Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Fort Leonard Wood, MO

Right off I-44 in Missouri and only 10 minutes from Fort Leonard Wood. Convenient to Waynesville and St. Robert.

Owners are very helpful and informative. Remember to stop by the office and check out a movie on a rainy day!

The campground was a bit small, but very nice and clean. We fit our 42’ fifth wheel there though, so most would be fine! The owners & camp hosts were absolutely great! The campground could use some work, but the owners told us they just bought it and are gradually fixing it up... The location is perfect, just minutes away from Fort Leonard Wood or St. Robert, MO, off exit 153 on I44! Also only a little over an hour from Springfield, MO... Would definitely recommend and stay again if ever back in the area!

Very close to Fort Leonard Wood. Went to my son's Graduation and his first stop off base was Waffle House for Chocolate Chip Waffles. We had to remind him to chew your food, don't inhale!

The Lake of the Ozarks Recreation Area (LORA) is a great destination for camping, boating, swimming, water skiing, fishing and other outdoor activities. The lake is one of the Nation's largest man-made lakes, providing you with over 1150 miles of shoreline to enjoy. LORA welcomes Active Duty Military, Retired Military, members of the National Guard and Reserves, DoD employees with ID cards, family members and Fort Leonard Wood contract employees.  Plenty to do and see here.  Boat rentals, hiking, and others mentioned above.  The LORA Country Store carries ice, beverages, firewood and a small selection of food including snacks, milk, eggs and bread. The store also carries the basic necessities needed for camping and fishing, including fishing licenses.  Can rent a tent site, camper site with full or partial hook ups, cabins 1-3 bedroom, etc.  The marina has boat and jet-ski rentals (pontoons, wave runners, jet ski's, ski boats, fishing boats, pontoons, etc.) that are much more reasonable then other rental places in the area. Area is staffed by on-duty MP's out of Fort Leonard Wood.

and canThis RV park is the best option in the Fort Leonard Wood area. THe owners/operators are awsome. The only draw back is that the roads and spots are all gravel and ven be muddy at times. Laundry is cheap. We spent a winter here and the owner was always helpful if anyone needed help dealing with the cold. Other than being all gravel and dirt roads and spots the only real draw back is that it is close to I-44 be noisy at times.

This campground is clean, and is close to many attractions near the Lake of the Ozarks.

Wifi is spotty, but my site was at the back of the campground. The campsite also has a new in ground pool and dog park.

Reason I gave this campsite 3 stars is because it is clearly still under construction (6/30/23), which I was not aware of. My guess is this was the first season it was open. Half of the park still had conex boxes and construction equipment around. The dog park had little grass and was very rocky.

The owners were VERY nice and accommodating.

If I were to return next year in 2024 I have no doubt I would have given this campsite 4 or 5 stars

The camp area looks new, cute playground, small fenced dog park type area, showers, laundry, fire pits and picnic tables. Very little trees or grass. Would love it if they played up the Route 66 theme they have going. Very convenient for our fishing trip!

Good area only a mile off the highway so it made a great night stopping point. Had great access for our starlink. They have a little dog park, kids park, and it was all clean and well maintained. Easy access and some nice pull through spots. Water, sewer, and electric hook ups. Fire pit and picnic table at site. Since it’s close the highway it was a little loud with traffic. 57$ a night for premium spots, 42$ a night for non premium

Great place for a place to stay near the lake of the ozarks attractions. Super close to big surf and not a bad drive from all the lake has to offer. But not a favorite for a trip focused more on hanging out at the camp site. Very hilly (though grade on the site wasn’t bad at all), pull through sites make getting in easy with larger rigs but all roads through are gravel and rutted so not the easiest. Sites close together without much in between. Nice large trees would offer some summer shade but still not much separation between sites. Water and electric at site. Small “dog park” (fenced in area) great for smaller dogs to run off leash and pretty large kid okay ground too. Overall we will stay here again but think of it more as bringing our own hotel to the lake rather than coming to enjoy the campground.

This is a great state park. Sites are level and have cement pads with full hookups. Not much shade now but they have planted trees between sites. Bathrooms are clean. There is also a lodge with store and restaurant just down the street. There are cabins there that can be rented also. And the real treat is the wild horses. Came right up to our site - but please do not feed or try to pet. The rangers will have to move them if they get to used to people.

