Float Camping in Missouri Is an Art. Here’s How to Master It.

I had spent the majority of my life enjoying outdoor pursuits. From childhood into adulthood, I went camping, floating, fishing, hiking, biking, and scrambling with family and friends, so I thought I had checked every box required to be considered a proper outdoorsy Midwesterner. That is, until my future wife, who is a native Californian, asked if I had ever been float camping.

Excuse me, what?

I had not ever been float camping. I didn’t even know that was a thing I could do. Suddenly, with that one simple query, I was questioning if my entire outdoorsy life up to that point had been a lie. Why had I not been float camping? It combined two of my favorite outdoor pastimes: floating along a river and camping on riverbanks. So, we quickly made plans to change that.

My first time float camping was revelatory. For anyone that has not experienced a summertime multi-day float trip, it goes a little something like this: Float along leisurely, stop to swim when you get too hot, stop for a shore lunch and maybe even a little nap, float along for a couple more hours, and then start scanning the riverbanks for a suitable home for the night. Once you find your spot, unpack, build your tent and campfire, explore a little bit, swim a little bit, eat dinner, and fall asleep to the sounds of riffling water a few yards away and whippoorwills calling somewhere off in the valley. Then, you wake up as the fog lifts from the river, make coffee and breakfast, pack everything up, and hop back in your canoe. Rinse and repeat until you reach your takeout. What’s not to love?

Getting Your Paddle Wet
One of our favorite spots for multi-day float camping trips is the Upper Current River near the town of Salem in southeastern Missouri. If you, dear reader, have not yet float camped, consider this the perfect place to get your paddle wet.

The Upper Current River is one of America’s clearest and most beautiful spring-fed rivers and makes up half of the Ozark National Scenic Riverways (ONSR), the first national park area to protect a wild river system (the 44-mile Jacks Fork River makes up the second half of the ONSR). The floatable portion of the Current begins just two miles outside the boundaries of Montauk State Park at the Baptist Camp Access and winds 138 miles through a landscape of rugged hills and towering bluffs, showcasing the astounding natural beauty of Missouri’s Ozarks before it flows into Arkansas roughly six miles south of Doniphan.

However, for float camping, the best experience would arguably be from Cedar Grove (eight miles downriver from Baptist Camp) to Round Spring, a 25-mile trip that is best enjoyed across three leisurely days and two nights.

Getting Started
The way I see it, you can approach the act of float camping in one of two ways:

One, you can float camp as one might on a backpacking or bikepacking trip — sparsely, with only the bare minimum of gear.

Or, two, you can float glamp and bring a comically large array of gear: two tents (one to sleep in and one to store stuff in overnight), two foam camp pads for ground cover, two layers of memory foam, a flannel sleeping bag to spread over the memory foam, a blanket and/or down comforter, two pillows, firewood, camp chairs, fly rods and tackle, two large coolers (one for food and bevies and one for dry storage — pots, pans, propane, cookware, coffee, etc.), two duffel bags with changes of clothes stuffed into dry bags, and every other convenience one might like to enjoy while on the river. Plus, the essentials like sunscreen, hats, sunnies, a trowel for digging cat holes, toilet paper to put in the cat holes, a first-aid kit, and flashlights/headlamps.

That is our packing list. And, I know what you’re thinking: That’s a ton of stuff. Indeed. But it’s incredibly comfortable. And the shuttle drivers find it amusing. We hope.

Pro tip: My wife and I always use two canoes (a his and hers, if you will) and split all our stuff between the two boats for better weight distribution and peace of mind. At one point, we had heard the fastest way to end a relationship is to share a canoe, so we decided it was better to be safe than sorry.

Boats in the Water
Our go-tos for the Upper Current are Jadwin Canoe Rental in Jadwin, Akers Ferry Canoe Rental in Akers, and Carr’s Canoe Rental at Round Spring near Eminence. Each place offers canoe and kayak rentals as well as shuttle services.

Once you arrive at your choice of canoe livery, you’ll check in at the office, transfer all your gear to the back of the shuttle van or bus, and then you’ll be on your way to Cedar Grove Access.

If you’re anything like me, the shuttle ride will be fraught with anxiety. Do we have everything? Is there anything I forgot to pack? What’s the river going to be like this time? Are there any sticky points we need to know about? But once we push our canoes out into the clear, cool water and paddle around the first bend, all the stress and worry tend to lift like the morning’s fog.

The Flow State
Given that the stretch from Cedar Grove to Round Spring is roughly 25 miles, we typically aim to break the trip up into three eight-mile days, though that’s more of a guideline than a rule. If we get a late start on the first day, maybe we’ll only cover four to six miles before making camp. If so, the second day may end up being a 10- to 14-mile day to compensate. And, on the third and final day, we paddle whatever distance is left to paddle. We like to take our time and soak in the scenery and the experience, so there is no rigid schedule on the water. Otherwise, we’d miss some of the incredible hallmarks of this famed stretch of river.

It doesn’t take long for the scenery to impress. Towering bluffs, natural springs, woodlands, and an abundance of wildlife are everywhere. Within one mile of the put-in, Big Creek feeds into the Current. A little over three miles into the float, tucked away in a streamlet to the right, is Medlock Spring, a cascading waterfall descending down a rocky, moss-covered hillside from a spring in the side of the hill about 20 feet up. You can paddle back into the small cove and climb up to the spring source, but be careful — the water is cold, and it’s slippery.

