It’s pretty warm for hiking today but we decided to get out anyway, I
don’t know how much hiking we’ll do though. I chose the Richland Creek area mainly
because I have been wanting to hike to Richland Falls and we’re just waiting
for the flow in Falling Water Creek to subside enough for crossing. We’ll check that out today, among other
things.
 |
mouth of Richland Creek at Woolum
|
Arriving at the Richland
Campground we find the heavy wood gate locked, again. With a sign on the gate stating, 'campgrounds
of the Ozark National Forest are closed due to COVID19 restrictions'. Not surprised, the gate was locked back at
the end of April when we hiked into Wild River.
We park here, near the gate but off the road, next to a wild blackberry
bramble. |
Richland Creek
|
We walk around the gate into the campground, the ‘closure’ isn’t such a
bad thing we decide since it gives us an opportunity to wander the campsites
and decide which we like best. But
first we head down to the ‘lower campground’ and Falling Water Creek which is
west past the trailhead billboard. Today
the creek is a lot lower than it was back in April, but it is still pretty high
and fast. We decide the ‘creek waders’
aren’t going to work for this crossing, we’ll have to plan for a wet crossing.
 |
rugged terrain in the wilderness
|
From Falling Water Creek, we go
back to the lower campground on the banks of Richland Creek, which is as
beautiful as always, then up the steps to the ‘upper campground’. On top we slowly tour the campground, picking best campsites for privacy, creek access, and restroom proximity. Richland Campground isn't very big, but all the sites are well spaced and quite nice.
 |
Falling Water Creek
|
At the south end of the campground in the back corner of a large
campsite is an old trailhead sign and a well-worn trail heading upstream above
Falling Water Creek. We follow this
trail into and around a couple steep little side drainages, then come alongside
an old fence line. This isn’t the
easiest trail we have ever hiked with ups and downs and lots of wet rocks along
the way.
 |
Fire Pink
|
There are quite a few
optional routes, we keep with the most obvious route, i.e., the most worn. Everything is overgrown through here and wet,
the trail turns along another fence line toward the creek and 50 feet later we
are at the banks of Falling Water Creek at a beautiful boulder field in and all
around the creek.
 |
rambunctious Falling Water Creek
|
Scanning up and down the
opposite side of the creek, I finally locate Pine Hollow downstream from us. Up steep Pine Hollow are a few nice waterfalls including Terwilliger Falls. For us it would be far too dangerous to try crossing Falling Water Creek here and besides, the
undergrowth around the mouth of Pine Hollow appears completely impassible.
 |
upstream on Richland Creek
|
After enjoying this gorgeous view on Falling Water Creek a while
we head back the way we came, to the campground then out the main campground
road back to the gate and our car. At
the car I notice some hikers coming down off the ridge on the Ozark Highlands
Trail which joins the road here to access the concrete bridge over Richland
Creek. We strike up a conversation,
these are just ‘kids’ really, high school sweethearts apparently.
 |
Falling Water Creek at crossing to Twin Falls
|
They are out having the ‘adventure of a lifetime’ it’s their
way of doing ‘social distancing’ and avoid the boredom related to COVID closures, hopefully everything will get back to normal soon. They tell us their adventure will end
tomorrow when they expect to reach Woolum where their car is waiting. I ask “Well, how far have you come?” The answer, “All the way, we started at the beginning, in Lake Fort Smith State Park.”
 |
near mouth of Pine Hollow
|
Wow,
I am impressed, that’s 164 miles to the Buffalo River at Woolum Ford, I get wore
out just thinking about it. We wish them
well and they’re on their way. We too
are on our way, we didn’t really go on much of a
‘hike’ today but walking along Falling Water Creek and exploring Richland
Campground we did put in just over 2 miles and of course had a great day. Soon we will get across the creek and make it to Richland Falls, for that adventure see: (55 Richland Falls).
Comments