Roger Pryor Pioneer Backcountry

Roger Pryor Pioneer Backcountry
Location in Missouri Show map of Missouri Roger Pryor Pioneer Backcountry (the United States) Show map of the United States
Location	Shannon County, Missouri, United States
Coordinates	37°20′37″N 91°25′20″W / 37.34361°N 91.42222°W / 37.34361; -91.42222
Area	95 sq mi (250 km2)
Established	2001
Administrator	Missouri Department of Natural Resources
Website	Official website

The Roger Pryor Pioneer Backcountry is a 60,000-acre (243 km²) area of private land that is managed by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources for hiking and backpacking by the public.^[1] The land is part of the largest private forest in the state, the Pioneer Forest, owned by the L-A-D Foundation, an endowment of the late Missouri timber magnate, conservationist, and philanthropist Leo Drey (1917–2015).^[2]

Two significant wilderness areas are included in the managed area: the Current River Natural Area which contains 400-year-old trees,^[3] and the Pioneer Natural Area adjacent to the Current River, which is home to old-growth cedar and hardwood trees.^[4]

The area is crossed by 27 miles (43 km) of trails: the 13-mile (21 km) Blair Creek Section of the Ozark Trail, the 12-mile (19 km) Brushy Creek Trail, and a 2-mile (3.2 km) Laxton Hollow Trail, which connects to the Ozark Trail. An additional trail under construction, the Current River Trail, will eventually connect Round Spring, a few miles west of the backcountry area, to the Brushy Creek Trail.^[5]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Roger Pryor Pioneer Backcountry.

• Trails of the Roger Pryor Pioneer Backcountry Missouri Department of Natural Resources
• Roger Pryor Pioneer Backcountry L-A-D Foundation