A Walk in the Woods: Thru-Hiking Missouri’s Rugged, 300-Mile Ozark Trail

I was four days into the trail. The only person I’d seen was the shadowed silhouette of a woman who spoke to me at the McCormack Lake Campground after dark. I was already contemplating bypassing Big Spring Campground because the thought of hiking five miles off the Ozark Trail and then five miles back to the Ozark Trail seemed ridiculous. The trail was sparse in sections, overgrown in others, and hardly ever winding out of the forest. If the Appalachian Trail is a green tunnel, Missouri’s Ozark Trail in October was a gray tunnel with a brown floor and ceiling. And I had 14 more days to go.

A Little Background
The Ozark Trail (OT) contains over 430 miles of trail divided into 14 mostly connected sections throughout southeast Missouri. The established thru-hike covers eight of the connected sections and runs from Onondaga Cave State Park in Leasburg, roughly 84 miles southwest of St. Louis, to the Eleven Point terminus near Thomasville, 23 miles north of the Arkansas border. Throw in the offshoot Taum Sauk section, and you have nearly 300 miles of thru-hikeable trail.

Conceived in 1977, the idea for the OT was to establish a trail system that spans from St. Louis to Arkansas, ultimately connecting to the Ozark Highlands Trail in Arkansas for a roughly 700-mile thru-trail. The OT runs through several land statuses including Mark Twain National Forest, Ozark National Scenic Riverways, Missouri State Parks and Conservation Areas, and private land. The eight sections included in the established thru-hike are Courtois, Trace Creek, Middle Fork/John Roth Memorial, Karkaghne, Blair Creek, Current River, Between the Rivers, and Eleven Point. I added the Taum Sauk section as well, which intersects with the Middle Fork and Trace Creek sections.

Throughout my time hiking in Missouri, I’ve found myself on pieces of the OT when exploring various day hikes throughout the southeast quadrant of the state. It always made me happy to find the small, green and white OT trail blazes in the middle of the woods. Thru-hiking the OT was a bucket-list item, and when I had a three-week window in October last year, I hit the trail.

Planning to Go
Maps from the Ozark Trail Association (OTA) orient the thru-hike going north to south with Mile 0 of each trail section starting at the northern point of that particular section. (The OT’s north-to-south orientation is presumably due to the plan to connect the trail to Arkansas’s Ozark Highlands Trail.) The first section is Courtois, which “starts” at Onondaga State Park.

I live in St. Louis, so instead of walking away from home, it made more sense to me to start at the bottom, the Eleven Point terminus, and hike north. This would also make things easier on my wife, shortening her drive each time she came down to resupply me.

Miles Per Day
Each section of the OT thru-hike is roughly 30 miles, the longest being the Courtois section at 48 miles. Using the Create Custom Maps feature on AllTrails while referencing the OTA section maps, I planned my days based around water sources and potential campsites. The plan was to average 12 to 15 miles per day for 24 days of hiking, which seemed challenging but achievable. Turns out I sold myself short. I ended up averaging 16 to 18 miles per day, with my longest day being 26 miles on the Courtois section (on my penultimate day).

What I came to learn was that as long as the sun was up, I was hiking. Sitting in the woods for a few hours in the afternoon was boring and silly.

My daily routine looked like this:

• 6:45 a.m. Get out of bed.
• 7-8 a.m. Drink coffee and pack up camp.
• 8 a.m. Start hiking.
• 10 a.m. Stop for breakfast (a Mountain House Breakfast Skillet freeze-dried meal).
• 12 p.m. Eat a snack (a Clif Bar and Welch’s Fruit Snacks).
• 2 p.m. Eat another snack (a Clif Bar, Fruit Snacks, and meat stick).
• 4:30 p.m. Find a campsite and set up camp.
• 5:30 p.m. Journal about the day and look at the day ahead.
• 6 p.m. Eat dinner (another Mountain House freeze-dried meal).
• 7 p.m. Build a fire (if a fire ring was present) and watch the stars.
• 8 p.m. Go inside the tent and read until falling asleep.

Water
According to the University of Missouri Climate Center, October 2024 was one of the driest Octobers in the past 25 years. During my 18 days on the trail, October 14 to 31, I was rained on once, my final night. That said, nearly all the water sources marked on the OTA maps came through with water. The only scare I had was on the Karkaghne section at Grasshopper Hollow, where I had to walk deeper into the fen than expected to find a small pool.

All water needs to be treated on the OT. I carried two water treatment systems: a Katadyn BeFree filter, which topped a water pouch, and Aquamira Water Treatment drops, which I put in my one-liter Nalgene. I’d fill up with two liters of water (one liter in each container) that I would drink throughout the day and refill for cooking at night and in the morning.

The upside to a dry October was easier creek crossings with water levels rarely deeper than a foot. The only exception was Courtois Creek on my final day; its water was waist-deep, gifting me a wet butt for the final five miles of my thru-hike. In wetter seasons, I can imagine more of the major creek crossings resembling Courtois Creek.

Camping
The OT does pass by some established campgrounds. Primitive backcountry camping is also allowed in the Mark Twain National Forest, 100 feet from the trail.

In hiking the trail, I learned there is almost always an “established” primitive campsite at water sources and trailheads/intersections. When I say “established,” I’m referring to flat smooth ground, generally with a stone fire ring that’s clearly been used by backpackers in the past.

There were only a few nights when I camped off the trail in spots I found on my own. The AllTrails user community has done a great job of marking campsites as waypoints on each section of trail.

