The Shepherd of the Hills — Attraction in Branson

A friend and I bought a Groupon for the zipline course. After parking in the lot to the right, we went into Aunt Mollies Mercantil to sign the electronic waver and collect the ticket. Walk out of the store to the left, passed the Sweets and Treats follow the cement path down to the right of treat store, followed the stairs on the left and opened the door at the bottom level. We waited for our guides there. There are no lockers so leave your belongings in your car. (You do have a zippered pouch on your gear if you want to bring your phone.) Landon and Sky were our guides, loved them. Very personable and down to earth. First they went over safety instructions and weigh everyone on a scale. We then walked outside to get geared up and go over more safety instructions. We then boarded a train/tram down to the other side of area. We first walked over to an area just passed the ropes course where you do your trial run on a smaller line. We then went over safety and how to sit/ hold your body and where to place both hands, which you use to brake. You need to stand on tippy toes as the instructors link you into the line, or the gear will ride in the wrong places. You will be on high platforms that move the first few lines you ride on, keep in mind there are no railings on any of the platforms. Stay away from the sides and you'll be fine. At the conclusion when you finish the last slide you have a photo opportunity. As you get dropped off and unharnessed, don't forget to leave a cash tip to the instructors, they deserve it.

We loved it, especially the guides Sky and Landon they were great. It took approximately 2 hrs from start to finish. If you are in town and love excitement I would definitely go.

We also enjoyed ice cream at Sweets and Treats, they also have a variety of fudge, drinks, a huge variety of candies, vintage as well. There are 2 areas of indoor tables to enjoy your treats.

After we left there, we went into the mercantile and shopped. There are cool personal style gifts/souvenirs. Both female cashiers were very friendly and helpful.

There is a restaurant on site. There are 2 types of shows a dinner comedy show as well as murder mystery dinner. I am thinking of going to the Murder Mystery dinner this week.

There is also an extreme zip line called vigilante, the highest zipline in MO. This is an indidual ride/separate cost from the zipline course.

There is a great looking 2 seater coaster, Copperhead Mountain Coaster. We didn't get a chance...

For my family, Shepherd of the Hills was an experience that wasn’t horrible but it also wasn’t an experience that we would highly recommend. The park was easy to navigate and clean but we were highly disappointed that we were unable to experience some attractions due to them being closed. When we inquired why those attractions were closed, we were told because they didn’t have enough staff working to keep them open. That would have been nice to know before buying our tickets. The bbq restaurant “Shepherds Grill” was awful. It was literally the worst food I’ve ever eaten. My family spent close to a hundred dollars on a lunch we didn’t even eat. I should have taken pictures to show not only how much food was left at our table when we walked away but also so you could get a true representation of what our food really looked like. I ordered the nacho fries and a side salad. The nacho fries were covered in some type of canned cheese that tasted awful with iceberg lettuce and tomatoes on top. No bacon as the menu stated, which was probably best because I’m sure it wouldn’t have been real bacon. At best they would have most likely been imitation bacon bits anyway. I could have gotten better nachos from a 7-11 gas station. My salad was not Romain lettuce, it did not have half the toppings the menu said it would. No carrots, cheese, onions. Just iceberg, tomato and cucumbers that tasted like soap. I’m not sure what brand of ranch your company buys but it was sour and so thick it didn’t dress my salad. Two of my grandkids got the nuggets. The nuggets were chewy and grey. We weren’t even sure if the nuggets were even chicken. My daughter had the grilled chicken salad. It was the same experience as my salad. Just so subpar. Our other two meals were the mini corn dogs. They were cold and also grey. Maybe even freezer burnt. The absolute best part of our meal was the Coke Zero from the fountain machine. This was a highly disappointing experience. The ticket price for the park is reasonable but the attractions we didn’t get to experience and the grill experience took more away from our overall experience than...

Interesting location and story, based on a novel written in 1907 and reflective of the Ozarks in the late 1800's. We purchased tickets for dinner and the Shephard of the Hills show, arriving an hour prior to dinner time. The woman at the ticket counter was not helpful and provided bad information. We asked about the shuttle to the play and she told it was only available if someone in our party needed help. That is false and everyone seeing the show (located a drive from the dinner location) takes the shuttle. They also didn't provide information as to what there was to see during our time before dinner. After wandering, we finally came upon the historic buildings which were from late 1800 homesteads. Very interesting and recommended. See photos in this post!

Dinner was served inside with seating facing the stage. Food was mediocre (not unexpected) and served from large tubs. Dinner consisted of chicken breast (mine was very dry), BBQ pulled pork, mashed potatoes, creamed corn and string beans (too much pepper for my taste). Dessert was a small cup of apple crumble. The best part of dinner was the show, an entertaining bluegrass band. I really enjoyed both the music and the comic relief.

For the show, there are assigned seats at their outdoor theater. We attended in mid-October and wished we had brought a blanket. It was pretty cold and dipped into the high 50's. The show, itself was interesting with a couple of storyline. I think the story could have been streamlined a little as it didn't end until nearly 10pm and dragged at some points. The show includes a 15 minute intermission and a patriotic pre-show with horses and flags. The audience is invited to the outdoor stage area during both intermission and after the show.

Overall, this was an interesting evening with a good show. The stage snd seating worked well and seeing livestock was fun. I think some details that were likely in the novel could be pulled out of the show to keep the audience's interest and tell a more concise story. Children would have a difficult time sitting through the...