| Trails Divided By Land Managers |
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There is a lot of confusion about all the different land management agencies, what are their
purpose and rules, and what are the different trails and amenities they provide to us
equestrians. To add to this confusion, there are always a lot of never-ending rumors of trail
closings and equestrian hating land managers. I have tried to address this confusion,
miscommunication, and rumors for almost 10 years now; this is not a new problem.
I would like to take this opportunity to address some of these issues, and hopefully clear up
some of the confusion. Because of my book, "Missouri Trailblazing," I have been working
closely with people in charge of trails in the land management agencies, particularly the
Dept. of Natural Resources (DNR), the Dept. of Conservation (MDC), and Mark Twain
National Forest, which is governed by the U.S. Dept. Of Agriculture. These people have all
kindly agreed to work with me and keep me up to date on equestrian trail closings
(temporary or permanent), changes, openings, needs and problems.
You will find that each of the different land management agencies has a different purpose,
set of rules, and policies that effect what is available to equestrians in their park or area. I’m
not going to bore you with the details of all the rules. They are posted in all the parks and
available online. Instead I’m going to concentrate on lesser known facts, information, and
rumors that directly affect us equestrians.
Army Corp of Engineers
Berry Bend Trail
Hulston Mill Trail
Joanna Trail
Lick Creek Trail
Orleans Trail
Smithville Lake Trail
City of Maryville, Missouri
Contact Maryville City Hall at 660-562-8001 for additional information.
Mozingo Lake Trail
Eminence Forest District
Eminence Area Roads
Jackson County Parks and Recreation
Lone Jack Civil War Trail
Landahl Park Trail
Longview Lake Trail
Monkey Mountain Trail
Joplin Trails Coalition
Ruby Jack Trail - Under Development
Mark Twain National Forest
The Mark Twain National Forest was established by Presidential Proclamation on Sept.
11, 1939. I couldn't find an actual mission statement for them. In Missouri alone, there is
1.5 million acres of land that make up the Mark Twain National Forests. They provide
Missouri Equestrians with over 400+ miles of established horse trails, plus more available
mileage via forest road riding. You may ride on any open, numbered Forest Service Road
around the equestrian trails as well as a few other places (If you have any doubts about
whether you can ride there or not, call the office for that forest district), but if you do, cars
are not the only thing you have to be aware of having to deal with. Mark Twain often allows
many of these same roads to be ridden by people with ATV’s, motorcycles, and mountain
bikes, so make sure your horse can handle being around that kind of traffic also.
Mark Twain National Forest has 18 different trails available for equestrian’s to ride on.
Most of these are multi-use trails that allow mountain bike riding also, however, seven are in
Wilderness areas, which do not allow mechanized vehicles or equipment. If your horse
does not yet handle the sight of a mountain bike rider with ease, you can ride in those areas
without running into them. The largest sections of the Ozark Trail fall within the
boundaries of Mark Twain National Forest land and can provide you with some of the
most rugged and scenic riding in Missouri. These forests usually have the longer trails and
are the ones that, if you ride there, you might want to learn some wilderness survival skills
and be more prepared for when you ride just because of the shear size and remoteness of
the areas. All of these have the rider sign up sheets so they know who is riding on the trail
and when they will be back. Their trails are open year round, even during hunting season,
and they do allow hunting, so that is something to remember and plan accordingly for.
Personally, I would never ride anywhere that allowed hunting during hunting season, but if
you do decide to ride during the hunting season, I would strongly suggest that you do not
do so on opening day or on weekends, and that you wear a lot of orange.
Riding and camping in Mark Twain National Forest is always free, never charging day use
or camping fees, however they do accept donations for camping, which I highly
recommend providing if you possibly can.
If you would like to try your hand at back country packing with pack stock, Mark Twain
National Forest trails, because of their length and remoteness, give you excellent
opportunities for this here in Missouri instead of having to travel to Colorado, Montana or
California to experience it. Once the Middle Fork Section of the Ozark Trail is completed,
equestrians will have 4 different sections within Mark Twain National Forest boundaries,
which when connected, combine for a total of over 100 miles of trail. That stretch of trail
would be great for taking pack stock on.
