Largest Spring On The Big Piney

[smallmouthjoe]

Hello,

Does anyone know what the largest spring on the river is? I am a grad student at MSU studying the fish community in spring fed rivers. I need a reach of stream with that keeps a cool water temp year round, less than 70. Any information would be a great help.

Thanks,

Joe

[Gavin]

Missouri DNR has a publication called "Springs of Missouri"...its available online.

[smallmouthjoe]

Thanks

[Al Agnew]

Stone Mill Spring, in Fort Leonard Wood, is the biggest one, I believe, but it comes out in the middle of a long, shallow pool or at least that's the way it was the last time I was there. The wide, shallow water means it warms up again pretty quickly in a hot summer. Probably not the best place. Shanghai Spring, farther down river, is actually very easy to get to, has a rather long branch, and comes out into a narrow, deep pool. It may be a better bet. There's also Boiling Spring, which is a lot farther upriver and may have a lot more of an effect on the river right below because the river is smaller up there.

[Kelroy]

If you have a state bio sampling/collecting permit, you might inquire about the spring branches below Greer, Alley, or Big Spring. They each have a nice isolated reach before they dump into their respective rivers. Of course, if your study is confined to Big Piney, this doesn't help at all....

[smallmouthjoe]

Thanks for the information guys. I'll check out Boiling Spring, 10,000,000 gal. per day is the low estimate I'm getting from sources. Should be large enough to significantly reduce the summer water temps in the river near the spring. I have a site below Alley Spring and am currently looking at Greer Spring. The NPS is very protective of their spring branches and I will most likely not get access to the branch itself, even for a scientific survey. Thanks again.

[jdmidwest]

What about Lane Spring on the Little Piney?