Horseback riding
Eminence is home of the “Nation’s largest organized Trail Rides.” Local stables offer rental horses for short rides, pack trips for several days, or weeklong trail riding events.
Golfing
Our scenic 9-hole Roy L. Beck Municipal Golf Course is enjoyable for all and yet challenging enough for the seasoned golfer. Course also has a driving range and two miles of hiking trails.
Wild Horse Viewing
The Ozark National Scenic Riverways is home of the only two Wild Horse herds in the Midwest. The Missouri Wild Horse League was formed in 1992 to protect and maintain a small band of wild horses, approximately 20, which roam the lands surrounding the Current and Jack’s Fork Rivers in Shannon County.
Twin Pines Conservation Education Center
Twin Pines offers opportunities for hiking, bird watching, and nature photography. Youth fishing clinics and other nature related activities
Eagle Falls Ranch Zip Line
Missouri’s first zip line canopy tour adventure. Located on the Jacks Fork River.
Hiking
Eminence offers many beautiful places to hike suited for outdoor enthusiasts of all levels. Wildflowers are at their height at the beginning to mid-July and Fall offers extraordinary colors and sights to take in.
Missouri’s Ozark Trail is an outstanding resource for hikers, backpackers, and mountain bikers. In 1977, a group of people comprised of land managers, trail users and private landowners envisioned a long distance trail beginning at Castlewood State Park (near St. Louis), traversing southwestward through Missouri’s most scenic areas and connecting with the Ozark Highlands Trail at the Arkansas border. Today 300 miles of the Ozark Trail are completed including an eastern loop that traverses through the scenic St. Francois Mountain region (the oldest mountain range on the North American continent). The Ozark Trail is for families, groups and individuals of all ages. It can be walked for as little as an hour with no specialized equipment or for several days with sophisticated backpacking gear. Historically, the trail was developed for hikers, backpackers and horseback riders, but now there are also sections open for mountain bike use.
Maps and brochures of the completed trail sections are available from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources Ozark Trail Coordinator by calling 1-800-334-6946. Or you visit the Ozark Trail Association site by clicking on the picture at the right. This site offers maps for all trail sections in several printing formats and up-to-date information about the trail progress. (300 miles)
City of Eminence Walking Trails – As part of the Eminence City Golf Course, over 2.4 miles of walking trails are offered for your use, free of charge. These trails range from a short level loop (3/8 of a mile) to longer distances of 1 or 2 miles, with shorter distances in between. The walking surfaces range from wood chips to limestone chat and paved asphalt. You can enjoy the beauty of nature while still traveling on safe, maintained paths.
Alley Overlook Trail – Begins right outside the door of the Alley Mill. This steep trail takes you to an overlook where you can look down into the Alley Spring. Can be combined with the Spring Branch Trail for a nice nearly one mile loop. One way trail. (1.5 miles)
Alley Spring Branch Trail – Begins with a nice walk around the Alley Spring, follows the spring branch back to the parking lot. One-way trail. (0.3 miles)
Big Spring Branch Trail – Begins with a loop around the Big Spring and follows the spring branch to the bridge. One way trail, moderately rocky. (0.3 miles)
Blue Spring Trail – Begins at the Powder Mill campground and leads to the beautiful Blue Spring. Powder Mill is about 14 miles east of Eminence on Route 106. One way. (0.5 miles)
Lick Log Trail – Located on Fox Pen Road (County Road 205) about two miles north of Eminence on Route 19. Stay to the right on Fox Pen Road. A nice loop trail maintained by the Missouri Conservation Department. (1 mile)
Fishing
The trophy trout section of the Current River extends from Montauk State Park to the Cedar Grove Campground. Trout under 15″ must be released and the daily limit is 3 fish. Rainbow and brown trout, some exceeding 8 pounds, are caught from this section of the river every year. Only artificial lures are permitted for trout fishing, soft plastic may not be used.
The Current and Jacks Fork Rivers are nationally acclaimed smallmouth bass fishing streams. On the Jacks Fork River, the 25 miles from Highway 17 bridge to Highway 106 bridge at Alley Spring has been designated as a trophy smallmouth bass area by the Missouri Conservation Department with only one 18 inch bass allowed per fisherman, per day. Fishing opportunities increase on the Current River with a larger volume of water, and you can find smallmouth, largemouth, Kentucky spotted bass, chain pickerel, and an occasional walleye. For the panfish fisherman, there are goggle-eye and punkin seeds in both rivers. These species are seasonally nomadic, and the best way to hunt for them is in a boat or a canoe. Spinning tackle is the most common fishing method on these popular rivers, but many fly fishing enthusiasts work them with fly rods and tackle.
