Ozark National Scenic Riverways

Canoeing Jacks Fork and Current River

Canoeing is a favorite Ozarks activity. The sunlight sparkles on the flowing waters of the river as it hurries along – now slowing as it enters a quiet, deep pool, now rushing as the banks narrow and the bed becomes shallower. Fish laze in the shaded waters. Overhanging trees line the shoreline creating patterns with their branches in the wintertime and catching breezed with their leaves in the summer. Limestone bluffs rise abruptly above some stretches of the Jacks Fork and Current Rivers; a climb to the top of the Ozark Mountains gives a good view over the surrounding countryside. On gravel bars canoeists and boaters bed down for a night’s rest after floating the river for a day.

It wasn’t always so. More than a century ago a mature pine and hardwood forest grew here and the rivers ran quietly and smoothly along their courses. Timbermen joined the subsistence farmers in the area and began to cut the trees, sawing millions of board feet of lumber each year to build the cities of this expanding Nation. Fires took their toll, too. The rains washed topsoil off the hillsides baring the rocks and gravel underneath. For the first time gravel bars – now regarded as a fixture of an Ozark river – appeared as the rains washed the rock out of the hills. Once the trees were gone the lumbermen moved on but the farmers remained, only slowly surrendering their ties to the land. The forests began to grow back, and the rivers continued to adapt to the changing environment. A series of record floods have struck the area in the last few years, leaving changed channels, new gravel bars, and rootwads as the most recent sign of natural change. Today the US National Parks is here to keep the rivers accessible, to help people come to know their beauty and to become acquainted with the special character of the people of the area, and to let nature continue to take its course, This, the, is Ozark National Riverways, more than 134 miles of clear, spring-fed streams and superb scenery.

The Big Spring in the Ozark Mountains

The Big Spring is sometimes called America's biggest spring. In reality there are three contenders for that title: Big Spring, Idaho's Snake River Spring Complex and Florida's Silver Spring. Since the flow from springs varies with local rainfall, any of these three might be biggest on any given day depending on the weather in Missouri, Idaho and Florida! The truth is they are all about the same size.

In any case, at an average flow of 286 million gallons of water, Big Spring is an awesome sight and a geologic wonder. Underground passages carry water from as far as 45 miles away to emerge at the spring.Studies have shown that the water is carrying a load of dissolved limestone equivalent to 70 tons a day! This dissolved rock gives the spring its color and is also carving out a huge conduit underground.Should the spring ever go dry, a huge cave will be the result.

Round Spring Cave

The spring itself is some 55 feet deep, rising in a nearly circular pool of water before flowing under a natural bridge to join the Current River. On an average day, some 26 million gallons of water flow from the through Round Spring Cave. At quiet times, otters, wood ducks and great blue herons may be seen in the spring. People however, are prohibited from swimming or wading in it. You may visit and enjoy the wheelchair accessible paved trail around the spring at any time.

Devils Well

Located off  Route KK near Akers, this unusual "karst window" allows a look at the earth's plumbing. Devils Well was formed when the roof of a huge cavern, containing an underground lake, collapsed. The result was large sinkhole, with an opening in the bottom through which you can view the lake. The water level is about 100 feet below the platform, and the lake may be as much as 80 feet deep. (It can fluctuate 8 to 10 feet depending on the weather.)

A "spiral staircase" has been built to allow viewing. The road is very steep and rough, it is not recommended for trailers or large motorhomes. There is no admission fee for Devils Well and the area is open everyday, during daylight hours. There is a light that can be activated by a switch in the stairway. You may wish to being your own flashlight or spotlight, however.