A Glimpse of Fall Colors in Arkansas

Dale and I had a free week-long stay at a Wyndham Resort that was about to expire, so we planned an excursion to Fairfield Bay, Arkansas! It was really good timing too because we were celebrating our 30th anniversary on the 27th.

So, on Saturday morning, November 25 we first went to Round Rock for breakfast Café Java. For many years we celebrated our anniversaries in Fredericksburg, Texas and very often had breakfast there before heading out, so we thought it would be a great start to this trip as well.

We headed north on I-30 toward Hope, Arkansas. I had planned an itinerary for the trip that would take us to Mount Magazine and Petit Jean State Park before arriving at our final destination of Fairfield Bay.

We made it to Hope around 5pm, watched TV and relaxed. The following morning, after having breakfast at the hotel, we embarked on a scenic route toward Mount Magazine, the tallest mountain in Arkansas. We traveled through small towns and wooded areas, much like Northeast Texas where I grew up. The rolling hills still had some Fall color though most of the trees had lost their leaves.

Mount Magazine

We made it to the top of Mount Magazine, and was amazed at the layer of ice on the trees. The entire drive up the mountain was clear, then boom, everything looked white. It took us a minute to figure out that it was ice.

After stopping at the visitor center we checked out the scenic overlooks. One overlook had extraordinary views and very high winds. The temperature was much colder than we expected. I think overall, the whole trip was colder than expected.

Petit Jean State Park

After enjoying lunch at a restaurant on Mount Magazine, we set our GPS for Petit Jean Mountain.

Petit Jean State Park is a 3,471-acre park located atop Petit Jean Mountain adjacent to the Arkansas River in the area between the Ouachita Mountains and Ozark Plateaus. My aunt and uncle used to work at the park’s lodge and marina. I have fond memories of the mountain’s beauty and I was glad to visit again.

I think the best activity of the day was waiting for sunset at the CCC Overlook on the bluff of Cedar Creek Canyon. Built in the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps, this native stone overlook offers views of the Canyon and the Petit Jean River. It was windy and cool but well worth the effort.

We finished the day by heading to our accommodations in Fairfield Bay. After traveling in the dark along hilly and curvy roads, we finally found the Wyndham office. Normally the resort is one large property but this was not the case and we traveled another few miles to get to our suite.

On Monday morning we had breakfast at the Little Red Restaurant and then took a walk on a trail located near the restaurant to see an Indian Cave. The cave served as a tribal meeting place as far back as 1000 BC.

After that, we drove almost an hour to do a trail called Sugarloaf Mountain Summit Trail that took a little over an hour, and had some beautiful views. On the way back to our place we stopped by and got some pizza and salad and hung out at the resort for the rest of the day.

On Tuesday morning we headed to Mountain View, Arkansas where we had brunch at the Spah Grill. Our plan was to take a scenic drive that loops back to Mountain View where we would then have supper and head home.

Before leaving town we stopped in to McSpadden Mountain Dulcimers Shop where we learned a lot about dulcimers and I even got to play one! Our next stop was Blanchard Springs Recreational Area. We wanted to visit the caverns, but they were closed. However, we enjoyed a very pretty walk along Blanchard Springs River and saw a small waterfall. There is also a nice campground that we’d love to stay at some time in the future.

Our last activity for the day was hiking a part of the White River Trail. The sun was already waning when we started out. We walked one mile through wooded hills to a rocky outcropping that gave us a great view of the White River below. After taking in the view, we headed back to Fairfield Bay.

Though our reservation went until Sunday, we decided to head home Wednesday morning. We had just bought a home two days before the trip and we were excited to get back to it. Plus, Dale was preparing for a work trip to Raleigh on Monday. On our way home we stayed overnight with our oldest daughter and her family in North Texas.

It was a short trip but very enjoyable.