People have been gigging fish on the Current and Jack’s Fork Rivers for many centuries and the tradition is still carried on today. In the early days, giggers used lighted pine knots to see suckers on the bottom of the river at night. These two crystal-clear rivers are home to a great population of smallmouth bass besides suckers. Although you can gig suckers in the daytime, you actually can see the fish better at night. The well-camouflaged suckers stay on the bottom, and you only can see them when they move. Presently, Missouri’s gigging season for fish in streams and impounded waters runs from Sept. 15 through Jan. 31.
*Fishing license is required.
Hunting
Public hunting lands abound in the Ozark National Scenic Riverways, and on Missouri Conservation Department and National Forest Service lands. Hunting has a strong tradition in the Ozarks and it is extremely popular due to the wooded hills that cover a great part of this area.
Deer populations remain high. During deer season, friendships are rekindled and families are reunited. There is an annual migration of hunters to the deer woods and deer camps, and every hunter in the region is stirred by this ritual. The rut falls during deer season, and due to the rough terrain, the most common hunting methods are stand hunting and still hunting.
Turkey populations are at historical averages. The pursuit of wild turkeys in the area is second only to deer season and local hunters and enthusiasts from the lower 48 states come to the Ozarks to hunt them every year. These shy birds are vulnerable early in the season before they get together with harems of hens, but they are very difficult to harvest afterwards. Calling is the most popular method for hunting wild turkeys.
The terrain and vast woodlands support a good small game population. Squirrel and rabbit populations ebb and flow, but we generally have a good population of both. Watch for squirrels along the wooded creek and river bottoms. Rabbits can be found in the edge habitat found near brushy fields, broken woodlots and borders. Like the rest of the Ozarks, our quail population is at a low level. But, there is a national trend to reestablish quail habitat and it is just a matter of time until they return to the forefront in small game hunting communities.
*Hunting permit is required.
For more information visit The MO Dept. of Conservation Hunting Page.
Bicycling
Explore the Ozarks on a mountain bike! See spectacular wilderness beauty off the beaten path. Eminence is a main stopover point for the “Bicycling Across America Tour.
All information on this page was obtained from the Eminence Chamber of Commerce website.
Please call us at 573-226-2222 for questions or more information.
Springs, Caves, & Historic Sites
Alley Spring
With its beautiful turquoise water, Alley Spring has a 100 year old grist mill which you can tour. The mill is open daily from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. from Memorial Day through Labor Day. Stop in for an up close look at one of the Ozarks’ most famous landmarks. There is no charge, but donations help offset operating costs. Located six miles west of Eminence, Missouri, on State Highway 106. Books and postcards may be purchased at the mill. The mill machinery is no longer operational, although restoration efforts are underway.
Alley was home, farm, and school for people who lived here a century ago.
Dances, baseball games, and roller-skating were all part of Alley’s busier days. The first mill was built in 1868. A post office was established, named after a prominent local farming family, Alley. From that day to this, the area has been known as Alley Spring, Alley Mill, or just plain Alley. The present building was constructed during 1893-1894 by George Washington McCaskill as a merchant mill. With a turbine rather than a water wheel, and with rollers rather than stone grist stones, it was considered to be very “high tech” for its day. It served the needs of the local community by processing the farmers’ grain. Originally unpainted, it was first painted white with green trim, then later the famous red color associated with Alley Mill today.
Story’s Creek School
Story’s Creek one-room schoolhouse is located within walking distance of Alley Mill, six miles west of Eminence, Missouri on State Route 106. Schoolhouse is open on summer weekends. Grounds always open, but access into the school is limited. Alley’s school in 1903 had an enrollment of 42 students. Church services were also held at the schoolhouse. Open From the last week in May through the first week in September, Friday and Saturday, 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Located adjacent to Alley Mill.
Round Spring
Round Spring is located approximately 13 miles north of Eminence on Highway 19. The spring flows into an almost perfectly circular cavern that has collapsed, and from there it travels through a natural tunnel before it emerges into the spring branch. It is believed that a portion of the spring’s recharge area is to the northeast of Spring Valley, which means that the water would have to flow under the Current River to reach the spring. Round Spring was also one of the first parks in the Missouri state park system (1932). The Round Spring State Park was incorporated into the Ozark National Scenic Riverways in 1972.
Round Spring Cave
Round Spring Cave is heavily decorated with formations and the National Park Service conducts daily tours by lantern, that take about two hours. Tours operate Memorial Day – Labor Day.
Big Spring
This is the largest spring in Missouri and the largest freshwater spring in the United States. On an average day, around 278 million gallons of water gush forth from subterranean passages, swelling the nearby Current River. Experiments in which harmless dye is placed into the ground have shown that water travels from as far as 45 miles away through underground passages before surfacing at Big Spring.
