Who the heck am I?
Michael R - The Compulsive Hiker
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Tom Coats on The Buffalo River Trail needs… Carol on NTD at CRSP with the OTA mpdm21 on Ouachita Trail shelter re… Michael R on Ouachita Trail shelter re… Lauri on In search of the Ivory-billed…
Author Archives: Michael R
NTD at CRSP with the OTA
June 3 was National Trails Day and I chose to spend it this year doing some work with the Ozark Trail Association. I’ve been a member of the OTA for 5-6 years but this was my first event with them … Continue reading
The Buffalo River Trail needs your help
For the last several years construction of a part of the Buffalo River Trail east of Tyler Bend has been stymied by an old obstacle known as “The Roberts Tract”. This is a 64-acre parcel that for various reasons was … Continue reading
OHT detour between Stack Rock and Dry Creek
A landslide has erased the Ozark Highlands Trail near mile marker 152. A 3.1-mile detour has been established using road FR1201 and an old logging road. Hiking around the top of the slide would be very difficult, especially with a … Continue reading
Backpacking 101 in the Hercules Glades Wilderness
It’s been about 2.5 years since my last trip to Hercules Glades, and for this trip I was accompanied by Hannah and Matt – a couple USFS interns working out of the Ava (Missouri) Ranger station. They will be spending … Continue reading
Shores Lake & White Rock Mountain Loop
A couple days with no rain and reasonably cool temperatures came my way and I made the most of it with an overnight trip on the Shores Lake & White Rock Mountain Loop. It was the third time I’d hiked … Continue reading
Just say no – to camp fires
My first on-line diatribe! A recent paper in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) indicates that over a 20-year study period 84% of wildfires were started by humans. Can you f-ing believe that? Since the vast majority of … Continue reading
In search of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker
I was invited to float part of Bayou DeView in Monroe county Arkansas to seek evidence of the elusive and endangered Ivory-billed Woodpecker. The leader of the expedition was Jim Carpenter, founder of Wild Birds Unlimited, and a long-time “hunter” of the bird.
Ozark Highlands Trail – Salt Fork Creek to Ragtown Road
It didn’t feel like it had been over 3 years since last hiking this part of OHT section 2. There was a good rain a couple days earlier so there was water running everywhere and I was glad not to contend with … Continue reading
North Sylamore Creek Trail – Cripple Turkey to Barkshed
This was the first trail I hiked in Arkansas during visits almost 5 and 6 years ago and reading those posts again sure brings back some memories. My intention this time was a 2-night backpacking trip from Gunner Pool east to Allison and … Continue reading
Wildcat Mountain – Take 2
It sure didn’t seem like 2 years had passed since my last visit to the Wildcat Mountain trails in the eastern Ouachitas between Lakes Sylvia and Winona. I hiked a couple short trails I missed last time, and was able to … Continue reading
