While we love to camp and hike, one of our other favorite hobbies is riding four-wheelers. St. Joe State Park is one of two state parks in Missouri, the other one being Finger Lakes State Park, that has ATV trails. St. Joe is located in the heart of the Old Lead Belt near Park Hills, Missouri. It is a short trip from St. Louis, just an hour and a half drive.

We went this past weekend and as with most Missouri state parks during the fall, the campground was completely full. We usually reserve a camping site with electrical hookups, but since the campground was so full, we had a basic site. Overall, the campground is very nice. You can see my reivew of the campground HERE on Pop Up Portal.

This park is perfect for trail riding since you can set up camp and ride directly to the riding area via a connector trail. The main riding area is made up of sand flats created from the mining process which once used this land. It can get a bit dusty and bumpy, but this area feels like it stretches forever. There are so many neat places to explore.

The State recently brought in a lot of rock to create a channel for water. There are also crossings so you do not have to ride through deep water.

The park also has some great trails through the woods. Trail 100 is rated as easy and circles the perimeter or the riding area. There are tons of trails that shoot off the main trails with varying degrees of difficulty.

If you look hard enough, you can even find a mud pit to get stuck in =)

This park does not just have ATV trails though. There are several lakes that have beaches to swim at and that you can fish in.

All in all, this is a great park, close to St. Louis. It has over 2,000 acres of riding area with diverse trails. The park map above was obtained from the Missouri State Parks website. Be sure to check out their website for more information!