Blue Spring
This is one of Missouri’s deepest springs and is located approximately 12 miles east of Eminence on Highway 106. The spring flows slowly from a very deep cave shaft that is situated at the base of a dolomite bluff.
Rocky Falls
Nine miles southeast of Eminence on Highway NN is one of the finest examples of this geology in the state, Rocky Falls Shut-in. Rocky Falls is an impressive, steep cascading waterfall that pours into a large pool of water. There are parking and picnic areas available right by the water. This is a great place to have a picnic and explore the waterfall area and do some day hiking. One section of the Ozark trail hikes right past the falls.
Welch Spring
Welch Spring is located approximately 2 miles north of Akers on Highway K and is the fifth largest spring in Missouri. The spring flows from the base of a wooded dolomite hill near the historic Welch Hospital, and then flows to the river over a rock impoundment. Thomas Welch homesteaded Welch Spring, in 1855, and a gristmill was run on the spring-branch until nearly 50 years after the Civil War.
An Illinois doctor named C.H. Diehl purchased the spring and the area surrounding the spring in 1913 for eight hundred dollars. Dr Diehl believed that the spring water had healing properties and that cool, pollen free air coming from the adjacent cave would be beneficial for people with asthma, emphysema, and tuberculosis, which was called “consumption.” After Dr. Diehl’s death the property, including the hospital and spring, were sold to a group of people who managed it as a trout fishing resort; until it was purchased by the National Park Service in 1967.
Akers Ferry
Akers Ferry, located 30 miles outside of Eminence is the last ferry operating in the Ozark National Scenic Riverways. The ferry has been providing transportation across the Current River to vehicles for around 50 years and is a unique part of Ozark history. This ferry is a throwback to the days when not all rivers were crossed by bridges. The ferry costs $4 and operates during daylight hours.
Pulltite Spring & Cabin
Pulltite Spring is located close to Pulltite campground, about 14 miles north of Eminence off of highway EE. The Spring branch carries a daily flow of 38 million gallons from Pulltite Spring into the Current River. The spring flows from the rock structures at the bottom of a cliff forming a small pool. Pulltite Spring gained its name from the “tight pull” of the horse drawn teams down a steep hill next to the mills that were positioned on the spring-branch. The spring was purchased by St Louis businessmen in 1911 and was run as a fishing resort, until the area was acquired by the National Park Service in 1967.
The Pulltite Cabin is across the river from the campground, next to Pulltite Spring and the only way to see the cabin is by use of a boat or by wading across the river. It was built as a vacation lodge by the six man “Pulltight Corporation,” which was created to develop the cabin into a retreat facility. The cabin was completed on the day before Thanksgiving in 1913 and is open for your exploration. The National Park Service hopes to restore it to its former beauty.
Scenic Highway 19
Scenic Highway 19, the first so designated by the Missouri Legislature, goes right through the heart of the Ozark Heritage Region, an area characterized by clear, spring fed streams. Missouri 19 starts near the Arkansas border around Thayer, runs right through the town of Eminence and ends near Hannibal. To the citizens of Eminence, Scenic Hwy 19 is known as Main Street!
Cave Spring & Devils Well
Cave Spring, located on the Current River, has a long history of usage as a fishing, picnicking and canoe rest spot, but has never been commercially developed. The spring rises a short canoe paddle into a large cave opening on the Current River, from a vertical shaft 140 feet deep. The spring itself is a favorite fishing spot. During underwater survey, a Native American dugout canoe was discovered on the bottom of the spring.
One of the recharge areas for Cave Spring has been traced to Devil’s Well. Located off Route KK near Akers, this is a sinkhole opening into an underground lake larger than a football field! A steep, gravel road leads to Devil’s Well, where visitors may look through the karst window to the water from a viewing platform. In the late 1960’s, Devils Well was mapped by Ozark Spring Studies, an effort which required 62 weekends of trips by divers, cavers and mappers. Devils Well was purchased by the National Park Service in 1974.
Jam Up Cave
The incredible “doorway” to Jam Up Cave stands eight stories tall and is more than 1,000 feet across. Due to the indirect light reaching deep into this North-facing opening and the large lake within the cave, conditions are perfect for preservation of plant species that have not been seen elsewhere in the Ozarks since the last Ice Age. Access to the cave is only by canoe from the Jacks Fork River. Follow the path about half way up the bluff and you will find the entrance to this long cave.
Two Rivers
Two Rivers is the point in which the Jack’s Fork River runs into the Current River. This is located 8 miles east of Eminence. Take Hwy 106 five miles to Hwy V, turn left and go three miles to the end of the blacktop. A short way downstream is an old ferry crossing.
All information on this page was obtained from the Eminence Chamber of Commerce website.
