Backpacking the Richland Creek Wilderness

[Aaron Zagrodnick]

Arkansas: The Natural State. Nothing is more natural than this remote wilderness deep in the Ozark National Forest in the northern part of the state. This wonderful wild place is known as Richland Creek Wilderness, where waterfalls, not-so-secret caves, thick forests, swimming holes, bluffs, colorful fall foliage, wildflowers, and more are to be found. There are a multitude of boulder-dotted creeks in the Wilderness, the main ones being Big Devils Fork, Long Devils Fork, and Richland Creek. Richland Creek is the largest of these, and at times even has enough water for kayaking. These creeks all have numerous waterfalls, cascades, and rapids. Hiking in this wilderness will take you far away from civilization and allow you to truly ‘get away from it all.’ I first visited the Richland Creek Wilderness in early November 2012, and made a return trip in early November 2013. Both of these visits coincided with the peak of fall color. The area had not received much rain prior to my visits, so the water in the creeks...

Caves, waterfalls, fall color and more: @Steve Ancik explores the Richland Creek Wilderness - check out the full article in Issue 36:

Wild and Wonderful: Richland Creek Wilderness

Issue 36 Page 1