I’ve spent about 6 days over the last 2 weeks enjoying some mild weather while hiking a big part of the Ozarks Keystone Trail that runs along Norfork Lake in north-central Arkansas. A primary goal was to gather data for a new map but I was also interested in seeing some new territory. There are abundant lake views but sometimes the room available for the trail between the Corps boundary and the lake is quite small so you also get views of homes adjacent to the boundary. I imagine there was a lot of pressure to keep the boundary as “tight” as possible to maximize the value of adjacent real estate.
I didn’t do any camping, prefering instead the luxury of the Super 8 in Mountain Home where I could spend my down-time watching reruns of South Park. I should only need one more trip to hike the rest of the trail that is currently finished but construction is underway on more trail in the northern area.
The Compulsive Hiker 
Wow! That sounds fun and fantastic to me, Michael!
The 4-ish mile section from Red Bank to Bean Bluff is finished for now and we just pulled off rhe next to last section Niles Landing (CR44, COE’s Yellow Gate) to ArkMo state line, our north ending point. We still have roots and another several smaller tasks but it’s nearly done and a super enjoyable and diverse section.
The mile or so between Bean Bluff and Niles is flagged so that’ll be a bushwhack trail as we plan to begin construction next month.
While I haven’t measured from the ground, the entire Red Bank to ArkMo section should be 10 or less miles with just a mile or so unfinished.
I’m back working on 26th but with family visiting will likely be overcommitted until my daughter leaves on the 3rd.
We have a small group of volunteers working on light maintenance on rhe first Saturdays. The David’s Trail Endurance Run, a fundraiser for our K-12 public school partnership, is looming so we’re focused on tree tags, blazes, and leaves to help the runners stay easily on the trail and better enjoy their experience in the forest and along the shoreline.
Jackson Rhoades
Good info! I really appreciate the work you put into this site.
Have you heard a guestimate on when the OKT in Arkansas will be done? Looks like theres just a 20 mile gap left once they finish that mile section. Pretty exciting!
The rough route has been surveyed and the COE approvals are in place. I think it’s largely just the lack of funds that hinder construction in the CR1028 – CR396 area. The short stretch between Bean Bluff and Niles Landing Access area is under construction right now.