Driving DirectionsThe area is located about 15 miles north of Nevada and 5 miles south of Rich Hill in Bates and Vernon counties. To reach headquarters from I-49/71 Highway, take Route TT east 2 miles to 1600 Road, then south 2 miles.
HighlightsFour Rivers provides both managed and open waterfowl hunting opportunity. There is one disabled-accessible blind available through the managed hunt program. Designated an Important Bird Area by Audubon Missouri. All four wetland units provide excellent shorebird and waterfowl viewing opportunity at certain times of the year, and over 180 species have been seen on the area. There is also a heron rookery in Unit 1 (south of the Little Osage River) in the Horton Bottom Natural Area. There is also a boardwalk in Unit 3 adjacent to the DU Presidents Marsh that provides opportunity to view emergent wetland habitat and wildlife. Field access roads provide opportunity for hiking and bird watching, but are restricted to foot traffic only. Facilities and features include three boat ramps (two lake and one stream), four streams, Four Rivers Unit 1 Reservoir (142 acres), Four Rivers Unit 3 Lake (20 acres), and four fishable ponds.
About This AreaThe 13,929 acre area is largely wetlands with several large tracts of bottomland forest. It has over 21 miles of stream frontage and a large natural area. The initial purchase of nearly 4,500 acres for the area occurred in 1982. A large-scale construction project completed in 1996 restored over 2,000 acres of this area (Units 1 and 2) to productive, manageable wetlands. Developments include a pump station, a water storage reservoir, and a system of levees and water control structures that allow control of water levels in 14 separate marshes. In 1998, an additional 7,036 acres (Unit 3 and 4) were added to the area through a cooperative partnership between the Missouri Department of Conservation, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, Ducks Unlimited, the North American Wetland Conservation Council, and the Busch family. In 1999, the area was renamed the August A. Busch, Jr. Memorial Wetlands at Four Rivers to honor the former Conservation Department Commissioner and a man who cherished wetlands and waterfowl. This new addition was developed into three pools in Unit 3 and six pools in Unit 4 to include 3,200 total acres of wetlands in 2000 and 2001. The area is primarily managed for wetland species using a variety of moist-soil management techniques, along with some agricultural crops. The managed waterfowl hunting program, along with 'open hunting' units provides waterfowl hunting opportunity to several thousand hunters annually.
