My partner and I drove out here from Ballwin, about 1.5 hours away, with our dog when it was nice outside one day. I wasn't expecting much, but wow, was it worth the drive! The water in the sanctuary area is soooo blue. I couldn't believe my eyes. We walked along that part first, then walked past the hatchery. It was so cool to see the trout in different stages of life. Dogs aren't allowed to swim in the sanctuary or hatchery, and since we have a lab who's obsessed with the water, we kept walking to reach a spot where she could at least touch it. Lots of people were fishing, so we kept walking until we found a spot where she could splash around. As you can see from the photo, she had a wonderful time. We kept her leash on and I'd recommend others do the same. We didn't want her to get caught on a fishing line or scare any fish away that people were trying to catch. We paid $5 to get into the park as we were driving in, and we were able to pay with a credit card. There was plenty of parking even though it was the weekend. Definitely recommend for a day trip from the STL area! read more

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From Manchester, MO I can be trout fishing in 90 minutes. I wanted to make one more trip before the trout fishing season closes on October 31. First time catching a bluegill at this park. The leaves were falling continuously from the trees which made the experience more beautiful. We had a blast. read more

Maramec Spring Park - Tried catching the leaves falling like snow. - Parks Near Me - Saint James, Missouri

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Best Nature Park Ever! Well managed and clean. So pure and natural. Great Music, Food Trucks, and Stocked-Pond Trout fishing. read more

Maramec Spring Park - Me and Juneau at Merrimack Springs - Parks Near Me - Saint James, Missouri

We are from Ballwin and found this park mentioned on a webpage. Wow it is amazing. Only $5 to get in and $4 for fish food (do this). It is one of the most beautiful spots in Missouri. I have lived in St Louis my whole life and never knew this gem was here. Cannot speak highly enough of this place. If you have kids, take them here. If you don't, go here anyway. Also check out the museum and historic driving tour. Very cool. read more

Maramec Spring Park - Cool trails - Parks Near Me - Saint James, Missouri

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GORGEOUS. $5 per vehicle to enter. Bring quarters for fish food. There were a lot of people fishing, day camping, etc., but it is also a perfect 1 hour stop off the 44. We left the park and took the 8 on to Onondaga State Park to see the caves. A beautiful drive! read more

My sister brought us here to feed the fish. $5 entrance per vehicle to get into the park. The kids had so much fun! We probably spent another $5, one quarter at a time, buying fish food. Helpful hint... my sister brought some cups for us to put the food in. We then walked over to the playground and let the kids burn off some energy while we started a campfire to roast some marshmallows for s'mores. The park had plenty of picnic areas and trails to walk. With recent rain, the creek/river was flowing HEAVILY. The water, which is normally crystal clear, was murky. The spring was gushing up like my sister has never seen before. Needless to say, we were nervous wrecks as our 6 littles were walking along the paths near it. Nonetheless, we had a great time today! read more

Lovely wooded campground surrounded by fields of pollinating plants. We watched a herd of deer grazing every evening with wild turkeys joining the fun. Great place for birders - saw goldfinch, bluebirds and red headed woodpeckers in abundance without even really looking! The trout fishing seems quite good - the cleaning stations were always in use by happy anglers. The spring is beautiful with nice trails and paths to walk. There is a historic drive as well as two museums on the property. read more

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What a beautiful park. Lots of history. There is a great museum documenting the the history of the spring and the iron mine and smelting operation. Fun facts. William Randolph Hearst was born here. The heiress of the James family who started the mine was the niece of Robert Dun of Dun and Bradstreet fame. The campground in nice, not great. There is a pump out new this year. There will soon be a very nice shower house. It's not quite finished as of 8/1/22. The park is very close to the Huzzah and Courtois and Meramec rivers. The biggest draw for the park though is trout fishing. The park is a hatchery and stocks the stream daily. Everyone we talked to got their limit of five trout per day pretty quickly. We will return here for sure. read more

Maramec Spring Park - Overlook of Maramec spring - Parks Near Me - Saint James, Missouri

This place is absolutely beautiful. The park areas and the trails around all the springs for hiking and fishing seem very well maintained. The history behind everything is definitely worth reading as you stroll around the park. The little store has a few things for fishing, camping, & a snack or two. We didn't try the little cafe inside so I have no idea on the food there. Public restrooms definitely fall short and never seemed clean. Smell was pretty bad. The camping areas were a bit of a disappointment. You can't see the river from the sites. Our site said it would accommodate a 50' camper but there is no way you could pull into that site. I had to drive through the woods to make a corner with inches to spare of dragging my camper down the side of a tree. Fishing was different that any place I have fished for trout before. Not a lot of areas where you can fly fish here. Most people were using spinning reels. So that was a bit of a disappointment. read more

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Such a marvelous beauty & spectacle of nature right here in Missouri! The history behind this land & what they have made it into today is really cool too! Worth a day trip if you are in the St. Louis area, or a weekend excursion with the camping facilities! *** read more

Maramec Spring Park - Rainbow Trout - Parks Near Me - Saint James, Missouri

Great location for trout fishing and eagle watching. read more

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We really enjoy visiting this beautiful place. It's only an hour and a half drive from home. Great place to walk around, fish, take nature photos, have a picnic etc read more