About a mile later downstream, you’ll hear and then see a torrent of water rushing into the river from the left. This is Welch Spring, the sixth-largest spring in the state, pumping out 105 million gallons of water per day. As you get closer, you notice the stone skeleton of the ruined Welch Hospital situated at the mouth of Welch Spring, which was believed to help cure consumption in the early 1900s. You can walk about on the grounds and explore the ruins, but no swimming, wading, or fishing is allowed in the spring.

Akers Ferry Access is located another three miles down from Welch Spring and offers a camp store, restrooms, and a public telephone at the adjacent Akers Ranger Station. Unfortunately, the ferry no longer shuttles vehicles across the river, but some of the ferry structure is still there.

A must on this stretch is paddling into Cave Spring, which is located five miles below Akers (or 13 miles below your put-in at Cedar Grove). Cave Spring is situated to your left on a sharp cut in the riverbank with bluffs to the left and above the mouth of the cave. The water at the back of the cave is 120 feet deep and comes from the nearby Devil’s Well sinkhole. You can also moor your canoe along the bank of the cut and walk the well-beaten path into the cave.

Another five miles downriver, you’ll float past Pulltite Access on your left, another designated campground and Ranger Station. But the real treat is Pulltite Spring, a mile down on the opposite side of the river. At Pulltite, you should moor and take the hiking path back to Pulltite Spring, passing the remnants of a French-style log cabin built in the early 1900s. The iridescent waters of the spring rush through a verdant woodland and over pale green aquatic plants, pushing millions of gallons of cold water into the larger Current.

Not too long after Pulltite (another five miles), you’ll find an array of stone retaining walls and an encampment of matching gray cabins and outbuildings with dark gray exteriors and white trim to your left. This is Current River State Park, a charming day-use park that features hiking trails, picnic areas, and two lakes. It also signifies your journey is nearly complete, having covered 22 of the 25 river miles.

Making Camp
Making camp can be a critical part of the experience. We always look for sand (preferably) or gravel bars that offer a relatively flat area for pitching our tents. More than likely, if a spot looks good to you, it has appealed to others before you, and often you’ll find something of a premade campsite with a rock fire ring and a nice area for your tent.

Then comes the fun part — unloading the canoes and setting up camp. While it can be tedious, it doesn’t take long for the riverbank to feel homey.

This is the time when our gluttonous packing really pays off. When it comes to camp food, no hot dogs or canned soup for us. We generally have some fancy pre-made meals that we warm up over the fire and enjoy with our favorite riverside beverages (cold beers, boxed wine, or premixed cocktails). We eat, do our dishes, bathe in the river, and sit around the campfire until we decide it’s time to go to bed. Then we retreat to our tent, which, with all the bedding we bring along, feels just as comfortable as our bedroom back home. If you laughed incredulously when you first read our packing list, I get it. However, if you lay down in our tent, you wouldn’t find it funny — you’d have the best night of camping sleep you’d likely ever experience. It sure beats sleeping on the hard, bumpy ground. You can thank us later.

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More Rivers for Float Camping

The Eleven Point National Wild & Scenic River consists of 44 miles of pristine natural beauty and some of the loveliest wild springs in the state. Highlights of the Eleven Point include Greer Spring, Turner Mill, Boze Mill Float Camp, and The Narrows. The Eleven Point has several gravel bars for camping and seven designated float camps managed by Mark Twain National Forest.

The North Fork of the White River is another Ozark stream gem. While not federally protected, it is nationally renowned for its wild population of rainbow trout. The North Fork begins near Mountain Grove, Missouri, and flows to Norfork, Arkansas.

The Big Piney River is a highly regarded fishing and recreation river. Its 85-mile stretch features Ozark hallmarks like limestone bluffs and beautiful natural springs.

The Gasconade River is affectionately known by locals as the “most crooked river in the world” and stretches for nearly 300 miles, all within the confines of Missouri’s border.

The Meramec River flows for nearly 200 miles and provides fantastic floating water from just above Meramec Spring Park in St. James to Meramec Caverns in Stanton. This 66-mile section runs along Meramec Spring Park, Meramec State Park, and the famous Meramec Caverns.

The Niangua River is a spring-fed river that stretches roughly 80 miles from Buffalo to Ha Ha Tonka State Park in Camdenton. The 30 miles between the Moon Valley Access and Lead Mine Conservation Area receive the most float traffic and flow along the periphery of Bennett Spring State Park.

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Plan Your Trip
Calling one of the local outfitters is the best way to plan your float camping trip. They will walk you through what to expect and the best times to be on the water, and they can provide essential guidance to ensure your trip is enjoyable. All outfitters offer boats, paddles, life jackets, mesh trash bags, and shuttle services with their rentals. Many also have camp stores where you can purchase any necessary items you might have forgotten at home.

Be sure to check (and recheck) the weather as your float dates approach to pack appropriately. Are storms expected? If so, make sure your camp is set on higher ground and plunge a stick upright in the ground near the water to serve as a gauge in case the river rises.

Author: Kyle Wayne Stewart is a frequent contributor to Terrain.

Top image: Kyle Wayne Stewart.