Don Robinson State Park
LaBarque Creek
Don Robinson State Park - Cedar Hill, MO
Travel by car to Don Robinson State Park in Cedar Hill, Missouri was only 45 minutes mostly on State Highway 30. The day was cold with a morning temperature of 28 degrees. On this hike I was alone.
The Park is considered among Missouri’s best places for conservation of native wildlife and habitat. The land is in the upper watershed of the LaBarque Creek, a high-quality stream that supports 42 species of fish before entering the Meramec River. The park includes an extensive network of sandstone cliffs and box canyons, outcrops and shelter caves as well as glades and upland and bottomland forests.
From the parking lot, I had no trouble finding the Sandstone Canyon trail head, which allows for exploration of the eastern half of the park. My hike for this day was to stay on the Sandstone Canyon Trail and also made some off trail scrambles to see the various cliffs and creeks. I did get some great photos of the sandstone cliffs and the creek. The trail was looped and easy to follow. The whole hike was mapped at 4-miles and a hilly trek.
The start of the hike was an easy walk into the woods on a paved trail for about the first half mile. Once you get deep into the woods the trail surface is mostly dirt with some sandstone rock, so it was easy steps for sure. The trail follows a ridge top along the upper edge of a sandstone canyon, which is one of the features unique to the LaBarque Creek Watershed. The topography of the hike lends itself to some nice natural views of the rolling hills we have in Missouri. With all the leaves off the trees, I had a great view of the area. The pictures I took are posted in the gallery below.
For this hike there was no real summit and the elevations changes were moderate up to 820 feet near the hill tops. You definitely feel like you are on a hike with this trail. As I looped back toward the starting trailhead, I also saw squirls a blue bird and a number of other birds. The trail was not crowded on Saturday morning, but there were a few other folks that passed by.
The total 4-mile hike took me one hour and fifty-seven minutes. My Apple watched indicated the elevation gain was 832 feet. Based on the distance, steepness and surface, this trail was excellent. A little bit more difficult than some of the other state park trails and the elevation gains were good as well. Definitely recommend this park and the Sandstone Canyon Trail.
