SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — When asked to guess the most popular tourist attraction in Missouri, even non-Midwesterners probably could make some educated guesses.
Mark Twain’s home along the mighty Mississippi in Hannibal.
The Gateway Arch, downriver in St. Louis.
The Harry Truman Presidential Library in Independence.
Good as those guesses are, they’re all wrong. The single most visited attraction in the Show-Me state is a store — actually a megastore much bigger than the biggest Walmart Supercenter. It sprawls at the corner of Campbell Avenue and Cherokee Street in Springfield.
Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World “is the No. 1 tourist attraction in the state of Missouri and has been for several years,” noted Larry Whiteley, Bass Pro’s corporate communications chief. “We attract over 4 million people a year to this location, which is greater than the Gateway Arch or Silver Dollar City,” a theme park in Branson. The more visited of those two, the Arch, gets about 2.5 million a year, according to the National Park Service.
Is it fair to call a store a tourist attraction? It certainly is when the store not only boasts seemingly endless retail opportunities but also a public aquarium, exhibits reminiscent of a natural-history museum and recreational choices galore.
Bass Pro has 54 stores scattered across 26 states. And though each features attractions specific to its locale, the flagship store in Springfield remains the most visited. And it’s just one of three area destinations imagined — and then created — by Bass Pro founder Johnny Morris, now 64.
Morris is a bit of a legend in southwest Missouri. A Springfield native, he began his empire in 1972 by selling tackle in a corner of his dad’s liquor store.
It was, according to Bass Pro general manager, Mickey Black, “a humble man’s bait shop.”
“That’s all it was to begin with, a fishing shop,” Whiteley added.
That small space developed into a “pro shop” for local bass fishermen and eventually, in 1981, became the first Bass Pro Shop.
That store was a mere 50,000 square feet. It’s now more than six times larger. Shoppers and curiosity-seekers crisscross the equivalent of almost seven football fields (minus end zones) in visits to the four-story superstore.
Inside are 200,000 gallons of freshwater and saltwater in fish tanks and other water features. Roughly a thousand live “critters,” as Whiteley calls them, can be viewed. They include those fish, plus ducks, snakes and even an alligator.
Guests also can indulge in a putting green and gun and archery ranges. Year-round the store, like others in the chain, offers ongoing educational workshops on a bevy of outdoor topics — from Dutch-oven cooking to fly tying.
“The bluegill are kind of like the ‘crazy Aunt Shirley’ of your family. They’ll bite on anything,” Rob Dickerson remarked as he casually showed guest Bob Zumwalt how to make a lure for more discerning fish.
About an hour’s drive south on U.S. Highway 65 brings folks to an excellent place to try out their newly purchased fishing gear. Situated on the banks of sprawling Table Rock Lake, Johnny Morris’ Big Cedar Lodge is a big ole slice of heaven, Ozarks-style.
This lodge, which incorporates not only hotel-style accommodations but also a number of one- and two-bedroom cabins made from hand-hewn logs, is a five-star property that easily holds it own with the finest resorts of the Poconos and Catskills.
Big Cedar, which sits on 75 acres surrounded by another 1,200 acres of rolling hills, includes a marina, stables and fine dining featuring local produce when possible. Morris bought the land in 1987, when it was known as Big Cedar Hollow.
“My wife, Jeanie, found this majestic spot on the shores of Table Rock Lake, and it has become a place of passion, fun and inspiration for me,” Morris said. “The combination of the mountains and hills of the Ozarks, the beautiful rock formations … and the crystal-clear waters of Table Rock Lake make this location one of a kind.”
Carriage rides take guests past waterfalls and over shallow streams. They’re man-made but with such skill that guests can’t tell. Craftspeople from Bass Pro’s nearby workshop have created a delightful environment that carries through to the indoors as well.
In public spaces and guest rooms, real trophy fish, deer heads and antlers adorn the walls. In addition, designers have added delightful, whimsical touches such as lamps that appear to be made from fishing rods and reels. The overall effect is truly amazing — and very welcoming.
Another short drive, this one just 17 miles from Big Cedar Lodge, leads people to the third jewel in the Morris crown: 2,200-acre Dogwood Hollow. Straddling the Missouri-Arkansas border, this is a vast nature reserve that Morris acquired in 1990.
Visitors arrive along a one-way lane underneath a canopy of trees. A crafter has designed the turtle-shaped speed limit sign that reads “9 3/4 mph.”
Guests can walk the narrow paths through the park or take a guided tour aboard a Segway. The most popular tours, however, are aboard trams pulled by pickup trucks.
Within moments of beginning an eight-mile journey through the scenic canyon, guide Jim Scott took his guests over Long Pine Crossing, a covered bridge spanning one of the many streams. He explained that the 80-foot, wooden bridge was constructed by Amish workers using hand tools, a perfect fit for this environmentally sensitive attraction.
“You’re going to see a bunch of fish out here today. I guarantee you that,” Scott told his guests as he drove across a weir. These man-made waterfalls create bubbles that, in turn, provide the brown and rainbow trout in the pools below the oxygen they need.
“The creeks are spring-fed. That’s where all that clear water comes from,” Scott observed, adding that the water temperature remains about 55 degrees all year long. Visitors can try their hand at fly-fishing, which also is taught at the store up in Springfield.
“His vision is to take care of the habitat for future generations,” Whiteley concluded. “Otherwise, it’s not going to be around for their children and grandchildren to enjoy.”
If you go
Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World in Springfield, Mo.: 417-887-7334, basspro.com.
Big Cedar Lodge in Ridgedale, Mo.: 800-225-6343, bigcedar.com. Rates for lodge rooms and cottages start at $179 for cabins at $333.
Dogwood Canyon near Lampe, Mo.: 417-779-5983, dogwoodcanyon.com. Bike tours are $17.95 for adults, $8.95 for kids 3-11, cheaper if you supply the bikes. Hiking is $8.95 for adults, $4.95 for kids. Tram tours are $25.95 for adults, $11.95 for kids. All-inclusive passes are available.
