Labarque Creek Conservation Area — Attraction in Meramec Township

Tickets. No, no tickets. It's not Yosemite.

We hiked the trail. It's roughly 2-1/2 miles and being in the Ozarks there's a fair bit of elevation change. Except for one spot (later) I wouldn't call it particularly strenuous but it's not a walk in the park. I don't like having anything in my hands while hiking but there are steep spots where hanging onto trees is helpful and a couple others where I might've appreciated a hiking stick because there weren't any trees handy. There are places you have to LOOK for the trail; they don't have blazes for you to follow. There are occasional markers with mileage on them, and one that points you back to the parking lot in case you're bewildered.

Of particular note is exposed weathered rock everywhere, bare to bedrock ravines polished by running water, and (overgrown but still recognizable) glades. Lots of lichens. We weren't trying to be stealthy and didn't see much wildlife. Red squirrel, look well-fed. I bet there's turkey; there's enough water around. This year seems to be a very good acorn year. Deer hunting will be a challenge. In this Conservation Area, archery only, and recovering a down animal could be downright difficult due to the rugged terrain. If you want to see wildlife bring a day pack with food and water, low power binoculars, even a stool, slow way down and spend several hours.

Near the end of the loop, the trail appears simply to end at a ravine that had some water in it even though it hasn't rained in weeks. Well, it isn't ended -- you really do need to cross the ravine and the trail picks up again on the other side -- you just don't see it at first. I (60+ year old man) made it to the bottom of the ravine on my feet but my less confident brother came down on his seat. On the other side there's a not-too-steep part of the bank to climb out of the ravine. Sure enough, there's the trail again. Water was flowing under cobble, but we didn't get our feet wet. A bridge here would be welcome, but for now you get the "Natural Area" experience. From this point you can see the parking lot and the bridge across the big stream, but to my brother's amazement the trail headed uphill again and AWAY from the parking lot. NOO!!!!! Well yes. It's at least another quarter mile, half of it uphill and pretty steep: you were in a ravine after all. Subtracting out the time I spent looking for the trail because it couldn't possibly just END here, it took a bit more than two hours to hike it. I was pretty stiff getting out of the car when I got home. We're both still feeling it but it's all good.

So...

This was a great place to spend a couple of hours this morning. The 3-mile loop trail takes you through ever-changing scenes from the bottom of the ridge around to the top and then back down the other side. It took me just over an hour and a half, but then I went very slowly, checking everything out.

I was there just after sunrise in early April, and I saw no animals, but heard plenty of birds (and faraway trains and roosters from the nearby farm!). There were a lot of interesting mosses, fungi, lichen and small spring flowers. At the top of the ridge, just before the path started to go back down, there was a whole expanse of large moss-covered boulders. Granite? Dolomite? Whichever, I was quite surprised to see this, and I think the hike would be worthwhile just to see them.

The trail was well marked (and easy to follow because it was a loop), but also well-maintained and defined. There are no "sweeping vistas" once you get to the top of the ridge, because you don't go all the way to the top, but it is quite a nice hike.

There were several places where the trail got muddy from where a trickle of water or a small stream passed over it, but nothing was impassible, although I would suggest hiking boots or, at the very least, athletic shoes for this hike. There were some steep areas, some flat areas, you walk over roots, on flat rocks, on dirt, and, all in all, it was a pretty decent workout.

You actually only get near Labarque Creek at the very beginning (and end) of the trail, and even then you have to go off on a small side loop (just after the first bridge). The creek runs along one side of the park, but there are many small streams within the conservation area that flow into the creek.

There are no restroom facilities, but there are plenty of places to stop along Highway 109 before you get there, if you come from Highway 44. The Friends of Labarque Creek installed two very nice benches, so you can have a picnic there, but please, carry out what you have carried in!

This would be a good park to link other sights in the area for a nice day trip: Don Robinson State Park, The Black Madonna Shrine and Grottoes, and Young Conservation Area. Even just driving around various county roads was quite...

This park is certainly a hidden gem in an area with a good amount of state parks to explore. This one's a bit more off the beaten path, and would be VERY easy to miss. The parking lot is a nondescript gravel area with some benches and wildflowers.

The trail is a pretty long loop, so be ready to commit! There's a good amount of hills and descents, along with an array of scenic views. I'd highly recommend going a few days after a good rain. Plenty of water features that were, unfortunately when we went, pretty much dry. There are some spots with poison ivy growing right up against the trail, so pants or a good eye...