We are looking for a campground that also has float trips there is affordable and family friendly! any infor mation about activities in the are is greatly appreciated.
Meramec river near st louis missouri? What is there to do in this area besides float trips?
4 Responses to “Meramec river near st louis missouri? What is there to do in this area besides float trips?”
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huzzah valley and Garrisons offer packages for camping, float trips and meals. They also have horses that you can rent for trail rides. While you are down in this area you can visit Meremec Caverns, some local wineries and also Meremec Springs park which has a trout hatchery and some great museums. There are also a few places close to Cuba that have country music bands in the evening.
You may want to see Meramac Caverns, which is a privately owned cave you can tour. There is also a campground there. Please note, the river can be dangerous and several people drown there every year. It appears shallow and calm, but is not. It is not clear, either. So — make the cave a side trip, or go to Onandoga Cave instead. Onandoga Cave is much less commercial and is awesome, and is a state park you can check out in the web site for state parks listed in the next paragraph.
Thus, I’m going to suggest that with a family you consider camping on the Black River in Lesterville, Missouri. The Black River is clear, shallow, rock-bottomed (you wear old tennis shoes), and lots of fun! And it is MUCH safer! You can tube, canoe, swim, etc. Wilderness Lodge has a campground, I think, and the web site for the lodge is. You might want to just stay at the lodge itself, which has cabins that are rustic, clean, and comfortable, and there is wonderful food in the lodge — breakfast and dinner are included in the price. Nearby are Elephant Rocks State Park and Johnson Shutins State Park, both of which are on the internet at.
By the way, there is another lodge on the river at Lesterville, called the Black River Lodge. I have never stayed there, but lots of people seem to love it.
Van Buren is also a great place to go. The landing is a restaurant located right on the river that is also a Hotel it’s a very popular place to visit. The Jolly Cone is an outdoor summertime restaurant that many people enjoy. You can also go visit the spring which is beautiful. It is on the current river and there are several camp ground right in that area. In Van Buren you can also drive up to Sky Line Dr. which has an amazing view and if I remember right there is a spa there as well. There are many canoe and tubing places located in town. Lesterville on the Black River is popular as well. Eminence, MO you can go on Jack’s Fork and is also popular for horse back riding. But if you plan on floating it gets shallow in some places so it probably wouldn’t be good unless you plan on taking a canoe. Hopefully, I’ve helped you. Good luck and enjoy.
Huzzah Valley is probably your best bet for an “all inclusive” type place for floating and weekend family activity.
As an alternative to the tourist-trap and often extremely crowded Meremac Caverns, I suggest nearby Onandaga Cave state park. The tour of the main cavern is just as good, if not better than Meremac, and is in more of a “natural” state. Meremac has been “tarted up” for the tourists and in fact has several formations that were ripped out of Onandago and cemented into Meremac when they were both under private ownership.
The Sunday-morning ranger led lantern tour of Crystal Caverns is also excellent!
Camping there is also less crowded.