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Discover Missouri State Parks

Reserve a Campsite

Approximately 3,500 state park campsites are available for reservation at 38 different state parks and state historic sites.

Make a reservation.

Reserve a Lodging Unit

Twelve state parks accept lodging reservation through their concessionaires, while five offer reservations through the Centralized Reservation System. Refer to the information below to make a reservation at the park of your choice.

Make a reservation.

Find a Job with Missouri State Parks

We’re looking for people to join our team who love nature and want to care for Missouri’s outstanding natural and cultural resources for all to enjoy! Check out the current list of open positions within our team. Be sure to sign up to receive updates when a new position is available.

Learn about careers.

Become a Volunteer

Do you love Missouri State Parks and the outdoors?

The Volunteers In Parks (VIP) Program is for everyone: professionals, aging adults, students, teachers, youth and civic groups. VIPs provide invaluable assistance to Missouri State Parks on a wide variety of tasks and projects around the state.

Learn about the VIP Program.

Access Park & Historic Site Maps

Plan your adventure with confidence. View park and historic site maps to navigate trails, facilities, and points of interest across Missouri State Parks.

View the Park and Site Maps.

Explore Upcoming Events

Discover what’s happening in Missouri State Parks. Explore upcoming events that connect you with nature, history, and outdoor adventure through guided hikes, educational programs, and family-friendly experiences.

View upcoming events.

Apply for a Grant

Missouri State Parks administers three federally funded grant programs and one state-funded grant program related to outdoor recreation. It also administers one federally funded grant program related to historic preservation. This page provides basic information about each program.

Learn about grant opportunities.

Purchase a Gift Card

A Missouri State Parks gift card lets you take advantage of a more convenient way to make camping reservations, purchase state park merchandise and give great gifts to your friends. A gift card can be purchased for $10 or more. Physical gift cards purchased online or by phone will be sent by postal mail. Please allow seven to 10 business days for delivery. E-gift cards will sent to the email address on your customer account within 24 hours.

Get gift cards now.

Take a Tour

Visitors to Missouri’s state historic sites have a wealth of experiences awaiting them, from touring Civil War battlefields to seeing the birth sites of Mark Twain and Harry S Truman.

Find a virtual tour.

Find a historic site to tour.

Take a cave tour.

Purchase an ORV Permit - ORV Riding

ORV permits can be bought online for up to three days of riding. Riders can purchase their ORV permit before arriving to the park. Permits are nonrefundable and nontransferable.

Go ORV riding!

Rent a Watercraft - Paddling

Watercrafts are available for all-day and half-day rentals. A watercraft agreement will be completed at the park. A driver's license will be obtained by the park office and kept there until all rented equipment is returned.

Go paddling!

Reserve a Meeting Space

Several parks and historic sites offer meeting spaces. Visit the Park Site & Status Map to decide which space is right for you and use the reservation system to stake your claim on your date.

View the brochure.

Make a Donation

By making a donation, you can personally help us preserve and maintain Missouri's 93 state parks and historic sites. With your help, we can continue to provide the many special places across Missouri that preserve our state's most outstanding natural landscapes and cultural landmarks and provide recreational opportunities.

Make a donation now.

Bring My Pet to Missouri State Parks

Responsible pet owners and their pets are welcome in Missouri State Parks. Following are a few simple rules to ensure that you, your pet and other park visitors enjoy the outing. These rules apply to all types of pets except service animals assisting people with disabilities.

Learn about pet rules.

Buy Missouri State Parks Merchandise

Bring a piece of Missouri State Parks into your everyday life! You can browse our complete selection of items together, or you can shop by category.

Shop now.

Find the Latest News Releases

The department's Office of Communications releases notices to the media throughout the day. These news releases are posted to our website as soon as possible. If you have questions about a specific news release, please email or call the department contact listed in the news release.

View the latest news.

