Early November is a magical time of year in the Ozarks. There’s a slight nip in the air – just enough to remind us fall has arrived – critters are preparing for the winter and the foliage is resplendent, having just reached or barely surpassed its peak. Mustard yellow, orange and ochre hues float in relief against a backdrop of cedar, pine and juniper; ever present and evergreen. Magical!

Fellow adventurer Paul Smith and I reckoned if we wanted some of this autumn magic it was ours for the taking, so we headed to Compton one Friday afternoon in November for an overnight ramble. Our plan was a little audacious but certainly reasonable, especially given the pleasant weather in store.

We entered on the Sneeds Creek Trail around 10:00 Friday night and were greeted by a full moon; no headlamps required.

We crossed the creek; well, Pablo crossed the creek. I waded the creek, albeit unintentionally. This is why the best trail socks are wool. After a couple of hours we came to an excellent campsite, a little bench above a small draw with the gurgling of Sneeds Creek barely audible in the distance. A good night’s sleep was imperative given the next day’s itinerary.

Saturday morning after coffee and a light breakfast we struck out again in search of, well, anything really. Those trails are rich with innumberable treasures just waiting to be discovered, like…

We continued along the Sneeds Creek Trail, crossing Rocky Bottom and taking time to explore the old Evans-White house, practically a mansion by the standards of its time and place. I always get a peculiar feeling when I visit an abandoned home in the Buffalo corridor. The stories behind the departures were not always happy ones, and in some cases I benefit directly from what transpired. It’s true that had the Park Service not claimed their property the dam builders likely would have, entombing it in hundreds of feet of water to boot. Still, it’s not a pleasant thing to lose one’s home, whatever the circumstances. The only thing I know to do is always take care to treat these places with the respect they deserve and urge other visitors to do the same.

We continued our journey along the Sneeds Creek Trail until we reached the Centerpoint Trail, where we spent some time at Granny Henderson’s house. Granny was a beloved member of the community and was probably best known for the animals she treated like family, so it was fitting that we encountered some four legged friends there.

From the Centerpoint Trail we diverged onto the Goat Trail, which we would take all the way out onto Big Bluff. Big Bluff is one of the best known points of interest on the Buffalo. It isn’t the tallest bluff, but it’s quite imposing and people walking along its face are barely discernible to the naked eye from the river below.

We backtracked from Big Bluff and made our way along the Old River Trail which runs parallel to the river. Our next destination was Hemmed In Hollow, and to reach its trailhead we would cross Sneeds Creek and traverse an old spur trail.

Hemmed In Hollow is quite spectacular whether the falls are tumbling or not, and we were treated to the antics of some climbers who had set up a Tyrolean Traverse across the gorge. Strictly speaking I’m not sure this was entirely legal, but that’s between them and the Park Service.

The nice thing about the hike into Hemmed In Hollow is it’s downhill. You know the rest – except for the details. The two mile hike out culminates in a gain of 2000 feet. Let that sink in for a moment!

We reached the Compton Trailhead exhausted and happy with another outstanding Arkansas adventure in the books. We’d be back………

See you out there!

Deuce