Places to Go: Birch Creek CA

Birch Creek Conservation Area

A place of fall colors

If Birch Creek Conservation Area (CA) in October were a box of crayons, it would go heavy on the traditional reds, oranges, and browns of fall, but one would also want to be aware of the other color in the box — black.

Located on more than 5,600 acres in Shannon County, Birch Creek CA is completely forested, giving it plenty of fuel for showy fall foliage, said retired MDC Forester Steve Paes.

“It is 100 percent forested, there are no fields,” Paes said. “The last week of October is the height of tree color.”

The other color — black — has a history at Birch Creek CA, but don’t count on seeing it.

“There are black bears there,” he said. “When we did bear trapping, they were caught there, and there have been some known dens. So, there are bears. Are you likely to see one? No, I’ve never seen one.”

The area allows open camping and has more than 8 miles of roads and trails open to hiking and biking, so taking steps to limit interactions with black bears is strongly advised. Suggestions for camping and hiking in bear country are available online at short.mdc.mo.gov/4bQ.