As always, ride any trail you decide to explore with “leave no trace” practices. Always
keep informed of, and mind fire hazard warnings, when cooking or enjoying campfires.
When fire hazard is high, just don’t cook with or make a campfire. You can find out the
fire hazard status, as well as weather conditions by visiting their site online at:
http://www.fs.fed.us/r9/forests/marktwain/recreation/hiking or by calling the individual
forest district office.
Due to a Federal cut in funding, the amenities that they provide have been greatly reduced.
Most places have nothing available and are totally primitive now. A very few still have
really nicely set up, but primitive, campgrounds. I do know that the federal cutbacks are
not just affecting us equestrians. Our trails are well established equestrian trails, and none,
as far as I know, are scheduled to be closed, but over a third of their Recreation Areas in
the state are slated to be closed due to this. You can bet they will not have the resources to
do much trail maintenance themselves, so if we want to keep our trails in good shape, it is
up to us. They also have an Adopt-A-Trail program so please consider adopting your
favorite local trail. Visit their website for more details. A couple of good website resources
I’d like to share with you include the Leave No Trace Org website at: www.lnt.org and the
Ozark Trail Website at: www.ozarktrail.com
Audubon Trail
Bell Mountain Trail
Berryman Trail
Big Piney Trail
Blue Ridge Trail
Cedar Creek Trail
Cole Creek Trail
Crane Lake Trail
Devil's Backbone Trail
Gladetop Trail - (Road Riding Only)
Hercules Glade Trail
Kaintuck Hollow Trail
Piney Creek Trail
Ridge Runner Trail
Rock Pile Mountain
Swan Creek Trail
Victory Horse Trail
Whites Creek Trail
Missouri Department of Conservation
The Missouri Department of Conservation is a state agency whose purpose is outlined in
the Missouri Constitution. It is by this that their policies and decisions are bound. Their
mission statement, partially devised by what is set forth in the Missouri Constitution, is:
"To protect and manage the fish, forest, and wildlife resources of the state and enhance
their values for future generations; to serve the public and facilitate their participation in
resource management activities; and to provide opportunity for all citizens to use, enjoy,
and learn about fish, forest, and wildlife resources." I think they have done a fantastic
job of that. You will notice that nowhere does it say, "to provide recreation to all the
different trail users of the state." MDC was formed after the depression to fix the
problem of decimated natural resources, such as Missouri’s forests, fish and wildlife. It
is, in large part, because of MDC that we have woods, fish, and wildlife to enjoy. The
fact is, they do not have to use funding for riding trails. In fact, MDC is required by the
state constitution to prohibit any of us from any act that they deem as detrimental to
those natural resources. Now, does that mean that they have totally given into the radical
environmentalists, hikers or mountain bike riders? No, they have not only provided us
equestrian users with our type of recreation, but in the last 10 years, have opened more
trails and improved more parking and camping facilities, than any of the other land
management agencies. That’s not to disparage the other agencies, that’s to say that
MDC has done much work in the last several years to be able to offer just as many
equestrian trails and amenities as the other land management agencies.
Now, as to some of the policies of the conservation areas, you will notice that they
almost never have trash cans, or picnic tables available, and seldom have outhouses.
