Exploring Northwest Arkansas

Upper Buffalo Wilderness - Boen Gulf Access - Part 2 - Woods Boys Falls and Don Hadlock Cascade

This is Part 2 in our series in this area. To get to these falls, you’ll start off on the same trail that I describe in part 1, same parking access, same first mile of beautiful hiking trail.

At about 1 mile, after you cross a small stream, the spur trail to the left takes you down to Magnolia Falls and the top of Woods Boys Falls. It's a short hike over, and you should definitely check out Magnolia Falls if you're going to do this hike.

However, to get to the bottom of Woods Boys Falls, stay straight on the jeep road. The road is still pretty easy to follow and goes up hill a little, and then starts to go downhill pretty quickly and eventually passes under some really scenic bluffs (pictured) on your left.  I always try to imagine actually driving on this road – and just can’t imagine it. It’s a wonderful hike though.

Just past these bluffs, the road will continue downhill, but to get to the top of the falls you’ll turn left off the road and follow the bluff line back around to the base of the falls. There’s no real trail here, but with the bluff to your left and the creek far down to your right, it will be pretty hard to venture too far from where you need to go.

Eventually you’ll get to the base of Woods Boys Falls (above)– named after some kids that grew up in the area. The falls is about 33 feet high.

After exploring that area for a bit, you can head back the way you came. About 100 yards back on the trail from Woods Boys Falls, there is a really rocky area on the “trail”. At this point, scramble down to the creek and you’ll see the 27 foot tall David Hadlock Cascade (above and below). This Cascade was named after a man who re-discovered this falls in 2010 (to give you an indication about how unexplored this area is). Unfortunately, Hadlock visited the falls on an icy day and slipped here and fell to his death.  He did so from the other side though, it’s not THAT dangerous coming in from this side, but still, be careful.

After exploring this falls, scurry back up the way you came, and then head back along the bluff line to the jeep road. You can actually get to the base of Stahle Falls from here as well, if you follow the bluff line on the South side of the creek around. For today’s hike, we just followed the trail bluff line to the jeep trail and headed back to the trailhead.

This is a really pretty hike and very scenic area, that when combined with Magnolia Falls, makes this a fantastic day-hike.

For a complete overview of Part 1 of this hike, click here.

For Part 3, Click here

Distance: 4.1 miles round trip.

Difficulty: Moderate to difficult

Kids: This will be fine for older kids, although the scamper down to Hadlock Cascade will be a challenge.

Rating: 4 stars out of 5.

Footwear: I’d recommend Hiking boots for this one.

Upper Buffalo Wilderness - Boen Gulf Access Part 1 - Magnolia Falls and Stahle Falls

The Upper Buffalo Wilderness is a generally rugged area that is much less developed than other parts of the Buffalo River. However, there is a great little hiking trail here, and plenty to see and explore.

Last week, we used some warm weather to do some hiking and exploring in the area. There are four separate waterfalls in the area, an old jeep road that provides fairly easy hiking to most of it, and a lot of other really scenic areas. Because there is a lot to do here, and the dramatic changes in the trail quality,  I’m breaking our full day of hiking into three separate sections.

For this, Part 1, we’re going to visit Magnolia Falls and Stahle Falls. Magnolia Falls is quickly becoming one of our favorite little spots because it is a great little waterfall, with an easy, scenic hike to get to, and the trailhead access is easy and convenient to get to.

The trail takes off from the Wilderness Access Point and heads down an old jeep road. You immediately pass a few primitive campsites, and then some trees that have fallen across the road that you have to navigate over/around. Quickly, you’re past the obstacles and are following the old jeep road. Because it’s an old road, the trail here is pretty easy to follow and is pretty well worn. (Update 1/1/16 -- the trail is in VERY good shape and many of the downed trees have been removed from the trail to make for some nice, obstacle free hiking)

At about .1 miles, you get to the Wilderness area check in. Take a minute to do so just in case someone has to come looking for you. Just past the wilderness check-in station, the road veers to
the left, and you’ll follow this. Soon you’ll pass an interesting stone wall and a series of large rock formations to your right. This is really some first-class hiking here.

At about 1 mile, the trail dips down and crosses a small creek. As soon as you cross the creek, if you are headed to Magnolia Falls and Stahle Falls turn left onto a little trail here. If you are headed elsewhere, you’ll stay on the jeep road and I’ll cover that in parts 2 and 3.  Follow this little trail along the stream a couple of hundred yards and you’ll hit a much larger creek. To your left is Magnolia Falls.

This is a great little waterfall that is about 26 ft tall and with the scenic hike, is one of the better bang-for-your buck hikes in the Buffalo River area. The falls go into a deep pool and really creates a scenic little area that we first visited back in December (the snow pics look very different than these).  Just downstream from Magnolia Falls is another waterfall, Woods Boys Falls. You can see the top from here. In part 2 of this series, we’ll hike to the bottom of the falls.

After exploring this area, you can continue on to Stahle Falls. To get to this falls, hike up to the top of Magnolia Falls on the left. There is a trail here and some rocks to help you get across the creek at the top. Along the top of the bluffline there is a trail of sorts and follow it about .25 miles and you’ll get to the top of Stahle Falls. This is the tallest of the waterfalls in the area, falling 63 feet. This trail takes you to the top of the falls, and there is no safe way to get down from here but when the
leaves are off the trees you can see for miles down across the wilderness.

At this point, you can double back to the jeep road and head back to the car, or continue onto other parts of the area.

I highlight this part of the trail separately because it is the most accessible part of the wilderness in this area and a great, easy hike to a nice falls. The other parts of the trail are a little tougher but I think this one warrants more travel.

