Springfield

This 840-acre area owned by the Missouri Department of Conservation is a mostly forested area that provides both hunting and nature-viewing opportunities. Hunting for all major game species is permitted in season. Trails over parts of the area provide hiking and nature photography opportunities. Horseback riding is permitted on designated trails and service roads. Primitive camping (no amenities provided) is allowed on the area. Bicycling is allowed on designated trails. Dogs must be leashed or confined when not used for hunting or training purposes. There is a 14-station walk-and-shoot archery range. There are no fishable streams or ponds on the area.

This area is mostly forested and is divided into two tracts. To access the 360-acre St. Luke Tract from I-44 at Marshfield, take the Route 38/Route W exit west to the Outer Road on the west side of I-44 and go north to Brinkley Road. Follow Brinkley Road and veer left on Black Horse Road where it forms a y-intersection. The conservation area is almost a half-mile on the left on Black Horse Road. The 160-acre Sampson tract can be reached from Webster County Road 173. From Springfield, take I-44 to the Marshfield exit, go east on Route 38 to State Road CC and north on State Road CC to Frisco Road. Turn right (east) on Frisco Road, the area is on the left (east) side of Frisco Road.

This 4,360-acre Missouri Department of Conservation Area, which is on Historic Route 66, provides a variety of outdoor recreational opportunities. More than half of the area consists of managed grasslands and overgrown farm fields, a landscape that provides good viewing of songbirds and other grassland wildlife species. The area has more than 10 miles of hiking trails, a portion of which provides viewing of a large great blue heron rookery on the Spring River. (The rookery is most visible in early spring before trees leaf out.) Horseback riding is permitted on designated trails and bicycling opportunities exist on gravel service roads and paved roads on the area. The area is a good spot for dove hunting and quail hunting in the fall. Deer and turkey hunting opportunities also exist on the area. A managed wetland on the area offers waterfowl hunting opportunities. Fising opportunities for black bass, catfish, crappie and sunfish can be found on the area at a seven-acre lake (featuring an asphalt parking lot and a fishing jetty), a four-acre lake and in the Spring River, which cuts through part of the area. Call the Missouri Deptartment of Conservation's Southwest Regional Office (417-895-6880) for specifics on hunting and fishing regulations. Primitive camping (no amenities provided) is permitted at one designated area. Pets must be leashed or confined, except when used for hunting.

Located 5.3 miles west of Route 65 on Branson's strip (Route 76), this 1,534-acre area invites visitors to take a walk on one of several trails that cross this mostly forested site and enjoy the natural beauty that has drawn visitors to this area for generations. A 0.4-mile trail leads from the main parking lot (south end of area) to a 40-foot viewing tower. A longer trail, the Henning Homesteaders' Trail, begins at the north parking lot (accessible from Route 248) and takes visitors past the remains of several homestead sites. Trails also run through glades, bottomland forest and other natural features. Trails are open to foot traffic only. Bicycles, horses and all types of motorized vehicles are not permitted. Camping and hunting are not permitted. Fishing is permitted at Roark Creek on the area's north end, but due to the stream's intermittent flow, angling opportunities are minimal.