Arkansas Road Trip
 

I'm planning on taking a road trip through Arkansas from Texas. I'm going up through the Ouachita National Forrest, staying in Little Rock the first night after I make it around that way, then in Heber Springs for a few days to do some trout fishing, and then heading home. My planned route is here http://onetexanstravels.blogspot.com...nsas-trip.html I'm looking for things to see along this route and day trips out of Heber Springs. What should I see and what should I do. Any advice, tips, etc. is appreciated!

I really like Mount Nebo and Petit Jean State Parks in AR. Mount Magazine is decent. I really dislike Hot Springs National Park. My very favorite place is Buffalo River area near Jasper/Ponca area(this is the Upper Buffalo section)

Specific Hikes I like(i've hiked most of these many time)

Cedar Falls @ Petit Jean Turtle Rock @ Petit Jean

The upper loop section @ Mount Nebo(I'm blank on the name, but I like the higher one better than the lower one)

Glory Hole Falls near Fallsville AR-This is a few miles from Ponca. This is the most unique waterfall I've ever seen. It is a small waterfall, but one of my all time favorites. I am somewhat a waterfall nut, I've seen most of the major waterfalls in the US.
I also like The Lost Valley hike. This goes by 2 nice waterfalls(one of them is Eden Falls) and then a very short cave that has a waterfall in it. Take a flashlight. The cave is about 150 feet. Waterfall is at the rear of the cave.
Hawksbill Crag AKA Whitaker Point-has a great overlook
There is a short waterfall side trip called Haley Falls(largest rescue effort ever in Arkansas to find Haley-about 20 years ago-she was found alive and well).
Triple Falls is a great 5 minute hike. Getting there is another thing, you need a 4 wheel drive vehicle or a truck. I wouldn't take a car on that road.
Canoeing or Kayaking the Buffalo River is good
You can do a short hike to Hemmed-In-Hollow from the river if you are floating it. If you don't float the river, you can still hike to the falls but is a somewhat moderate/strenuous hike. This is the tallest falls between the Rockies and Appalachains. Right next to it(most people never see it) is Diamond Falls. This is the 2nd largest waterfall in AR.
Another good hike is Pedestal Rocks. This is 2 moderate Loop Hikes. Do them both. Kings Fall is here and it is the 3rd tallest Fall in AR.

Most of the hikes I mention are best right after a rain. We've had plenty of wet weather recently, so they will all be going good for a week or two. I suspect they would still be going very well in a month provided we get a few more rainfalls.

It would be wise to invest in one of Tim Ernst Hiking Books. I like his waterfall hiking book better than his regular hiking book, but they are both good

Thank you so much for these great ideas! I have so many things to look into now. I'll be sure to let yo know here what I ended up doing!

I have never fished at Heber Springs, but my Bro n Law goes there a lot.

Blanchard Springs Cavern is good. Consider the Wild Cave Tour.

Thanks Spirobulldog. Blanchard Springs looks cool. That might be right up my alley. Thank you for the suggestion!

I fished on the Little Red River in Heber Springs once back in high school. It is some amazing fishing!

Do you want to spend any time looking for diamonds?
http://www.arkansas.com/things-to-do...FSU6QgodeEUACA

I've actually done the diamond mine thing there at Crater of Diamonds State Park about 3 or 4 times. It's a lot of fun but I've never actually found a diamond. Found some other stones though. I'm going to skip this for this trip because I don't want to get that dirty!