White River Valley - Red Loop, MO

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. The White River Valley (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 Red Loop has paved parking for about 10 cars with additional dirt parking if necessary. This TH has bathrooms and a map of the WRV Trail System.


Though it is not mandatory, the park encourages all users to go in a clockwise direction.Hike
This trail was the only true loop of the system. The other three loops (Green, Orange and Blue) were technically lassoes. Going clockwise the Red Loop starts off next to the trail map.

Within the first 0.25 miles there are two “meadows”. The first is a legitimate meadow that the trail goes along the edge of. This is a surprising open space that is near the trailhead. The second “meadow” that follows shortly thereafter is a Powerline corridor “meadow” that the trail briefly crosses. This trail is not as well marked as some of its counterparts, but it is cutting through a dense forest so the trail is fairly obvious. The trail is composed of soft dirt, with a decent amount of roots and rocks to keep you on your toes. On the plus side, this trail has a minimum number of water obstacles compared to the other loops.

At 0.49 there is a signed split in the trail. An option for the Red Loop and the Advanced Loop. These trails merge back together shortly, so taking either route will bring you to the next junction. The Red Loop is a little longer 0.24 miles. The Advanced Loop a little shorter at 0.18 and, in my mind, seemed no more difficult. At 0.73 these options merge, and this merger, is also the juncture for Connector 1. This is a signed trail that is only 0.08 miles long that allows you to connect to the backend of the Red Loop, shortening the trail. Continuing past Connector 1 you quickly reach (.81 miles) another signed option for a Red Loop or an Advanced Loop. Both these options are about 0.1 miles long and are of the same difficulty. (Note: these signed difficulty options are signed going clockwise, but there was no signage if you were coming from the CCW direction).

The trail does quite a bit of rising and falling as it twists and turns through the trees and the change in terrain. So much so that it is difficult to describe, but around 1.15 you reach a stretch where the trail is pleasantly flat, smooth and relatively straight. It doesn’t last long, but it is noteworthy for its exception. By 1.40 the trail returns to its twisting nature and it starts to do a gradual descent into a wash crossing. There will be some old structural debris littering the wash, leaving you wondering its purpose and how it ended up there. (In this area, there was a mile long conveyor belt that transported material from a quarry to the Table Rock Dam that was being built in the 1950’s, so I imagine the land looked quite a bit different back then and that there are a lot of remnants being reclaimed by Mother Nature). Around 1.97 the Red Loop junctures with Connector 2. This is a 0.7 mile trail that will connect you to the Blue Loop. At 2.35 the Red Loop reaches the back end of Connector 1. Just before this, the trail starts to parallel a stream which it crosses at 2.40 and again at 2.5 miles. (Considering the wetness of this trail system in general, these were surprisingly easy stream crossings with plenty of stepping stones). The trail does some gradual climbing for about 0.2 miles before flattening out. At this point you’re practically back at the TH. The forest opens up and the trail will do some big sweeping arcs before depositing you on the other side of the parking lot at 3.1 miles.

Note
I did quite a bit of back and fourth, following loop options and connectors so my mileage might be slightly askew as I tried to provide distance for just the Red Loop, subtracting out all my additional hiking.

Synopsis
This is one of the nicer loops in the White River Valley System. A very doable distance at just over 3 miles with an option to shorten it (Connector 1) if so inclined. It was the driest of the four loops which made it the easiest to hike. The Advanced Loop options were a little bit of a head scratcher. They certainly didn’t seem that difficult and didn’t offer much variation in length or challenge. The biggest challenge of this hike was dealing with the mosquitoes and spider webs. My arms got almost as much exercise as my legs. This trail nice, but would be much more enjoyable, if you had someone tall leading the way….a webeliminator.

2025-07-07 mt98dew