August 9
We decided on a scenic driving day. The weather held out pretty well for the most part. The route was mostly trees along winding roads in the highlands of the Boston Mountains. There weren't a lot of places to pull off for the views, but it was a pleasant drive. Nothing as dramatic as what we drove through yesterday, but very beautiful in a different way.
From Wiki: The Ozark Highlands Scenic Byway includes 35 miles of
Arkansas State Scenic Highway 21 from the Ozark National Forest southern
boundary north of Clarksville in Johnson County to the northern boundary near
the Upper Buffalo Wilderness and Buffalo National River in Newton County.
Arkansas State Highway 16 from Fallsville to Edwards Junction in Newton County
joins this route for eight and one half miles. This is truly a “highlands
route,” traversing ridges between headwaters of the major streams.
It passes through Harrison, Jasper, Berryville, Eureka
Springs, The Ozark National Forest, The Ozark Highlands Trail, Buffalo North
River and the White River and its tributaries.
they are closed on weekends
it was quite misty and the cattle in the back were shrouded in mist
this one just stood at the fence and stared at me
then he stuck his tongue out
White-tailed deer - doe and fawn ran across the road in front of us before running up the hill on the other side
fawn
fawn
doe
post office in Ponca
Located on the byway is Ozone Recreation Area. We stopped,
but weren’t dressed for hiking and it had been misty and sprinkling most of the
day. There is a natural bridge there and no map to say how far a hike it would be.
Significant landmarks include the escarpment overlook of the Arkansas River
Valley, the settlements of Ozone, Salus, Fallsville, Edward's Junction and
Mossville.
lunch stop in Low Gap - the place was packed and the food was very good
Monte Cristo
Shrimp Po'boy
we thought these goats were interesting
too much fog/mist to see much of the valley
this doe and her fawn were right next to the road as we came around the corner
the fawn was really young
after watching us for a long time they both started up the hill
We stopped in Jasper - cute town
elk statue
Civil War plaque for Newton County
On the way back we took a small portion of Highway 7 Scenic Byway. From Wiki: As Arkansas's longest state highway, the route runs 297.27
miles from Louisiana Highway 558 at the Louisiana state line north
to Bull Shoals Lake at Diamond City near the Missouri state line. With
the exception of the segment north of Harrison, Highway 7 has been designated
as an Arkansas Scenic Byway and a National Forest Scenic Byway. The road
passes through the heart of both the Ozark Mountains and the Ouachita
Mountains, and features scenic views.
the route was lines with many yellow wildflowers & some areas were starting to get some Fall color
one large daddy longlegs in the bathroom
Walking Stick on the door of the bathroom
Tomorrow, if the weather holds out, we plan to hit some hiking trails.
nice scenery, interesting bugs...that one deer looked so thin, great photos as usual!
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