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Absolutely stunning. Has to be one of the best parks I've attended in Missouri. 10/10 read more

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Absolutely beautiful park. Lots of areas to walk and explore. Theres a cave to explore, but I had my dog so I didn't go. There's also a small driving tour with guides explaining the history of the park and it's past residents. I took my Nikon and was not disappointed. The beautiful old structures and waterfalls were great for photographing. There's benches for picnics, lots of shade, playgrounds, fishing, food to feed the fish and museums. Some things are closed due to Covid, so call before you go. It's a privately run park and well worth the $5 entrance fee. read more

Maramec Spring Park - Parks Near Me - Saint James, Missouri

This placeis beautiful. The spring water is crystal clear and the trouts are in abundance. They regularly stock the area with fishes in the dedicated fishing area. Its a great place to go trout fishing. read more

We have only visited twice and loved it both times. This park is the closest trout park to St. Louis. Trout are not native to Missouri, do the Conservation Department raises them and stocks four State Parks, various city parks, and Maramec State Park. The State Parks and Maramec (incorrectly spelled per a clerical error many years ago... and retained, nicely so!) host Kids Free Fishing days each May. Last year the schedule allowed for a night of camping and extra Sunday morning fishing. This year, we could only make a day trip. We arrived mid-afternoon and the fish were not biting... but they liked the bait change later in the day... and out son caught his limit be our daughter reeled in #5 for. As typical, 1) the staff in wonderfully friendly, and helpful 2) the park is beautiful... the 100 million gallons that surface at the spring are tropic-like in color... perhaps islands are better said to be "spring-like in their color"... ;) The park's website notes: "As this is considered to be the most beautiful spot in Missouri, it is my great hope that you will arrange that it may ever be in private, considerate control, and ever open to the enjoyment of the people. Lucy Wortham James" There are very many beautiful spots in Missouri... is Maramec Spring is not the most beautiful, it is surely among the very top places. 3) the fishing is great even when the fish aren't even nibbling. We look forward to more Kids Free Fishing, and Ladies Fishing, and just visiting on other days. Thank you, Maramec Spring! read more

I go here several times a year weather permitting. It is my absolute favorite place to go on the US mainland. I love the spring. The color of the water is a gorgeous blue and you can see down very far as it is so clear!! I love the sound of the spring....very soothing. I love to sit on the rocks behind the spring and close my eyes ...... It is just so peaceful!!! The Native Americans used to frequent this spring and I can see why!! After taking in the spring and the gorgeous scenery around it it is fun to feed the fish (it is a trout hatchery). There are also really neat old iron pieces that are fun to look at. If you live in St. Louis like I do it is well worth the drive. It is like paradise!!! read more

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There are a lot of places to take pictures of here and it's definitely worth the trip if your an hour away or so. Their wasn't a whole lot to do but if you love the outdoors with fishing and picnics this is your place to go. The park also had a lovely overlook with an easy drive to get to. You could definitely spend half a day here with the family. We came here in March so it wasn't really oil to see all the rainbow trout. read more

Maramec Spring Park - A picture of the natural spring - Parks Near Me - Saint James, Missouri

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There is so much for a family to do here; this place has it all! There are multiple play grounds, a trout hatchery, various float trip establishments in the vicinity, museums, trout fishing, and a historic drive. The camping sites are spacious and each has a fire pit and a sturdy picnic table. The bathrooms are clean and very accessible. It is, by far, my favorite camping location. If you come during the second full weekend in October, you'll be there during "Old Iron Works Days". It's a huge two day event with music, food and crafts. It's quite enjoyable. read more

This place deserves a 10 star review. It is an incredible property with many levels of activity. It looks great any time of the year.

This is a private owned spring park. We fished and stayed at the campground. The campground is locked down, you need a keycard to enter and need to fill out paperwork for a second car to come to the campground also. Felt secure. The bathrooms were horrendous. I did see signs saying excuse their mess due to a flood, and I'm not a picky person but for $36 a night I expected a lot lot more. The highlights of the bathrooms were toilet paper, hand soap and paper towels. When taking a shower you must hold the weed eater string down to keep the water running. It was warm water atleast. I couldn't find a water spigot anywhere either. Had to fill jugs in the bathroom and haul to our site for our dog. Not worth the money in the least big. read more

Stunning. Absolutely stunning. I recently visited the spring for the first time. I could not get over the clarity of the water, the peaceful backdrop and the amount of history packed into this one location. Trout fishing every morning when the bell rings. Historic auto-trails through the back woods. Stringtown Road was a location that just gave you the "feeling" you could feel the people, the history. We were here for 3 days and I couldn't get enough! The camping sites were great. Spacious, quiet, flat. The restaurant in the store has the best biscuits and gravy. I cannot wait to come back for Old Iron Works Days! read more

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This place is awesome. Great adventure especially if you have children only $5 to park, bring quarters to feed the fish. Had never walk the grounds and checked out the history which was extremely interesting. I have never been in the museum which showed the original structures which made it even more interesting read more