I had a great time floating! My only critique would be for some way to get service on the river…read moreand in more parts of the resort. I read on their site that its a pain point they are still working through. We had a very large group (40 people) go yesterday, and some of us got separated with no means of connecting with one another via wifi or mobile service. I think if walkie-talkie rentals were available, that would be better than nothing.

Decided to visit with family (wife, teenage daughter, and 76 y.o. father) this Saturday afternoon,…read moreafter completing a peaceful hike at Onandoga S.P., to consider camping later in the week. We politely, respectfully drove into the campground on the MAIN LOOP, around 5-10 mph, and checked the condition of the campsites. We noticed a few other campers present throughout the campground. Our windows were rolled down. Near the primitive campsites, a white vehicle rapidly, aggressively approached us from the left, rear of our car. Horn blaring. RECKLESSLY drove right up onto our rear bumper, then swerved to the left to try to force us over. The man rapidly approached us from his vehicle and accosted us with multiple, rapid fire questions what we were doing and why we were there. WHILE HE WAS AGGRESSIVELY INTERROGATING US, HE WAS CROUCHED FORWARD, POSTURING THAT HE WAS PREPARED TO DRAW ON US. I COULD CLEARLY SEE HIS LEFT HAND ON A FIREARM IN HIS LEFT POCKET - the handle of the firearm was clearly visible. The silhouette of the gun was clearly visible in his left pants pocket. Any reasonably intelligent person would have seen as we drove at a near walking pace on the main loop that we were not there to cause any problems. Any REMOTELY INTELLIGENT person would have instantly realized that we were just a family checking out potential campsites. Any reasonable person would have also considered this RECKLESS ACT OF AGGRESSION as a threat on their family. I was concerned for the safely of my family and myself. An embarrassing act of overreach. The "security guard" identified himself as "Dave." We will NEVER give this place our business again. I will NEVER risk taking my family here again. This place probably does not want your family here either...

We found this little hidden gem just by chance and we're glad we did! We had a group of girls get…read moretogether for a short float and had a great time! The guys helped us get all of our stuff situated on the rafts perfectly and got us out on the river in no time. Communication after booking was very clear and the whole process was really easy. Our bus driver to the drop off point was also very lovely!

Lovely kayaking experience at Meremac river. I appreciate booking with Old Cove Kayaking. It is…read moreabout 50 mins from Chesterfield. Booking is smooth on the website. Parking is plentiful at check-in. The staffs are extremely helpful at preparing life vests for us and putting us at the river. The end of the "ride" has a giant green flag, where the staffs help us get out of the water. We had amazing time and would recommend it. Tips: 1) the short trip was noted as 4 hours, though we finished in 2 hours. We recommend spending time parking our kayak at some beaches closeby for fun. 2) even though we selected a ride time of 9am, we are free to arrive any time before 12:30pm

Cabins are wonderful, management that's great, the grounds are always clean. It's nice to be able…read moreto go up and go swimmin in the pool

We have many memories at this campground but unfortunately it needs a lot of work. The dorm…read morebuildings are moldy, with rotten bathroom floors.

I took visitors down for a tour and we had a great time! This was an amazing break from screens and…read morecars to enjoy the beauty of the outdoors. Max knows so much about the swamp! He was personable and good about helping people with mobility issues get into the canoes and kayaks safely. This was an amazing break from screens and cars to enjoy the beauty of the outdoors. We had older people who can't walk very far, so this was the perfect way to get out into nature like we used to. Caveat: the office is up some stairs, so if you can't do stairs you'll need to say so. The bathroom is primitive, try not to need it. -Mrs. Dan

Mark and Logan were awesome. Our tour was incredible. We took the sunset canoe trip and we were…read moregone a little over 2 hours. Logan was very nice and very informative. The water was a bit shallow and we got stuck a couple times in the river part of the swamp but through the swamp it was perfect. There were quite a bit of the Asian carp so something to be wary of if this freaks people out but we were just fine. Extremely beautiful and something I would definitely do again. Mark did a military discount. Kudos. Thank you for doing this. Well worth every penny.

