Today’s blog post has us hiking to Longpool Falls on Big Piney Creek in the Piney Forest District of the Ozarks. This is a massive Grotto and a really nice waterfall when the water is flowing well. It is a short drive from Russellville, and is a relatively easy hike. I have an annual camping trip with some friends at Longpool Campground. We have done this short hike several times and it’s always great. If you have not been here before, you definitely need to have this one on your list.
Directions
From I-40, take the Highway 7 exit to Dover. About 10 miles north of Dover turn off Highway 7 on to Highway. From there follow the signs to Long pool Campground. If you get lost, the nice Folks at Moore’s Outdoors Outfitters can help you out. Once you are inside Longpool Campground, go past the pay station and turn right into the campgrounds. Keep following the loop all the way back into the campsites to the far back side of the campground (Loop B). There is no sign for the trailhead but in between campsites #9 and #14, you will see a trail off the road that heads into the woods passing by a water utility station. Follow this trail all the way until you run into the creek. From there turn right, going up the creek until you get to the grotto.
What to Expect
Hiking to Longpool Falls is only about one mile in and one mile out, so it will not take all day. I would recommend combining this hike with some other hikes in the area to make it worth the drive. Or do this hike while camping at Longpool Campground. By the way, Longpool is a very nice and clean campground. It’s located in a beautiful area right on Big Piney Creek. I highly recommend spending a weekend here and do some hiking or float Big Piney Creek. Big Piney is a really good float. I’ll have a whole separate story on that later.
Anyway, the first half of the trail is clean and very easy to walk. Once you get to the creek however, you will need to traverse some large rocks and boulders to get to the waterfall and grotto. It’s not too difficult, but flip flops are a bad idea because the rocks are big and some of them are slippery. Go with something that will stick to your feet like hiking boots or water shoes. I did this hike in some sturdy hiking sandals and was just fine. It is not far at all up the creek until you can hear the waterfall and it will be obvious that you are getting close. Once you are there you can play in the falls, explore under the grotto, hammock it up, or have lunch.
Plan Your Visit
Don’t plan on having any cell phone service when hiking to Longpool Falls. You will lose your signal right before you reach Moore’s Outdoor Store. So save your maps and send any messages you need to send before then. Moore’s is the last place to get anything to eat or drink so pack some food if you plan to stay a while. The campground has primitive camping as well as full-hookup RV campsites. There is an unsupervised swimming area and full restrooms with hot showers. So if you want to make a full day of it, there is a place to change clothes after a swim as well as picnic areas for lunch.
Note: Even though I have done this hike two or three times, I have only done it in late spring or early summer when there was plenty of water in the falls. But I don’t know if the falls are flowing mid to late summer or not. So check the water levels in the nearby rivers and if they are extremely low then chances are these falls will be low as well. And if anyone knows the answer to that question, please feel free to comment below. Hope you enjoy my pics of these falls, and thanks for reading.
