We love autumn in Arkansas. It is a cool season, a colorful season, a happy season, a season tailor-made for days spent outdoors.
As summer wanes and fall paints fiery hues upon the landscape, we start feeling an urge to leave the house and get outside awhile. Some of us go hunting. Some fish. Some float a river or hike a trail or travel to places where there are birds and deer and other wildlife to be seen. It is during this season, the season William Cullen Bryant called “the year’s last, loveliest smile,” when we fully realize the significance of the name we have given our homeland — “The Natural State.”
“What shall we do today?” we ask. “What place shall we visit? What wonders shall we see? What memories will we make?” There is so much from which to choose.
Start here. In the following paragraphs, many treasures wait to be found. Places to fish. Places to hunt. Places to walk, to canoe, to watch wildlife, to camp, to drive. Places where we can hold hands with a loved one and take in the radiant beauty of autumn in Arkansas.
Spring River trout and more
The beautiful Spring River in northeast Arkansas exemplifies the old adage, “Good things often come in small packages.” You could throw a cat across this crystal-clear Ozark Mountains stream in many spots, but anglers here find superb fall fishing for a wide variety of popular sportfish.
Rainbow trout probably attract most fishermen. The Game and Fish Commission’s hatchery is on an island below Dam 3, so there are always plenty of trout swimming in the nearby waters. The river’s cold water comes naturally from a spring rather than artificially from deep within a man-made lake. Every hour, Mammoth Spring releases 9 million gallons of 58-degree water, and the river stays cold enough to support a good trout population for 10 miles downstream.
Spring River’s healthy population of walleyes also draws many anglers. One- to 3-pound specimens of these good-eating fish are relatively common, and several in the 10-pound range have been caught by Fulton County locals in recent years. Look for walleyes in pools below shoals, and fish from a canoe to cover lots of water.
In addition to walleyes and trout, Spring River visitors can also fish for largemouth and smallmouth bass. Both species are common from Dam 3 downstream, and both fall for a variety of fishing techniques. Channel catfish are abundant in the downstream reaches as well, though only a few locals ever fish for them.
Perhaps the best thing about this scenic mountain stream is this: You can throw a crankbait or a crawdad tail, and you can catch a smallmouth on one cast, a walleye on the next, a rainbow trout on the next, a largemouth on the next and a channel cat on the next. The Spring is literally bristling with fish, and fall is a great time to visit. For more information, visit the Outdoors section at www.arkansas.com.
A squirrel hunt in the mountains
The Ozarks are full of squirrels this year, they say. It’s an “up year,” and there’s hardly a better way to spend a fall day than sitting beneath the colorful canopy of oaks and hickories as you watch for the makings of a dumpling dinner. One good place to try your luck is the 175,000-acre Sylamore Wildlife Management Area in the Ozark National Forest near Mountain View. Download a map from the Game and Fish Commission’s website, www.agfc.com, and you can find plenty of back roads that lead to good hunting areas where you can enjoy a day of solitude in a place of incredible beauty. Better yet, take a youngster along to share the pleasures. Squirrels are made to order for budding hunters.
Road trips for wildlife watchers
What could be more fun than a day on the road, traveling with a friend or loved one, seeing the sights, stopping for a good meal and taking in the scenery? An autumn road trip to one of our national wildlife refuges can be the perfect medicine when you’re itching to get away for a few hours. And three of our refuges — Holla Bend near Dardanelle, Wapanocca near Turrell and Big Lake near Manila — have auto-tour routes where you’re likely to see deer, ducks, geese, eagles, songbirds and other autumn wildlife. Bring binoculars, and your camera, too. You’ll want to share the things you see with the folks back home. More information is available on the refuge websites: www.fws.gov/hollabend, www.fws.gov/refuge/wapanocca and www.fws.gov/biglake.
Swamp tromps
We love our fall swamp tromps. The boardwalks and trails that carry you into the heart of our bottomland natural areas are easy to walk, rarely visited, and the scenery is spectacular. Ancient cypress trees tower overhead, and wildlife in these places seems somehow tamer, more approachable. Migrant songbirds fill the treetops, and the waters are home to otters, raccoons, beavers, turtles and more.
The Lorance Creek Natural Area just outside Little Rock is one favorite. And we often visit the White River National Wildlife Refuge just to walk the trail to the state’s biggest cypress tree. Don’t miss the Louisiana Purchase State Park near Brinkley, either — history and nature rolled into one. The Natural Heritage Commission (www.naturalheritage.com), the White River Refuge (www.fws.gov/whiteriver) and Arkansas State Parks (www.arkansasstateparks.com) are your sources for information.
Three colorful drives
Want to see fall’s beautiful colors? The season’s brilliant reds and yellows will brighten your day as you drive through the wooded countrysides along this trio of Natural State byways.
Mount Magazine Scenic Byway/Arkansas 309: From Havana, the byway quickly begins its ascent through the forests on the slopes of Mount Magazine, Arkansas’ highest peak at 2,753 feet. In addition to beautiful views, you’ll find Mount Magazine State Park at the top. Park roads lead to overlooks with expansive views of Blue Mountain Lake and the Ouachita Mountains to the south, and of the Arkansas River Valley and the Ozark Mountains to the north. From Mount Magazine, the byway descends more than 2,300 feet to the town of Paris, passing picturesque Cove Lake on the way. North of town, the byway travels through rolling pastureland and hayfields, dotted with colorful hardwoods.
Crowley’s Ridge Parkway National Scenic Byway: This was the first National Scenic Byway in the state. It roughly runs the length of its namesake, Crowley’s Ridge, beginning in the northeast corner at St. Francis and winding its way alongside the ridge through some of the most fertile areas of Arkansas to its southern-most terminus at West Helena. The fall colors here are spectacular.
Scenic 7 Byway: This state-designated route runs from the Arkansas/Missouri state line, south through Harrison, Russellville, Hot Springs and Arkadelphia, and on through El Dorado to the border with Louisiana. Along the way, you’ll view beautiful fall foliage as you pass through the Grand Canyon of the Ozarks at Jasper, cross over the Buffalo National River, cruise through Hot Springs National Park and drive across DeGray Lake.
For an up-to-date fall foliage report, visit www.arkansas.com/fall. The Department of Parks and Tourism has a statewide system of spotters who keep us updated so we can receive the latest updates about the progress of the leaves changing. New reports are posted by 5 p.m. every Thursday during the season.