Best Dog-Friendly Camping near St. James, MO

My wife Michelle and I absolutely love Pheasant Acres, we have been camping there now going on 7 seasons.  The Hostess Sherry is a wonderful patient person, she loves our kids and grand kids and always has something to do for them.  We try and get there multiple times throughout the season.  The campground is very family friendly as well as very clean.  Sherry just does not allow any shenanigans of any kind.  Our family always has a great time when we are there, we have met several other campers who are now good friend with us.  If you have the time and are going through or near St. James Missouri its off of I-44, Mile Marker 195 towards St. James.  I highly recommend you spending the night or a few days with Sherry, you won't be let down at all.  Michael Lasson - Eldon, MO

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!

Maramec Spring Park is a great place for camping and fishing in Missouri. The Park contains the fifth largest spring in the state. An average of 100 million gallons of water flows from the Spring daily. This is a quiet campground near St James, MO, about 2 hours west of St Louis. There are camping sites along the Meramec River. The Camping season is from March to the end of October. A limited number of sites have electric hookups. Non-electric sites are $16; Electric sites are$36 per night. The campground is subject to flash flooding. The park has a country store, and a museum with the remains of an old iron furnace. This is a Trout Fishing Park!

It is right off of 8 highway. About 5 miles from I-44 (easy access east or west bound). The sites were kind of tight. But there was shade and picnic tables at the site. The owner helps backing in. There are some trails to walk yourself or your pup! We didn't have a run around vehicle but Meramec Springs is not far - nor is the small town of St. James (known for the winery's).

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

This was our first trip together in our new camper. It was a little rough assessing the place thru the website but the reviews swayed us. There are walking paths all around and a beautiful lake /clubhouse area. Super people running the place and of course other campers were so helpful. We took our 2 dogs and would have loved a little more grass for their paws as the entire camping area is rough gravel. We’re hoping for a dog park in the future....? The lake has many easy entrances for swimmers near the club house - broad steps or large boulder for the more adventurous. Can be a bit slippery tho so bring your water shoes. Kids seemed to have little problem. Saturday night there was live music. Just a single guy with a guitar but great choice of music and great singing voice. Had a great 2 days. We plan to come back.

We stayed one night in campsite 65. Onondaga Cave is amazing with the new lighting; it just reopened July 4, 2024. The river is still fantastic fun, especially for our grandkids ages 9 and 12.

Avoid campsite 65 when it rains. We had over an inch of standing water on the concrete pad when we arrived. 18 hours after it stopped raining, we still had some water on the concrete pad.

Other than the water, Onondaga Cave SP has been one of my favorite places to camp in Missouri for more than 20 years.

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

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.

OZARK TRAIL: I backpacked 50 miles during spring break on the Ozark Trail between Council Bluff Lake and Johnson Shutins State park. When I planned the trip the only information for camping that was available were regulations requiring you to camp 100 feet from the trail.

I have to admit that the Ozark Trail Association provides amazing resources about the Ozark Trail but they fail to describe what has become primitive backcountry campsites all along the trail. Many of these sites are marked on the detailed National Geographic maps provided for free by the Association as water holes, but they are also clearly set up as campsites as well.

Make sure you bring a water purifier. It is some of the best tasting water I have ever had.

PANTHER BRANCH: Panther Branch is about three miles south of Big River, so if it is too early in the Day to stop you are not far from another campsite if you want to push forward. I thought Panther Branch was clean. It was close to a nice waterway and had a fire ring for a campfire. It was a pleasant quiet campsite Tip: Dig your cat hole before you go to sleep and make sure it is at least 100 feet from the water.

OZARK TRAIL: I backpacked 50 miles during spring break on the Ozark Trail between Council Bluff Lake and Johnson Shutins State park. When I planned the trip the only information for camping that was available were regulations requiring you to camp 100 feet from the trail.

I have to admit that the Ozark Trail Association provides amazing resources about the Ozark Trail but they fail to describe what has become primitive backcountry campsites all along the trail. Many of these sites are marked on the detailed National Geographic maps provided for free by the Association as water holes, but they are also clearly set up as campsites as well.

Make sure you bring a water purifier. It is some of the best tasting water I have ever had.

PETER CAVE HOLLOW CREEK: The weather in the Ozarks can be unpredictable. We were expecting temperatures in the 50's to 60's and ended up getting snowed on several days. It slowed us down tremendously. It was nice having a solid water source next to the campsite and someone hauled in some chairs which made it nice as well. This is a solid campsite. Tip: Dig your cat hole before you go to sleep and make sure it is at least 100 feet from the water.