Every visit is great!…read more - - - - - - - - August, 2025 Visit My wonderful wife planned a getaway to Branson Labor Day weekend 2025, and we had a great time. Our first stop: Meramec Caverns - - - I have visited, with our son and his Scout pack a few years, but my wife hadn't been yet. She enjoyed her visit the first way our son and I had - amazed! While the tour is standard, it always amazes... so much natural beauty under Missouri and some of our neighboring states. 66 degrees year round the world's largest stalagmite - Onyx Mountain - 20 feet tall, 500 feet circumference, and still growing the Bridal Veil - 35 feet thick and 77 million years old the room with all the stalagmites the underground river that is so calm and peaceful - - - After the cave tour we went to try the zip line but were to late given their full reservations; next summer we'll revisit for both! ----- ----- -----

My partner and I did the cave tour which was abbreviated due to flooding. Honestly, it was plenty…read moreof time and I would have gotten bored if it were any longer. The tour was really good and our guide was knowledgeable and funny. The cave felt very safe to walk through. it was gorgeous. It was chilly of course but not unbearable with a light jacket. The only part I didn't appreciate was the long "god bless america" montage at the end.

On my first trip back home to St. Louis from Los Angeles in more than a decade, I went on a hunt…read morefor the summer home/hunting cabin that belonged to my grandparents. I had not been there since I was 13, one week after my mother died in 1989. The area was in a flood plain on the bank of the Big Piney River near the tiny town of Devil's Elbow, MO. I knew it was off Highway Z near I-44. I remembered along the way I used to look for a very high wooden railroad truss bridge, a Hillbilly General Store, the Bobber Cafe, some old, dilapidated buildings, a very old steel truss bridges, a tiny cemetery, a restaurant I used to call The Purple Cow (actually called Sirloin Stockade in Rolla) and the cabins and outbuildings where childhood friends of mine and old cronies of my grandfather lived. I had only the memories of a child guiding me. GPS was useless, both because I did not know the name of the road, nor could I get a GPS signal. This was one cool, melancholic adventure back in time. I found the steel truss bridge. It was closed. I was lost. I found Sheldon's Market and Post Office. The nice young woman inside skeptically listened to my story. I dropped some names of my grandparent's friends who had died more than 20 years ago. She did not recognize the names. She called her cousin. He did not recognize the names. As I was beginning to lose hope and started to think my grandparents' home had washed away in the floods so long ago that no one even remembered, a very nice woman drove up in her car. She asked us what we were looking for and we shared my story with her. She remembered my grandparents! She led us to the house (the long way because the bridge was closed.) She told us that her nephew (or cousin?) had started up a canoe rental business next door. We saw that the "neighborhood" (6 houses on concrete stilts) had been pretty beaten by time and harsh weather. We rented a canoe for $40. The proprietor drove us up the river 6 miles and we dropped in. The weather was gorgeous and we enjoyed a lazy float down the Big Piney River. There are sandbars in the middle where you can fish, look for crawdads, sunbathe, and enjoy the peace and tranquility. I remember my grandfather used to lose his mind when speedboats would fly down the river in the summertime because they chewed up the bottom, eroded the shores, and disrupted his silence. There was none of that on our Monday on the river. Just hawks soaring overhead, a cool breeze, the sound of our paddles, and calmness. We only saw one other couple in kayaks. So refreshing for a couple of Angelenos to spend an afternoon in rural Missouri just BREATHING clean air. There are some rope swings overhanging the water right before you dock again back at Route 66 Canoe Rental. Use them. So much fun. We pulled the canoes back onto the concrete boat launch and no one was there to receive us. We walked on a little bit, only slightly scared that we might get shot for trespassing (as this became a recent court battle on the Meramec or Missouri River, I guess.) A giant Saint Bernard mix ran toward us. We were not sure if that might be our demise instead, but it quickly became apparent that she was very friendly. (I flashed back to the pack of stray dogs, left by hunters or lost, that my grandparents and I used to feed on our deck when I was a kid. Papa and I used to pick the ticks off of them by the light of the bug zapper.) I looked up to see two men standing on a deck. I waved hello and explained what we were doing, tromping around on private property. The younger man told me he bought my grandparents' house and was rehabbing it. He invited us in. Although the deck had fallen off the front of the building during the most recent flood, the exterior of the house looked pretty much as I remembered it. The inside looked smaller, but I am bigger now. I remembered seeing the water marks around the walls as a child, preferring to think of it as wainscoting or crown molding, depending how high it the water rose each flood season. I remembered putting the baby bluegill, sunfish, frogs, and crawdads that I caught in the bathtub filled with our fresh well water, rocks and plants; my lovely terrarium prevented my family from bathing but they were so happy that I was happy. I remembered listening to Michael Jackson, Cindy Lauper, Eurythmics, and INXS on our porch swing under the house with my friends. I remembered long walks up the dirt road after supper, begging my grandfather to take the bass boat out the next day. I remembered the local trading post AM radio show each morning. So many memories. I understand that my experience with Route 66 Canoe Rental is very different than that of someone without history in the area. But please go make your own memories on the Big Piney. This is an area preserved in time, pushed aside by I-44. Go enjoy it.