They never charge day use or camping fees. Some areas are open to road riding, making
good alternatives to wet weather or yellow jacket seasons. You’ll have to call to see if a
particular area is open for road riding or if you need a special use permit. Since most
Conservation Areas allow hunting, most of them are closed during fall and spring
firearms hunting seasons. Conservation areas are well dispersed throughout Missouri
thereby providing us more opportunities for riding in northern Missouri. Now, as to
rumors of the different Conservation Areas closing, the only trail I know to have been
closed permanently is the trail at Bluffwoods Conservation Area just north of St. Joseph,
Mo. It was closed a while back, partially due to lack of use by equestrians. It was only a
two-mile trail and except for locals who might have ridden it, most trail riders felt that it
was too short a trail to go through all the effort to ride it. This is something to keep in
mind for the future. If we don’t use the trails that are open to us, it is possible that they
could be closed to us. One such future possibility, in my opinion, could be Riverbreaks
Conservation Area, also north of St. Joseph. It has also all but been abandoned. It is still
open to us for riding, but if we continue to fail to ride there, I could see it becoming so
overgrown that it would be a really easy to let it close. The other area I hear the most
about is Rudolf Bennitt Conservation Area. No, they are not closing, however, I believe
they have considered closing it. Why? Because of the abuse I already discussed. Instead,
at this time, they are planning on renovating the trail system. This will may make many
people unhappy because there is only supposed to be 12 miles of trails. By some
estimates there is around 40 miles currently interlaced through the area. It is an unsightly
and confusing rat maze of trails. If you are interested in helping to renovate or maintain any
trail, there are several organizations you can contact for information. You can contact the
individual land manager for the area that you are interested in. For MDC you can visit their
website for details at www.mdc.mo.gov. You can also contact The Missouri Equine
Council at www.mo-equine.org, or Show Me Missouri Back country Horsemen at
www.showmebch.org
Apple Creek Trail
Bicentennial Trail
Bonanza Trail
Bunch Hollow Trail
Bushwhacker Lake Trail
Busiek Trail
Caanan Trail – Under Development
Caney Mountain C. A. - (Road Riding Only)
Castor River Trail
Charlie Heath Trail
Compton Hollow Trail
Current River C. A. - (Road Riding Only)
Daniel Boone Trail
Deer Ridge Trail
Duck Creek C. A. - (Road Riding Only)
Flag Spring C. A. - (Road Riding Only)
Forest 44 Trail
Fort Crowder Trail
Fox Valley C. A. - (Road Riding Only)
Gist Ranch C. A. - (Road Riding Only)
Henry Sever Trail
Holly Ridge Trail
Honey Creek Trail
Huckleberry Ridge Trail
Hulston Mill Trail
Huzzah C. A. - (Road Riding Only)
J. Avery Ruble Trail
James A. Reed Trail
Lead Mine Trail
Little Indian Creek Trail
Little Lost Creek Trail
Long Ridge Trail
Moreau Creek Trail
Peck Ranch C. A. - (Road Riding Only)
Pleasant Hope Trail
Poosey Trail
Prairie Home Trail
Ranacker C. A. - (Road Riding Only)
Riverbreaks Trail
Robert E. Talbot Trail
Rockwoods Range Trail
Rudolf Bennitt Trail
Sugar Creek Trail
Three Creeks Trail
University Forest Trail
Wire Road Trail
White Ranch C. A. - (Road Riding Only)
Missouri State Parks
The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is the agency who is in charge of Missouri’s
State Parks. Like the Dept. of Conservation (MDC), DNR’s purpose is set forth in the
Missouri Constitution. However, their mission is very different. The State Park division of
DNR’s main responsibilities are the administration of the Missouri state park system, and
coordination of statewide programs in the areas of outdoor recreation and trails. The
mission of the state park system is to preserve and interpret the state's most outstanding
natural landscapes and cultural landmarks, and to provide outstanding recreational
opportunities compatible with those resources. Unlike MDC’s mission, our recreation is
one of their main concerns. This is why, for quite a while now, some of the best trail and
camping facilities are found in Missouri’s State Parks.
Now, if you want to be able to ride safely during the hunting seasons, you can choose to
ride on the equestrian trails in the State Parks because all are usually closed to hunting so
they are the safest places to go. Once in a while they will have special hunts, at which time
they will close the park for safety reasons. For more information on special hunting days at
any State Park you are interested in, keep checking this website. I will list special hunt dates
and places under the Temporary Closures section. Please remember, however, that
privately owned property often surrounds our state parks and if an equestrian trail passes
close to the boundary of the park, there is still a slight hazard to keep in mind.
Missouri State Park equestrian trails are all open year-round except Rock Bridge State
Park which is only open June 1 through October 31. The water is turned off at the
campgrounds in most parks during the winter off season, so you must keep that in mind if
you camp with your horses then. They do have some of the best equestrian camping
facilities, including some electrical hookups. They have no day use fees, but do charge
camping fees. You can make reservations if you’d like, by visiting their website at: www.
mostateparks.com or by calling toll-free 1-877-422-6766.
