Missouri Explorer Program

Nearly everyone has probably taken a leisurely stroll or a vigorous hike through the woods. However, how many of us have ever stopped in our tracks to patiently listen to our natural surroundings or taken the time to wonder what kind of tree we stopped under to rest? Or who has walked through a historic building or historic landscape and wondered about the people who lived there?

Giving visitors a new appreciation and respect for the natural world and the historic setting around them along with an interest in preserving them is the main goal of the Missouri State Parks and Historic Sites Explorer Program. The patches and stars earned are visible symbols of a person's commitment to preserving the living environment.

Your first stop on the road to earning an Explorer patch is at a Missouri state park or historic site. Each location differs in the way they approach the program, ranging from working one-on-one with participants to going into classrooms throughout the year and producing an entire class of Explorers. During the summer months, some locations offer day camps where a patch can be earned upon completion. Other locations offer a variety of programs in the evenings to campers and other visitors, allowing them to work at it gradually. State parks and historic sites offer a variety of fun and educational nature programs to the public throughout the summer that help visitors earn the patch. History walks at state historic sites also count toward earning the patch.

star patch
Once participants earn their first patch, they are encouraged to start over and do it again, earning a gold star patch with each subsequent completion. There are no time limits for completing the program.

There are three parts of the program.