ALL HIKERS PLEASE NOTE! Hike organizers are not responsible for the participants in any way. Everyone who attends a hike is expected to be on their own and take care of themselves. Also note that all of our outings are free and open to the public - you do not have to be a member to attend.

OVERNIGHT FUN HIKE ON OHT, Lick Branch to Cherry Bend, March 2-3. Part six of the end-to-end series, this is a very scenic stretch of the OHT that visits the Marinoni Scenic Area, lots of waterfalls, and Hare Mountain (highest point on the OHT at 2380 feet). It will be led by Brad Davenport, and the 19.3 mile hike is rated medium. Give Brad a call at 996-4649 to sign up.

DAYHIKE into Indian Creek on the Buffalo River, March 9. This is one of the  most scenic canyons in the entire state, but the hike up through it is very difficult and not for the faint of heart. Terry Fredrick will lead. The park service has cut off the cave access, but Terry requests everyone bring a flashlight. Meet at Root School in Fayetteville at 8am or at Kyles Landing at 9:30am. Give Terry a call at 442-3812 for more details.

OHTA GENERAL MEETING, March 10, 7:30pm in Fayetteville (location is between Hobby Lobby and Blockbuster Video at 3114 N. College Ave..). Our program will be given by Mike Pledger, the furbearer program coordinator for the Arkansas Game & Fish Commission, and he will discuss his recent studies on foxes and bobcats (this had to be rescheduled from February due to a car accident).  And we'll have some great refreshments, as always. Everyone is welcome to attend. If you can't find the meeting place, give me a call at 870-861-5536 for directions.

OVERNIGHT FUN HIKE on Butterfield Trail, Devil's Den State Park, March 16-17.  This is one of the most popular loop backpacking trails in Arkansas, and visits a number of scenic spots along the way. Dean LaGrone will lead. 14.5 miles and rated medium. Give Dean a call at 750-2550 to sign up. Limited to ten hikers.

DAYHIKE on the Ouachita Trail, Lake Sylvia to Hwy. 10, March 23.  The hiking is easy but the distance is long so this 14.6 mile hike is rated difficult. Brad Davenport will lead. Meet him at the Lake Sylvia Trailhead at 8am. Bring a daypack with water and lunch. Give Brad a call at 996-4649 for info.

OTTERS DAYHIKE FOR KIDS, Devil's Den Trail, March 24.  Come join us for another easy hike of about a mile and explore this famous trail - caves and waterfalls along the way! Pam Ernst will lead. Bring a picnic lunch and be ready to hike another short trail in the park if you are interested. Meet Pam at the trailhead (at the end of the bridge) at 10am. Call her at 870-861-5595 for details.
 
WORK TRIP ON OHT, March 30.  There is lots of work to do this spring for young and old, and no experience is necessary! Roy Senyard will lead this maintenance trip to a section of the trail that needs it most. All you need to bring is a daypack with water, lunch and a good pair of work gloves. Give Roy a call at 587-0200 for the meeting time and place.

OVERNIGHT FUN HIKE ON OHT, Cherry Bend to White Rock Mountain, April 6-7. Part seven of the end-to-end series. It runs along a historic railroad grade, visits delightful Spirits Creek, and ends at White Rock Mountain, which has one of the best views in the country. It will be led by Norma Senyard and Patsy Cox so you know a grand time will be had by all. 18.9 miles and rated medium. Call Norma at 587-0200 or Patsy at 521-4993 to sign up.

DAYHIKE into Devil's Canyon, April 6. Another breathtaking hike for the strongest hikers, you will love this one, and remember it for a long time. It is rated difficult, and only those who can handle rough scrambling up and down steep and dangerous slopes should participate. The main waterfall there will be featured in the new Arkansas Waterfalls guidebook (due out early this summer), and the falls should be running pretty good. Terry Fredrick will lead. Meet at Southgate Shopping Center in Fayetteville at 8:30am. Call Terry at 442-3812 for info.

OVERNIGHT FUN HIKE at Williams Woods Nature Preserve, April 13-14.  Come visit our very own nature preserve and take the short hike up to the campsite on top of Mac Mountain (either a one or two mile hike up, depending on which way you go - three miles total loop hike). Dinner will be pot luck, so bring a tasty dish to share with the group around the campfire. Dennis "Hete" Heter will lead. Give Hete a call at 677-2698 for the meeting time, directions, and for more details.

