Access is by foot from a parking lot a half-mile south of the natural area.
Designated June 16, 1983. Whetstone Creek is a small, highly productive stream consisting of short, well-defined riffles and long, deep pools in the Missouri River Section of the Ozark Border Natural Division. It supports a diverse fish population of at least 34 species, including the endangered blacknose shiner. Water willow and spike rush are common aquatic plants. The stream banks are treeless or with a narrow band of sycamore, willow, silver maple and other characteristic floodplain trees.