Little Dixie Lake Conservation Area

Driving Directions

On I-70 ten miles west of Kingdom City, take the Route J exit and go south to Route RA. The main Little Dixie Lake CA parking area is off Route RA at the junction with Route J in Millersburg.

Highlights

This area is primarily forest and grassland. Facilities/features: boat ramp, boat rentals, boat dock, picnic areas and a pavilion, nine fishing jetties, a fishing dock, and Little Dixie Lake (205 acres).

About This Area

Little Dixie Lake Conservation Area is in Callaway County, west of Kingdom City. This region of Missouri received settlers from Kentucky, Tennessee, and North Carolina. The settlers' strong cultural and political ties with the south resulted in the name of Little Dixie.
The Conservation Department acquired Little Dixie's 467 acres in 1957, through the damming of Owl Creek, 205-acre Little Dixie Lake was created. Additional purchases have expanded the area to 733 acres.
Before Department ownership, much of the property had been grazed. Today, the area's oak-hickory forests have heavy undergrowth, and once-open pastures have reverted to various stages of old-field habitat.
Stands of warm-season grasses and other prairie plants are managed by prescribed burns. Food plots are planted each year for deer, turkey, and other animals. Numerous small, fishless ponds have been constructed for woodland wildlife.
In addition, the Department constructed 22 ponds on the area for fisheries research, including vegetation control, pond stocking rates, fish reproduction, and fish rearing techniques. Both Department personnel and graduate students from the University of Missouri use the area for research.

General Information

Central

Callaway

573-884-6861

Owned by MDC

Area closed 10 PM - 4 AM; Hunting with shotshell only in desiganted hunting areas. Rental row boats are available from approximately April 15 til Oct. 15 of each year, only boats and oars are provided. All other necessary boating equipment must be supplied by the user. Outboard motors in excess of 10 horsepower must be operated at a no-wake speed.

Activities
Activity
(Activity Explanations)		 Comments
(Population Definition)
Bicycling   
Bird Watching  For a list of area birds, visit http://www.mobirds.org/CACHE/mdcchecklists1.asp?locID=192.  
Canoeing   
Dog Training with Special Use Permit   
Fishing - Bass Good population. Slot limit 12-15 inches 
Fishing - Catfish Good population.  
Fishing - Crappie Good population.  
Fishing - Other Fair population. Carp 
Fishing - Sunfish Good population. Redear sunfish 
Hiking  there are numerous multi-use trails and an interpretive disabled accessible trail available for use. 
Hunting-Deer Fair population. Archery only in designated area 
Hunting-Quail Fair population. Designated area 
Hunting-Rabbit Fair population. Shotshell only; Designated area 
Hunting-Squirrel Good population. Shotshell only; Designated area 
Hunting-Turkey Fair population. Designated area 
Hunting-Waterfowl Fair population. Designated area only, no managed wetland but lake and ponds within designated area are open 
Trapping with Special Use Permit  Special Use Permit Required 

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Conservation Department Facilities
Facility Item Name Count Comments
Boat Ramp - Lake - Concrete  1  Outboard motors in excess of 10 horsepower must be operated at a no-wake speed. 
Boats for Rent  24  Boats rent for $5/day. Rental row boats are available from approx. April 15 til Oct. 15 each year, only boats and oars are provided, all other necessary boating equipment must be supplied by the user.  
Dock - Boat/Courtesy  1  adjacent to rental boats 
Dock - Fishingaccessible 1   
Fishing Jetty/Platformaccessible 9   
Parking Lotaccessible 5  2-Gravel Parking Lot with concrete pads. 
Pavilionaccessible 1   
Picnic Tableaccessible 15   
Privy/Restroomaccessible 5   
Viewing Deck/Tower Scout viewing platform 1  viewing platform overlooks the lake 

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Features
Feature Item Name Count Size Comments
Fishing Lake or Pond Little Dixie Lake 1 205.00 acres  
Fishing Lake or Pond  3 3.00 acres All ponds contain largemouth bass, bluegill and channel catfish. Ponds range in size from 1/4 to 1 1/2 acres. 
Fishless Pond  20 10.00 acres  
Stream - Intermittent Owl Creek 1 2.00 miles  

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Land Cover Types
Land Type Acres Comments
Wetland 2.00  
Old Field 50.00  
Lakes/Ponds 208.00  
Native Prairie 10.00  
Forest and Woodland 263.00  
Grassland (non-prairie) 200.00  
Total Area Acres:733.35 

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Designated Trails
Trail Name Trail Type Length
Dixie Woods Nature TrailaccessibleDisabled-Accessible Trail 0.40 
Shoreline Trail Hiking (Non-Interpretive) 4.50 
Boundary Trail Multi-Use (Hike/Bike) 6.00 

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Shooting Range General Information

This area has no shooting ranges.

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