Reasons to Love the Devil: Devil's Den State Park, Arkansas

Trina and Tyler are in constant search for the ‘perfect’ American state. Arkansas is in the running.

This water fall in Devil's Den State Park is a popular attraction.

It was one long weekend on May, 20 17, when Tyler’s Mom from Oregon, decided to visit Tierra for the first time in Dallas. To make the weekend more memorable, we all agreed to go to Arkansas to check out the area. We first planned to go to Austin, Texas, but, instead opted to check out a different state. We did not have regrets, as we all enjoyed this trip of a lifetime because of the many gifts of nature in Arkansas. Specifically, we had fun at the Devil's Den State Park, Ozark Mountains, Arkansas.

Arkansas is about a four-hour drive from Dallas where we came from, almost the same distance to Austin.  As we were nearing Arkansas, we were, at once, greeted by vegetation; mountains, forests, and trees; lakes, and rivers, all alien to Dallas highways (above).

When you’re in Arkansas, you’ll hear much of the Ozarks (above). “The Ozarks, also referred to as the Ozark Mountains and Ozark Plateau, is a physiographic region in the U.S. states of Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Kansas. There are two mountain ranges within the Ozarks: the Boston Mountains of Arkansas and the St. Francois Mountains of Missouri.”  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ozarks

We opted to stay in Fayetteville in Arkansas, not the capital, Little Rock, because Trina’s friend from Arkansas recommended Fayetteville. While we were cruising on the mountain, we saw people bathing on a river. Since, it was a hot 38°C-afternoon, we decided to go out and cool down for a bit.

Tierra and her Gran-gran tried dipping their feet in the river (above).

Then, we saw a group of small canoes and pedal boats further along (above). Intrigued, we walked to where the canoes and boats were moored (below). Little did we know that we were in Devil’s Den State Park, “an Arkansas icon. Nestled deep in an Ozark valley, Devil's Den connects you to picturesque Lee Creek Valley and the craftsmanship and conservation legacy of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), the "Tree Army" of Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal. Devil's Den is the perfect blending together of nature and CCC-Rustic-style park architecture that mirrors its natural settings.” https://www.arkansasstateparks.com/devilsden/

Picnic tables and benches were available for hungry and tired visitors to eat and rest in (below).

A swimming pool was open when we were there (below).

There was supposed to be a restaurant but it was closed for renovation (below).

Slides were built specially for kids. A swing could not escape Tierra’s attention as it was her favorite (below).

We also found this suspension bridge. “This rather sturdy pedestrian suspension bridge was built by WPA / CCC labor in the 1930's. A small flight of stairs leads to the wooden plank deck, and the structure is approximately 30' long. The steel cables are anchored into concrete pads at each end of the bridge.” http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WMV945_Devils_Den_State_Park_Pedestrian_Suspension_Bridge_West_Fork_AR

The trip to Arkansas continues. Watch out for the next articles about this trip.