OHTA GENERAL MEETING, April 14, 7:30pm in Fayetteville (location is between Hobby Lobby and Blockbuster Video at 3114 N. College Ave..). Our program will be given by Roy Senyard, OHTA trail maintenance coordinator. Roy will show us the proper way to maintain the trail, and will have tools on hand. We'll have some great refreshments, as always. Everyone is welcome to attend. If you can't find the meeting place, give me a call at 870-861-5536 for directions.

WEEKEND WORK TRIP ON OHT, Hurricane Creek Wilderness, April 20-21.  There are several large trees down across the trail in this most scenic of all OHT sections, and we will need a lot of bodies to help with the crosscut saw work, as well as general maintenance. The forest service will be there to help, and has reserved some campsites for us at nearby Haw Creek Falls Campground both Friday and Saturday nights. Roy Senyard will lead. Meet him Friday night at the campground, or at the Big Piney Trailhead at 9am Saturday and/or Sunday mornings. No experience necessary! All you need is a daypack with water, lunch and a good pair of work gloves (and be ready to hike a few miles to the work site and back). Call Roy at 587-0200 for details.

OTTERS DAYHIKE FOR KIDS, Indian Rockhouse Trail at Buffalo Point, April 21.  This will be one of our longer Otter hikes at 3.0 miles, but there is a lot of neat stuff to see along the way and it will all be worth it. Pam Ernst will lead. Bring a snack to munch on during the hike, plus a picnic lunch back at the trailhead. Meet Pam at the trailhead at 10am. Give her a call at 870-861-5595 for more details and directions to Buffalo Point (in the lower Buffalo River area).

HIGHWAY 23 CLEANUP DAY, April 22.  Its time for spring cleaning on our one mile stretch of the Pig Trail National Scenic Byway. Led by Paul Weisenfels. Bring some work gloves and water and meet at the Cherry Bend Trailhead at 9am. It only takes a couple of hours and you will feel great afterward! Give Paul a call at 782-8782 for more details (648-1118 at work)..

DAYHIKE the Redding to Spy Rock Loop Trail, April 27.  Spring should be in full swing for this medium rated 8.8 mile hike. Wade Baker will lead. Meet him at the new trailhead just past the turnoff to Redding Campground at 8am (there is now a fee to park at the campground, so it is best to use the new trailhead, which is free!). Bring a daypack with lunch and water. Give Wade a call at 238-1313 for more information.

OVERNIGHT FUN HIKE ON OHT, White Rock Mountain to Dockerys Gap, May 4th. Part eight of the end-to-end series. This hike begins at White Rock Mountain and ends at what is now the western-most access point on the OHT (Lake Ft. Smith State Park has been closed to make room for a new lake). It is only 8.3 miles and rated medium (although the hike may be extended another 6.3 miles and end at the Lake Shepherd Springs dam - depending on the lake construction). Led by Kerry Coe. Give Kerry a call at 318-688-1162 to sign up.

OHTA TRAIL BUILDING CONTINUES. The OHT Extension in the Ozark National Forest near Blanchard Springs is rapidly nearing Hwy 341 just north of Hwy 14 thanks to enthusiastic super crews and fabulous weather. Trail builders meet every weekend morning through the end of April at Blanchard Springs Group Camp #2 (was #1) and leave for the work site by 7:45am.  E-mail Duane Woltjen (Ozarktraveler@lynks) for details and leadership schedule.  Call leaders to confirm the weather will be acceptable. You're missing the action unless you're there. Ozark National Forest Supervisor Charles Richmond and District Ranger Joe Dabney hiked the 7 miles built last fall with Duane and Judy February 23, 2002.  They were sure this trail was going to be very popular for its scenic beauty and  design. The District, in partnership with the OHTA, will apply for T-21 grant funds to build trail heads.The first nine mile section will be ready for hikers by the end of April, and will officially open next October.  We need a volunteer trail blazer.

WILLIAMS WOODS SURVEY. The Williams Woods Committee is mailing out a survey to all OHTA members in hopes of gathering comments and suggestions about our property called Williams Woods Nature Preserve. If you are a regular member, you will receive a self-addressed, stamped copy of this survey with your newsletter. If you are not a member, you may view the survey at the bottom of this page. You are welcome to print it out, fill it in, and mail (paste it into another program to print if you need to). We need your thoughts and suggestions!

