Van Buren Riverfront Park
Van Buren's own river park at the foot of Main Street: a concrete boat ramp and canoe launch on the Current River, a picnic shelter, and swimming areas on one acre, open 4 AM to 10 PM.
Best Places to Visit in the Ozarks for Picnicking
A spring branch, a shade tree, and a table by the water: picnic country. These places have the tables, shelters, or open ground for it, and each page notes what is actually there.
Watercress Recreation Area
The Forest Service's in-town Current River access: a double-lane concrete boat launch, five picnic sites, and concrete stair entries down to a river beach, a half mile from downtown Van Buren.
Gooseneck Campground
The Park Service campground at River Mile 0, where the Lower Current and the Riverways end: a large flat camping field on the river at the end of Big Barren Creek Road, with standard sites, a picnic area, and an accessible restroom.
Rocky Falls
A 40-foot cascade pours over pink and purple volcanic rock into a swimmable pool on Rocky Creek, a short walk from its parking lot and picnic area.
Blue Spring
The deepest spring in Missouri rises cobalt blue under a bluff on the Current River, filling a look-but-don't-touch pool inside a state natural area.