Recreation & Community Facilities

If it's outdoor recreation you like the Licking area is for you. Streams, national forests and man-made facilities combine to make this the ideal outdoor playground. Hunting is great with Texas County routinely leading the state in deer and wild turkey bagged each season. Fishing is equally rewarding in the area's many streams. The opening of Montauk State Park brings hundred of visitors to the Licking area as does the available accesses to the area riverways.

Montauk State Park, located 10 miles east of Licking, is famous for Montauk Springs with a daily flow of 43,000,000 gallons and forms the head waters of the well known Current River. This popular trout fishing and floating stream is a Mecca for thousands of tourists each year.

Mark Twain National Forest in the general area totals 190,000 acres of natural beauty with clear, fresh water from springs, creeks and rivers. The Paddy Creek Wilderness area covers 7,020 acres and is 16 miles west of Licking.

While natural recreation opportunities are hard to beat, Licking boasts a number of man made facilities and organized activities Two large city parks, one roadside park, outdoor tennis courts, outdoor basketball court,  softball & baseball fields, shelter houses, asphalt track, little league baseball and soccer, various adult leagues, public library, picnic grounds, resorts and campgrounds, senior citizens center, several civic clubs, fraternal organizations, community clubs, school and church organizations.

Annual Events: Licking PRCA Rodeo and Rodeo Days Parade (weekend after Memorial Day), Games on Horses, Show Me Challenge Speed Events, Youth Bull Ride, Antique Car Show, Draft Horse Pull, Santa's Workshop and Parade (first Saturday in May), Christmas at the Mill.