A
while back when I was perusing the internet, I found ‘AGFC Mapper 3.0’
and was impressed with all the firelanes at Gene Rush that could be used
for hiking. I also noticed a road that I
hadn’t ever seen on any map, called ‘Seed Tick’. I quickly checked, using satellite imaging
and confirmed this road does exist. Well
I knew right then I would have to check it out, since Seed Tick along with
Quantum Leap should be a fine loop hike.
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nature's beauty on Quantum Leap Rd.
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Driving
all the way across Gene Rush from west to east, I realize I’m starting
to get pretty familiar with the lay of the land here in the Wildlife
Management Area, and make good time on the excellent dirt/gravel roads. This increased familiarity comes from four
recent hikes at Gene’s place: 210 Firelanes and Lick Creek, 212 Cave Creek, 220 Lower Lick Creek, 225 Maberry Loop, and I’m sure I’ll be back for more. |
| inside the heavy-duty green gate |
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junction: Quantum continues left, Seed Tick heads downhill right
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I
park near a locked gate where Quantum Leap Drive ends at Poke Berry Drive,
there’s plenty of room here for 4 or 5 to park without blocking the heavy duty
green gate. With some big old oaks, this
is a nice shady place to begin a hike. I
squeeze under the gate and head east on Quantum Leap, which is in great shape,
any car could drive this ‘closed’ road.
That’s fine by me, as it also makes a great wide and clean hiking trail. |
'rock solid' Quantum Leap Rd.
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The
road is pretty flat for the first third of a mile, then it heads downhill, not
steep but steady. I count four
‘firelanes’ or old roads branching off Quantum Leap along the way, three to the
north and one going south. All these
‘side roads’ look neglected, I’ll wait for winter to see where they may
go. After the fourth side road, Quantum
levels out some, less than a quarter mile further is the intersection with Seed
Tick, a sharp turn to the right.
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| Quantum Leap still easy going |
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where the trail leaves the road
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But
I stay on Quantum Leap continuing east, and immediately can see the
difference. Quantum Leap is now much
narrower and a little overgrown with grass, patchy weeds and blackberry, more
like an old road turned ‘trail’. But I
think it could still be driven without too much trouble (other than the legal
type), in fact the road soon turns to solid rock. The capstone is exposed for over a hundred
yards making Quantum Leap a ‘paved’ highway.
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Quantum 'trail' passes into BNR
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At
the end of a big long wildlife opening or ‘field’ the steady downhill resumes
for almost half a mile. Then where the
road makes an ‘S-curve’ into a little drainage, the trail leaves Quantum Leap
Rd. Continuing east this trail is
obviously maintained, as a couple tree falls have recently been cut and
cleared. The trail is in great shape for
about a quarter mile to the top of a steep hill, with lots of loose rock I
slowly make my way down into Richland Valley where the trail ends on Richland
Road.
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the cleared trail gets steep at the end
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And
right at trail’s end is a parking spot, that we used 18 months ago on our
driving tour of the valley (see: 179 Autumn in Richland Valley). I head south, besides vehicular travel
this part of the road is also the Ozark Highlands Trail. During this half mile stretch on the
‘loneliest road in Arkansas’ I pass four pipe gates, OHT mile marker 162 and
one blue Jeep. I leave N. Richland Road
aka Searcy CR 14 at another heavy duty green gate onto Seed Tick.
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the loneliest road in Arkansas
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Back
in the day, Richland Valley was a thriving agricultural area, this was known as
Point Peter and had a school and post office.
Those days are long gone, there are two old side-by-side houses in ruin
obscured in a thicket of saplings just to the north, and a dry creek on my
left. Seed Tick follows this little
stream southwest crossing twice, then into and across a big field. At the end of the field, Seed Tick swings
around to the right and heads uphill northwest.
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| Seed Tick (right) off Richland Rd. |
A
little steep, but not too bad the grade gets easier as I go, after a turn to
the north is an overgrown firelane going west.
It’s a little over half a mile further of gentle uphill to Quantum Leap,
along the way are some nice views of Point Peter Mountain over two miles to the
east. Not far past a recently replaced
steel culvert is a nice small boulder for a rest stop, then a little steeper,
the last 100 yards to the end of Seed Tick at Quantum Leap.
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| historic structures in Point Peter |
West
bound on Quantum Leap it’s under a mile back to Poke Berry and my parked truck,
and all uphill, but easy. Along the way
I stop for a turtle crossing the road, and although the hike was 5 miles with
716 feet of elevation gain, other than the short steep descent to Richland
Road, this really was an easy hike. Wide
open clean roads kept the ticks off, and the lovely scenery made the day
enjoyable, start to finish.
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Point Peter Mtn. from Seed Tick
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Quantum Loop: Statistics Chart 227 Getting here is pretty easy with the
assistance of a good map, south of the Buffalo River/SR123 bridge about a
quarter mile is NC 4500 east into Gene Rush WMA, there is a sign. Zero out your odometer and go east on NC 4500
about 1.8 miles to a fork, turn left on NC 4260, continue east crossing Lick
Creek on a concrete low water bridge at mile 3.3 keep going on NC 4260. At mile 5 turn left (east) on NC 4269, you’ll
notice an old church structure off to the right at this junction.
Now
on NC 4269 this is where I ‘switch’ to 4WD although the road’s not bad, at
mile 6.2 cross Cave Creek on the new bridge. Still headed mostly east, at mile 7.8 is an
intersection where NC 4269 swings to the south.
And at 8.1 cross into Searcy County where the road changes names, now SC
239 better known as Poke Berry Drive, continue south to mile 9.0 and park under
the big oaks at the intersection of Quantum Leap and Poke Berry, this is the
place.
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