Resupply
The fastest known time (FKT) for a self-supported hike of the 230-mile Ozark Trail backbone (i.e., not including the Taum Sauk section) is 3 days, 14 hours, and 15 minutes, set by Nick Fowler on April 3, 2022. Needless to say, that’s ridiculously fast. If you can cover roughly 33 miles a day, you can complete the OT in seven days without having to resupply. I, my friends, cannot do that, or at least I didn’t think I could when planning. I figured I’d need to resupply three times during my thru-hike.

Unlike the more established thru-hikes around the country — e.g., Appalachian Trail (AT) and Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) — the OT does not go through any towns, nor does it have any official resupply stations along the trail. But the OTA website lists businesses that may serve as resupply options. Based on the route I mapped out, I zeroed in on three potential resupply locations:

1. Van Buren (The Landing motel or Peck Ranch Conservation Area).
2. Black (Brushy Creek Lodge).
3. Taum Sauk Mountain State Park (where I had a friend who would drive down).

My plan was to mail myself packages of food that I had assembled prior to heading out. But then I called The Landing and Brushy Creek Lodge, and neither of those locations would accept and hold my packages. Honestly, the nice people I spoke with on the phone didn’t really seem to have a good concept of what I was asking. I called Peck Ranch Conservation Area four times and left messages; I never heard anything back. I’d later find out that only a handful of rangers are stationed there, and they’re often out in the field.

Charging
My other problem was keeping batteries charged, particularly since I would be filming my entire hike for my YouTube channel. I’m pretty practiced at this, and I would only be using my phone, so I figured one full phone charge would last one day. Keep in mind, I had GPS maps downloaded to my phone, and I’d keep it on airplane mode to conserve battery. That said, I’d still need to recharge the power bricks at some point.

The good news is a few campgrounds have electric hook-ups along the trail (generally for a higher fee). I targeted the campgrounds Big Spring, Sutton Bluff, and Johnson’s Shut-Ins. “But Michael,” you say, “What about solar charging?” I looked into it. The problem is you’re under the tree canopy for 90 percent of the OT. Portable solar chargers are great for open spaces where you can drape the charger and head out with the full sun on your shoulders. But I figured it wasn’t the right tool for the job.

The solution: Have a great support staff. For me it was my wife, who would drive down every five or six days with my premade food buckets. She would book us an Airbnb close to the trail, where I could shower, charge batteries, wash clothes, snack, and sleep in a bed.

For her, it made her feel like she was part of my hike, which she definitely was. Doing this also allowed us to explore some of the smaller Missouri towns that we might not otherwise stop at. We stayed at an Airbnb in downtown Van Buren attached to the Las Margaritas Mexican restaurant, a tiny home at Brushy Creek Lodge in Black (amongst the horses), and an Airbnb in Pilot Knob, where we ate some pretty stellar food at Baylee Joe’s Barbecue.

Trail Review
It’s almost impossible to sum up the entirety of the OT in one article, but I’ll say this: If you’ve ever hiked in one of Missouri’s beautiful state parks in the southeast corner of the state, then you have a good idea of what the trail is like. The Taum Sauk section is a lot like Mina Sauk Falls Trail. The Current River section is a lot like Rocky Falls to Klepzig Mill. The state parks have the highlights. The OT is the connector trail between them all. It’s sparse and lonely in sections, and it’s a lot of what I came to call “woods-walking,” but it’s worth getting out there and exploring a section or even a section of a section. The OT is a pretty special trail system, and it’s out there waiting for you.

Completing the OT
Since I’ve returned, many people have asked how I feel about completing my OT thru-hike. Like the trail, my answer changes every day. The further I get away from the hike, the more fondly I look back on the experience, especially as I relive it by editing all the video footage I captured. It’s certainly an accomplishment I’m proud of and will carry with me for the rest of my life, particularly the ability to plan long-distance solo adventures.

Honestly though, while I was hiking, I was ready for it to be over. The monotony of the brown-tunnel woods-walking started to wear on me. I came to believe that 100 miles (and five to six days) was the ideal long-distance backpacking trip for me.

But now, four months out as of this writing, I’d be happy to do it again. I’d imagine that’s the experience for most thru-hikers. Would I rush to hike the AT? No. The PCT? One hundred percent. There are better views above the treeline.

And Finally
It would be very wrong of me not to thank the OTA, AmeriCorps, and the local trail organizations that fight a never-ending battle keeping the OT maintained and clear of downed trees. Add to that the rangers of Missouri State Parks, Missouri Department of Conservation, and the National Park Service. Lastly, thanks to everyone who gets out there and enjoys the trail, whether as hikers, backpackers, mountain bikers, or equestrians. It gets better when it’s used and respected. Remember, leave no trace.

***

OT Superlatives
Because it’s easy and fun, here’s a “best of” list to get you started on the Ozark Trail.

Best Section: Taum Sauk (also the most rugged and physically demanding).

Best Out-and-Back Backpacking Stretch: Powder Mill to Peck Ranch on the Current River section (OTA map miles 0-14).

Best Lake: McCormack Lake on the Eleven Point River section.

Best Creek/River: East Fork Black River crossing at Johnson’s Shut-Ins State Park on the Taum Sauk section (accessible via the Shut-Ins Loop Trail at Johnson’s Shut-Ins).

Best Cave/Rock Formations: Onondaga Cave State Park to Bat Cave on the Courtois section (OTA map miles 0-5).

Best Off-Trail Campsite: Bell Mountain: 4.5 miles from the Trace Creek and Taum Sauk intersection at Ottery Creek/Highway A.

Worst Section: Burned Area from Hunter Camp to Peck Ranch on the Current River section (OTA map miles 21-22). So thorny!

To see videos of the author’s OT thru-hike, go here.

Author: Michael Shepherd Jordan is a frequent contributor to Terrain.

Top image: Michael Shepherd Jordan peeks over Mina Sauk Falls in Taum Sauk Mountain State Park. (Michael Shepherd Jordan)