Some of the State Parks have Wild Areas, which are similar to Wilderness Areas, but
smaller. Wild Areas restrict motorized vehicles so if a trail goes through one, you won’t find
mountain bike riders there.
Two of these State Parks are monitored daily and their trail condition is taken into
consideration before deciding if they will be open that day for horseback riding. Crowder
State Park will close the trail if it is too wet. You can check it’s status by calling
1-660-359-0900. Rock Bridge State Park does the same and it’s trail condition hotline is
1-573-442-2249.
Lastly, to address the off and on rumors...... The only one I really hear anything about is
Cuivre River State Park. The two things I hear most are that are that it's going to close, or
that the manager there hates horses and horse people. Well, neither one could be farther
from the truth. The actual truth of the matter is that they have been putting in a lot of work
on the trails there. They’ve come a long way from when I was last there riding, about 8
years ago. I’ve been consulting with the Park Manager there quite a bit lately and I don’t
find him to hate us at all. In fact, compared with many of the other trails and parks, they’re
ahead of the game. He has been consulting with myself and a few local equestrians to see
what facilities the equestrians need and what parts of the trail need more maintenance. The
main problem they had there was not knowing what was best, safe, and desired by us since
they are not horse people themselves. In fact, they have recently acquired an equestrian to
be on staff part of the year, specifically because she was a horse owner and trail rider, and I
believe that’s a first for any of the land managers. There are many equestrians that work in
the different land management agencies, but as far as I know, none of them were hired
specifically to work on and for equestrian trails and with equestrians at the park. I hope this
opens the door for others in the future. Like all of the other land management agencies,
Missouri State Parks welcome trail users to help in any way they can to maintain trails. For
more information about adopting a trail or coming out to help on a scheduled workday,
please visit their website.
Babler Trail
Chubb Trail – goes from West Tyson County Park through Castlewood State Park
(no access from Castlewood parking lots because it’s across the
river) and into Lone Elk County Park .
Cuivre River Trail
Cliff Cave Park Trail
Goggins Mountain Trail
Grotpeter Trail
Katy Tail - (Sedalia to Calhoun Section Only)
Lake Wappapello Trail
McAdoo Trail
Mudlick Trail
Peewah Trail
Pike Run Trail
Rock Bridge Trail
Route 66 Trail
St. Joe Trail
Thompson River Trail
Trail of Four Winds Trail
Watkins Mill Trail
National Parks Service
Wilson's Creek Trail
National Wildlife Refuge
Mingo Swamp Road - (Road Riding Only)
Ozark Greenways
Frisco Highline Trail
Ozark Scenic National Riverways
Ozark Scenic Riverways Horse Trail
Ozark Trail
(The Ozark Trail Sections are managed by the land managers that the trail runs through.
Sections that allow horses run mostly through Mark Twain Nation Forest Land. Read the
section about Mark Twain National Forest for more information.)
Between the Rivers Section
Blair Creek Section - (First 8 Miles Only)
Courtois Section – (Except for portion in Huzzah C.A.)
Eleven Point Section
Karkaghne Section
Marble Creek Section
Middle Fork Section
North Fork Section
Taum Sauk – (From Highway A Trailhead to Bell Mountain Wilderness)
Trace Creek Section
Victory Section
Wappapello Lake Section
Scotland County Parks
Lake Showme Trail
St. Charles County Parks and Recreation
Broemmelsiek Park – Partially Open, Remainder Under Development
Indian Camp Creek Park – Partially Open, Remainder Under Development
St. Louis County Parks and Recreation
Fort Bellafontaine Trail
Chubb Trail – goes from West Tyson County Park through Castlewood State
Park (no access from Castlewood parking lots because it’s across
the river) and into Lone Elk County Park .
