek on right.
  • 30.2 Jerry J. Presley Conservation Education Center on left. No access or camping.
  • 32.7 Sinkin Creek enters on left. By putting in at The Sinks, where the creek takes a short-cut through a hill via a cave, 6.5 miles of the creek can be floated in good water.
  • 34.2 Round Spring access, campground, spring and cavern.
  • 42.5 Big Creek enters on left.
  • 44.7 Bee Bluff on left.
  • 46.6 Jerktail Landing on right, on county road off Hwy. 19. Access and campsite.
  • 51.1 Ebb and Flow Spring, reached by walking 0.25 mile up creek on left.
  • 51.5 Jacks Fork River enters on right. Two Rivers Access (Ozark National Scenic Riverways).
  • 52.3 Old ferry site, access and campground.
  • 56.2 Blair Creek on left.
  • 58.4 Hwy. 106 Bridge.
  • 58.7 Powder Mill, an old ferry site, with access and campground.
  • 60.0 Blue Spring, ninth largest in the state, has deepest blue color. Reached by a 0.25 mile walk up its branch on the left.
  • 63.8 Roberts Field access and campground. Rocky Creek enters on right.

Eleven Point River

The Eleven Point holds the scenic designation within the National Wild and Scenic Rivers system, meaning that it is free of impoundments, with shorelines or watersheds still largely primitive and shorelines largely undeveloped, but accessible in places by roads. Only about half of the land in the designated area is public, owned by the National Forest Service. The government holds a scenic easement on other land within the area that preserves its character for the future, but which does not allow public access to privately-held land.

  • 0.0 Thomasville. Put-in at State Hwy. 99 Bridge. Section from here to State Hwy 19 not recommended in low-water.
  • 0.5 Middle Fork enters and increases flow.
  • 1.5 Mill Creek and Barren Fork add more water.
  • 3.1 Posy Spring on left is a beautiful small spring issuing from a small cave in a woodland setting.
  • 6.1 Blowing Spring on left.
  • 6.5 Denny Hollow float camp on left. Roaring Spring on right.
  • 7.3 Graham Spring branch on right. Spring 0.25 mile up branch.
  • 9.3 Cane Bluff. Access and picnic area.
  • 12.3 Spring Creek enters on left.
  • 14.8 McCormack Hollow on left. Lake, fishing, spring and picnic area about one mile up Hollow, administrated by U.S. Forest Service.
  • 16.0 Greer Spring Branch.
  • 16.6 State Hwy. 19 Bridge. Campsites and put-in. Trail to Greer Spring 0.75 mile up hill.
  • 19.5 Little Hurricane Creek on right.
  • 20.0 Mary Decker Shoals. Rapids.
  • 20.5 Hurricane Creek enters on left.
  • 21.5 Turner’s Mill and spring. Location is also known as Surprise. Access on both sides of river. Camping on south side only.
  • 22.0 Stinking Pond float camp on left.
  • 26.5 Horseshoe Bend float camp on left.
  • 27.0 Barn Hollow float camp on left. Bliss Spring just downstream.
  • 28.5 White Creek float camp on left.
  • 31.0 Greenbriar float camp on left.
  • 33.4 Boze Mill Spring on left. River valley begins to widen here. Camping. No access.
  • 33.7 River divides. Right channel usually best and provides a fast run over a ledge.
  • 35.7 Riverton and Hwy. 160 Bridge. Access east side, picnic on west side beneath bridge only. No camping either side.
  • 43.0 Thomasson Mill Spring Branch-Frederick Creek on right.
  • 44.0 Morgan Creek float camp and Blue Spring Branch. Spring is approximately the eighth largest in state.
  • 44.3 State Hwy. 142 Bridge. Take-out. Limited camping.
  • 48.0 MDC Myrtle Access at site of old Stubblefield Ferry on west side. Limited camping.
  • 49.0 Missouri-Arkansas state line.

Gasconade River

The Gasconade River is reputed to be one of the most crooked rivers in the world. Entirely in Missouri, the river winds nearly 300 miles from its source near Hartville to the Missouri River, which is only a distance of about 120 miles as the crow flies. (Accesses in Wright County is listed.)

  • 0.0 Hwy. 38 Bridge on the Woods Fork of the Gasconade. Just above this point, there is a mill pond dam on the Woods Fork.
Missouri Swimming and River Accesses