For years now, I've been wanting to hike an area in the upper area of the Buffalo National River that was rich in history and scenery. Oddly, however, not a lot of "hiking" guides mention the trail, which is mostly used by horseback riders.
The hike takes visitors back to several historic areas, including an old cemetery, an old school site, an old homestead and some amazing views of the upper part of the Buffalo River, with some amazing scenery in between.
The old homestead was the former home of Margaret and Harold Hedges (Hedges Pouroff also bears their name). The Hedges lived in the area for many years and were key players in helping the Buffalo National River gain "National River" protections in 1972. Unfortunately their home was destroyed in a fire (believed to be arson) in 1991. They left their beautiful home site in the Buffalo River and gave the land to the parks service and moved to Harrison.
This hike takes you to their homestead and past many features along the way.
Getting there
The trail head starts at the Boxley Trail head of the Buffalo River Trail. The trail head is just off of Highway 21 1.1 miles south of where the highway crosses the Buffalo River (by Cave Mountain Road) in Boxley. Park at the Buffalo River Trail parking. While the Buffalo River Trail (to Ponca) starts on the opposite side of the highway from the parking area, the Hedges Hike stays on this side of the highway.
At the trail head is an old root cellar and the remains of the old Whiteley Church.
The Trail
The trail starts off from the parking area down the gravel road moving away from Highway 21 toward an old barn and scale house. You'll be at the barn after .1 miles. The barn and scale house are key as there are a couple of other old roads in the area.
From the barn and scale house, the trail turns LEFT and heads up the old road. You'll pass a gait that blocks the road and go up the hill then turn a hard right on the road and continue up the hill. This old road will be the type of trail you'll be on for the entire hike and is pretty easy to follow.
On up the hill, at .2, you'll pass a small cemetery. This is the old Whiteley Cemetery. There aren't a lot of grave stones there, and only two are faintly legible, but those two definitely tell a story. Both legible grave stones are of children that died at child birth around the turn of the past century -- a reminder of the harsh conditions early settlers lived in.
The trail continues up the old road. At .4 it passes a small pond and at .6 a very long stone wall comes into view on the left. The wall runs about .1 miles and is an impressive bit of craftmanship. The early settlers spent a lot of time moving big rocks to build these walls without any type of mortar.
The trail continues climbing up at a gradual pace. At .8, the trail reaches an intersection. At the intersection (just up and to the left) are the remains of the old Whiteley School House. This school house served the youth of the early settlers of the area and it's easy to imagine kids walking these old roads to school each day. Unfortunately, the school house itself burned down in 1999. Only the foundation remains.
At the intersection at the old School House, turn RIGHT onto the road. This is a similar road to the one you've been hiking on and for now, the climbing has stopped. The intersection is about 500 feet of elevation higher than where you started, so you've earned the downhill stretch.
The road continues gradually downhill. At 1.0 miles it passes a wilderness boundary gate. Continue on the old road.
The road passes another old home site that is mostly just a foundation and and the foundation of the old cellar. It also passes a couple of small creeks.
At 1.1, the trail crosses another small creek that has huge boulders. This is a BEAUTIFUL area and definitely worth taking the time to explore.
Once crossing the creek, the trail bends to the right. It goes up hill a bit, and then back downhill. At 2.1 miles the road finally reaches the old Hedges house.
The Hedges sure had a nice place to live. And there is plenty to explore. There is an old pond off to the left and an amazing stone driveway entryway. Their old mailbox remains near their old workshop area. All that remains of the home are two amazing stone chimneys and some miscellaneous fixtures within the foundation.
It's really sad to think that arson forced the Hedges to leave this beautiful place. Once you've explored the home, continue back down on the old road and head down the hill. After a few hundred yards heading downhill the road leads to the Hedges barn.
From the barn, there is a semi-marked trail that heads down into the woods at the back and to the right. The trail leads down to the Buffalo River and a beautiful swimming hole that goes by a couple of different names: Hedges Hole (named obviously after the Hedges) and Pickle Hole (named after WP "Pickle" Edgemon who also once lived in the area). Hedges Hole is a beautiful little area and also a landmark or kayakers who are running the Hailstone (the common name for the upper part of the Buffalo River during high water) that they are nearly to Boxley.
During time of low water, hikers can follow the river back downstream. Eventually a small field will appear on the right and hikers can cut across the field back to the trail head. During times of higher water, this will likely be a WET way to get back, and on this cold winter day we wanted no part of that. So we hiked back the way we came.
I'm really happy we were able to do this hike. It's a nice hike in its own right, and allowed us to really get a feel for the lives of the early settlers to the area.
Hike Details
Total Distance: 4.8 miles round trip (plus some for exploring)
Difficulty: Moderate -- it's pretty easy hiking but the trail has an elevation gain of about 500 feet each direction
Footwear: Sturdy Hiking boots are probably preferred
Kid-Friendly: Yes!
Hiking guide: Takahik Hiking the Ozarks Guide (by Danny Hale)
Other sites nearby: The Boxley Valley, The BRT Boxley to Ponca, The Lost Valley Trail, Smith Creek Nature Preserve Trails (Forthcoming), Upper Buffalo Wilderness Boen Gulf Access.
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