Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Falling for the falls
April showers create plenty of mountain cascades
Thanks to heavy rainfall, waterfalls are in full splendor in Arkansas’ mountain regions, making this a perfect time for a waterfall safari.
While scouting for wild turkeys in the Ozarks, I have visited several splendid waterfalls in Johnson and Newton counties over the past two weeks. Hemmed-In Hollow is our most famous waterfall, but many others are equally beautiful in their way.
Two weeks ago, I took a long hike on the Ozark Highlands Trail into a deep hollow where I have encountered turkeys in the past. A seasonal creek was flowing at full volume, serenading my steps with the rhythm of flowing water. The sound grew louder as I descended the mountain, eventually crescendoing into a thunderous roar. I walked to the edge of the hollow and was delighted to see a high waterfall that I hadn’t encountered before.
As many times as I have been on this section of the Ozark Highlands Trail, I have never seen this waterfall because I am always there in dry weather, when the creek isn’t running.
Waterfalls are pretty from above, but you really need to be at the base to enjoy their glory. The water is deafening as it slams against the rocks, creating a cool mist as it vaporizes from the force of impact. Fine rainbows flicker amid a curtain of silver droplets.
To get the full experience, you must get behind the waterfall. You might get a little wet or a lot wet, but it’s worth it to spend some quality time on the inside looking out. That respite cooled me and refreshed me for the final descent into the hollow, a place that exists infamously as a site of bitter disappointment.
The first time I visited this place, its secluded creek enthralled me with fantasies of catching smallmouth bass that had probably never seen a lure. I finally made a dedicated fishing trip years later. To fish it thoroughly required camping, so I made the near vertical descent with a backpack loaded with enough gear to spend a weekend.
When I finally arrived in the hollow, I discovered the creek dry except for the deepest holes, which at that time were only about 2 feet deep. There were no smallmouth bass or any other fish. This made the near vertical hike back up the mountain all the more arduous. I have learned this lesson on many other small creeks in the region, but I have also had some very pleasant surprises.
One that comes to mind is a small creek in Muddy Creek Wildlife Management Area. I threw a spinnerbait into a thin sheet of water next to a low water crossing and caught a largemouth bass that weighed nearly 3 pounds.
On Easter, I ventured into the Piney Creeks Wildlife Management Area. My first stop was at the Hagarville grocery store at Hagarville to initiate my traveling companion into the Hagarville Breakfast Club. One of my traditions when hunting in the area is to eat breakfast at the grocery store.
The store has new owners who have maintained the place as it was, and the community has welcomed them heartily. I usually have a sausage and egg biscuit, but J.T., the new owner, convinced me to try his breakfast burritos. I was not disappointed.
In the cooler I spied the distinctive red, white and blue cans of R.C. Cola, which I haven’t seen in years.
“You got the R.C.’s,” I said. “I know you’ve got some Moon Pies hiding around here somewhere.”
“Right behind you,” J.T. said, laughing.
“You’re a Californian, but you’ve got a southern heart, my man!”
I was also delighted to see the big paper sacks of roasted peanuts.
“Gotta have the peanuts,” J.T. said. “They’d run me out of town if I got rid of those!”
The next stop was Haw Creek Falls Campground. The signature falls are next to the road, and they were swollen with rain.
A trail behind the campground leads up a steep hollow to Pack Rat Falls. It is a very rough, difficult trek over slick rocks and fallen logs. You have to bounce from one side of the hollow to the other, but when you finally reach the falls, the spectacle makes all of the trouble worthwhile. One set of falls tumbles into the hollow from the right, but the headliner blasts over a ledge with superior force.
Again, you must get behind the falls for the full experience.
I am told that there are falls above the ledge, as well, but I have not checked it. Curiously, the trip back down the hollow is easier than the ascent.
My final destination was to Falling Water Creek, which has a beautiful fall next to the road.
I have a love- hate relationship with this place. You have to pass the falls to get to Richland Creek Campground, but there is no sign on the highway showing the way. The annual Crutchfield Family Squirrel Hunt was based at Richland Creek in October. I couldn’t find the turn in the dark and drove all over that country, past Sam’s Throne and down roads that dead-ended in fields. I ended up at Mount Judea.
By that point I was apoplectic with rage. Knowing it was pointless to continue searching in that frame of mind, I camped on the Buffalo River at Carver.
In the morning, I found the road to Richland Creek easily and reported to camp customarily late. It goes right past the falls. In the summer, one cannot resist stopping and making a few leaps into the pool below.
It was too cold for that on Easter Sunday, but the swollen creek made the falls something to behold.
The rain held off just long enough for me to take some photos, and then the sky spigot opened, cutting the trip shorter than I wanted.
That’s OK. There are plenty of other waterfalls to see, and you don’t have to hunt turkeys to find them.