I drove west to visit the Dogwood Canyon Nature Park.
About Dogwood Canyon Nature Park
“Promote and protect the natural environment of the canyon’s wildlife and plant life.”
Aside from a few amenities to make Dogwood Canyon Nature Park more accessible to our guests, the rugged landscape has been left untouched and, with just a little imagination, you can travel back to a time when European settlers first entered the area or, even further, to explore the mark that Native Americans left on these Missouri hills and hollows.
The first parcels of the property were acquired in 1990 by Johnny Morris, founder/CEO of Bass Pro Shops. The park is owned and managed by the Dogwood Canyon Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to protecting the canyon’s natural plant and wildlife environment. The Foundation promotes environmental conservation by maintaining the park and providing the public with an unspoiled setting for exploration and the enjoyment of various outdoor activities.
The purposes of the Dogwood Canyon Foundation are to promote natural conservation, and to protect the natural environment and its wildlife and plant life by acquiring and maintaining ecologically significant, undeveloped land to benefit the general public. To achieve its purpose, the Foundation owns, operates and maintains Dogwood Canyon Nature Park.
It cost me $20 to get in to the property.
A Single-Day Ticket
grants you access to:The Dogwood Mill & Artifact Display, Canyon Grill Restaurant, Treehouse (as seen on Animal Planet’s Treehouse Masters television series), Nature & Conservation Center, plus, the ½ mile Hickory Ridge Trail.
Walking & Hiking on 6.5 miles of paved paths and 9 miles of trails
Then I paid $32 for a 2 hour tram tour ticket.
Daily Wildlife Tram Tours
Overview
Call it a “ride on the wild side.” Step aboard our comfortable, open-air trams and explore the beauty of Dogwood Canyon on our very informative 2-hour narrated Wildlife Tram Tour. You’ll wind through the canyon floor, past towering bluffs and waterfalls, and make stops at the 1800’s-style Hope Wedding Chapel, Thunder Falls Crossing to feed the fish, and Glory Hole (a magnificent blue-green pool where some of our largest trout reside). Then, cross the Arkansas border and enter the Bison~Elk Country pasture where you’ll encounter some of the largest residents of Dogwood Canyon, American bison, elk, whitetail deer and Texas longhorn. Separate park admission is required.
My tour started at 10am and ended at 12:15pm. The weather was a perfect mid-70’s cloudy day. The tram had about 20 people on it. You stop and get off a couple of times during the tour. Here are a few photos of my tour.
After the tour I went back to the trailer, packed up and headed out. A pretty good shower came up as I was leaving and dumping my tanks resulting in my getting drenched.
I stopped in Branson for a late lunch and headed home. I arrived home safe and sound about 6 pm.