Cliff Cave Park Trail
Greensfelder Trail
Lone Elk Trail – see Chubb Trail
Lower Meramac
Queeny Park Trail
Sioux Passage Trail
Spanish Lake Trail
West Tyson – see Chubb Trail
purpose and rules, and what are the different trails and amenities they provide to us
equestrians. To add to this confusion, there are always a lot of never-ending rumors of trail
closings and equestrian hating land managers. I have tried to address this confusion,
miscommunication, and rumors for almost 10 years now; this is not a new problem.
I would like to take this opportunity to address some of these issues, and hopefully clear up
some of the confusion. Because of my book, "Missouri Trailblazing," I have been working
closely with people in charge of trails in the land management agencies, particularly the
Dept. of Natural Resources (DNR), the Dept. of Conservation (MDC), and Mark Twain
National Forest, which is governed by the U.S. Dept. Of Agriculture. These people have all
kindly agreed to work with me and keep me up to date on equestrian trail closings
(temporary or permanent), changes, openings, needs and problems.
You will find that each of the different land management agencies has a different purpose,
set of rules, and policies that effect what is available to equestrians in their park or area. I’m
not going to bore you with the details of all the rules. They are posted in all the parks and
available online. Instead I’m going to concentrate on lesser known facts, information, and
rumors that directly affect us equestrians.
Army Corp of Engineers
Berry Bend Trail
Hulston Mill Trail
Joanna Trail
Lick Creek Trail
Orleans Trail
Smithville Lake Trail
City of Maryville, Missouri
Contact Maryville City Hall at 660-562-8001 for additional information.
Mozingo Lake Trail
Eminence Forest District
Eminence Area Roads
Jackson County Parks and Recreation
Lone Jack Civil War Trail
Landahl Park Trail
Longview Lake Trail
Monkey Mountain Trail
Joplin Trails Coalition
Ruby Jack Trail - Under Development
Mark Twain National Forest
The Mark Twain National Forest was established by Presidential Proclamation on Sept.
11, 1939. I couldn't find an actual mission statement for them. In Missouri alone, there is
1.5 million acres of land that make up the Mark Twain National Forests. They provide
Missouri Equestrians with over 400+ miles of established horse trails, plus more available
mileage via forest road riding. You may ride on any open, numbered Forest Service Road
around the equestrian trails as well as a few other places (If you have any doubts about
whether you can ride there or not, call the office for that forest district), but if you do, cars
are not the only thing you have to be aware of having to deal with. Mark Twain often allows
many of these same roads to be ridden by people with ATV’s, motorcycles, and mountain
bikes, so make sure your horse can handle being around that kind of traffic also.
Mark Twain National Forest has 18 different trails available for equestrian’s to ride on.
Most of these are multi-use trails that allow mountain bike riding also, however, seven are in
Wilderness areas, which do not allow mechanized vehicles or equipment. If your horse
does not yet handle the sight of a mountain bike rider with ease, you can ride in those areas
without running into them. The largest sections of the Ozark Trail fall within the
boundaries of Mark Twain National Forest land and can provide you with some of the
most rugged and scenic riding in Missouri. These forests usually have the longer trails and
are the ones that, if you ride there, you might want to learn some wilderness survival skills
and be more prepared for when you ride just because of the shear size and remoteness of
the areas. All of these have the rider sign up sheets so they know who is riding on the trail
and when they will be back. Their trails are open year round, even during hunting season,
and they do allow hunting, so that is something to remember and plan accordingly for.
Personally, I would never ride anywhere that allowed hunting during hunting season, but if
you do decide to ride during the hunting season, I would strongly suggest that you do not
do so on opening day or on weekends, and that you wear a lot of orange.
Riding and camping in Mark Twain National Forest is always free, never charging day use
or camping fees, however they do accept donations for camping, which I highly
recommend providing if you possibly can.
If you would like to try your hand at back country packing with pack stock, Mark Twain
National Forest trails, because of their length and remoteness, give you excellent
opportunities for this here in Missouri instead of having to travel to Colorado, Montana or
California to experience it. Once the Middle Fork Section of the Ozark Trail is completed,
equestrians will have 4 different sections within Mark Twain National Forest boundaries,
which when connected, combine for a total of over 100 miles of trail. That stretch of trail
would be great for taking pack stock on.
