This
morning the sun made its return after about a week of cold, wet and generally
miserable weather. So naturally, I felt
it would be a good day to get back out on the trail. I lingered at the house till 9:30 waiting
for the temp to reach 40° that made it after 11:00 when I finally got parked on
the side of the highway at the trailhead for my chosen hike. It was a toss-up between three places, but in
the end I decided to try to get to Wheeler Cemetery and beyond.
 |
in Wheeler Cemetery
|
To
start I weave around the locked Forest Service gate with a sign stating ‘the
key can be acquired at Hawkins Store in Pelsor’. The old road past the gate is in good enough
shape to be carefully driven, with only a few smaller branches that
would have to be moved off the road.
Technically this is JC5970 though maps if it’s shown at all, refer to it
as Wheeler Ridge Rd. or Wheeler Cemetery Rd. |
gate just below the highway
|
Although
road maintenance is minimal at best Wheeler Road, makes a great trail, nice wide
and never very steep with loads of drainage diversion channels off the
side to help keep the road from getting washed out. After just under 200 yards is the boundary
into Hurricane Creek Wilderness marked by another gate, (this one locked open)
and an old rotted wooden sign-in box.
There isn’t much to talk about on the way to the cemetery... |
on Wheeler Rd. before reaching wilderness boundary
|
About
400 feet inside the wilderness is a low rock wall on the side of the road that
has definitely seen better days, then another 300 yards or so an intersection
with another old road north, now just a trail which will come into play on my
way out. Continuing west on Wheeler Rd. soon
I cross paths with a few deer who head north off the ridge and down the hill,
then some more stacked rock next to the north side of the road might be the
footprint of a long gone little house. |
from here you're in the wilderness
|
Now
heading southwest it’s just over half a mile more to Wheeler Cemetery enclosed
in a four foot tall chain-link fence.
The graveyard is about 80 feet square with a gate near the northeast
corner, as expected most of the twenty or so headstones are of the Wheeler
family. Not all though, one of interest:
‘William R. Sparks born August 9, 1834 died May 22, 1907 Another link is
broken in our household band But a chain is forming in a better land’. |
Wheeler Rd. ends at Wheeler Cemetery
|
The
road ends at the cemetery, but some maps show that it continues west along
the ridge just to the north of Wheeler Cemetery. I head that way swerving around the occasional
greenbrier and less than 200 feet later land back on the road. Now with absolutely no maintenance whatsoever
the road is more of a trail and often would be considered a ‘bushwhack’. Sometimes this road is easy, like just past
the cemetery where it follows a long rock wall with barbed-wire added later.
But
that doesn’t last long, I soon lose the road in thick underbrush and greenbrier
ending up north of the road along another long (over 400 feet) rock wall. Near the end of this wall I make my way back
to the south knowing the road must be there somewhere. It doesn’t take long to re-find the lost
road, but the further I go the harder it becomes to discern the ‘road’ from
the surrounding woods. |
some rock walls help to define the road
|
Losing
then re-finding, the faint road continues as the woods become more
choked with thick underbrush greenbrier and tree falls. Not far after finding an old tire on the road,
I lose the road again and abandoning hope of finding it again I bail-out to the
north soon coming to a ledge. After
finding a safe place to get below the ledge it’s all downhill from there. I angle my way down the steep hillside using
every little tree to keep from slipping in the loose rock. |
more of Wheeler Rd. beyond the cemetery
|
My
map shows the Ozark Highlands Trail down there somewhere, and sure enough after
almost half a mile bushwhacking my way downhill I land on the very obvious
OHT. This is more like it, it’s good to
be on a ‘real’ trail, although the downhill scramble wasn’t too bad. Still not much in the way of scenery other
than endless woods. The trail is clean
and easy to follow, I haven’t seen any ‘blazes’ but they aren’t really needed
when a trail is this obvious. |
on the way down to OHT
|
Right
about that time I come to OHT mile marker 107 and not too much further the
first white blaze nailed to a big tree.
Just over a quarter mile from there the trail crosses a steep rocky
drainage with a big beech on the east side of the creek, this isn’t the ‘greatest
scenery’ but it at least breaks up the ‘endless woods’. Another third of a mile is a huge and fairly
recent tree fall, this massive tree took out everything in it’s path on the way
down to the ground, creating a big mess across the trail. |
mile marker 107
|
Making
my way through the debris it’s about 300 yards further north to the junction
with the High Water By-pass and right here where the trails meet is a flat
campsite. The High Water By-pass while
still in great shape obviously doesn’t get nearly as much traffic as the OHT. And the blazes on the HWB are blue, I don’t
know if there are any mile markers on the Bypass, I won’t be staying with it
long enough to find out. |
at a steep rocky drainage with a beech tree
|
After
crossing another little mostly dry drainage then 700 feet further is a trail
branching off to the right (southeast), and I turn here leaving the HWB. This connector trail that will take me back
up to Wheeler Road isn’t on any map I’ve ever seen. I only know about it thanks to Danny Hale’s
documentation in ‘TAKAHIK Wilderness Areas of Arkansas’. Like the other trails I’ve followed today,
this half mile connector is also in good shape and follows an old road much of
the way. |
| big mess @ large tree fall |
 |
junction of OHT and HWB
|
The
connector trail gains elevation gradually up to Wheeler Road, then the real
climb begins. From this junction back to
the truck parked at the side of the highway is about 615 yards with 200 feet gain. That’s only about an 11% grade, but it was
the best cardio workout of the day. The
Wheeler Loop that I hiked today was actually shorter than anticipated since I
bailed out earlier than planned when the road fizzled out till undetectable. |
on half mile connector trail
|
Even
so the milage logged was 5.8 with 697 feet elevation gain, most of that was on
good trails including Wheeler Road, OHT, HWB and the half mile connector. Maybe ¾ of a mile was pure bushwhack, but even
that was enjoyable helping to make this a great Outdoor Adventure in the
Ozarks. This is my second visit to a cemetery in Hurricane Creek Wilderness, to read about the first see: (84 OHT: Sexton Cemetery). |
my ride awaits at the top
|
Wheeler Cemetery Loop: Statistics Chart 204 Getting to
the meager parking at the side of the road is easy and paved all the way. If coming north from Ft. Douglas or further
south, head uphill on SR 123 from the Big Piney bridge 4.0 miles and look for
the FS gate on the left. Or from the SR
7-SR 16-SR 123 intersection in Pelsor (Sand Gap) head west on SR 123 about 7.1
miles to the FS gate on your right.
Comments