Best Dispersed Camping near West Plains, MO

This was definitely one of, if not my favorites campsites I’ve stayed at! There is a small campground on by the bathrooms with designated sites, and then dispersed camping on the beach. Super pretty spot and great for swimming, but people are pretty bad about cleaning ups free themselves so quite a bit of litter on the beach. Overall a great stay!!

The scenery of this dispersed camping area is definitely a five star for the area. Nice view and access to the Current River. Plenty of stars out at night. There is an area of more traditional campground spaces you come across first but the dispersed style spots are further down the road. There’s still a $10/night fee. Even though there are fire rings all along the rocky beach, locals use this area as a boat launch and park their trucks and trailers in the camping areas. The campers who came in late on our last night destroyed the peaceful ambiance; loud kids running all over and pulling branches down from living trees, loud music past quiet hours and most running generators. That downgraded my rating from five stars overall. This would be a great place midweek or off season but definitely not going back during peak times due to the discourteous people.

Blue Spring is beautiful and cold! Aside from the over zealous teenagers jumping into the spring it was a nice visit.

This is a primitive camping area and there are a lot of partying people in and around this area plus frequent motorboat traffic. No amenities, many generators. Drive in, pick a spot and set up camp. There are so many areas to visit around the river this would be an excellent base camp or you could use it as a stop off on a float trip.

Eminence, MO is nearby and a good place to refuel and get stuff you need for your adventures. Make sure you get a paper map because phone signal can be iffy.

This area has access to the shores of the current river. No campsites, just the open rocky shores. You can park right on the shores and set up camp. Beware! The gravel settles if wet and many trailers and campers have gotten stuck here. 4wd is recommended. While their are no amenities, the location is beautiful. Very secluded

Log yard is a Backwoods camping area on the current river. 4 wheel drive is recommended. You have to cross a creek to get to this location. If the weather moves in. It would be wise to pack up and move out while you can. If the creek comes up, you may not be able to cross it again. There is one good established campsite at this location and 2 not so good ones. The area changes after a flood, and the campsites have to be reestablished. There is a boat ramp at this location that is a favorite hang out of the locals. They will drink, play loud music, and leave trash lay around. This stretch of the current is 25-hp boat territory. There will be boat traffic on the river on the weekends. Log yard is part of the Ozark scenic river ways, which is FEDERAL LAND. You may have an encounter with a forest ranger at this campsite. If you do, they will ask for your info and have you establish a Backwoods campsite. Be respectful and don't upset the Rangers. They don't play in the Ozark scenic river ways. This camp is beautiful and wild. NO CELL SERVICE. If you're lucky, you may see the local elk herd. They reintroduced elk in this area a few years ago. Get out and enjoy what Missouri has to offer

What an awesome place to see very cold water , camp sites are a little Ricky but manageable, does get to be a very busy spot in the summer

Stumbled across this site in September (2016). It's way back on a little dirt road past some farm land and homes.

Only a few campsites, no picnic tables, a fire ring, some heavily shaded spots, a couple sites right on the river (but none are far away). You feel like you are in the wilderness! Water is crystal clear and cool, didn't see another camper all weekend. Had a few folks using the boat ramps, but otherwise very private.

Great stargazing on the beach and you'll see some bats too! Think they really helped keep the bugs off us all weekend, barely had any problems with those.

Seriously beautiful campsite, and near some excellent floating & gorgeous springs.

Primitive campsites in all the locations along Ozark National Waterway. They are well maintained and the staff you speak with is friendly and informative. Pound Mill is easier to drive into and a mile-ish hike to Blue Spring.take your water shoes, the river is awesome!!

This place is like a hidden treasure. lots of space on the bank to have privacy from other campers, the river was blue and super pretty, and the area was very clean. i didnt see litter anywhere. there is no cell service so youll have to drive up the road to ellington to get anything. overall it was a very relaxing experience, i HIGHLY recommend this campsite.

This was the hottest campground I have ever been in my life. It was 109 and extremely humid. I've heard that in the winter, it's freezing cold. Perfect! The water was very warm to swim in, and is also a good place to fish for crappie and catfish.

We visit this campground multiple times a year and it's always a positive experience. My parents have ano rv and they allow us to camp in a tent next to them! I love how close it is to the lake and the city.

Absolutely love this place. We set up camp and paddled down river. We then got treated to a impromptu harmonica concert in a cave! Only in the Ozarks people. It was epic!

This is an olen camping area as it’s in a conversation area. There are no sites you just pick your spot. We had a great time exploring the outdoors- saw no other people and only heard nature and airplanes

It was a little barren this time of year, I mostly had the beach site to myself, other than what I image was a group of high schoolers who came to party. They were loud and rowdy for about an hour then packed up, though not without driving by my tent and yelling a couple f**k you’s at me while I was trying to sleep.

However the site was very nice and is exactly as described in the previous review. There was a lot of litter on the beach.

This site was a fantastic spot hidden pretty far off the beaten path. We had to fjord an overflowing stream that went across the road but didn’t have any trouble in our Jeep Wrangler. When we arrived we saw a couple tents at a site before we reached the water and only one vehicle by the water at the first “site”. We drive along a path past that first site and parked in another partially hidden water access site. It was perfect. Never heard or saw anyone else. Beautiful sunrise hitting the trees and the stone along the opposite side of the river in the morning. Highly recommend. Just be aware you will not have cell service.

There is a small designated campground above the river bank sites described in the other review. The site typically costs 5 dollars a day but a sign up at the campground says fees are waved due to less services for COVID. Pit toilets, dumpster, and water all on site but not at each camp. Great spot to car camp.