Big Spring
One of the largest springs in the United States, pouring an average of 289 million gallons of clear blue water a day into the Current River, four miles south of Van Buren.
Best Places to Visit in the Ozarks for a Short Stop
Short on time does not mean settling. These places sit close to the road and give you the full payoff in under an hour: a great spring, a big view, a piece of history, then back on your way.
Big Spring Historic District
A National Register historic district of stone and timber buildings the Civilian Conservation Corps built at Big Spring in the 1920s and 1930s: a dining lodge, cabins, and a museum, closed for restoration but walkable today.
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.
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.
Songbird Trail
A half-mile Forest Service loop inside Watercress Recreation Area: past Watercress Spring, up a hillside to Civil War earthworks overlooking the Current River, and by a small cave in a rocky bank.
Carter County Courthouse
Missouri's only cobblestone-covered courthouse, built in 1871 and reclad by the WPA in 1936, stands vacant on its Main Street square in Van Buren, still the town's gathering ground for tree lightings and the Festival of Lights.