Ozarks? AR or MO

agesilaus wrote:
Looking for a different route west from FL. Thinking about I-10 and then up and across MS into Arkansas. Looking for a couple of stops in the Ozarks in NW AR and SW MO. A few days worth maybe. We'll then cut up in KS where I found a couple of interesting locations to stop at, at least the write ups look interesting. The grasslands and Monument rocks with a couple others.

AR, MO and KS are all on our neglected states list. We've been to the Hot Springs area a couple times, mainly for the quartz rockhounding opportunities. So any suggestions welcomed.

The second son is a summer camp councilor this year so we'll be heading up to Grandin and then back into RMNP to see him.

Echo Bluff State Park near Eminence, MO opened during the summer of 2016. It’s more like an Aspen resort than a state park. The most unique thing is the herd of wild horses that wanders throughout the park.

Hi from a fellow Titanium owner! We have the same rig as you.

We liked Lake of the Ozarks State Park in Missouri. We chose to stay in the upper campground because of the narrow, winding road to the sites by the lake. I posted about our stay here

We did not camp at Petit Jean State Park in Arkansas but it is a beautiful park. There is a steep, winding road to get there but would be doable for you. I posted about it here

We've spent time in both Missouri and Arkansas. There are some beautiful places in both states. In addition to the Ozarks we also enjoyed being by the Mississippi River. Mississippi River State Park in Marianna, Arkansas is one of our all time favorite state park campgrounds.

Sounds like a great trip. Have fun. PM me if you want more ideas.

Lake of the Ozarks (MO) for sure, really nice area! We also enjoy Eureka Springs AR for the town and the surrounding lakes and scenery.

Bull Shoals state Park has my vote in Arkansas

If you'd be interested in Branson and the shows that's a perfect place to base. Any Corp of Engineer park is nice on the lakes. Table Rock Lake is beautiful.

Google and see if there are any festivals or mountain music venues going on at that time. They are always fun and give you that local experience.

Lake Dardanelle SP, Bull Shoals SP in AR
X2 on Echo Bluff, Roaring River SP in MO. The MO and AR State Parks are nice.

Since you did some rockhounding, you might be interested in Blanchard Springs Caverns. Well preserved as it wasn't looted early on like many caves were.

Eureka Springs is a quaint little town nestled in a valley. If you do some walking, you'll get plenty of exercise as every street is up or down, depending on what way you're going. Interesting shops and restaurants.

Lake Fort Smith State Park, Arkansas, is great!

The Ozark Mountains are in northwest Arkansas. The southern half of Missouri (south of I-70) enjoys valleys cut into the Ozark Plateau. It is all interesting, but I've traversed the Ozark Plateau hundreds of times over the past 35 years, gone through the Ozark Mountains only a few dozen times, on a half dozen different routes. Anything north of I-40, west of US-65 is worth visiting on into the eastern fringe of the Ozarks in Oklahoma, east of US-59.

The real find, however, is in the Ouachita Mountians, one of our oldest mountain cores, south of I-40 between Hot Springs, Arkansas and Talahina, Oklahoma. There are no good north-south routes, the trend of the mountains is east-west, but once you break out of the mountains it is all Oklahoma lake country going north to Kansas.

North of I-40, well into northern Arkansas and NE Oklahoma, you will be in the navigation management area of the Arkansas River system, which means there are nearly a hundred Army Corps of Engineers managed reservoirs and lock and dam systems, most of which have low-fee or no-fee recreation access areas. I do most of my camping in COE recreational access areas, or state parks where the state has taken over management of a facility on a Corps reservoir. This all stretches into north central Oklahoma, southeast Kansas and south-central Kansas.

Once you get into Kansas, almost every county has a county fishing lake, at which you can camp (usually no-fee), but there may be no facilities other than a pit toilet somewhere around the lake. There are also town lakes, with more or less facilities, but not always camping.

Arkansas and Missouri have some great CGs. Like others mentioned, Petit Jean SP is truly outstanding. If you head to Eureka Springs, check out the COE GCs around Beaver Lake (Dam Site CG is scenic). I'd offer up a couple more CGs in Arkansas...Devil's Den SP, Mount Magazine SP, and Lake Catherine SP near Hot Springs.

Missouri...well we enjoy it but mostly in the Arcadia Valley region which is in SE Missouri, near Annapolis. Tam Sauk Mtn SP, Ozark Scenic Riverways, and Johnson's Shut Ins SP. At Johnsons Shut Ins, its a very nice swimming river. Check out Elephant Rocks SP also.

Tatest is correct about Oklahoma as well. We love Lake Wister SP and Beavers Bend SP.

This area of the country is seriously under rated, we love it.