White River Valley - Green Loop, MO

Warning
Depending on the season, the trails in the White River Valley (WRV) might be considered a “wet” trail system. Though it did not rain during my visit, Branson had quite a bit of rain prior to my arrival and all the trails had water features to varying degrees. Wet, muddy shoes was almost a foregone conclusion. Tics are common, so hiking through foliage to avoid water should be done with caution. Also, mosquitoes and spider webs were common annoyances and frequently distracted from the beauty of the trail.


Overview
When people think of Branson Missouri, hiking usually does not come immediately to mine; and this is with good reason. There are a lot of activities to keep your interest. However, if hiking or biking is on your radar then Branson does have a nice system of trails that can help you connect with Missouri nature. This WRV trail system is composed of four looped trails (Green, Orange, Red and Blue) with multiple connectors allowing you to either shorten some of the larger loops or to connect from loop to another. The trail system has three TH, all easily accessible by car. The Green Loop TH only has parking for about 8 cars. It does have a bathroom and a map of the trail system.Though it is not mandatory, the park encourages all users to go in a clockwise direction.

Hike
The Green Loop Trail takes off from the southern end of the parking area, near the trail map. Hike in about 100 yards to reach the beginning of the loop. There will be a green arrow “encouraging” you to take the left (clockwise) arm of the trail.

After one quick switchback the trail will enter a wooded section. Initially the trail does a decent job of holding its elevation with some minor ups and downs. At 0.36 miles the trail junctures with connector 5 which will take you to the Orange Loop. (Connector 5 is about 0.22 miles long and will take you past an old abandoned shack and earth cellar and is one of only two ways of reaching the Orange Loop, which does not have a TH).

Continuing on the Green Loop the trail will start to do some gradual climbing. The climb will gain in intensity and start to switchback as it nears its high point, but this climb doesn’t last long and tops out at .55. After a brief descent the trail will straighten out and become noticeably flat. You will still be hiking within the trees but this section will actually have some sky exposure (a rarity for much of the WRV Trail System).

The few openings that you get in the WRV trail system they generously refer to as meadows. They are, in fact, Powerline corridors. So all meadows have electrical lines running down the middle. Case in point, around 0.75 miles you reach such a clearing. This actually provides you with one of the best trail views of Table Rock Lake.

At around 0.9 you re-enter the woods and start to descend back towards the TH. For most of the hike the trail is a single track, which (for this writing), had frequent water hazards to deal with, but as the trail nears the TH, it will broaden into an old dirt road emerging into a “meadow”.

Synopsis
The Green Loop offers a quick foray into hiking in the Ozarks and a glimpse of what the WRV trail system has to offer. At 1.25 miles it is the second shortest of the loops and provides one of the easier loops. This trail offers the best diversity of all the loops, showcasing “meadows”, intimate trails and semi exposed forest pathways.

Of the four loops, this was the muddiest with standing water with trails and streams coexisting. It was never bad and typically there was room to negotiate these water hazards.

2025-07-02 mt98dew