Hiking
Hike to Terry Keefe Falls
With the recent rain, the next few days will be a great time to see some waterfalls in Arkansas. I have written before about the many options along Falling Water Rd in the Richland Creek Wilderness. On my last venture to this area, I took a friend out that wanted to spend a day seeing some falls. On our last stop of the day, we made the beautiful hike to Terry Keefe Falls. Before we started this hike, we had made stops at Falling Water Falls, Six Finger Falls and Fuzzy Butt Falls. We were prepared to see others after Keefe Falls, but those got rained out. I have seen other people comment in different forums that Terry Keefe Falls was not their favorite in the area. I would have to agree, but only because the other falls in the area are so great. This waterfall is still absolutely worth hik...
Hemmed in Hollow Falls Via the Buffalo River
Did you know that the highest waterfall between the Appalachians and the Rocky Mountains is located right here in Arkansas? Yep, that’s right. Hemmed in Hollow, located on the Buffalo National River, is 209 feet tall. That makes it the highest waterfall in Mid-America, according the National Park Service. From the regular trail head it’s a pretty tough hike. It starts in the hills above the top of the falls and ends at the bottom of the falls. So the steep uphill hike out of there is the difficult part. But for anyone that’s physically unable to do this hike, I have good news. You can access Hemmed in Hollow Falls via the Buffalo River and it’s a very short, easy hike. OK, so if you thought I was going to tell you about some special elevator, zip line or something, ...
Six Finger Falls and Fuzzy Butt Falls
Falling Water Road near Ben Hur is home to many popular Ozark waterfalls. Some of them require a short, easy hike to see. Some of them are longer, tougher hikes. Others, such as the ever-popular Falling Water Falls, can be seen from the road. Six Finger Falls and Fuzzy Butt Falls are two others that are very accessible and easy to get to. Six Finger Falls, just like Falling Water Falls, is one that you can see from the road. You literally park next to it, walk 50 feet down a rocky trail, and you are there. Fuzzy Butt Falls on the other hand, cannot be seen from the road. But it is so close that I hardly even consider it a hike. If you are not a big hiker but still want to see some awesome waterfalls, these two are for you. They are so close together that if you are going to make the drive ...
Hike to Sandstone Castles
I recently made the hike to Sandstone Castles, but I have to admit I had never heard of it until this year. Some friends and I were planning an overnight hike to Twin Falls. My friend David had been to Twin Falls before and suggested we add Sandstone Castles to the hike. He had not been there before either. He looked for them on his last hike to Twin Falls but took a wrong turn and missed them. Once he told me about them and their proximity to Twin Falls, I was sold. We decided we would tackle this on Day 2 of our overnight group hike. In case you missed Day 1, we started off from the Richland Creek Campground. We hiked the trail along Richland Creek to Richland Falls, and then on to Twin Falls. You can read all about Part 1 of this hike here, along with all the pics and video. In fact, I ...
Richland Falls and Twin Falls Hike
There are several hikes in the state that have eluded me for years, for one reason or another. Trying to coordinate with friends, busy schedules, weather, float trips, social commitments – the list goes on. The Richland Falls and Twin Falls hike is one of those for me. It’s been on my to do list for quite some time. Well this spring, the planets aligned and I finally got to do it. And it was everything I hoped it would be. I usually give each waterfall its own article, but it makes sense to put these two together. It’s pretty much the same hike, with one waterfall appearing after the other on basically the same trail. If you are going to go through the trouble to see one, you might as well see them both. I had always thought that I wanted to do this one as an overnight hi...
Hiking to Glory Hole Falls in the Ozarks
Now is the time of year that the waterfall hunters seem to be out in full force. So I am continuing on with my recent waterfall theme today. We have a nice variety of waterfalls here in Arkansas. Short to tall, with or without grottos, free-falling or cascading, they are all unique. One of the most unique though, is Glory Hole Falls. It is a stream that has eroded its way through the top of a grotto to form a hole all the way through the stone. The waterfall doesn’t flow over the top of the grotto like most falls – it flows through it. If you are a waterfall hunter in Arkansas, hiking to Glory Hole Falls has to be on your to-do list. Located near the headwaters of the Upper Buffalo in the Big Piney Ranger District, it’s in the middle of the most waterfall dense area of th...
