Nine brave and/or foolhardy TrailBlazers, eager to hit the trails again after 5 weather cancelations, headed for Little Rock to tackle the challenging hike up and down Pinnacle Mountain. The weather turned out to be perfect: sunny and breezy with no predictions for rain until later. 

At the Visitors Center there was a great view of the Arkansas River from the deck. Next we drove to the base of the East Summit Trail where 2 hikers opted to do the entire base trail. Seven BoulderBlazers, under the command of Captain Becky, threw caution to the wind and started trekking up the rocky trail to the summit. About a third of the way up, trails as we know them ceased to exist. At this point everybody started the mad scramble up a large boulder field, climbing, crawling, clawing, clambering, and cussing their way to the top with Yours Truly second-guessing her sanity. At least it wasn’t raining like last year, so the rocks weren’t so slick. Looking back we saw beautiful views in several directions. 

On top there are magnificent panoramic 360-degree views, with standing room only as many hikers were up there enjoying the balmy weather. We walked out on the rocky peninsula on top to catch more views. Then we started down the mountain on the West Summit Trail, which is a gigantic staircase fashioned from rocks and boulders. Some blind young people were making their way up the “staircase” with the assistance of guides. Eventually this becomes a trail down to the picnic area where we met up with our base trail hikers and ate lunch. As we followed the base trail back to East Summit parking lot, we saw early spring flowers such as spring beauty, violets, trout lilies, oxalis and May apples – very encouraging after a too long winter! We even had a chance encounter with a baby copperhead. What a great day!

Per co-leader Judith 31 fair weather hikers headed to Hobbs State Park via War Eagle Mill. The new visitors' center is worth a trip by itself: a lovely building with interesting exhibits, including a simulated cave. The weather could not have been better with a sunny sky, no wind, and the temperature reaching 70. Pigeon Roost Trail runs up and down ravines, over ridges, through hollows, and alongside Van Hollow Branch of Beaver Lake. Two wise Trailblazers choose to hike the inner loop for a distance of 4 miles. The rest of us opted for the 8.4 mile hike. Both trails were clearly marked and very well maintained. Two sharp eyed gals slowed down and spotted eagles. We all enjoyed the lake view from Pigeon Roost Hollow. 

Read more: Pigeon Roost at Hobbs

Ninety people filled up the meeting room at River Valley Nature Center to celebrate the TrailBlazers’ 10th Anniversary with a neat photography program presented by Steven Hunter, author and photographer of the recently published Mount Magazine, Looking for the Light: a Photographer’s Journey. Steven has been hiking certain areas of Mt. Magazine even before there were trails. About 12 years ago he hurt his back, lost what he had to medical expenses, and could no longer do the jobs he used to do. His dream had always been to be a photographer, so he started taking pictures of God’s creation on the mountain. He has a great passion for the area, much patience, and a fine eye for wildflowers and insects. He loves the frost of winter, the fogs, and water drenched flowers and this is evident in the special effects in his photos. Many thanks to Steven for his program. 

Becky welcomed everyone to the start of the 11th season and gave credit to the club members who contribute to our club’s success. Of course, Becky herself should be high on this list! Linda and Katy gave warm, emotional testimonials about our club and they were not bribed – it was purely coincidental that we were collecting dues this evening! The occasion was celebrated with a 10th anniversary cake and socializing with our hiking family.

See y’all at Devil’s Den on Oct. 7th for our 11th season kickoff picnic.

Seventeen TrailBlazers under the command of Buffalo Bob headed for Petit Jean to tackle the 7-mile loop starting from the lodge. Of course, our crack forecasters had been warning us of an imminent winter blast with possible snow, but we were pleasantly surprised by the great hiking conditions. When we arriving at the lodge parking lot, it was a tad chilly at 37 degrees but we quickly warmed up as we started trekking in sunlight. 