As always, ride any trail you decide to explore with “leave no trace” practices. Always
keep informed of, and mind fire hazard warnings, when cooking or enjoying campfires.
When fire hazard is high, just don’t cook with or make a campfire. You can find out the
fire hazard status, as well as weather conditions by visiting their site online at:
http://www.fs.fed.us/r9/forests/marktwain/recreation/hiking or by calling the individual
forest district office.
Due to a Federal cut in funding, the amenities that they provide have been greatly reduced.
Most places have nothing available and are totally primitive now. A very few still have
really nicely set up, but primitive, campgrounds. I do know that the federal cutbacks are
not just affecting us equestrians. Our trails are well established equestrian trails, and none,
as far as I know, are scheduled to be closed, but over a third of their Recreation Areas in
the state are slated to be closed due to this. You can bet they will not have the resources to
do much trail maintenance themselves, so if we want to keep our trails in good shape, it is
up to us. They also have an Adopt-A-Trail program so please consider adopting your
favorite local trail. Visit their website for more details. A couple of good website resources
I’d like to share with you include the Leave No Trace Org website at: www.lnt.org and the
Ozark Trail Website at: www.ozarktrail.com
Audubon Trail
Bell Mountain Trail
Berryman Trail
Big Piney Trail
Blue Ridge Trail
Cedar Creek Trail
Cole Creek Trail
Crane Lake Trail
Devil's Backbone Trail
Gladetop Trail - (Road Riding Only)
Hercules Glade Trail
Kaintuck Hollow Trail
Piney Creek Trail
Ridge Runner Trail
Rock Pile Mountain
Swan Creek Trail
Victory Horse Trail
Whites Creek Trail
Missouri Department of Conservation
The Missouri Department of Conservation is a state agency whose purpose is outlined in
the Missouri Constitution. It is by this that their policies and decisions are bound. Their
mission statement, partially devised by what is set forth in the Missouri Constitution, is:
"To protect and manage the fish, forest, and wildlife resources of the state and enhance
their values for future generations; to serve the public and facilitate their participation in
resource management activities; and to provide opportunity for all citizens to use, enjoy,
and learn about fish, forest, and wildlife resources." I think they have done a fantastic
job of that. You will notice that nowhere does it say, "to provide recreation to all the
different trail users of the state." MDC was formed after the depression to fix the
problem of decimated natural resources, such as Missouri’s forests, fish and wildlife. It
is, in large part, because of MDC that we have woods, fish, and wildlife to enjoy. The
fact is, they do not have to use funding for riding trails. In fact, MDC is required by the
state constitution to prohibit any of us from any act that they deem as detrimental to
those natural resources. Now, does that mean that they have totally given into the radical
environmentalists, hikers or mountain bike riders? No, they have not only provided us
equestrian users with our type of recreation, but in the last 10 years, have opened more
trails and improved more parking and camping facilities, than any of the other land
management agencies. That’s not to disparage the other agencies, that’s to say that
MDC has done much work in the last several years to be able to offer just as many
equestrian trails and amenities as the other land management agencies.
Now, as to some of the policies of the conservation areas, you will notice that they
almost never have trash cans, or picnic tables available, and seldom have outhouses.
