Lon Sanders Canyon Conservation Area is located in Piedmont, Missouri about 2.25 hours southwest of St. Louis. My friend and our pups set out on a little road trip to check this place out. The trail leads away from the small parking lot. After a short distance, there is a small footbridge to the left.

This trail leads to the heart of the Canyon. After climbing a set of stone stairs, you get a view high above the shut-ins.

The trail then descends down to the creek. We walked around on the rocks and explored this beautiful area. The water is crystal clear.

An interesting feature of this place is the remnants of an old resort. Unfortunately, this idea failed, but features such as a stone staircase, stone pillars and a dam are still present today.

We headed back to the original trail. Another thing you will notice is that there are numbers along the trail. I assume there is an interpretive brochure to go along with these numbers, but I have been unable to find one. The trail follows McKenzie Creek to a second dam.

We continued along the trail and ended up at a golf course …? So we turned around and found a trail near the #10 marker that led up a set of stairs and up the bluff.

From here, the trail winds back to the parking lot. Overall, I think we hiked about a mile in total. This place was beautiful! The gorge was very peaceful and the hike was fairly easy. Check it out!

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