We walked along the bluff, dutifully went to the outlook to view the non-existent falls in the distance, and then started our rocky descent to the creek and crossed the bridge. Right now the Natural State theme song ought to be: “How dry I am.” Before long we reached Rock House Cave and once again searched for art as we have fruitlessly done on several occasions. Imagine our surprise to actually find some, and the more we looked, the more we found. Of course, the interpretation is in the eye of the beholder. 

We crossed the turtle rocks and then did a little exploring among the rocks and boulders along the trail. This time we did the hike in reverse of last year’s route, and it was a good thing because this time we hiked down that never-ending road, not up. Finally we reached the creek and had our lunch before heading back to the falls area to make the final assault back to the lodge. The trail is steep with lots of rough-hewn rock steps, but mercifully it isn’t very long. The lodge is closed and will be for some time due to renovations. 

It was a very enjoyable hike with the added benefit of great weather. Check out Buffalo Bob’s new camera – with the zoom lens attached, the lens reaches its destination 15 minutes before the rest of the camera - like Cyrano de Bergerac’s nose!

Eleven TrailBlazers, 2 dropouts-to-be, and one canine under the leadership of Buffalo Bob headed for Petit Jean on a very cold day without Yours Truly who decided the night before that discretion is the better part of valor! 

Sherri reports: Kenya & I at least showed up, but after about 10 minutes on the trail we wimped out and headed for the warmth of the car, sending our compadres on without us. We contented ourselves by exploring the mountaintop and overlooks and even spotted our crew across the canyon on the Cedar Falls Trail. I snapped a few pics and I'm sending samples just for the heck of it! Oh, and I forgot to mention per Dick's trusty GPS, they did 7-3/4 miles, so it worked out for the best that it was frigid beyond belief with a howling wind to boot!! 

Bob reports that the Petit Jean hike was on the coldest day of the year (so far). Temperature starting out was 24 with a cloudy sky and cold wind. It was one of those biting cold days that made most wonder why we were there. Eventually the clouds cleared and the sun made a welcome appearance. The winds calmed but would occasionally remind us that it is February. We were cautious walking the trails but there were only a few icy spots. As the hike progressed we started removing some of the outer layers. The day actually turned out to be very enjoyable. Everyone was dressed for warmth and the uphill stretches made things a little toasty. 

Let’s hear it for our Winter Warriors who weren’t even rewarded with a frozen maple leaf (inside joke)!

While 25 Traillazers were Hiking in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park,the Arkansas contingent of the club hiked to Kings Bluff Falls in search of a view with autumn color and then sought both color and adventure exploring Pedestal Rocks, its beautiful bluff, and the caves underneath. Thank you to Xue, Judy, and Steve for pictures.

On a hot day twenty-one TrailBlazers drove up a dogwood-lined Highway 123 in search of FR 1003 for our trailhead on the Ozark Highlands Trail. The fly in the ointment was that there is no sign for the road, our directions were a tad “approximate,” some more approximate than others, and the elusive trailhead was shy about revealing itself to strangers. To add insult to injury there was no cell reception! Two carloads finally found the trail head and took off hiking with their drivers heading back to Haw Creek. 

With no long-legged energizer bunnies in the lead, a bunch of wildflower enthusiasts ambled along and were treated to wildflowers galore. There were several dry creek crossings and a few rock-hoppers until we reached Big Water requiring bare feet as we had no water shoes. Who would have “thunk” it with the drought? About this time the rest of the troops had finally found the trailhead and hot-footed down the trail, seeing a bunch of feral hogs en route. They caught up with us at the wet crossing. The flat rocks were slippery and the rest of them were pointy and sharp. This was not welcome news to Billigene, but our birthday girl gallantly rose to the challenge! 

After reaching the other side we lunched by the creek and then continued trekking up and down a rocky trail on a very hot day until we reached Haw Creek Campground. There was water flowing over the low bridge, so our feet got a little damp crossing it except for Billigene. A gentleman of the old school in a pick-up gave our little lady a lift! Haw Creek Falls were beautiful and we finally managed to take our group picture. Some of us spent quality time cooling our hot feet in the water. Magda threw caution to the wind, following Hannah out on top of the rapid water on the top of the falls. Great day!