They never charge day use or camping fees. Some areas are open to road riding, making
good alternatives to wet weather or yellow jacket seasons. You’ll have to call to see if a
particular area is open for road riding or if you need a special use permit. Since most
Conservation Areas allow hunting, most of them are closed during fall and spring
firearms hunting seasons. Conservation areas are well dispersed throughout Missouri
thereby providing us more opportunities for riding in northern Missouri. Now, as to
rumors of the different Conservation Areas closing, the only trail I know to have been
closed permanently is the trail at Bluffwoods Conservation Area just north of St. Joseph,
Mo. It was closed a while back, partially due to lack of use by equestrians. It was only a
two-mile trail and except for locals who might have ridden it, most trail riders felt that it
was too short a trail to go through all the effort to ride it. This is something to keep in
mind for the future. If we don’t use the trails that are open to us, it is possible that they
could be closed to us. One such future possibility, in my opinion, could be Riverbreaks
Conservation Area, also north of St. Joseph. It has also all but been abandoned. It is still
open to us for riding, but if we continue to fail to ride there, I could see it becoming so
overgrown that it would be a really easy to let it close. The other area I hear the most
about is Rudolf Bennitt Conservation Area. No, they are not closing, however, I believe
they have considered closing it. Why? Because of the abuse I already discussed. Instead,
at this time, they are planning on renovating the trail system. This will may make many
people unhappy because there is only supposed to be 12 miles of trails. By some
estimates there is around 40 miles currently interlaced through the area. It is an unsightly
and confusing rat maze of trails. If you are interested in helping to renovate or maintain any
trail, there are several organizations you can contact for information. You can contact the
individual land manager for the area that you are interested in. For MDC you can visit their
website for details at www.mdc.mo.gov. You can also contact The Missouri Equine
Council at www.mo-equine.org, or Show Me Missouri Back country Horsemen at
www.showmebch.org
Apple Creek Trail
Bicentennial Trail
Bonanza Trail
Bunch Hollow Trail
Bushwhacker Lake Trail
Busiek Trail
Caanan Trail – Under Development
Caney Mountain C. A. - (Road Riding Only)
Castor River Trail
Charlie Heath Trail
Compton Hollow Trail
Current River C. A. - (Road Riding Only)
Daniel Boone Trail
Deer Ridge Trail
Duck Creek C. A. - (Road Riding Only)
Flag Spring C. A. - (Road Riding Only)
Forest 44 Trail
Fort Crowder Trail
Fox Valley C. A. - (Road Riding Only)
Gist Ranch C. A. - (Road Riding Only)
Henry Sever Trail
Holly Ridge Trail
Honey Creek Trail
Huckleberry Ridge Trail
Hulston Mill Trail
Huzzah C. A. - (Road Riding Only)
J. Avery Ruble Trail
James A. Reed Trail
Lead Mine Trail
Little Indian Creek Trail
Little Lost Creek Trail
Long Ridge Trail
Moreau Creek Trail
Peck Ranch C. A. - (Road Riding Only)
Pleasant Hope Trail
Poosey Trail
Prairie Home Trail
Ranacker C. A. - (Road Riding Only)
Riverbreaks Trail
Robert E. Talbot Trail
Rockwoods Range Trail
Rudolf Bennitt Trail
Sugar Creek Trail
Three Creeks Trail
University Forest Trail
Wire Road Trail
White Ranch C. A. - (Road Riding Only)
Missouri State Parks
The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is the agency who is in charge of Missouri’s
State Parks. Like the Dept. of Conservation (MDC), DNR’s purpose is set forth in the
Missouri Constitution. However, their mission is very different. The State Park division of
DNR’s main responsibilities are the administration of the Missouri state park system, and
coordination of statewide programs in the areas of outdoor recreation and trails. The
mission of the state park system is to preserve and interpret the state's most outstanding
natural landscapes and cultural landmarks, and to provide outstanding recreational
opportunities compatible with those resources. Unlike MDC’s mission, our recreation is
one of their main concerns. This is why, for quite a while now, some of the best trail and
camping facilities are found in Missouri’s State Parks.
Now, if you want to be able to ride safely during the hunting seasons, you can choose to
ride on the equestrian trails in the State Parks because all are usually closed to hunting so
they are the safest places to go. Once in a while they will have special hunts, at which time
they will close the park for safety reasons. For more information on special hunting days at
any State Park you are interested in, keep checking this website. I will list special hunt dates
and places under the Temporary Closures section. Please remember, however, that
privately owned property often surrounds our state parks and if an equestrian trail passes
close to the boundary of the park, there is still a slight hazard to keep in mind.
Missouri State Park equestrian trails are all open year-round except Rock Bridge State
Park which is only open June 1 through October 31. The water is turned off at the
campgrounds in most parks during the winter off season, so you must keep that in mind if
you camp with your horses then. They do have some of the best equestrian camping
facilities, including some electrical hookups. They have no day use fees, but do charge
camping fees. You can make reservations if you’d like, by visiting their website at: www.
mostateparks.com or by calling toll-free 1-877-422-6766.
