Rockwood Reservation

Denise at Reservation Entrance

Rockwood Reservation

Travel by car to Rockwood Reservation in Wildwood Missouri was a short 45 minutes mostly on Interstate 44.  Once we entered the two-lane road off the highway there were good signs leading to the Reservation and the main parking areas.  The day was sunny with a nice temperature of 60 degrees.  On this hike I was accompanied by Denise. 

From in the parking lot, we had no trouble finding the trail head.  Our hike for this day was to start out on the Trail Among the Trees and then connect up to the Lime Kiln Trail.  Both trails were looped, however if you connect the Lime Kiln Trail midway on the Trail Among the Trees the whole hike turns into a nice 5-mile hilly trek.  That is exactly what we did.

The start of the hike is basically straight up with some switchbacks.  On the way up the trail surface was mostly paved blacktop so it was easy steps.  You really get a great view of the limestone rock exposed all around the trail on the way up.  About two thirds of the way up to the top there is an overlook area.  Since we went on a fall October day the trees colors were excellent.  I took a number of pictures which are posted in the gallery below.  Once we reached the top of the Trail Among the Trees and it leveled off, we soon came upon the connection to the Lime Kiln Trail.  At that point you are on a dirt trail.

Shortly after we connected trails the path topography changed right way.  The walking surface was harder to navigate as there were rough limestone rocks protruding on the surface of the path.  This slowed us down a lot because we had to choose our foot placement carefully to not trip or fall.  The steepness of the trail also increased and we encountered a number of other hikers going much slower than us as we passed them.  We still took enough time to enjoy the beauty of the hillside and the tree colors.  The main animals we saw were squirls and birds. 

All in all, completing two thirds of the Trail Among the Trees trail and all of the Lime Kiln trail took us under two hours and the distance on our Apple Watches as a little over 5-miles.   We went on a Sunday afternoon and the trails were not crowded, but there was a number of hikers and families on both trails.

Based on the distance, steepness and surface, these trails were excellent for good exercise.  There were no outstanding views, waterfalls, caves, etc.  The first overlook was really the highlight and if not for the fall color of the trees the overlook offered nothing special in terms of a view. When I am looking for straight exercise in a hike close to my house this one will do the trick.