Pinewoods Lake Recreation Area
A 31-acre Forest Service fishing lake just off Highway 60 west of Ellsinore, with a barrier-free floating pier, a single-lane concrete ramp for electric-motor boats, a flat 1.3-mile trail around the water, and a picnic pavilion that holds groups of up to 75.
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Pinewoods Lake is a small managed fishery the Forest Service built in the late 1970s, tucked into oak, hickory, and pine woods in the Mark Twain National Forest just off U.S. Highway 60, about two miles west of Ellsinore. The water covers 31 acres and runs 10 to 12 feet deep in places, and the recreation area keeps everything in one compact site: the boat ramp, the fishing pier, the picnic ground, the campground, and the trailhead.
Fishing is the main event here. The Forest Service lists bass, sunfish, and catfish, and the Missouri Department of Conservation stocks the catfish. You can fish from shore, from a small boat launched at the single-lane concrete ramp, electric motors only, or from the barrier-free floating pier, which a concrete sidewalk reaches from the day-use area. A 1.3-mile trail circles the lake, the first half mile in concrete and the rest a wide, flat dirt path, crossing the dam and linking the fishing spots to the picnic area. The Forest Service notes beaver at work on the lake, wood ducks, and the occasional eagle.
The picnic side is built for a gathering: a pavilion with two large grills holds up to 75 people and is reserved ahead, and nearby tables carry pedestal grills, with a horseshoe pit by the pavilion. The paved campground runs seasonally, and the site carries live conditions worth checking before a trip: in November 2026 the Forest Service showed the day-use area and the trailhead open while the parent recreation area page read closed outside the campground season, and the trailhead page noted one closure, Beaver Bridge. There is no drinking water on site, and the Forest Service charges day-use and camping fees, paid on site, without printing the amounts on its pages.
Good to know before you go
- Fees
- Day-use and camping fees are charged at Pinewoods Lake (US Forest Service, Poplar Bluff Area page), paid on site in cash or check at the fee tube; the official pages read for this listing do not state the amounts, so the amounts are recorded as unknown. The group picnic pavilion is taken by reservation. A Missouri fishing permit is required to fish under statewide rules.
- Hours and seasons
- Status split read live on the Forest Service pages on 2026-11-08: the Day Use and Picnic Area page and the Trailhead page are shown Site Open, the Trailhead page with a current condition, Beaver Bridge is closed; the parent Pinewoods Lake Recreation Area page is shown Site Closed, outside the campground season, which the Forest Service lists as April 1 to October 1. No daily hours for the site itself are stated by the official source (the hours printed on the Forest Service pages are the Poplar Bluff district office's). Recheck the Forest Service status lines before this listing publishes.
- Parking
- Day-use parking for 75 vehicles. Boat ramp parking in two areas: single vehicles, and vehicles with trailers (10 spaces). Campsite parking allows two vehicles per site. The site sits on the south side of U.S. Highway 60, about two miles west of Ellsinore; Forest Service directions run from Poplar Bluff, Highway 67 north 7 miles, then Highway 60 west 16 miles.
- Accessibility
- The floating fishing pier is barrier-free and reached by a concrete sidewalk from the day-use area; the pavilion and one covered picnic table are accessible, and concrete sidewalks run from the pavilion to the boat ramp and the pier; campsite tables are accessible (US Forest Service trail page). Half a mile of the 1.3-mile lake trail has a concrete surface and the rest is a wide dirt path; the whole trail is relatively flat, with grades of 0 to 5 percent.
- Nearest town
- Ellsinore, Missouri
- Region
- Southeast Missouri
- Coordinates
- 36.920688, -90.773416
What you can do there
- Single-lane concrete boat launch (electric motors only)
- Barrier-free floating fishing pier, reached by sidewalk from the day-use area
- Pinewoods Lake Trail: a 1.3-mile loop around the lake, the first half mile concrete and the rest wide dirt, flat throughout
- Group picnic pavilion for up to 75 people with 2 large grills (reservation required)
- 1 covered picnic table and 4 picnic tables with pedestal grills; a horseshoe pit near the pavilion
- Paved campsites with picnic tables, fire rings, and lantern poles, in season (no hookups and no drinking water on site)
- Barrier-free vault toilets