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Johnson's Shut-Ins

pbpd81
pbpd81
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5 out of 5
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Johnson's Shut-Ins

  • January 4, 2005
  • Rated 5 of 5 by dwsmith78 from St. Louis, Missouri
A shut-in is the word Ozark folk use for "river tumbling over a bunch of rocks that makes a great place to play and relax". Well, maybe it’s not that technical, but imagine hundreds of mini-waterfalls and small pools of crystal-clear clean river water. You can either scramble to a dry spot and sun or shoot the chutes in nature's water park. It can get crowded on summer weekends, but even then the parking lot and small campground control the amount of people, so you can always find room to have fun. It was early on a dreary summer morning when we got there, and there where already lots of cars! We changed in the changing rooms by the parking lot near the camp store and followed the paved path to an overlook with a small set of wooden stairs. From here we could survey the chutes, pools, and waterfalls that make this area so popular with people trying to escape the St. Louis summers! We found a nice little waterfall and pool for our family of four to play in. After splashing around for a few hours we headed back to the changing rooms, took a nice warm shower, and continued our outdoor adventures.

From journal Summer Weekend in the Ozarks

Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park

  • September 26, 2004
  • Rated 4 of 5 by pbpd81 from Poplar Bluff, Missouri
These shut-ins were formed over a billion years ago by the waters of Black River flowing over the rocks. The natural chutes, pools, and waterslides formed are the perfect playground on a hot summer day. The shut-ins are located at the end of a quarter-mile path from the parking lot. There is an observation deck overlooking the falls that offers some seating but not much.

Also, there is very little shore line suitable for seating of humans or articles, so plan on piling what you bring on top of one of the boulders. There are plenty of picnic tables and a playground next to the parking lot for that picnic lunch. Camera problems are keeping me from having photos of the beautiful site so I suggested you check it out further at www.mostateparks.com/jshutins.html

The shut-ins are open from sunrise to sunset and the park is open from 7am to 10pm. Campsites are available, along with hiking and limited rock climbing. Evening programs, on a variety of subjects, are offered at the amphitheater from Memorial Day to Labor Day.

From journal Elephant Rocks and Missouri State Park

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