OHTAíS MOM PASSES AWAY. January 19th marked the passing of the greatest supporter OHTA ever had - indeed the best person that I ever met - my mom. She was not only instrumental in getting OHTA off the ground in the first place, but she actually attended more general meetings than ANYONE, including her son. She was a fixture at our meetings, rain or shine, sleet or snow, until Alzheimerís took away her ability to attend. She also helped process nearly every newsletter until her hands could no longer do it. This 200th edition of the OHTA newsletter is dedicated to this very special lady. Thanks, momóI will continue to hike because of you........Tim Ernst, editor

OHTA gained possession of a 563-acre tract of land in 1993 that we named Williams Woods Nature Preserve (WWNP). There is serious controversy over both the management and fate of this land in our custody, and a committee has been formed to explore further opportunities and options for this property. We, the committee, would appreciate your input and thoughts as we proceed on behalf of the club, and hope that you will fill out the survey on the other side and let us know how you feel.

Alphie Williams was dying of cancer and wanted to find an organization to take over her land and protect her trees. She did not want her land sold or her trees ever cut down. OHTA was the only organization that was interested in this land at the time, so it was given to us shortly before she died. This wooded property is located near the small community of St. Paul, Arkansas and encompasses most of a mountain. One of the highlights of the property is an old log home built in the 1930ís. Behind that cabin is the trailhead to a three-mile loop trail which was built shortly after OHTA took possession of the land. The trail takes hikers to the top of the mountain and back to the old homestead while passing several ponds, waterfalls, and other old homesites. All the while you are walking through beautiful mature hardwoods, which are the home to many varieties of wildlife.

We do not pay taxes on this land, but it costs us a couple of thousand dollars a year to operate it at the current level. We have spent in excess of $25,000 so far. Additional monies would have to be raised for improvements and continued operation. While this property really does not meet OHTAís stated purpose to ìBuild, maintain and enjoy the Ozark Highlands Trail,î it is a beautiful slice of Ozark land and has some great potential for outdoor recreation and education. Are we the right organization to develop and manage this land, and if so, are we willing to raise the money and do the work required to do it properly? It will take a significant commitment from the members of OHTA over the long haul in order to make it all work.

The present caretaker, Dennis Heter (ìHeteî), moved onto the property in 1994. His small trailer has about had it, and if we are to continue to keep a caretaker on the property we will have to provide adequate living quarters. Our original goal many years ago was to restore the log cabin as a caretakersí residence. A lot of work has been done to the cabin, but it will require additional work to put it in livable condition. Before any more monies are raised and spent, the committee has been charged with developing an overall game plan, decide if a caretaker is warranted, whether the cabin should be used as a hostel or caretaker residence, and if keeping the property is in the best interests of OHTA in the first place. Your answers to this survey will help the decision process. Please fill it out and send it in ASAP!

WWNP is always open to the public, and you are encouraged to stop by for a visit to hike the trail and look over the property. A special hike-in is planned for April 13­14 to celebrate ìAlphie Appreciation Dayîósee the newsletter for details.
 

Please fill out the following survey today and mail back to us ASAP! Deadline is March 31st.

Name: ____________________________

Address: _________________________________________ Phone __________________________

1.  Were you aware that the OHTA owns WWNP?
     Yes____ No____

2. Have you ever visited WWNP?
     Yes ____ No ____

3.  Are you in favor of a caretaker for WWNP?
     Yes ____ No____,   If yes,    Full time _____ or Part time _____

4. If you are in favor of a full time caretaker, where would you like for the caretaker to live?
     ____ Renovate the log cabin    OR   ____ Build new living quarters

5.  Would you be interested in the club developing WWNP into a hostel/retreat/bunkhouse?
     Yes____ No____

6.  If so, would you use WWNP as a hostel/retreat/bunkhouse yourself?
     Yes ____ No____

7.  Would you be willing to pay to visit WWNP?
     Yes ____ No ____

8.  Would you like to see WWNP used for educational purposes (school outings, etc)?
     Yes ____ No____

9.  Would you be willing to donate time to help maintain and improve Williams Woods?
     Yes ____ No____

10. If we are unable to raise sufficient capitol and operating funds to develop and operate WWNP (we will not be using general OHTA funds for any of this), would you like for us to:
 _____ Keep the property but not have a caretaker or any maintenance

 _____ Donate the property to another conservation organization that would be able to protect it
  (such as the Nature Conservancy or the Ozark Regional Land Trust)

Questions, comments, and further suggestions:
 
 
 
 
 

Committee: Wade Baker (chair, 479­238­1313), Gina Baker (479­238­3838), Linda Whatley (479­643­2764), Bobby Shepperd (479­442­5770), David Cagle (479­750­1976), Nancy Garner (479­521-0333).
Caretaker: Dennis Heter, 479­677­2698. Feel free to contact any of us with questions/comments.

Mail to:
Wade Baker
PMB # 264
1722 N College Ave, Ste C
Fayetteville, AR   72703