Ouachita Trail (section 10) mile 219.5 to 216.5
Hike Features:
Date: June 22, 2007
State: Arkansas
County: Pulaski
Location: OT between highway 300 at Natural Steps and mile 216.6 (and back).
Length of hike: ~ 6 miles (OT miles 216.5 to 219.5, round trip)
Trail: All on-trail
GPS: none
22 photos + map in photo gallery
Reaching Trailhead: Parking area on Spillway Road, which is off hwy 300 just north of Pinnacle Mountain State Park (in Natural Steps). there is an obvious place to pull off, an obvious place where people cross over an embankment into the spillway area and a large white Central Arkansas Water sign. The OT is just on the other side of the embankment.
Description: This was a quick afternoon exercise hike. From this starting point, hiked west on the OT. Not far from the Maumelle dam, it opens up into a broad, easy trail on an old roadbed. Basically, the trail just goes up and down across what seems like 100's of little streams and hills. There are several places where the trail comes close to the lake. You can hike it as far as you like and then turn around and come back to the car. On this particular day, in the 90+ degree heat, I hiked to ~ OT mile 216.5.
There were a lot of mushrooms (see photo gallery) but little wildlife out. The high point of the hike (from a wildlife standpoint) was the Chuck-Wills-Widow that flew right in front of me and landed on a log a few feet away. It's unusual to see this nocturnal bird so closely in the daytime. Otherwise, spotted a few turtles, squirrels, vultures, crows, woodpeckers and assorted other birds. Exercise was the main goal.
Overall, this is a great place for a nice hike in the woods near Little Rock. Its good for exercise and you'll rarely see other people. Last time I hiked here before this, we saw a solitary runner and no one else.
Wildlife sightings: Chuck-Wills-Widow, vultures, crows, woodpeckers and assorted other birds. Also, a few turtles, squirrels, etc.
Cautions: None. Snakes maybe.
Hikers: jc