Type of Use: Foot.
Length/Rating: 2-Mile Loop/More Difficult
Other Recreation Activities: Fishing, canoeing, tubing, boating, motor boating, swimming, birdwatching, sightseeing, photography, picnicking, camping, mushroom/berry picking.
Doniphan District
Woodchuck Trail is a half mile long trail connecting Float Camp Picnic Area with the campground. It climbs a small hill in a well-shaded area under a mixture of sycamore, black walnut, shortleaf pine, and white and scarlet oak. Halfway along, a bench sits at the highest point of the trail. The trail exits on the area's entrance road; on the right is Maldon Spring and on the left, the White Oak Trail.
White Oak Trail is a 1.5-mile loop trail originating at the Float Camp Picnic Area's parking lot. A very nice sign marks the beginning of the trail—a casual walk through a forest environment. The predominant species along the trail are white and scarlet oak, as well as some very large shortleaf pine trees. Elm trees are also found here. The trail is located near the Bootheel area in southeast Missouri; you can find sweetgum and buckeye trees here that normally grow in bottomland swamps.
The trailbed is relatively wide. The lower portion was a logging road at one time. In the middle of the path, oak and pine sprouts are coming up; the new oak leaves are dark red. On the carpet-like green moss, you may find a burning-red mushroom or two. Box turtles, forest interior birds, and squirrels are residents in the woods on both sides.
A rich variety of wildflowers are present: Yellow and purple wood sorrel; false solomon's seal, and false dandelion; catbrier and dogwood and horsemint; blueberry and coralberry; wild ginger and wild plum—each in itself is a wonder. If you use a magnifier on the flower of a horsemint, you will discover how intricate its texture is: tiny purple dots on a pale white petal. Trumpet vine and Virginia creeper climb on large trees. Fleabanes look like small versions of ox-eye daisy, while the midget purple flowers of a scurf pea are humble enough to escape the attention of a hurried visitor. It is unusual but possible to find a skullcap (what a startling name!) with sawtooth leaves and purple and white irregular flowers.
Near the end of the trail, there is a grove of young shortleaf pines, which stand out in contrast to the older pines found along the rest of the trail. They were probably planted by the Forest Service around 1956. White Oak Trail is a delight for an hour's stroll. It is frequented by local people and by visitors who stop by Float Camp and the nearby Deer Leap Recreation Area on Current River.
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