Arkansas State Parks Trip Ideas

Park

Region

Park Activity

Trail Type

Trail Difficulty

Author

Date Published

More Than 80 Carats of Diamonds Discovered in Arkansas During Record-Breaking Year

Jan 2021

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Waymon Cox

Greetings from Crater of Diamonds State Park! 2020 was a great year for diamond finds at the Crater. Despite the many changes brought on by COVID-19, more than 129,000 people visited the park in search of diamonds. Following is a recap of diamond finds for 2020, including some of the most memorable discoveries.

9.07-carat brown diamond found at Crater of Diamonds State Park

Video: Double Rainbow After the Storm

Jan 2021

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Jenn Menge

Though it is a human-built lake by the Army Corps of Engineers, Lake Ouachita in southwest Arkansas is filled with plenty of natural beauty. Lake Ouachita State Park exists, in part, to provide access to this lake and all its resources. With its clear, open water and mountainous surroundings, Lake Ouachita is the perfect place to watch a storm roll in or enjoy a red-orange...

Double rainbow at Lake Ouachita State Park

Photo Essay: Stories in Stones

Jan 2021

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Heather Runyan

Village Creek State Park is located in east Arkansas on Crowley’s Ridge. This park exists to help protect the unique natural, cultural, and historical resources of the ridge, including things like fossils. The fossils found at Village Creek State Park tell the story of this unique land. In this photo essay, we will take a closer look.

A creek with a gravel bar in the middle and trees to either side

What to Expect This Winter at the Crater of Diamonds State Park

Dec 2020

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Waymon Cox

Greetings from Crater of Diamonds State Park! Winter officially returned as of Monday, December 21, and will continue until March 20, 2021. With wide-ranging temperatures over the past couple of weeks, many of us are wondering what kind of winter we’ll have this year. Looking at previous winters and considering recent weather trends may give us a good idea of what to...

Snow on the search field at Crater of Diamonds State Park

Winter Hikes — Arkansas State Parks

Dec 2020

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Arkansas State Parks Staff

As the air outside gets a bit nippy, you will want to lace up your hiking boots, slip on your trail running shoes, or grab your mountain bike out on one of Arkansas State Parks’ many trails. After all, winter weather is just natural air conditioning.

Winter hiking the SP Rim Trail at Mount Nebo State Park

Arkansas State Parks Adjusts Operations to Respond to Statewide COVID-19 Increase

Dec 2020

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Meg Matthews

Visitor information centers, museums, restaurants and two marinas at Arkansas State Parks will see a reduction of operating hours to efficiently manage available resources during the recent statewide increase in COVID-19 cases.

Photo Essay: Churn Your Own Butter

Nov 2020

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Sarah Reap

Davidsonville Historic State Park in northeast Arkansas preserves Arkansas’s first platted (planned) town and the stories of the people who lived here. The people of Davidsonville churned butter as a necessary chore to keep their households running smoothly, but today is a fun activity to connect us to the past. In this photo essay, we will explore the very important task...

A loaf of bread on a table with a container of butter and a piece of bread off to the side with butter on it

Hiking With Man’s Best Friend

Nov 2020

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Megan Ayres Moore

Lake Dardanelle State Park, located in Russellville, Arkansas, provides a quiet and relaxing setting to enjoy the outdoors with the entire family, including man’s best friend. The park features a large amount of pet-friendly space including open grassy fields, picnic areas, and the Meadowbrook Trail, an easy ¾-mile walk through a wooded section of the park. Responsibly...

Photo Essay: A Solution for Pollution

Nov 2020

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Elizabeth Kimble

Crowley’s Ridge State Park in northeast Arkansas is one of Arkansas’s six original state parks, constructed in the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). Today, those original native stone and wood structures create a setting of rustic serenity among the natural surroundings. To this day, part of the park’s mission is to protect natural resources. Our team strives...

State park ranger holding recycling bucket

Photo Essay: Life in a Rotten Log

Nov 2020

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Heather Runyan

Village Creek State Park is a 7,000-acre park located in northeast Arkansas. The park’s mission is to protect and conserve the natural, cultural, and historical resources of Crowley’s Ridge. We have an unusual ally in protecting our natural resources: the rotten logs of the forest floor. Where many people see a rotting log as an eyesore, many creatures see it as the key to...