Hickory Canyon Falls
Worth a detour
Is it plungeworthy?
A horsetail on Hickory Creek.
The details
- Type
- Horsetail
- Watercourse
- Hickory Creek
- Coordinates
- 37.87121, -90.30061
About Hickory Canyon Falls
Hickory Canyon Falls is a 40-foot horsetail in Missouri, on Hickory Creek.
It's fullest after rain, and flow can drop off during dry spells — plan around recent weather.
Plungeworthy rates Hickory Canyon Falls 6.8/10 — worth a detour. The score weighs its scale, how confidently it's mapped, and its character.
What you'll find
A wet-weather falls pouring over the rim of a box canyon cut into Lamotte sandstone — rock that started as beach sand about 500 million years ago. A quarter-mile trail ends at the drop.
The canyon walls stay cool and damp year-round, growing partridge berry, ferns, and club mosses — a pocket plant community that has no business in the surrounding dry Ozark upland.
A separate one-mile loop on the other side of the road drops through a second canyon past smaller cascades. The land is L-A-D Foundation-owned, managed for public access by the Missouri Department of Conservation — trailhead parking and nothing else.
Getting there
- Trailhead
- Trail on the east side of the county road, from the Sprott Road parking area
- Parking
- Small lot at the end of Sprott Road, serving both trails
- Road
- From Farmington: Highway 32 east, Route C north 3 miles, then gravel Sprott Road west 1.5 miles
- Hike
- 0.5 mi round trip (easy)
- Heads up
- The 1-mile loop through the second canyon is rougher going than the falls trail.
When to go
Runs after rain and during spring melt; in summer and fall it can sit at a seep for weeks.
Go within a day or two of real rain — standard Ozark sandstone-canyon math.
Rules & fees
- Fee / pass
- None
- Dogs
- Permitted, leashed or confined at all times (MDC standard)
- Hours
- 4am-10pm daily
- Camping
- Prohibited
- Warnings
- Steep, slick sandstone at the rim and base, worst right after the rain that turned the falls on.
Researched from Missouri Dept. of Conservation — Hickory Canyons Natural Area · L-A-D Foundation — Hickory Canyons NA · World Waterfall Database — Hickory Canyon Falls. Conditions change — verify before you drive. Been to Hickory Canyon Falls recently? Post a conditions report below.
Where it is
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Before you go
The pin marks the feature, not a trailhead or a legal route in. Some sit on private land or need a real hike, and conditions change with season and rain. Check local access, don't trespass, and never enter water — hot or cold — where it isn't safe.
Common questions
How tall is Hickory Canyon Falls?
Hickory Canyon Falls drops about 40 feet, in Missouri.
Where is Hickory Canyon Falls?
Hickory Canyon Falls is a waterfall in Missouri, at 37.87121, -90.30061.
Is Hickory Canyon Falls worth visiting?
Worth a detour — Plungeworthy rates it 6.8/10.
Gear for the trip
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