I could not see the waterfall
until I came and saw the water falling…*
The calendar – the one that orders the ordinary life – would have us believe there are four seasons; the warm one, the hot one, the cool one and the cold one. Fellow adventurers, we know better. Arkansas adventure is a singular calling, something far too profound and consuming to be distilled down to four meager seasons, so what to do? What an adventurer must, name our own; to wit Leaf-Off, Whitewater, Blackwater, Winter Float Camping… and the one in which we now find our trail shoes firmly (or when the moss and water remind us who’s in charge not so firmly) planted – Waterfall season.
Deuce, waterfalls don’t have their own season.
Au contraire. If anything in The Natural State is worthy of its own season it is the waterfall.
like a summons,
gravel backed and mossy*
A waterfall has its own voice and it beckons. It summons us to forsake sound and fury signifying nothing and instead come and hear what it has to say. Ordered steps down the trail lead to ordered chaos, the kind only water can wield to burnish when she will, banish when she must and finally offer up something deserving of days spent in search of what she’s made.
The Arkansas adventurer has a dazzling array of falls to choose from when waterfall hunting, like this one
or this one
or…this one.
What makes Waterfall season Waterfall season is – well, water – and we get a lot of our water in the winter months. This is especially significant because the demand the ground and trees place on that water correlates inversely with the volume delivered, so most of what falls or melts stays in the creek or river (or both), supercharging the supply to that waterfall of which you stand in awe, fellow adventurer.
If you decide to commemorate Waterfall season with your own waterfall hunt, and I hope you do, keep a few things in mind. Cold weather rambling comes with its own challenges, foremost of which is staying warm but not too warm. The best way to manage this is to layer your clothing, and if possible choose Merino wool for one of those layers. Fleece is a more economical but still serviceable option, as is polypropylene; cotton, not so much. And speaking of Merino, wear Merino wool socks. Insist on them. You’ll thank me often, especially after your first misstep while crossing that creek above or below the waterfall, which reminds me. I sometimes find trekking poles handy when negotiating water and the aforementioned gravel backed and mossy terrain. I also sometimes find they’re more trouble than they’re worth. Hike your own hike.
Finally, plan ahead. I highly recommend Tim Ernst’s bible of waterfalls in The Natural State as a companion in your pursuit of these Arkansas treasures. There are plenty more falls not shared therein, but it will take the typical Arkansas adventurer years to complete the book.
And maybe there will be,
after all,
some slack and perfectly balanced
blind and rough peace, finally,
in the deep and green and utterly motionless pools after all that
falling?*
There is perhaps no emblem of the outdoors the Arkansas adventurer reveres so much as the waterfall; tranquil, chaotic, perfect. Now is the season. Go find one.
See you out there!
Deuce
*The Waterfall
Mary Oliver
- Kayaks 101 - August 6, 2023
- Just the Place – Lower Buffalo River - September 20, 2022
- Sweet Release - June 23, 2022