Little Missouri Falls in the Ouachitas
Spring is finally here and lots of people are looking for information on waterfalls. There are a ton of great waterfalls in the state, but Little Missouri Falls in the Ouachitas is one of my favorites. I have only been there once, but I liked it so much it’s on my list for a return visit. It was not my planned destination that day. I just kind of ended up there on a day I was out “adventuring”, as I like to call it. Adventuring is when I hop in the car and go exploring with no set destination. I just take off driving to see what I can find. On this particular adventure day, I wanted to explore the area west of Lake Ouachita, with Little Missouri Falls as the fallback plan. I headed west down Highway 270 toward Mt. Ida so I could pick up lunch from Burl’s Smokehouse ...
Falls Creek Falls at Lake Catherine
I have seen several people on social media ask where to see waterfalls close to Central Arkansas. Some have specifically asked about “the waterfalls close to Malvern/Hot Springs/Lake Catherine”. They would be referring to Falls Creek Falls at Lake Catherine State Park. For anyone that’s asked or has wondered the same thing, this post is for you. I actually hiked to Falls Creek Falls at Lake Catherine years ago. But I recently made a return trip to refresh my memory and get new pics. The things I do for my readers. (Me, pretending to have readers, lol). Wow, I had forgotten what a great hiking spot this is! Why? Keep reading and I’ll tell you all about it. But first… Directions Where is it? It’s very easy to find. The trail system is located in Lake Cathe...
Hiking the Mt Nebo Rim Trail
The weather in Arkansas has been perfect lately for hiking. There’s been just enough rain to keep most of the waterfalls flowing. But also lots of sunny days for those great vista view hikes. I love a hike that has both. A great one for that – one of my old favorites – is the Mt Nebo Rim Trail. Mt Nebo is a popular Arkansas State Park near Dardanelle in the Arkansas River Valley. They have quite a few different trails to hike or mountain bike. You’ll pass several trailheads as you drive to the top. Most of the State Park’s facilities are at the top of the mountain. This includes the visitor center, swimming pool, campground, and cabins. There are also some nice private homes and cabins up there. The whole park can be seen by car, from Sunrise Point to Sunset P...
Hiking to Eden Falls at Lost Valley
December. It’s that time of year when most folks aren’t thinking about getting out for a hike. There’s Christmas shopping to do and parties to attend. And for a lot of people, it’s just too damn cold out there! Or is it? Although I’m really not a cold-weather person, some of my favorite hikes have been in the winter. I learned this years ago while hiking to Eden Falls at Lost Valley. It was 3 days before New Years. I had some time off from work and really needed some nature therapy. But…it was 28 degrees outside! If you know me, you know that I despise Winter. Hate it. I’m a warm-weather person all the way. But I reeeeally needed to get outside. So I layered up, packed water and lunch, and hit the road. The plan: Drive to Ponca and hike whatever I ...
Petit Jean State Park – Bear Cave Trail
Welcome to Part Six of the Petit Jean State Park hiking series, Bear Cave Trail. Petit Jean is Arkansas’ first state park. It’s also one of my go-to spots when I want a spur-of-the-moment, close to home day hike. It’s great because there are so many options there. Whether you want waterfalls, vista views, caves, or cool rock formations, Petit Jean has it all. And if caves and cool rock formations are your thing, then Bear Cave Trail is a spot you must check out. It’s not really much of a hike. But it’s such a cool and interesting part of the park that I just couldn’t leave out of this series. Directions Petit Jean State Park is a few miles southwest of Morrilton right off Hwy 154. Or approx 6 miles north of Adona off Hwy 10 to Hwy 324/155 if you’re...
Petit Jean State Park – Boy Scout Trail
Welcome to Part Five of the Petit Jean State Park hiking series, the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Boy Scout Trail. Petit Jean is Arkansas’ first state park. It’s also one of my go-to spots when I want a spur-of-the-moment, close to home day hike. It’s great because there are so many options there. Whether you want waterfalls, vista views, caves, or cool rock formations, Petit Jean has it all. If you missed Part Four, I covered the Cedar Creek Trail and mentioned this section of the Boy Scout Trail a couple of times. So now I’ll cover that a little deeper. I have not hiked the entire trail yet. So for this post I’ll mostly focus on the section around Turtle Rocks, Rock House Cave, and Cedar Creek. Directions Petit Jean State Park is a few miles southwest of Morrilto...
