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All of our outings are always free and EVERYONE is welcome - membership is not required! Contact the outings leader by phone or e-mail to register and for more information. Our volunteer leaders are not responsible in any way for the safety of participants.
November 3, 2007 Hare Mountain Hike-In
DAYHIKES
November 17th, DAYHIKE from Compton Trailhead into Hemmed in Hollow, then off trail scramble up to California Point and top of falls, then down to the river at Jim Bluff, then Goat Trail to Big Bluff and out at Center Point Trailhead. Meet at the Compton store at 8:30am. Rated difficult. Contact Dean LaGrone at 479–750–2550 for more info.
November 17th & 18th DAYHIKE to Kings Bluff and Pedestal Rocks with an optional overnight camp at Falling Water Creek near the OHT. Meet at the Pedestal Rocks trailhead at 10am. This hike is rated easy to moderate and is four miles in length. Great hike for beginners. Pets or small children not recommended because of high cliffs. Please contact Charles Ellis at 870–294–5252 for details and to reserve your spot.
December 16th DAYHIKE from Compton Trailhead into Hemmed In Hollow. Meet at the Compton Trailhead at 9:00am. This hike is rated medium—note that it is a steep climb back out! Contact Norma Senyard at 479–587–0200 for more information.
January 5th, DAYHIKE on the Pigeon Roost Trail at Beaver Lake State Park. We’ll have a good chance to see bald eagles along the lake shore, and also some nice views of the lake—be sure to bring a pair of binoculars (and your lunch). Meet at the Pigeon Roost Trailhead on Hwy. 12 at 9:00am. The distance is 8.4 miles and is rated medium. No pets please. Contact Bobby Shepperd for details at 479–442–5770.
OVERNIGHT HIKES
November 3rd & 4th, HARE MOUNTAIN HIKE-IN AND 26th OHTA BIRTHDAY PARTY. Can you believe it has been 26 years?! We have come a long way baby, and we want you to come help us celebrate all that you have done to build and maintain one of the great scenic hiking trails in the country. This hike is perfect for everyone on your shopping list, including beginners. We will have a potluck supper around the campfire at 6pm (proceeded by a group photo at 5:55—don’t miss it!), followed by a short business meeting. There is no officially led hike, but you are welcome to hike in from any of the three trailheads in the area (Cherry Bend, 5.8 miles; Fly Gap, 3.5 miles; Hare Mtn. Trailhead, 1.7 miles) and arrive at any time. Some folks will just hike up for the evening activities and then hike back out in the dark, most folks will camp and hike out Sunday morning. You need to bring all of your water, plus a food item to share with the group, and of course all of your camping gear. There are DIRECTIONS to the trailheads on the OHTA web page. We want to make this the largest HIKE-IN ever so feel free to bring along as many friends and family as you like! For more info call Tim Ernst at 870–861–5536. (FYI, there might be a photographer and a writer from National Geographic magazine at this event—the OHT will be featured in a NG article next fall.)
November 10th & 11th, OVERNIGHT FUN HIKE in the Wolf Creek drainage near Colwell. We will caravan to the trailhead and start hiking around 10:00am, hiking an old closed road into the area about two miles, setup camp and bushwhack explore from there. Rated medium-difficult. There are beautiful bluffs, waterfalls and other natural wonders in the area. Contact Wade Baker at 479–220–0620 to reserve your spot. Limited to 10 hikers.
November 17th & 18th DAYHIKE to Kings Bluff and Pedestal Rocks - see listing in dayhikes above for overnight info.
December 1st & 2nd, OVERNIGHT FUN HIKE ON THE OHT from Ozone campground to the Big Piney Trailhead. The distance is 19.8 miles and is rated medium and includes the most scenic Cedar Creek area (Haw Creek Falls too). Contact Bob and Dawna Robinson at 479–431–8952 for more info and to sign up.
December 8 & 9 Overnight Fun Hike on the Ozark Highlands Trail from Ozone to the Arbaugh Road trailhead. Distance is 14.8 miles. Limited to ten hikers. Rated moderate. Contact Brad Davenport at 479-996-4649 for more information and to sign up.
MAINTENANCE WORK TRIPS ON THE OHT
Parts of the OHT sustained major storm damage in late October—if you have a section of trail that you maintain please get out and maintain it and send in a downed-tree report ASAP. There are no scheduled maintenance trips this period but check the web page often in case a special work trip is scheduled to help clear out the storm damage. Contact Roy Senyard at 479–587–0200 for more information.
Contact Roy Senyard for more information about any maintenance issues.
CLUB MEETINGS & MISC
December 9th, OHTA GENERAL MEETING AND CHRISTMAS PARTY in Springdale. To get to the meeting site, from Hwy. 71 B in Springdale turn EAST on Emma street, go several blocks, then turn LEFT/NORTH onto N. Main Street, then pull into the parking lot on the right behind the building (across from Shiloh Museum—here is a map). Tim Ernst will present two new slide programs — “Yellowstone In Winter” and “Arkansas Waterfalls: Scenic Icons of The Natural State.” We’ll start off with refreshments and social time at 7pm, with the meeting to follow at 7:30. PLEASE BRING A HOLIDAY TREAT TO SHARE WITH THE GROUP! Call 870–861–5536 for info. The public is always invited to attend! Contact OHTA for information.
LAKE FT SMITH TRAIL SECTION DELAYED Latest reports say the park/trail opening might happen in early 2008. A contract was awarded to a Ft. Smith construction company at $7,200 per mile (bids were as high as $20,000 per mile) to rebuild the 5.5 mile trail that will connect with the OHT at Jacks Creek. The city of Ft. Smith originally told us they could replace the trail our volunteers built (that was flooded by the new lake) “with a group of boy scouts just hiking along shuffling their feet.” Guess they now know what our work is worth!
NEW OHT GUIDEBOOK, WITH GPS! Along with the new trail comes a new edition of the OHT guidebook by Tim Ernst, #5, that was published this past summer. It includes a map and walking description of the new beginning to the OHT at the state park, descriptions of several short reroutes that we’ve made in the past few years, a map and description of the Sylamore Section of the OHT, and a listing of GPS waypoints for all the creek and road crossings along the main section of the OHT from the state park to Woolum. You can purchase them online (links is below), by calling 800–838–HIKE, or at your favorite outdoor store.
NEW OHT GUIDEBOOK AVAILABLE - EDITION #5 w/GPS
OHTA 2007 Officers Tim Ernst, President, 870-861-5536 Keiko Wilke, Treasurer, 479-927-1999 Roy Senyard, Maintenance, 479-587-0200 Norma Senyard, Meeting Programs, 479-587-0200 Bobby Shepperd, Outings, 479-442-5770 Scott Crook, Secretary, 479-521-6340 Dean LaGrone, Membership, 479-750-2550
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