★ FeaturedShannon County Wild Horses
Free-roaming wild horse herds live along the Jacks Fork and Current Rivers in Shannon County, the only place in Missouri where wild horses still run free. They have been protected by federal law since 1996 and are cared for by the Missouri Wild Horse League.
They're often seen grazing in the Broadfoot fields north of Eminence, the Shawnee Creek fields, along Hwy V toward Two Rivers, and near Round Spring and Rocky Creek. Please respect them: keep your distance and never feed them.
★ Must-SeeAlley Spring Mill
The iconic red 1894 roller mill beside the bright-blue Alley Spring, part of the Ozark National Scenic Riverways. About 6 miles west of Eminence on Hwy 106.
★ Must-SeeRocky Falls
A scenic cascade tumbling over pink volcanic rhyolite into a cool swimming hole, in the Ozark National Scenic Riverways southeast of Eminence.
Klepzig Mill
A small, rustic early-1900s mill on Rocky Creek surrounded by rocky shut-ins; a quiet stop in the Ozark National Scenic Riverways, not far from Rocky Falls.
★ Must-SeeBlue Spring
One of the deepest, bluest springs in Missouri, flowing into the Current River at the end of a short trail near Powder Mill, east of Eminence off Hwy 106.
Akers Ferry
Once home to one of the last operating car ferries in Missouri (the ferry was removed a few years ago), it's still a scenic Current River access with a campground and canoe access.
Pulltite Spring
A lovely spring on the Current River reached by a short trail from the Pulltite area, with a historic log cabin nearby.
Greer Spring
Missouri's second-largest spring, gushing into the Eleven Point River in the Mark Twain National Forest; reached by a steep trail of about a mile, south of Eminence near Alton.
Lick Log Nature Trail
An easy interpretive loop in Angeline Conservation Area through forest, glades and rocky shut-ins, just half a mile from the ranch.
★ Must-SeePeck Ranch
Peck Ranch Conservation Area, where Missouri reintroduced wild elk; take the elk-viewing driving tour for your best chance to spot them, southeast of Eminence near Winona.
Big Spring
One of the largest springs in the United States, pouring hundreds of millions of gallons a day into the Current River near Van Buren.
Devil's Well
A stairway leads down into a sinkhole where you can look out over a large underground lake, in the Ozark National Scenic Riverways near Akers.
Montauk State Park
Where the Current River begins, at the headwaters springs; known for trout fishing, a historic mill and family camping, near Salem.
Echo Bluff State Park
A newer state park on Sinking Creek with a lodge, restaurant, cabins, camping and hiking beneath a towering bluff, north of Eminence off Hwy 19.
Current River State Park
The former Alton Club retreat on the Current River, with historic buildings, trails and river access, northeast of Eminence.
The Ozark Trail
Missouri's long-distance hiking trail, with hundreds of miles of sections winding through the Ozarks, including scenic stretches near the Current River and Eminence.