Youth Volunteer Patch Program

Individuals and organized youth groups, such as Scouts, 4-H groups and Future Farmers of America, now have the opportunity to assist with a variety of projects in a state park or historic site to earn patches. This program is open to anyone under the age of 18.

For more information about volunteer opportunities, click here.

How the program works:

  • Youth groups or individuals arrange a work day at a state park or historic site.
  • Upon completion of the project, you will receive a Missouri State Parks Youth Volunteer patch.
  • Each person can complete the program one time.

Benefits

  • You will receive volunteer training, supervision, and the tools and adequate space to do your work well.
  • You will be considered part of the staff and will be given orientation to the park system and trained in park practices.
  • You will spend time at your favorite park while, at the same time, making it a better place for everyone else.
  • You will be asked to perform volunteer tasks to the same standards as paid employees.

Questions / More Information

For more information, contact:
Volunteer Coordinator
573-751-7733 / 800-334-6946
[email protected]

Projects

Below is a list of the possible projects at each state park or historic site.

Arrow Rock State Historic Site, Arrow Rock

  • Trail work
  • Building maintenance (such as cleaning and treating the furniture)
  • Front desk service
  • Painting
  • Pick up brush

Dr. Edmund A. Babler Memorial State Park, Wildwood

  • Litter pickup on trails
  • Deberm trails
  • Honeysuckle, garlic mustard and other invasive species removal
  • Maintain flower beds at visitor center (weeding, watering, etc.)
  • Maintain gravel walkways around monument
  • Reset gravel and landscaping stones at back of visitor center

Sam A. Baker State Park, Patterson

  • Trash pickup in the swimming hole/shut-ins area
  • Exotic species eradication along the bike trail and at the horse camp
  • Special event assistance
  • Graffiti removal from picnic tables
  • Big Creek trash pickup
  • Visitor center assistance
  • Participate in Keep Baker Beautiful Day event

Battle of Athens State Historic Site, Revere

  • Trail work on Snow Trillium Trail – general maintenance/debris removal
  • Trail work on Oxbow Trail at Iliniwek Village State Historic Site – cutting small limbs and debris removal
  • Sweep out six historic buildings

Battle of Lexington State Historic Site, Lexington

  • Gardening
  • Trimming and pruning foliage
  • Splitting rails
  • Staff visitor center
  • Give tours of the Anderson House
  • Assist with programming
    • Could incorporate site’s geocache in GPS program
    • Could incorporate site’s ropewinder in knots and rope work program

Battle of Pilot Knob State Historic Site, Pilot Knob

  • Brogans Trail maintenance
  • Spring cleanup and readying the site for on-season

Bennett Spring State Park, Lebanon

  • Litter pickup in the following areas
    • Three fishing zones
    • Campgrounds
    • Along roads
    • Shelter areas
    • Cabin areas
    • River access

Thomas Hart Benton Home and Studio State Historic Site, Kansas City

  • Rake leaves in the fall
  • Spring cleanup

Big Lake State Park, Craig

  • Debris cleanup
  • Power washing buildings
  • Clean up playground equipment
  • Replace playground border and the level sand
  • Replace boundary signs
  • Clean up and straighten all park signs
  • Painting

Big Oak Tree State Park, East Prairie

  • Trail maintenance: Boardwalk Trail and Bottomland Trail
  • Giant cane planting along the day-use area/natural area boundary
  • Natural area sign replacement/park boundary sign replacement
  • Lake cleanup: debris/trash removal around the lake and cleaning fishing access areas
  • Painting and minor structure repair

Bollinger Mill State Historic Site, Burfordville

  • Assist visitors and staff at special events
  • Clean stream bed
  • Clear vegetation from stream banks
  • Cemetery trail maintenance
  • Clean machinery in mill
  • Site programming – using themes relevent to both the site and their organization

Nathan and Olive Boone Homestead State Historic Site, Ash Grove

  • Maintenance on hiking trails
  • Whitewashing of Boone home and yard fence
  • Setup/take down/parking cars at the Homestead Days Festival in October