OZARK TRAIL: I backpacked 50 miles during spring break on the Ozark Trail between Council Bluff Lake and Johnson Shutins State park. When I planned the trip the only information for camping that was available were regulations requiring you to camp 100 feet from the trail.

I have to admit that the Ozark Trail Association provides amazing resources about the Ozark Trail but they fail to describe what has become primitive backcountry campsites all along the trail. Many of these sites are marked on the detailed National Geographic maps provided for free by the Association as water holes, but they are also clearly set up as campsites as well.

Make sure you bring a water purifier. It is some of the best tasting water I have ever had.

PADFIELD BRANCH: This is an interesting campsite. It has a natural spring that feeds one creek with another creek running separately on the other side. There is also some old remnants of what used to be a living quarters for someone who lived in the woods. It has been long abandoned and is falling over but it offers some fun exploring. Tip: Dig your cat hole before you go to sleep and make sure it is at least 100 feet from the water.

OZARK TRAIL: I backpacked 50 miles during spring break on the Ozark Trail between Council Bluff Lake and Johnson Shutins State park. When I planned the trip the only information for camping that was available were regulations requiring you to camp 100 feet from the trail.

I have to admit that the Ozark Trail Association provides amazing resources about the Ozark Trail but they fail to describe what has become primitive backcountry campsites all along the trail. Many of these sites are marked on the detailed National Geographic maps provided for free by the Association as water holes, but they are also clearly set up as campsites as well.

Make sure you bring a water purifier. It is some of the best tasting water I have ever had.

TELLECK BRANCH: Telleck Branch is the closest back country campsite south of Council Bluff Lake. It is three miles north of Big River. If you are hiking south from Council Bluff Lake I highly suggest that you keep going and hit Big River if you are able. If you can't go any further, there is a creek with water and a number of sites to pitch a tent. I can fit 5-10 people. Tip: Dig your cat hole before you go to sleep and make sure it is at least 100 feet from the water.

OZARK TRAIL: I backpacked 50 miles during spring break on the Ozark Trail between Council Bluff Lake and Johnson Shutins State park. When I planned the trip the only information for camping that was available were regulations requiring you to camp 100 feet from the trail.

I have to admit that the Ozark Trail Association provides amazing resources about the Ozark Trail but they fail to describe what has become primitive backcountry campsites all along the trail. Many of these sites are marked on the detailed National Geographic maps provided for free by the Association as water holes, but they are also clearly set up as campsites as well.

Make sure you bring a water purifier. It is some of the best tasting water I have ever had.

BIG RIVER: Make sure you plan your trip so that you can spend the night at Big River. It is an easy hike from Council Bluff Lake and is at the bottom of a hill. Big River isn't really a river but it is a reliable creek with a beautiful setting. It has a nice fire pit with plenty of large logs for seating. It can hold about ten campers comfortably. Tip: Dig your cat hole before you go to sleep and make sure it is at least 100 feet from the water.

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.

This is a great free campground, no water or anything, just a toilet house. Campground has 8 spots, two of which were taken, one in the front, one in the back. We stayed at one of the middle sites which was nice and spacious. There was a trail leading down to a pond at the site across from us. The bugs here were a little worse than average, but not so much that I didn't get to enjoy myself.

What DID prevent me from enjoying myself was the family staying at the front of the campground. They had quite a set up, and also a dog in a cage under a blanket, and a child who was either kept or stayed inside their small RV. We heard the parents yell at both the dog and the child. The child screamed and cried, to the point where it was worrisome that these parents were abusing him/her. We were considering staying two nights, but there was more screaming in the morning, so we left. The people at the back spot came back after dark and left at first light.

There was a trailhead by the horse stall/parking area, but we didn't hike. This would have been an INCREDIBLY LOVELY visit if not for the troublesome family.

Wonderful state park with paved roads and level concrete pads. We were nestled up against a beautiful creek. Could barely keep the dogs out of it. Nice,clean bathrooms. Nice play area for kids. We hiked one of the many hiking trail available. Tours are offered throughout the day in the two onsite caves. They were amazing. Natalie was our Gide and really knew her stuff! Park also offer kayaking, swimming, rafting and just a whole bunch of fun. There was a large camp of boys scouts and several other tent camping. Would recommend this park everyone. 10 out of 10!