Park at the VISITOR CENTER
Located at the main entrance, the Visitor Center offers helpful information and trail maps. A selection of books on natural history, ecology, and botany is available for sale. A picnic area is close by.
A five-minute walk to the NATURE EXPLORE CLASSROOM
Located near the Visitor Center, this area focuses on connecting young children with nature during unstructured play. Climb through logs, build with wooden blocks, create music with a marimba or make artistic creations using plant material, stone and seed pods.
Wander the many trails around the Cypress Lake
This is a 50-acre rolling meadow surrounding a two-acre lake. Thousands of daffodils bloom in the meadows each spring.
Adjacent to Cypress Lake is the WOLF RUN TRAIL
The parking area east of Cypress Lake marks the beginning of this one-mile loop. Wolf Run Lake is a refreshing midway resting spot.
BASCOM HOUSE is 3/4 of a mile from the Visitor Center
Built in 1879, the house is open to the public. There is additional parking, picnic shelters, and restrooms next to the Bascom House.
Behind the Bascom House is the QUAIL INTERPRETIVE TRAIL
The 1/2-mile Quail Interpretive Trail is a collaborative project between Shaw Nature Reserve, Missouri Department of Conservation and Quail Unlimited. Visitors can observe how specific management practices improve quail habitat and benefit other grassland birds and wildlife in general.
Around the Bascom House spreads the WHITMIRE WILDFLOWER GARDEN
Located adjacent to the Bascom House, the five-acre Whitmire Wildflower Garden highlights the beauty of Missouri native plants. Visitors can observe native perennials, vines, grasses, aquatic plants, shrubs and flower trees and gain insight on how to use them in their home gardens. Interpretive map brochures are available in the garden.
Below the garden join the BRUSH CREEK TRAIL
This 3⁄4-mile trail originates at the spillway of Pinetum Lake and is the shortest route to the Maritz Trail House, passing by the Whitmire Wildflower Garden, over Brush Creek, and through the prairie. A booklet available in the Visitor Center provides information on 18 native trees labeled along the trail. Check booklet availability at the Visitor Center.
If headed to the Bus Stop take the PRAIRIE TRAIL
Branching off Brush Creek Trail, this trail meanders for 3⁄4 mile through the prairie ending at the wetland parking area near the historic stone “bus stop.” An observation deck at the crest of the hill provides hikers a panoramic view of the prairie.
Continue along Brush Creek Trail to the MARITZ TRAIL HOUSE