Also local river rafting companies will pick you up at your site

This was a pretty campsite with lots of trees and simple deer trails throughout. Sites are well spread out. The lake itself was filthy and smelly. Lots of trash and rotting fish on the shorelines. The campground website said they had WiFi throughout the campsite, however it was only available at the front office. No cell service. We had planned to stay for a week to school and work remotely, but had to cut our time here short because of no connectivity. If we hadn’t had the need for WiFi, this would have been a fine campground to stay at, as it is centrally located to many sightseeing locations.

Sties were level, kid and pet friendly, quiet campground, 30/50 amp electricity, no water hookups, firewood avail for fire pits, also had nice picnic tables. Inexpensive.

Echo Bluff State Park in Ozark National Scenic Riverways near Eminence, MO is a brand new “old camp”. 

Opened in 2016 the history is rather interesting. From 1929 until the 1980s, Camp Zoe was a children’s summer camp, founded by Russell S. and Margaret McMahan Louis County teachers. There is one of the structures still on site with plaques and information. More recently, it was home to music festivals — and an open-air drug market. I didn’t find any plaques in relation to that. However when the government gained control of the land in a court proceeding it was decided to bring more business into Shannon County by opening a very nice campground for people not wanting to rough it. 

And “BAM” you have very pricey accommodations from lodge rooms, to cabins and two story condos. The campground is pretty nice too but lacking in shade and privacy. There are walk-in (uphill) sites and nice wagons provided to transport your gear. Not my favorite style of camping. Completely full and busy, which is why it got a 4 instead of 5 star. This may be your type of camping and you would say a 5 star. Reserve ahead, I mean way ahead.

There is a huge pavilion that can be reserved that overlooks the area. It has a large fire pit and mega size grill, one of the trails meanders below the pavilion. This would be a nice venue for an extended family get together.

This is a very nice, new, recreation creation. The playground was given two thumbs up by my granddaughter. Then the river, which you can see from the lodge and playground was given 12 paws and 2 thumbs by dogs and grandkids alike. Crystal clear ice cold water that you can walk across to the sheer wall of rock. Bring your water shoes, the rocks aren’t fun to walk on.

A very cool feature , if you are lucky , you will see the wild horses that roam the area. They are not for petting, so use caution. 

Aside from the abundance of people we enjoyed Echo Bluff SP.

They park is awesome, a few hikes inside and only a few miles from Ha Ha Tonka, we stayed 2 nights in the cabins, and cooked fresh food over the fire and stayed warm with our dogs with the interior wood furnace

Great campground if you need full hook-ups. All the bells and whistles. Clean bathroom, laundry, pool, playground, dog run, hiking trails and firewood that you can actually burn. It's off the beaten path but still close to everything. Friendly people and very accommodating.

Lake of the Ozarks State Park campground is located in Kaiser Missouri about 5 miles down highway 134 off of highway 42. This campground is about 1.5 hour from Columbia and Springfield Missouri. It is approximately 3 hours from St.Louis and Kansas City Missouri .

Lake of the Ozarks State Park includes two different areas which are both located on Lake of the Ozarks.

The one reviewed here is located in Kaiser and includes Public Beach #1 , a marina/gas dock , horse stables/trails, hiking trails,beach,fishing dock,shore fishing and campground.

The other is located in Osage Beach about 20 minutes away and includes Public Beach #2, grand glaze marina/gas dock,shore fishing and hiking trails. No camping is available at the Osage Beach location aka PB 2 or grand glaze.

Lake of the Ozarks State Park Campground is a wonderful place to set up camp for the weekend and is one of my all time favorites. The State Park is clean and well maintained with plenty to do for everyone.

The camp sites range from primitive to full hook up 50amp and you will see a range of camping types from tents to class A's . The sites are well spaced out despite how the reservation map appears on the State Park website. I would however suggest staying at the campsites on the outer edges as the interior sites are a bit more cramped.

This area includes bath and shower houses that are of average cleanliness for a State park (typically worn but clean). As well as 3 playgrounds for the kids. Also on site is a Beach so bring a Towel and swimming suit.

A few things to note . If you come in the winter or spring the lake will be low and your lake side campsite will be Lake view instead. You are located about 15 minutes from a grocery store however a camp store is available also bring bug spray.

Your ideal sites are lakeside 160's I stayed at #163 and it was wonderful open with not a lot of tress for the dogs to get tangled in.

This is a true gem at the lake and even though I only live 15 miles away we visit many times throughout the year.

