LAKE FORT SMITH STATE PARK -- State parks normally stay put. Visitors can count on finding them in the same place year after year. An exception is Lake Fort Smith State Park, which has migrated several miles north from its original location in Crawford County.
That's because the previous site is now underwater, after the enlarging of Lake Fort Smith and Lake Shepherd Springs to form a single reservoir of 1,400 acres. That lake expansion, needed to meet the area's growing water demands, required the building of the present Lake Fort Smith Dam, more than twice as tall as its predecessor.
Visitor center exhibits tell the history of the park, which dates to the late 1930s, when crews from the federal Works Progress Administration created what was then called Mountainburg Recreational Facility. It became Arkansas' 23rd state park in 1967, then closed in 2002 before flooding by the lake expansion. The relocated park, financed with $12 million from the city of Fort Smith and $10 million from the Arkansas State Parks system, opened in 2008 on the new reservoir's western shore.
Because the site is only a decade old, the park's infrastructure is impressively modern, including 10 comfortable rental cabins with large covered decks. Exhibits in the handsome visitor center cast a discerning eye on life in Northwest Arkansas before World War II and the later advent of the Walmart empire. For the area's settlers a century and more ago, it was often a hardscrabble existence:
"When people relocated, the first thing they did was build shelters. Early flatboat travelers simply got off the river and made huts out of the wood from their boats. Later cabins were crudely constructed from local trees that were cut, squared off and assembled. They were chinked with mud from the clay hillsides. Cabins were simple with one room. As families prospered, they built dog trots, or corridors, which connected rooms."
This exhibit includes a reminder that the so-called "good old days" required a lot of sweat equity, especially for women in the household: "Sew a quilt or weave fabric to make a dress for church. When you're done with these chores, get water from the well. Your work is never done."
On display is the original Depression-era plaque that was mounted in 1936 by Works Progress Administration staff on the visitor center at the earlier park site. Moved to the present location, it serves as a symbol of continuity as well as a reminder that involvement of the federal government can be a positive force at the local level.
Swimming in Lake Fort Smith is forbidden. But the swimming pool complex near the visitor center provides a variety of chances to paddle or splash. There's a separate shallow pool for youngsters, along with a pair of water slides in the main swimming area. Lifeguards are on duty to give parents a sense of security.
Deer and other wildlife are regularly seen along the park's roads. Nature is also on display via marked hiking trails. The easiest is Warren Hollow Trail, which stretches three-quarters of a mile from the visitor center across a wooden bridge to the group lodge area. Hikers on the Boston Loop Trail can do a shorter version of 2.5 miles or the full route of 4 miles. For super-serious hikers, the 165-mile Ozark Highlands Trail has its western end in the park.
Lake Fort Smith State Park, 26 miles north of Alma and 32 miles south of Fayetteville, can be reached by taking Interstate 49's exit 29 at Mountainburg. Then continue north for 8 miles on U.S. 71 before turning southeast on Arkansas 400. Admission to the park is free, with fees charged for the swimming pools, camp sites and cabins. The visitor center is open 8 a.m.-5 p.m. daily (until 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday through Sept. 2).
For details, visit ArkansasStateParks.com or call (479) 369-2469.
Weekend on 08/02/2018