Dream In Color

I had an awesome time with a buddy of mine, Michael Fitzsimmons, today. He had originally planned for us to take a camping trip however, once viewing the forecast for the Jasper area and seeing the below 10 degree temperatures, we decided against the camping. We did decide to go on a day hike though and I sure am glad we did.

We headed towards Compton at 12:30AM this morning and, after driving through the snow the last leg of the trip, arrived at the Centerpoint Trailhead that leads down into Hemmed-In-Hollow around 3:30AM. Immediately we warmed the truck up as hot as it could get, shut it off, sat back in the sleeping bags and tried for some much needed sleep before the 6 mile hike ahead of us.

The wind was howling like mad and as the occasional car drove down the road past us you could see the snow gradually increasing in intensity within its headlights. The snow was building ever so slightly right outside of the truck, and the temperature was dropping dramatically.

_{Michael taking in the view from the Goat Trail}

I didn’t get much sleep, but I did get a bit of rest for the hike ahead. It was a decent hike all downhill till we got to the goat trail and then all uphill on the way out. The distance wasn’t that bad, but the elevation change was. Unfortunately, my phone could not hold a good GPS signal in all of the snowy/icy cloud cover and the track that I made for this trip is a bit out of whack.

We began our descent towards the Goat Trail around 6:45 in the morning. As we looked off towards the east the horizon was lit up a deep orange which was soon covered by clouds. Fortunately, the clouds towards the west began to break up about ¾ of the way into the hike and as we approached the goat trail the light was amazing as it lit up the Buffalo River Valley.

_{The view, looking west, from the Goat Trail}

I don’t think I’ve ever seen something so amazing. The views from the bluff alone were worth the whole effort, but the light that we were witness to was just icing on the cake. It truly was an awesome moment to be out on the goat trail.

After taking in the morning light we began our ascent back up to the very top of the mountain on which we parked. We made way with a slow and steady pace and arrived back at the truck around 11:00AM.

_{Trailhead sign covered in a sheet of ice}

We had discussed it before and decided upon a driving experience of a life time. The road down into Erbie from the north side! I had read/heard this road was pretty beat up, but that was an understatement. I’m definitely glad we took my father’s 4×4 truck into the thick of it, otherwise I don’t think I’d be here writing this so soon!

We descended something like 1000ft in a quarter of a mile, and the road looked like it had recently had a 62 ton tank driving down it that created giant ruts! Not only were there huge ruts, the ground was uneven and icy. Let’s just say that Michael and I are glad we made the trip, but definitely won’t be doing it again anytime soon! We’re both also glad to announce that were alive and safe at home!

Upon reaching the bottom of the valley we were greeted with the Erbie Church near a Buffalo River Trail access point. This is where we turned and followed Erbie Campground Road to cross the Buffalo National River. There is a low water bridge there that at the current time had about an inch of water crossing, very swiftly might I add. I definitely wouldn’t recommend crossing that bridge during high water; you’d be swept down the Buffalo River and taken for the ride of your life.

_{The Erbie church along Erbie Campground Road}

We did make it across the river and on the other side were met with a familiar sight, for me anyways; The Parker Hickman Farmstead. Brian Cormack and I had visited the area this past summer and had vowed to visit it in the fall. We didn’t get the opportunity to do so, so I skipped the fall photo opportunity, but I did get one in the winter! I tried to capture the same path image that I took during the summer and got pretty close.

_{Parker Hickman Farmstead pathway}

_{The previous shot, from this past summer}

After visiting the Parker Hickman Farmstead, we kept heading down the road towards Jasper. I don’t know about Michael, but my stomach was turning! I had been hungry all the way back at the Goat Trail, so we decided to stop at the Ozark Café! It was a typical lazy Thursday at the Ozark Café, the only ones visiting were the locals and the atmosphere was great. I had the philly-swiss burger thanks to a recommendation by a photographer friend, Windy Richardson. Just as usual, it was an absolutely amazing burger! I’ve had more than half of the burgers there now and still haven’t found one that I don’t like.

After filling up at the Ozark Café, Michael and I headed for a nearby hiking trail, Roundtop. Unfortunately, upon arrival we found the turn off had a no trespassing sign! What gives? We decided against driving right through it and turned around. Instead of Roundtop we headed for Triple Falls, which would be our last destination for the day.

_{Artsy fartsy shot of Triple Falls}

This was another fun experience. I’ve visited Triple Falls many times; it’s just so easy to get too. However, I’d never seen it with ice. It definitely made for an interesting experience and for some cool photos. One thing that amazed me about the day was how blue the water was. Typically, Arkansas water is a very deep emerald green color. I’m guessing that, during the winter, the algae that creates the emerald green colors dies out. Therefore, the water is left with its natural color, the super deep blue. Just my guess, but who knows?

_{Triple Falls covered in ice}

As we were leaving the Kyles Landing Road we stopped for a few photos of giant icicles clinging to the cliff.

_{Kyle’s landing road icicles}

_{Kyle’s landing road icicles}

The drive home was uneventful aside from a huge elk crossing the road in Boxley valley. It was amazing how large this animal was. My father’s truck sits nearly 8 feet off the ground and this elk was looking me level in the eye as we slowly drove past him. He didn’t budge an inch until the truck got nearly 5 feet from him and he then decided that the diesel engine was just too loud for him.

I included one shot of an elk to show you how close they were to us. This was shot at 70mm. I guess on Thursdays they’re not too worried about people, seeing as most of the elk watchers are working. This is not the elk that was crossing the road (obviously, he’s in a field.)

_Moo

Thereafter, we drove down towards Clarksville and back out onto I-40 for the trip home. It was an awesome day and I’m sure glad the snow didn’t scare me into staying at home!

Here’s the map and stats for this trip. This isn’t exactly accurate, yet again. Initially I started the tracking at the truck, but the snowy/icy cloud cover was too much for the GPS signal to handle. Then, when we arrived at the goat trail the GPS didn’t like the overhanging bluff on top of the cloudy weather so it botched the track and says we flew out over the Buffalo, which I can assure you is not the case, otherwise I wouldn’t be sitting here typing this! I’m sure this will probably be better during the spring/summer months when the clouds aren’t full of ice and I’m not underneath a huge bluff shelter. It is fun to look at though, and for now, gives a somewhat accurate measurement and display of the hiking trips.

View Goat Trail Hiking in a larger map

Hike Statistics

Moving Time: 01:57:26
Total Distance: 4.95mi
Average Speed: 2.53
Max Speed: 5.06mi/h
Elevation Gain: 1484ft
Min Elevation: 1292ft
Max Elevation: 2158ft

Carpe Diem!