[2] An enormous first magnitude spring, it rises at the base of a bluff on the west side of the Current River valley in the Missouri Ozarks.

[3][4] The average flow of 470 cubic feet (13,000 L) of water per second[1] from Big Spring constitutes the second-largest tributary of the Current River.

The maximum discharge of Big Spring must be estimated because backwater from the Current River makes accurate high-water measurements impossible.

The spring issues from the base of a limestone bluff, churning out aqua-blue water with great force, creating whitecaps, then quickly calming to a crystal-clear channel.

The water is about 58 °F (14 °C), and the spring is surrounded by a well-maintained park and a steep valley hillside covered in hardwood forest.