Flatside Pinnacle

Standing in the long line to early vote last Saturday, I thought my time would be better spent taking pictures instead, so I left the line and went to get the camera(I did end up voting Tuesday night after work, when there wasn't any line at all). Since it was mid-afternoon, it would be too late for a drive to the Ozarks. Luckily there is a great place located close to Little Rock, with one of the best views in the state.

That would be Flatside Pinnacle, located about 50 miles to the west of the city. It takes about an hour to get there - part of the way is on a bumpy dirt road that you have to drive slow on.


The fall colors looked really great out there...


From the road, it is just a short .25 mile hike to the top of the mountain. The view there is amazing, with rolling hills in every direction. Of course, it was really sunny out there...


Flatside Pinnacle sits within the Flatside Wilderness of the Ouachita National Forest. For the most part, there are hardly any traces of civilization, except for the dirt road leading up there. Sadly there has been some clear-cutting on a nearby hill, so the view now includes a brown patch of dirt where there used to be trees. Now the Ouachita National Forest is huge, containing land in two states. Why they had to choose this spot to log, when there are trees located elsewhere is beyond me. Of course, why so much logging is allowed in our National Forests is also a mystery to me. Who needs scenery anyways?

Oh well, the view is still awesome from there...


Also, it was really hazy out there. Apparently the haze was thanks to the smoke from controlled burns the Forest Service was conducting in the Ouachitas.


It was really sunny too, so I sat and waited for the sun to pass behind a cloud, hoping for better light for pictures...






A cool thing about the Ouachitas is there is a nice mix between oak and pine trees. The green from the pines adds a nice bit of color to the scene. A few pines were growing up on the exposed rock on the top of the mountain, which must not be an easy place to live.






One of the best places in the state to watch the sunset is at Flatside. But I didn't want to wait around three hours for sunset, so I decided to leave and hit up a few other places before it got dark. With one last view, it was time to take the short hike down the mountain...


Of course I made a few stops on the way. Here is a shot taken along the trail, of a fallen leaf resting on a bed of moss.


Getting back to the car I did a quick check to make sure I didn't get a flat tire on the bumpy road, and started the drive back. I stopped just down the road and got one last shot, looking back up at the top of Flatside Pinnacle....

Election Day

Ah, finally it is election day. Even though Arkansas has early voting, I haven't voted yet. I did try last weekend, and went by the main early voting place downtown. The line stretched out the door and snaked along the sidewalk for half a block. I next tried the main library in North Little Rock. I was happy to note that there wasn't a line out the door. But the line just curled and twisted around inside the library instead. I sat in line for about 20 minutes and gave up, opting to go take some fall color pictures instead. I'll try to vote after work, hopefully the line won't be too long.

When I was up in the Ozarks a few weeks ago I did see this yard sign for a local politician.


I don't think I'd vote for him, since Tom Riddle grows up to be Lord Voldermort.

While we have no Tom Riddles here, there are a few cool names on our ballot. Residents in Pulaski County can vote to re-elect sheriff Doc Holladay, who apparently came to Little Rock after leaving the OK Corral. And a sign by my parent's house in NLR was for alderman Tom Jones - which is not unusual, I guess...

Capture Arkansas

The newspaper in Little Rock, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, held a little photography competition a few months ago. You could submit pictures to the contest, and then people would vote on their favorites. They held a release party for the book on Saturday, and I'm happy to say that I had three pictures published. And I even got an award, for the people's choice in the "Institutions" category. The award came with a $25 gift card, which I guess goes to cover the cost of buying the book.

The winning picture is this one, of fireworks over the Arkansas State Capitol:


Also, this shot of an autumn view from Flatside Pinnacle made it in:


And this shot of a foggy Lake Bailey at Petit Jean Mountain State Park:

Tyler Bend

After lunch in Eureka Springs on Sunday, it was time to head home. I had the good timing to hit the Buffalo River again before it got dark, and made a stop at Tyler Bend.


Tyler Bend is another great place along the river. And since its the easiest to access from Little Rock, I've been lucky to have floated this spot along the river a few times. On Sunday I was there just a few minutes too late, most of the light was fading away. I ran along the river to find a good spot to get pictures, eventually standing along a gravel bar with this view of the bluffs.


On my way back I saw this view, and wished I had seen it earlier. It would have looked nice with more light on it...

Steele Creek

It was getting late in the day as we drove out of Boxley Valley. There were already cars parked along the side of the road, where people were setting up to catch a glimpse of the elk. We did see one elk grazing in a field far from the road. But we continued on towards our next destination, Steele Creek.

This is a great place along the Buffalo River, a camping area with access to some of the most spectacular bluffs along the river. As we drove down into the valley, the sun was pouring in and bathing the bluffs with light. The reflection in the river was awesome.




A deer set out and crossed the river across the above view. This was surprising because it was heading towards a lot of people standing along the river. I tried my best to get a shot, but they were all a bit blurry. But it was a cool site to see.

Steele Creek flows into the Buffalo River here, but it was running low enough that you could just jump over it to reach the other side. It is easy to walk along the riverbank, and looking back provided more great views...


A small set of rapids sit where the river bends, and it was hard to not keep taking pictures out there. In fact it was difficult to find a place to point the camera since it was quite scenic all around us.






I would have happily sat there for the rest of the day, but it was time to move on. But not before snapping just a few more shots while the light was good...


This ended our day out at the Buffalo. From there we headed up to Harrison for dinner. But on my way back home the next day I had time for one more stop along the Buffalo River...