Find 3 Bucket-List-Level Views in Missouri Without Needing to Be an Expert Hiker

When in Missouri, the best views are often at ground level. I learned this while road tripping from the northwest corner to the southeast corner, trying to squeeze in as many outdoor destinations in the Show Me State as I could. But I didn’t understand this on my own; I learned from the locals who said, "Yes-see the caves and Ozark peaks, but please, please plan most of your trip around the springs." And so I did! And they were right, the bucket list views in Missouri are on the water’s edge, where the natural pools and waterfalls stay gem-hued year-round.

1. Sailboat Cove - Smithville

My first scheduled stop was at Smithville Lake, a reservoir on the Little Platte River about 30 miles north of Kansas City. It’s a massive 7,000-acre lake well-known for its boating, sailing, and nearly 200 miles of shoreline, including sandy beaches. I was genuinely impressed by the water's color and clarity, but the best view by far is at Sailboat Cove. Bobbing below a big hill with a beautiful wooden gazebo is a sheltered marina harboring several dozen sailboats. There’s a delightful picnic ledge about halfway down, no hiking required, that offers the perfect spot to watch sails billowing, sailors tinkering, and fisherman dipping their poles between the hulls. If you’re lucky enough to pause for sunset, the western glow casts a dreamy golden glow over the calm, cobalt cove. 

Tryst Falls - Excelsior Springs

When someone whispered in my ear about a secret waterfall below the highway in a Kansas City suburb, I was skeptical. I expected it might be a dam or a glorified spillway, but certainly not the magic that I found.  Coming off a nearly rural stretch of Highway 92 near Kearney, I thought we’d been hoaxed when we pulled into the parking lot. But when I got out to stretch my legs and chuckle at myself, I walked straight into the secret garden that hides the only natural waterfall in the area. It’s definitely not my idea of suburbia, and it definitely is directly below the highway. Apparently, spring is the ideal time to visit, as the flow was a gushing 7-foot curtain of water splashing onto a natural rock ledge below a historic, stone bridge. And the vibrant green pool below it, filled with stepping stones, jumping fish, and singing frogs, was a genuine delight that we didn’t share with another soul. 

3. Alley Spring - Eminence

Speaking of green, the water only gets better the farther south you go, turning seemingly impossible shades of blue and aquamarine. The best hues float past an old, red watermill. I have a personal affinity for old mills surrounded by nature. I was born near one in Iowa and spent a lot of time playing beneath it as a child. As these mills continue to disappear, I feel increasingly nostalgic for them, which compels me to seek them out. I heard one of the prettiest mills in the region overlooks Alley Spring, located in a very rural part of the Southeast Missouri Ozarks, so I went to see it. Standing in this scenery feels like being inside a tabletop puzzle from an artist's fantasy. Yet, it’s both real and surreal at the same time—a Midwest treasure and a bucket list view in Missouri.

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