Getting there: To get to the trailhead, turn west onto Forest Road 1462/County Road 6. This road is about 2.5 miles south of the Mossville Church on Hwy 21 South of Boxley. The road isn't marked, but it's a pretty signifcant (and well maintained) gravel road and if you're following your odometer you'll know it when you see it. Once you turn west onto CR6, about .3 miles down the road is a pull-off area for parking. The parking area is on the opposite side of the road from a "Wilderness Access" sign. Park here and enter on the same side of the road where you parked.

Part 2: Woods Boys Falls and Don Hadlock Cascade

Part 3: Bushwacking through the wilderness

 

Details:

Distance: Magnolia Falls – 2.1 miles roundtrip. Add .6 to go to Stahle Falls and back.

Difficulty: Magnolia Falls – Moderate, the trail getting to Stahle Falls is more challenging.

Star Rating: Magnolia Falls – 4.5 Stars (out of 5), Stahle Falls 3.5 out of 5

Children: Magnolia Falls – Yes, except for very young children, Stahle Falls probably no.

Footwear: Trail Shoes or Hiking boots are preferred.

Floating Season - the Ponca low water bridge and river levels

It's officiall spring (although the weather doesn't yet feel like it) today. Spring is the absolute best time to float the Upper Buffalo River.

While floating any of the segments of the Buffalo River is spectacular, the upper stretch from Ponca to Kyle's Landing is a favorite for many. This section of River has the largest elevation loss on the River (making for faster currents and better rapids -- it's the only section of river classified as "Class II" ratings), many spectacular bluff lines, and several short hikes that can be taken that start right at the river's edge.

The other notable thing about this section of the Buffalo River is that it is not all that commonly floatable. Sometimes in the winter it's floatable. Often in Spring. But by late spring, Summer and Fall, the low river levels make this stretch unfloatable via canoe or kayak.

So how do you know?

For generations now the folks at the Buffalo River have been using the "air space" reading at the Ponca low water bridge. The Ponca low-water bridge was THE bridge crossing the Buffalo River until the 1970s. When the water was high and over the bridge, if people needed to cross the river they'd have to travel all the way around through Boxley and across the mountain road that passes through Mount Shiloh to get to the other side -- about a 20 mile detour. The new highway bridge we use now is a significant upgrade.

Anyway, to get the water level reading, they measure the amount of air-space between the top of the water, and the bottom of the low-water bridge -- measuring the amount of "air space" in inches under the bridge. The less airspace, the deeper the water.

Anything involving zero airspace is TRECHEROUS. If you are an experienced kayaker, and know your limits, do what is fun for you. But for the other 99% of us, it's best to stay off the river.

From zero to about 9' of airspace is pretty fast currents -- and experienced kayakers preferred. 9-21" is ideal for floating. I've done this section at 13" before and it was a really fun trip. At 23-29" it's low, but floatable, which means you'll drag at times over gravel bars but still make it down the river. More than 30" of airspace?  You'll be heading out further down river.

The Buffalo Outdoor Center has a great page (and video) detailing the river level readings and during the winter and spring they do a nice job of updating the current river level.

BOC is one of the top outfitters on the upper part of the River -- and are a great outlet for renting your kayak or canoe and arranging transportation to or back to your car.

So get out and float the River and enjoy it. Be careful, be sure to know your limits, and if the air/water temperature are cold, be sure to have proper wetgear to protect you from hypothermia. It's only fun if you're safe.

By the way, as you can tell from the photo above, the Ponca River bridge is a hub for recreation in the area -- with many people coming to hang out, float, fish, and swim in the area around the bridge. In the photo above (taken on March 16), the river level is about 22" or so of airspace -- so pretty good for floating.

White Tail Deer

Winter Hiking: The Glory Hole

One of the interesting things about spending now a LOT of time in Northwest Arkansas is that we're getting to do some of our favorite hikes multiple times. Each of the seasons brings a different perspective on the hikes that makes them special in their own unique ways. Spring brings high water and gushing waterfalls, summer brings a host of wildflowers, autumn brings the beautiful fall foilage, and winter brings great views with the leaves not being on the trees and blocking views -- so things like bluff lines, and the river that are often not able to be seen from trails are viewable.

Winter hiking isn't something we'd done a lot of until recently, but he combination of great views, snowfall and ice have made winter one of our favorite times to hike in the Ozarks.

A couple of months ago we hiked down to check out the Glory Hole. You can find directions to the trail and on the trail here (as well as photos from our spring hike).  But today I'm just going to share some pics of the trail during the winter with a light dusting of snowfall.

National Geographic names the Buffalo River second most underappreciated park

National Geographic, who has earned the right to be an authority on natural beauty, has called the Buffalo National River its second most underappreciated park. Great Basin National Park, in Nevada was #1. From the story:

"People who canoe or raft the 135 mile Ozark river today -- the spring white water on the upper parts or the gentle flat water of its lower reaches -- give thanks that the conservationalists won. Three official wilderness areas along its length add to the "wild" quality of this river. At places like Steel Creek, sheer sandstone cliffs rise 400 feet from the water's edge, and all along the river are gravel bars for primitive camping, swimming holes for cooling off on a summer day and rewarding hiking trails."

The River brings an estimated $38 million to the local economies along the 135 mile river. While this park isn't under-appreciated by the writer of this blog, the increase awareness of it is pretty cool. Hopefully the good publicity will help bring more people for a visit, but here's to hoping that the increased traffic doesn't disrupt the beauty that we enjoy.