The Compulsive Hiker

With the completion of the segment from Deadman Gap (mile 8) to Talimena State Park (mile 0) today comes the completion of the double section hike of the Ouachita Trail that I started 5 months ago.  Officially, that’s 445 miles but the GPS track puts it about 10 miles shorter.  I’m sure I’m not the first person in history to do it but I like knowing that I’ve done it.  Of course, it’s not  as big an accomplishment as doing a through-hike even once. Continue reading →

The weather was beautiful Friday – perfect for hiking – so naturally it was one of the rare Fridays that I needed to work.  The forecast for Saturday and Sunday had a good chance of thunderstorms pretty much all day but I said I was going to finish this trail ASAP no matter what it took, so Friday evening I headed southwest.

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Whew, what a weekend!  I finished section 2 of the Ouachita Trail – from mile marker 46.3 at the State Line west to mile 23.7 near the Winding Stair Mountain campground, and as usual did it twice.  With a climb up the west end of Rich Mountain, the east end of Winding Stair Mountain, and over Wilton Mountain from both directions, this was one of the more physically demanding trips I’ve done in this area.

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This weekend I hiked the area between the Foran Gap Shelter – just a bit east of US-71 – and the Arkansas/Oklahoma state line, meaning the completion of that tiny bit of section 4 left from the last trip, plus all of section 3 and a bit of section 2.

This segment goes up and over that part of Fourche Mountain west of Foran Gap, across the “toe” of Black Fork Mountain, up the side of Rich Mountain to Queen Wilhelmina State Park, and then west along the ridge a few miles to the state line and the boundary of the Kiamichi River Wilderness.

Rich Mountain is the second-highest peak in Arkansas and has some spectacular views – not only from the trails but also from the highway that runs along the ridge.  It’s a must-see if you’re in the area.

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Section 4 of the Ouachita Trail is almost complete.  I’ve gotten as far west as the Foran Gap Shelter, less than a mile east of the US-71 trail head.

I left off at mile 91.4 last time, and headed back out there March 6 to continue.  The plan was to park at the FR 76 trail head at about mile 88.2 and hike east to 91.4 and back, then west to US-71 and back over the three day weekend, about 47 miles.

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Wintry weather predicted for the weekend made it look like I would be spending some time at home, but by Friday afternoon the forecast had improved enough for me to get out for a couple days – enough time to complete section 5 and a bit of section 4 of the Ouachita Trail.

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I took a break from my westward section hike of the Ouachita Trail to go back and do the east end – Pinnacle Mountain State Park to AR 9 (miles 222.5 to 191.8) and once again, I did it both ways for a 61.4 mile total.

A big problem with the east end, and the biggest reason I’ve put it off, is that only the western 0.7 miles of this 30.7-mile stretch is in the National Forest.  The rest is on property owned or controlled by logging companies, Central Arkansas Water, and the state park.  There are restrictions on where you can camp and that made the logistics kinda complicated. In addition, the trail starts becoming very “urban” east of AR 10.

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My westward march on the Ouachita Trail continues with the completion of the eastern half of section 5 – between AR 27 and Rainy Creek.  Features of this section include Curtis, McGill, Chalybeate, Big Round Top, Owens, Rocky Creek, and Suck Mountains, plus Smith, Muddy, Story, Harris, and Rainy Creeks.  Suck Mountain didn’t, but certainly would if I were trying to pitch a tent up there.  I parked at the AR27 trail head and went west to Rainy Creek, then back.  I was expecting it to rain much of Sunday so I planned this as a two-day trip.

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