Buffalo National River

Compton AR

October 26, 2024

When I arrived, which was just after sunrise, there were only two other cars in the parking lot. When I finished, and got back to the car, the lot was pretty much full. I never did see anyone on the way down, and only started seeing people when I was starting back up.

It is rated a hard trail and but it was pretty easy to navigate. It wasn’t well marked but the trail to the waterfall was well used so I had no trouble finding it. There are a couple of signs along the way to help with direction.

On the way down, it will be narrow in spots, rocky, and tree root covered but there are also stone “steps” that will help with some of the gravity as you will be descending about 1400 feet. It is so hard to describe the magnitude of the waterfall. Even though it was only a trickle the day I was there, the sheer size of it and the beauty is so nice and because I was there alone, so very peaceful.

On the way back, I decided to follow the trail down to the river. It only added another 1.4 miles or so to the original 5 miles. The river trail is relatively easy. The river was mostly dry the day I was there so I was able to walk out into the center and across it. It too was very pretty.

The fall colors added to the beauty of the entire hike. The hike back to the top did get me out of breathe a couple of times. The steps did help with the ascent. I did have to crawl over a few downed trees and over a few rocks but overall a very nice hike and well worth the drive.

You can see a few more photos on my Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61571357578836