Bothwell Lodge State Historic Site, Sedalia

  • Assist with special events
    • Operate concession stand
    • Park cars
    • Maintain trails
      • Trash pickup
      • Sweeping out historic structures along trails
      • Cleaning off bench seats

Castlewood State Park, Ballwin

  • Trail cleanup
  • River access cleanup

Confederate Memorial State Historic Site, Higginsville

  • Cleaning the headstones in the cemetery
  • Policing and cleaning up the playground area
  • Policing and cleaning up the Pergola site

Edward “Ted” and Pat Jones – Confluence Point State Park, West Alton

  • Invasive plant removal (seasonal)
  • Litter collection
  • Restoration planting (seasonal)

Crowder State Park, Trenton

  • Spring cleaning of Camp Grand River in preparation for on-season
  • Spring cleaning of enclosed shelter house for on-season
  • Trail maintenance to include removal of litter, trimming of branches and informing staff of other issues
  • Spring litter cleanup along park roads and along mowed areas
  • Invasive plant removal
  • Assistance with special events
  • Visitor programming such as:
    • Guided hikes
    • Fishing clinics
    • Orienteering
    • GPS
    • Knots and rope work

Cuivre River State Park, Troy

  • Litter patrol
  • Trail work – the park has 36 miles of trail
  • Stewardship projects
    • Evasive species control
    • Seed collection
    • Tree thinning
    • Fish habitat

Current River State Park, Salem

  • Trail renovation
  • New trail construction
  • Exotic species removal

Deutschheim State Historic Site, Hermann

  • Mow lawns
  • Weed site gardens
  • Paint fence
  • Give relevent history program

Dillard Mill State Historic Site, Davisville

  • Trail maintenance
  • Interpretive programs
    Outdoor skills
    Fishing clinics
    Outdoor cooking
    Orienteering
    GPS
    History
  • Huzzah stream cleanup

Elephant Rocks State Park, Belleview

  • Braille Trail - maintenance
  • Engine House Trail – maintenance
  • Spring cleanup and readying the park for on-season
  • Stacking wood
  • Invasive plant removal

First Missouri State Capitol State Historic Site, St. Charles

  • Help with site gardens
  • Help with special event

Graham Cave State Park, Danville

  • Spring cleanup in preparation for the on-season
  • Fall cleanup at end of camping season
  • Trail maintenance
  • Fire line preparation
  • Invasive plant removal
  • Minor maintenance and cleaning
  • Painting
  • Visitor programming, such as:
    • Outdoor skills
    • Outdoor cooking
    • History
    • GPS
    • Guided Hikes

Grand Gulf State Park, Thayer

  • Interpretive programming
  • Trail maintenance
  • Park cleanup
  • Exotic species removal

Ha Ha Tonka State Park, Camdenton

  • Post Office Day-Use Area Grooming
  • Pick up litter along roadsides

Hawn State Park, Ste. Genevieve

  • Trail work – clearing and maintaining trails
  • Install logs (water bars) for erosion control in day-use area
  • Litter pickup
  • Paint and stain bridges/structures
  • Plant willow cuttings along creek
  • Build campsite tent pads
  • Transplant pine trees for restoration (November)

Hunter-Dawson State Historic Site, New Madrid

  • Weeding, cultivating and mulching the flower beds, herb garden and other plants and flowers in the house and office area.

Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park, Middle Brook

  • Clear trails
  • Build trails
  • Work with recycling (sort)
  • Make/set up benches for fire ring
  • Gravel a walkway to the fire ring
  • Make/place posts for Horseshoe Glade Trail podcast
  • Ditch around mosaics
  • Plant/maintain wildflower garden; includes preparing a place/bed for it

Katy Trail State Park – Western Section

Managed out of Knob Noster State Park

  • Spring cleanup and readying the park for on-season
  • Litter patrol
  • Trail duty – walk trail and inform full-time staff of downed trees and any other problems
  • Visitor Programming
    • Invasive Species Detection and Removal – Bush Honeysuckle, Johnson grass, etc.
    • Equestrian Dos and Don’ts - followed by a ride on equestrian section of the trail
    • Bicycle Maintenance 101 followed by a bike ride on the trail
    • Katy Trail State Park history

Knob Noster State Park, Knob Noster

  • Plant/fungus identification and utilization
    • Use MDCs cookbook “Missouri’s Wild Mushrooms” to cook small meal as an example of resource available to visitors
    • Use wild mushrooms found in the park
  • Invasive Species Detection
  • Assist with managed deer hunt
  • Visitor programming
  • Guided hikes – any or all trails, longer hikes could be planned with McAdoo Trail or Opossum Hollow Trail
  • Equestrian Dos and Don’ts followed by a ride on McAdoo Trail
  • Bicycle Maintenance 101 followed by a bike ride on Opossum Hollow Trail
  • Fire building
  • Outdoor cooking – Dutch oven cooking, etc.
  • Orienteering – KNSP has two courses, which would be good for the patch
  • GPS – could be used for a scavenger hunt
  • Leave No Trace – An overnight program could be held in the special-use area
  • Knob Noster SP history – park’s importance to WPA era
    • Spring cleanup and readying the park for on-season
  • Cleaning fire rings in campground
  • Removing large sticks/branches from campground area
  • Detail clean specific buildings, such as showerhouses, visitor center, vault toilets, etc.
    • Stacking wood – for park shop
    • Assistance with a specific area of the park
  • Special-use area: check for litter
  • Lake(s): check for litter
  • Group camp(s): check for litter
    • Invasive plant removal, bush honeysuckle, teasel, etc.
    • Minor maintenance, such as
  • Trail work
  • Basic maintenance/building
  • Trail duty – walk trail and inform full-time staff of downed trees and any other problems
    • Staffing the visitor center: weekends during on-season
    • GPS specific themed sites of interest and create an activity associated with those sites (examples – historical tour of park or a winter GPS trail to areas off the beaten path that have some significance to the park.
    • Equestrian training workshops – leave no trace, guided trail ride with cookout somewhere along the trail
    • Solar energy program – or have a group build some type of equipment
    • Wood working program – building animal houses, then naturalist would do a whole day of wildlife activities
    • Mushroom program

Lewis and Clark State Park, Rushville

  • Litter and debris cleanup on the park grounds
  • General cleanup of campground in the late fall (leaf cleanup, etc.)
  • Spring cleanup and readying the park or the campground for on-season
  • Stacking wood/preparing the campground for on-season
  • Assistance with a specific area of the park as needed
  • Invasive plant removal at the interpretive plaza, bottomland restoration area and native tallgrass prairie
  • Minor maintenance, cleaning and possibly small construction projects
  • Painting
  • Trail work
  • Visitor programming such as
    • Outdoor skills
    • Guided hikes
    • Fire building
    • Outdoor cooking
    • Orienteering
    • GPS
    • Knots and rope work
    • History of Lewis and Clark’s voyage through the area (significance of the park)

Lake of the Ozarks State Park, Kaiser

  • Pick up trash in the campground
  • Pick up trash along lake shore
  • Clean fire rings in campground and Pin Oak Hollow
  • Sort aluminum cans

Lake Wappapello State Park, Williamsville

    • Backpack camp construction and repair existing backpack camps along the backpack trail
    • Retaining wall construction and landscaping at varied locations
    • Trail clearing – 25 miles of trail that could be adopted and the need to clean large amounts of flood debris off of the trails
    • Landscape project to plant trees in campground and mulch around trees
    • Bulletin board construction and placement – use of state park design is required
    • Repaint parking stripes on park’s parking lots
    • Paint jobs
    • Pour a hopscotch play area at the campground
    • Build some benches and have them placed at the appropriate locations in the park (Park must approve design)
    • Repair seats in the amphitheater
    • Roadside cleanup along the route to the park

