There's a sure fire way to pick the perfect highway for a fall foliage drive.
Unfold your trusty Arkansas highway map and place it on the kitchen table. Close your eyes and turn around in circles two or three times. Now blindly touch your finger on the paper map.
Whichever highway is closest to your fingertip is almost guaranteed to be steeped in autumn color.
That's because most any Arkansas highway or county road has potential for a fall driving tour. Even our own Interstate 49 is rich in autumn splendor in the folds of the Boston Mountains between Fayetteville and Alma.
That's where we'll start our suggestions today for some fall foliage drives through our lovely slice of the Ozarks.
The Boston Mountain Scenic Loop is one to put on your driving list. The north end of the loop starts in Fayetteville. Head south on Interstate 49, through the Ozarks' Boston Mountain range. The going gets really good around the Bobby Hopper tunnel and on south to Alma, with the hill country sporting its fall coat of color.
At Alma, take a quick jaunt east on Interstate 40 a couple of miles to U.S. 71 and turn north. U.S. 71 used to be the main drag between Fayetteville and Alma and a frightening, white-knuckle drive. The two-lane highway was packed with big rigs and cars careening around hairpin curves and navigating steep grades at high speed.
Now U.S. 71 is a pleasant, scenic and lightly traveled route through the mountains. Take a short detour off the highway to Lake Fort Smith State Park for a picnic or hike. The park is a beauty and worth a stop on the way back to Fayetteville.
Just guess-timating, but the loop is about 85 miles.
Another ideal loop starts in Siloam Springs. Hop on Arkansas 59 and head south through Cincinnati, Summers, Dutch Mills and Evansville. South of Evansville, the highway meanders through the Ozark Natural Forest.
At the community of Natural Dam, a 200-yard detour on a paved road to the right leads to the Natural Dam waterfall. It'll be barely a trickle unless we've had some rain. Still, it's worth a stop for folks who've never seen it. It looks man made, but it's natural.
Head south a few more miles to Cedarville. Take a left here on Arkansas 220. You'll be heading northeast on 220, mostly through the colorful national forest. Devil's Den State Park is about 25 miles up this highway.
Stop at the park for a leg stretch, picnic or a hike, then head north on Arkansas 170 to West Fork. Drive on into Fayetteville on I-49 or U.S. 71.
Any of the scenic drives we've featured in NWA Outdoors through the years are perfect fall foliage drives. We've highlighted Pig Trail Scenic Byway, Mulberry River Road Scenic Byway, Arkansas 103 in Johnson County and Sugar Camp Scenic Drive in Barry County, Mo.
Any of these lead to enough autumn views to fill a dozen calendar pages, or a fall full of memories in your camera of the mind.
Flip Putthoff can be reached at fputthoff@nwadg.com
