Fugitive Beach, Rolla

Location: 16875 County Road 5285, Rolla, MO 65401

Website: http://fugitive-beach.com/

This is a 25 acre abandoned rock quarry that opened to the public in 2014 as a swimming hole/beach. They have a 60’ waterslide, 50′ slip N slide, Nautilus (a large floating water toy with climbing wall & three slides), 10′, 15’ and 20’ cliff jumps, sand volleyball, human foosball, arcade, pavilion rentals, and a Beach Bar and Grill.

From their website, "When you first arrive at the beach, you will notice our beautiful blue water. We add pond dye to the quarry water to add to the beach like atmosphere. Keep in mind, our water is not clear like a pool. We are a natural environment with floating sediment that can potentially ‘cloud’ the water. To ensure that we are operating a safe environment for swimmers, we have the water tested once per month during our season by an engineering firm."

The admission is cheap, they charge $15 for people over age 10, and $12 for people under 10. Their hours are 10-6 7 days a week until mid-August.

They have "changing rooms", but if they are busy there may be a line as there are only 4 of them. They are small and hot. The only restrooms they have are port-a-potty and they are hot and stinky. You can pay money to use a real restroom on the far side of the quarry. I wish I had known that because the port-a-potty I used was filthy and had no toilet paper in it.

All kids under 10 are required to wear a life vest. If you don't bring one with you they rent them for $5 each.

If you make the trek out here I would recommend bringing lots of supplies. They sell food here but it's not as cheap as pool food (a pretzel with cheese is $5 and it's usually closer to $3 at area public pools.) They also make you pay for chairs and loungers to sit in, so I would bring beach blankets and use those to sit on.

 Changing rooms in an old shipping container.

 

Foot rinse area and shower. 

 Please wear shoes at all times. There are rocks everywhere. 

Frozen custard and snow cone stand

I wanted to come here just to see what it was all about. There aren't a lot of man-made beaches in Missouri and it sounded like a fun place. I had heard about people drowning here and to date there have been at least 5 deaths since it opened 9 years ago. If you look at reviews there are a lot of negative ones about people getting ear and skin infections from bacteria in the stagnant water. It's usually packed and there are a lot of teens here drinking, so I would hesitate to call it family-friendly. I saw water bottles and band-aids floating in the water.  I personally witnessed a guy vomit all over himself and his beach blanket. He tried to stand up but couldn't get on his feet. A woman came to tend to him and just led him to the water to rinse the vomit off. GROSS. We left after that.  My kids enjoyed it and liked the slides and cliff jumps but there are cleaner options closer to our home so we will never be back. I think you could have fun here but just be vigilant and watch your kids closely. 

Meramec Caverns, Sullivan

(This sign says Stanton but the website says they are in Sullivan)

Location: 1134 Highway W, Sullivan, MO 63080

Website: https://www.americascave.com/

Amenities include cave tours, riverboat rides, gift shop, restaurant, canoes, zipline, rock mining, camping, & more.  Children 4 and under are free. The tour is an hour and 20 minutes long and probably uses the same script they've been using for the last 50 years, but it's still enjoyable! There is a lot of walking (1.25 miles round trip) and about 50 stairs at the end. There is nowhere to sit along the way and no restrooms so keep that in mind for little guys. The walkways are uneven and wet so I would baby wear if you have little ones. Tours leave every 30 minutes or so and there are plenty of benches for you to sit and wait for your tour to start, plus informative information around to look at. It's 58 degrees in the cave and water drips everywhere so I would wear closed-toed shoes and bring a jacket as well. I had flip-flops on and almost fell on a slick spot.

"Proof of Jesse James usage of the caverns as a hideout is found through collaborative factual evidence. This evidence consists of sheriffs reports, eye witness accounts, and physical material found inside the cave. Among the artifacts found inside the cave (at Loot Rock) were strong boxes traceable to the train robbery at Gadshill, MO, rifles, and shackles. Additional information can be obtained by visiting the Jesse James Wax Museum nearby."

This onyx mountain was amazing. The water dripping created the largest flowstone in the world. It's mostly made of calcite so I'm not sure why it's named onyx mountain.

These formations are in the wine room, which is so named because they look like grapes.

The theatre room is at the end of the tour and they show a short inspirational video on the wall. The formation looks like a stage curtain.

They have a large gift shop with all kinds of cute souvenirs. You can also buy fudge here and it is delish!

Cave map

The Meramec Mining Company offers an area where kids can pan for gold and gemstones. My kids did this activity at Deanna Rose Farmstead in Kansas City and LOVED it so we did it again here. You can buy the small bag of dirt for $7.99 and you get a TON of gemstones out of it!

These are the gems from just one bag of dirt! My kids love trying to figure out what they got by matching them up to the chart. 

They have a playground near the campground. It's just one play structure and it's older but it's still functional. There is a slide, a tunnel, and various bars and poles. 

There are 4 sling swings and some sand to play in. 

If you want to make the most of your drive to Sullivan, you could visit the Riverside Wildlife Center, Wild Animal Adventure Park, and the Route 66 splash pad.