    Individual Projects:

    • Produce interpretive materials to distribute to the public (for example: Design and make 1,000 buttons to give out on stopping the spread of the emerald ash borer; example 2: Design a park safety coloring book or fishing “how to” coloring book to give to park visitors)
    • Visit the park during each of the seasons and help create a bird list for the park that could be put in checklist format and distributed. Observe and identify all the birds you can during your visits.
    • Design and run a recycling program for our park for one full year (vacation season)
    • Make a display for the park on water safety

Locust Creek Covered Bridge State Historic Site, Laclede

Long Branch State Park, Macon

  • Assist with management of a natural area
    • Invasive species control
    • Seed collection
    • Seed planting
    • Boundary line management
      • Ensure that signs are up
      • Look for encroachment
      • Remove undesirable vegetation

Mastodon State Historic Site, Imperial

  • Invasive plant removal
  • Trail maintenance
  • Assist with interpretive activities in the museum annex (mainly Saturday hours)

Meramec State Park, Sullivan

  • Painting
  • Cleanup an area, such as Cane Bottom
  • Stacking wood

Montauk State Park, Salem

  • Stream cleanup
  • Trash pickup and maintenance along hiking trails
  • Clean the mill
  • Paint buildings
  • Water flowerbeds
  • Help at special events
  • Eradicate invasive species
  • Assist with nature programs
  • Remove branches with hanging line and hooks from stream bank
  • Plant native trees and flowers

Morris State Park, Campbell

  • Trail maintenance: Beech Tree Trail
  • Construct and place bridges/water crossings at points on the trail
  • Tree planting at a small reclamation area
  • Invasive plant species removal

Onondaga Cave State Park, Leasburg

  • Glade restoration
  • Exotic species removal
  • Litter cleanup along highway
  • Wildflower garden work
  • Trail work
  • Cave cleanup
  • Assist with Haunted Cave Tours
  • River bank cleanup

Pershing State Park, Laclede

  • Spring cleanup of the campground – trash removal, cleaning fire rings, trimming limbs, etc.
  • Spring cleanup to open the showerhouse – thorough clean inside and out
  • Spring cleanup of the shelter house – thorough clean inside and out
  • Clean up along the boardwalk – trash removal, trim limbs, minor maintenance, clean displays, etc.

Pomme de Terre State Park, Pittsburg

  • Paint buildings
  • Shoreline cleanup
  • Trail maintenance

Prairie State Park, Mindenmines

  • Improve wet crossings on trails with stones or other means
  • Forb or grass seed collection
  • Keep the picnic area cleaned up
  • Monitor or do light upkeep on trail
  • Catch critters for the nature center – food items for animals already there
  • Pick up trash along county roads and throughout park
  • Assist with Prairie Jubilee or other events
    • Maintain a booth
    • Pick up litter
    • Greet people
    • Take meals and water to stations
    • Do face painting
    • Assist people getting on the trailers for the bison tours

Roaring River State Park, Cassville

  • Paint or stain benches
  • Pick up trash
  • Trail maintenance
  • Campground projects
  • Special event assistance
  • River cleanup

Robertsville State Park, Robertsville

  • Collect nuts from specific oak, hickory, buckeye and walnut trees
  • Plant trees in specific areas of park
  • Invasive plant removal
  • Paint and waterproof park structures
  • Lead guided interpretive hikes
  • Assist with special events

Rock Bridge Memorial State Park, Columbia

  • Invasive plant control
  • Old fence wire removal
  • Assist with programs if youth have applicable skills (e.g., orienteering or GPS)
  • Assist with wildflower seed collection

Route 66 State Park, Eureka

  • Playground and picnic area maintenance
  • Trail maintenance
  • Litter removal
  • Downed limb removal from mowed areas

