INFORMATION | If you go

Ozark National Scenic Riverways: www.nps.gov/ozar or (573) 323-4236. Trails, springs and all natural areas of the park are open daily year-round.
Getting there: From St. Louis, take Interstate 44 southwest about 70 miles to the Cuba exit. Take Missouri 19 south about 85 miles to Eminence, just west of where the Current and Jacks Fork rivers meet.
Leaf-peeping: Recommended routes include Missouri 19 from Salem to Alton; Skyline Drive off Missouri 103 between Van Buren and Big Spring; and K Highway at Akers.
NEARBY ATTRACTIONS
Alley Spring: A few miles west of Eminence on Missouri 106, this historic site is one of the Ozarks' most scenic spots. The park features a spring producing 81 million gallons of water a day, a barn-red flour mill, general store and one-room school. The mill and other buildings are open weekends through October. A "Haunting in the Hills" on Oct. 9-10 will include Ozark storytelling, demonstrations, old-time Ozark music, tours of the old Alley graveyard and a candlelit "Creatures of the Deep" walk along the spring. Eminence hosts a craft show the same weekend.
Big Spring: Located 4 miles south of Van Buren on Missouri Highway 103 off U.S. 60, this is the state's largest spring, with an average daily flow of 276 million gallons of water. Here, young men of the 1930s-era Civilian Conservation Corps built the old-English style Big Spring Lodge, which overlooks the Current River. After Labor Day, the lodge is open for dining from 2 to 9 p.m. Fridays, 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturdays, and 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sundays, through November. Cabins can be rented seven days a week through November. Phone: (573) 323-4423.
Lodging: Motels, cabins, bed and breakfasts, campgrounds and canoe outfitters abound. For help with accommodations and other information, visit eminencemo.com.
Associated Press