Great staff, beautifully groomed state park, well shaded. Note that water In not avaIlable on the sItes themselves but at spigots In the park. Fill up your tanks prior to parking your rig. Lake accessed easily. Deer roam through in the early morning. Dogs requIred on leash 100% outside. Bath houses plentiful. Great basic tent sites right on the water. Marina with rentals.

Great quiet site. Wasn’t a bad drive in. Decent amount of wild life hanging around. Will probably hear the beaver if you stay at one of the two sites by the pond. Only saw one other group camping here while we did. Be mindful that it is tick season now. We had a few on the dog by the end of the first day.

I was able to get my 28' trailer in site 37 and managed to level it. There's a sign to keep car tires on pavement, but I wasn't able to and parked the Jeep on the grass next to the trailer. Unlike other sites at this campground, this site did not need stairs to get to the fire pit or picnic table; they were right outside the door. The fire pit was clean and I used the grill box everyday to cook all the meals. The weather was too hot to use the entire fire pit for a large fire.

Unfortunately, my view from the fire pit was of the shower building and watching people go in and out at the end of the day.

I have solar panels mounted on top and the large shading tree kept them from charging the batteries, but shaded the site very well. This made me look for portable panels after I got home. The lower branches should be trimmed to avoid damage to taller trailers. The branches barely cleared mine.

The ground is rocky and bent my flimsy tarp stakes. This made me look for better stakes when I got home. Haha.

The dump station is at the entrance to the campground and there were two issues with getting fresh water. The fresh water tower had the elbow nozzle and I couldn't get it unscrewed to put my hose on. To fill up using the elbow nozzle and trailer's gravity fill port meant parking the trailer in the exit lane. Not knowing what to do, I proceeded to site 37. There is water near the shower building and thankfully my three hoses spanned the length and was able to fill up while parked in the site. When dumping on the way out, there was no issue with unscrewing the other non-potable water tower's elbow nozzle and putting my own hose on to flush the tank. Maybe I wasn't strong enough to remove the fresh water tower's nozzle.

The host was really nice and so were the park rangers.

No signs about generators; I used mine during the day. I didn't hear anyone else using one though and felt guilty. Heard lots of music and barking dogs so not too guilty.

The river is awesome, cold, and a highlight of the campground. People take their dogs and chairs to the bank and I'm sure they love it, but it's a busy bank with boaters and not a lot of room to separate from others. Instead, we waded to the center of the river, and after several minutes of getting used to the cold water, sat in the rushing water. It was great and the noise of the rushing water around us drowned (haha) out the barking dogs and peoples' conversations on the bank.

The walk on the trail and across the bridge to the country store was nice and took 15 minutes. Worth the walk for wifi and ice cream. The trail to the store is not marked well but figured it out.

I will go back, but choosing a different site.

This is really the gem of Missouri state parks. Rv sites are all full 30/50 amp with water and sewer. All spots have plenty of room but are back in. The pads are perfectly level and are concrete. Camp hosts are helpful and kind. The lodge is in walking distance and offers breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The food is pretty good also! They offer inside dining but the best place to eat and enjoy the outdoors is on their huge deck. Wonderful place all around and Missouri really has done this one the right way!

Nestled in Mid Missouri this place is a jam! Popular with locals there are trails, historic iron works and a fish hatchery…very cool place. Close to highway, good overnight spot!

I took the day off on Friday so we could have a full weekend of camping. We originally planned to go to Buffalo River in Arkansas, but there was a lot of rain in the area so we decided to check out Echo Bluff State Park instead.

I’m glad we did! It was beautiful and our campsite 🏕️ was perfect. There was a wooden platform that kept us drier than we might have been when it rained Saturday night and some water got in a few of the seams of our tent 😅

We tried to catch some fish in Sinkin’ Creek Friday and Saturday but no luck. The cool water felt wonderful both days but chasing away the copperheads 🐍 Saturday that were likely scaring away the fish 🐟 was so not fun 😂 neither was finding a tick on my arm but we found it soon enough to get it off without issue. We also successfully avoided all the poison ivy 🌱

Bf made some delicious steaks 🥩(as always 🤤) hot dogs 🌭, sausages and bacon 🥓

I don’t know where we’ll go next but I know it will be just as fun! And despite everything, we plan to return here at some point soon!!!

Also there is WiFi in the rv area and at the lodge. Otherwise absolutely no service for ATT or Verizon and I would imagine several others