St. Francois State Park, Bonne Terre

  • Assist with general maintenance
  • Assist in fee booth
  • Mowing and trimming
  • Trash collection and removal
  • Trail maintenance
  • Removal of invasive yucca in fen area
  • Assist naturalist with interpretive programs
  • Assist with restoring glade

St. Joe State Park, Park Hills

  • Pick up litter
  • Minor cleaning of restrooms
  • Trail work

Stockton State Park, Dadeville

  • Trail construction (pending clearance)
  • Lakeshore cleanup
  • Clean up special-use area (remove downed wood and improve area)

Table Rock State Park, Branson

  • Litter cleanup in campground and on shoreline of Table Rock Lake
  • Invasive plant removal
  • Trail work on the White River Valley or Table Rock Lakeshore trails

Thousand Hills State Park, Kirksville

  • Litter removal
  • Lake cleanup
  • Trail work
  • Invasive plant removal
  • Projects with park naturalist

Trail of Tears State Park, Jackson

  • Litter patrol
  • Trail building/maintenance
  • Invasive species removal
  • Interpretive programs (with appropriate training)
  • Special event assistance

Harry S Truman Birthplace State Historic Site, Lamar

  • Pick up litter
  • Water flowerbeds
  • Sweep sidewalks
  • Wash outside windows in historic home

Harry S Truman State Park, Warsaw

  • Shoreline cleanup
  • Trail maintenance
  • Paint buildings

Mark Twain State Park/Mark Twain Birthplace State Historic Site, Florida

  • Count firewood
  • Load recycled materials
  • Spring cleanup of buildings and grounds
  • Invasive plant removal
  • Painting
  • Trail work
  • Staff museum
  • Campsite rehab
  • Vehicle maintenance(cleaning, checking fluids, etc)

Annie and Abel Van Meter State Park, Miami

  • Assist at special event programs
  • Do research for a temporary exhibit
  • Maintain fire lanes
  • Maintain trouble spots on the trails

Wakonda State Park, La Grange

  • Roadway edges - litter patrol
  • Trails - litter patrol and minor maintenance
  • Lake shores - litter patrol
  • Campground - litter patrol and minor maintenance

Wallace State Park, Cameron

  • Trail cleanup – walk a trail and pick up litter and remove small branches from trail
  • Day-use area cleanup – pick up litter and remove small branches from mowing area
  • Color a park poster – Don’t Kill the Snakes, Please Don’t Pick the Wildflowers, Park Program poster

Washington State Park, De Soto

  • Conduct programs, such as weekday youth fishing clinics, guided hikes of Opossum Track or Thousand Steps Trail, orienteering
  • Plant and/or wildlife survey of the glades
  • Waterline cleanup
  • Pick up litter in the park
  • Perform a nature play at the amphitheater (several to choose from)

Watkins Woolen Mill State Historic Site/Watkins Mill State Park, Lawson

  • Pick up litter around bicycle trail
  • Pick up litter around lake shore
  • Pick up litter in campground
  • Clean fire rings in campground
  • Whitewash fence
  • Build replacement benches for the amphitheater
  • Assist with wedding heirloom garden
  • Assist with the removal of invasive species
  • Paint exterior trim on the school
  • Build new repro privies for church and school yards
  • Paint window sashes and glaze window panes in the mill
  • Replace board/batten exterior siding on garden shed
  • Assist with installing borders for the flower and vegetable beds in the heirloom garden

Weston Bend State Park, Weston

  • Brush clearing/trail maintenance on park trails
  • Installation of water bars/erosion prevention projects on park trails
  • Litter pickup
  • Fall campground cleanup: leaf removal, litter removal, cleaning of fire grills
  • Painting of park structures
  • Replacing of park fence (rotted sections)
  • Painting of parking lot stripes
  • Plant/ animal surveys
  • Invasive species removal
  • Evening campground interpretive program
  • Special event setup, cleanup and activities