Some of the State Parks have Wild Areas, which are similar to Wilderness Areas, but
smaller. Wild Areas restrict motorized vehicles so if a trail goes through one, you won’t find
mountain bike riders there.
Two of these State Parks are monitored daily and their trail condition is taken into
consideration before deciding if they will be open that day for horseback riding. Crowder
State Park will close the trail if it is too wet. You can check it’s status by calling
1-660-359-0900. Rock Bridge State Park does the same and it’s trail condition hotline is
1-573-442-2249.
Lastly, to address the off and on rumors...... The only one I really hear anything about is
Cuivre River State Park. The two things I hear most are that are that it's going to close, or
that the manager there hates horses and horse people. Well, neither one could be farther
from the truth. The actual truth of the matter is that they have been putting in a lot of work
on the trails there. They’ve come a long way from when I was last there riding, about 8
years ago. I’ve been consulting with the Park Manager there quite a bit lately and I don’t
find him to hate us at all. In fact, compared with many of the other trails and parks, they’re
ahead of the game. He has been consulting with myself and a few local equestrians to see
what facilities the equestrians need and what parts of the trail need more maintenance. The
main problem they had there was not knowing what was best, safe, and desired by us since
they are not horse people themselves. In fact, they have recently acquired an equestrian to
be on staff part of the year, specifically because she was a horse owner and trail rider, and I
believe that’s a first for any of the land managers. There are many equestrians that work in
the different land management agencies, but as far as I know, none of them were hired
specifically to work on and for equestrian trails and with equestrians at the park. I hope this
opens the door for others in the future. Like all of the other land management agencies,
Missouri State Parks welcome trail users to help in any way they can to maintain trails. For
more information about adopting a trail or coming out to help on a scheduled workday,
please visit their website.
Babler Trail
Chubb Trail – goes from West Tyson County Park through Castlewood State Park
(no access from Castlewood parking lots because it’s across the
river) and into Lone Elk County Park .
Cuivre River Trail
Cliff Cave Park Trail
Goggins Mountain Trail
Grotpeter Trail
Katy Tail - (Sedalia to Calhoun Section Only)
Lake Wappapello Trail
McAdoo Trail
Mudlick Trail
Peewah Trail
Pike Run Trail
Rock Bridge Trail
Route 66 Trail
St. Joe Trail
Thompson River Trail
Trail of Four Winds Trail
Watkins Mill Trail
National Parks Service
Wilson's Creek Trail
National Wildlife Refuge
Mingo Swamp Road - (Road Riding Only)
Ozark Greenways
Frisco Highline Trail
Ozark Scenic National Riverways
Ozark Scenic Riverways Horse Trail
Ozark Trail
(The Ozark Trail Sections are managed by the land managers that the trail runs through.
Sections that allow horses run mostly through Mark Twain Nation Forest Land. Read the
section about Mark Twain National Forest for more information.)
Between the Rivers Section
Blair Creek Section - (First 8 Miles Only)
Courtois Section – (Except for portion in Huzzah C.A.)
Eleven Point Section
Karkaghne Section
Marble Creek Section
Middle Fork Section
North Fork Section
Taum Sauk – (From Highway A Trailhead to Bell Mountain Wilderness)
Trace Creek Section
Victory Section
Wappapello Lake Section
Scotland County Parks
Lake Showme Trail
St. Charles County Parks and Recreation
Broemmelsiek Park – Partially Open, Remainder Under Development
Indian Camp Creek Park – Partially Open, Remainder Under Development
St. Louis County Parks and Recreation
Fort Bellafontaine Trail
Chubb Trail – goes from West Tyson County Park through Castlewood State
Park (no access from Castlewood parking lots because it’s across
the river) and into Lone Elk County Park .
Cliff Cave Park Trail
Greensfelder Trail
Lone Elk Trail – see Chubb Trail
Lower Meramac
Queeny Park Trail
Sioux Passage Trail
Spanish Lake Trail
West Tyson – see Chubb Trail
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