#BigPineyForest
Splashdown Falls and Intersection Falls
I have written several articles now about waterfalls that I have missed while hiking to others close by. My research is getting better, so hopefully I won’t keep missing them. But I recently visited two more waterfalls you can easily combine with other waterfall hikes in the Falling Water Creek area. Splashdown Falls and Intersection Falls are two that are located off Falling Water Rd near several popular waterfalls. If you ever hike to Terry Keefe Falls, you should definitely add Splashdown Falls to the same hike. There are a lot waterfalls in this area such as Six Finger Falls and Fuzzy Butt Falls, Horsetail Falls, Terry Keefe Falls, and others. If you ever stop to see ANY of the waterfalls along Falling Water Rd, Intersection Falls is another quick and easy stop you can add. I had...
Horsetail Falls off Falling Water Creek
If you hunt enough waterfalls in Arkansas, you will eventually miss one that’s close to an area you’ve already hiked. I like to cover as much as I can in each hiking trip and article. So when I miss a cool feature on a hike, it’s pretty common for me to go back and do it again. One area that I’ve recently revisited for this exact reason is Horsetail Falls off Falling Water Creek. I did an article last year on Six Finger Falls and Fuzzy Butt Falls. On that hike, I accessed Fuzzy Butt Falls by crossing Falling Water Creek at Six Fingers. I knew the trail went back upstream to the bridge crossing Falling Water Creek. But what I didn’t know was that the trail takes you right by Horsetail Falls! I had heard of Horsetail Falls before but had never looked it up. So I...
Hike to Schoolhouse Falls near Lost Corner
I love finding new areas to hike that I’m completely unfamiliar with. They offer brand new sights, new mountains, streams, waterfalls, and trails. For me it’s the same excitement as taking a vacation to a new but popular place. You don’t know exactly what to expect, but you know you’re going to enjoy it. Even though I’ve explored quite a bit of Arkansas, this still continues to happen (which is a good thing!). The latest example is an area of the Big Piney Forest I’ve been exploring lately, just east of Hector. And my first visit to this area included a quick hike to Schoolhouse Falls. Yes, I realize a lot of people know about this area and hike it regularly. But for some reason, I’ve skipped right over it for years on my way to areas northwest of ...
Alum Cove Natural Bridge
Many of the hikes I have written about so far are located in the areas between Russellville and Jasper, or Clarksville and Ponca. Nestled right in the middle of all those hills, creeks, and waterfalls lies Alum Cove Natural Bridge Recreation Area. In all my trips through this area, I’ve passed really close to Alum Cove probably a hundred times. And until recently, I had never stopped to visit – always in a rush to get somewhere else. But this past November, I made it a point to specifically stop in to check out Alum Cove. I was not disappointed. I had actually set out to do a different hike that day a little further north. But the road to that trailhead was flooded so I had to call an audible. I’d been saving the Alum Cove area trail as a backup plan for just such an occa...
Climbing and Hiking at Sam’s Throne
Summer is over, and before long the Ozarks will be covered up with the colors of Fall. And one of my favorite spots to see all the Fall colors is Sam’s Throne. This is a hike along the top of a bluff line to a point overlooking a valley, and the views here are gorgeous! Hiking at Sam’s Throne can be a very short hike, or a longer hike depending on what you want to see. Either way, it’s a great place to hang out for a while and enjoy the views. Sam’s Throne is also a popular rock climbing destination. I’m not a climber myself, so I won’t write any about that and risk putting bad info out there. But it’s worth mentioning to anyone interested in climbing…and I do like watching the climbers scale the walls. Between that, the views, and the drive ...
Hike to Pedestal Rocks
Well, here we are in the middle of Summer – the dog days. Most of the rivers are really low for floating. Most of the waterfalls are just a trickle, if not dry. And man, is it HOT! If you don’t have a pool, or a boat for enjoying the lake, don’t worry. There are still some fun things to do outdoors. Even in the low rivers, there are still some swimming holes out there. So why not do a hike and swim? During another sweltering summer a few years ago, some friends and I did exactly that with a hike to Pedestal Rocks. You may be thinking “wait a minute…Pedestal Rocks doesn’t have a swimming hole. It doesn’t have any water at all!” You would be correct. It doesn’t. But just 13 minutes down the road is the ever-popular swimming hole at Fallin...
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...
Helton’s Farm to Long Pool on Big Piney Creek
A lot of people know about the extreme paddling of the Cossatot River in the Ouachita Mountains of western Arkansas. But did you know you can go whitewater rafting in the Ozarks? It may not be the extreme whitewater rafting you see in Colorado or the Grand Canyon. But when the water is right, floating Helton’s Farm to Long Pool on Big Piney Creek can be some pretty intense paddling. I had a chance to run this stretch with some buddies last summer, and man what a ride! NOTICE – This is NOT a float for beginners! There is one outfitter here, and they will not rent to or shuttle novice paddlers for this float. And for good reason. Floating Helton’s Farm to Long Pool on Big Piney Creek is another one of those floats that you have to catch when the water level is right. Just l...
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...
Trail Riding at Mack’s Pines
Today I’m going to break away from my usual topics and write about something a little different. Today’s story is about one of the funnest days I’ve ever had out in the woods. (is “funnest” a word?…is it “most fun”?) That would be the day I went ATV trail riding at Mack’s Pines in the Ozarks. Now, I don’t often write stories involving commercial businesses (free plugs). I should also note this is not a paid or sponsored post. But hey, it’s my blog so I’m allowed to break the rules. Call it Mack’s lucky day. I don’t have my own ATV and had never done this before. I was with a group of buddies on our annual Big Piney – Longpool Camping weekend. A few of the guys brought side-by-sides and 4-wheelers and ...