My friend and I rented one canoe for a multiday trip in November 2014. Andy, the proprietor, was…read moreexceptionally friendly and accommodating. When the weather turned cold, he made several unscheduled pickups. He was also very personable and we chatted about local history to and from the river. Andy even brought us fresh venison burgers one day and shared his beer with us! Our experience was enhanced by his generosity.

Horrible living space NOTHING is provided it was completely overpriced and when we walked in it was…read morein a dirty condition with used coffee filter and the table had dirt on it NO paint it was all plywood walls now to the fun part THE BEDS there was absolutely no comfort you could feel every spring one mattress was on the floor the other was on a frame half its size DONT BOOK HERE WASTE OF MONEY by the way WE HAD 2 BURGERS AND 2 PORK STEAKS FOR 100 DOLLARS the float was amazing dont book a room

Well first off Tina is a rude ass person who has no business running a business with her absolute…read moreawful etiquette. She has super bad people skills. She was real good at blaming other people for her mistakes && rudeness! When we brought an issue to her attention that was her fault as we had 3 adults at check in who all 3 heard her say the same thing out of her mouth, she later claimed we were all wrong! She proceeded to yell n cuss at us in from of about 20+ customers at the bar. Instead of being more professional and taking us in private she did it all out in he open & she didn't even try to resolve the issue she then just kicked us off of the property telling us to never come back... Gladly!!! With absolute pleasure we will NEVER be returning to The Rafting Company ever again!!! Tina you just lost about 20 customers over this && I'm sure a whole lot more in the past && I'm sure a lot more well into the future. Secondly the part of our group that had to get bussed to meet up with us had to wait at the place for almost 2 hours as they watched others who had checked in after get bussed on half empty busses. Like why...none of us were understanding this. So 2 hours after we were told they'd be on the river they were finally put in. Annnnnddddd lastly Tina also had told my crew that had our own kayaks that our group who they'd bus would have to float a short ways to meet up to us once they got on the river. Tina knew exactly where we were putting in since she's the one who gave us directions to the place && she knew exactly where her busses take people to put in. So no thanks to Tina but a big thanks to the sweet sweet woman who runs (formally known as) Birds Nest for telling us that Tina was wrong && we needed to float down a short bit to meet up with our group. We will not be using the TRC && will not recommend them to anyone. If I could give negative stars I would, so instead I'm giving 1 star but not by choice

Do not stay in the hotels dirty moldy terrible stay will not go backWorst place I've ever stayed at…read morecost $80 a night I would not pay five dollars a night

My first float trip was with Devils Elbow River Safari and it was a blast!! All 6 of us are still…read moretalking about the memories we made that day. Angie was very professional, we were picked up in a clean bus and taken to the drop site. It rained a little while on the trip but it made for a great adventure! Angie was there when we arrived and took photos from above. Will definitely use again next time we are in the Waynesville.

We were in town for our son's military graduation and seen this safari. They had great prices…read morecompared to some other places we checked out. When we called they were eager to help even though they weren't even technically open for the day yet. The bus ride up to the start was fun. Had a great time, staff was super friendly and helpful. Highly recommend.