2004.12.29 - On the evening of the 28th, Carol and I left a family Christmas party in Dallas to begin the drive to Arkansas' Magazine Mountain. We began at around 10:30 and drove up US-75/69 through McAlester, OK, on our way to I-40 and Fort Smith, AR. From there, we followed AR-22 in Paris, finally taking AR-309 toward Mt. Magazine State Park. We arrived at the Benefield Picnic Area (724m - 2,375') just before 5AM, and since it was still dark, we decided to get a few hours of sleep before starting the hike.

Sometime near 7AM, the sun awoke to a surprisingly clear day; although the forecast called for a constant cloud-cover throughout the day, Carol & I were witness to a beautiful sunrise. After stretching our legs for a bit, we climbed back into our tent and lazily started the engine. Perhaps it would make more sense to mention that upon our arrival, car-camping seemed much more attractive than setting up camp for a mere 2 hours of sleep. So, putting the "tent" into gear, husband and wife descended north toward the chosen trailhead.

I prefer to hike or climb whenever possible, so settling for a short walk from the parking lot was less than appealing. My research didn't reveal many options other than a few 1-2 mile jaunts and the Cove Lake Trail, which would require a full day for the 20-mile round trip. Topo-scouring opened up two possible alternatives: a 7-mile hike & bushwack from the southwest corner of the mountain or a 5-mile variation of the Cove Lake Trail that cut off the majority of the flats.

I contacted the State Park to ask about the former, and learned that the narrow track shown on the topo was part of an old access route to the now-decrepit resort on the west-end of the plateau. The ranger stated that no one had maintained the trail for years, and it would likely be seriously overgrown. She suggested, however, that a willing hiker could approach Cameron Bluff from the Cove Lake cutoff. Although the topo shows a 4WD road bisecting the North Slope, a new, unmarked road was the correct access point. It laid just south of the road shown on the USGS map. After hearing this, it was a no-brainer for Carol and I; we would hike Cameron Bluff.

The turnoff was not marked on the northbound side of the road. There was a service station on the right (E) side of 309 where we decided to turn around to see if we had missed our turn. Incidentally, this turned into a stroke of luck since we were able to fill our water bottles, without pumps, and buy some breakfast. A short time later, with provisions in hand, we backtracked southbound on the road and found a small sign which read "Mt. Magazine Trail 1.4 mi -->". The dirt road, which was slightly more non-descript than the sign itself, was just around another bend. Correctly assuming this to be the correct option, we quickly pulled in and began getting the packs together. It would be possible to drive all the way to the trailhead proper, however, due to the temperate (meaning muddy) conditions, we didn't want to risk the rental car becoming a permanent resident of the mountain.

At about 8:30 AM, we left a note on the dash board and started our sticky trek on the red, muddy road of lower Magazine Mountain. The road, Forest Route 1605, contoured along the base of the plateau, steadily gaining and then giving back elevation as it approached Green Bench. After walking the 1.4 miles, Carol and I reached the true trailhead after 20 minutes. Up to this point, we had been using a standard topo map to navigate, which showed neither FR1605, nor the trail that led up to Cameron Bluff. At the trailhead, however, the NFS had installed a trail register with maps available for hikers to use. This map was very detailed, and thankfully, we wouldn't have any navigation issues for the remainder of the day.

The trail quickly gained elevation up toward a bench, and in fact, we would be ascending a series of benches for the remainder of the hike. We hiked up to a small knoll and saddle with some decent views through the bald trees; if we were visiting when leaves were still on the trees, the Cameron Bluff trail would provide little or no views of the surroundings. Although Carol and I enjoyed the scenery when it appeared, the leaves on the ground made the going somewhat less than pleasant. Wet, mossy rock made invisible by a covering of deceased foliage conspired to slow our progress; trekking poles made Carol's footing much more sure, but I had forgotten to bring a second pair. This was only a minor inconvenience, however, and we made good progress up the multiple benches.

There were several small patches of snow just below the bluffs, but as the sun was back-lighting our view, I couldn't capture any great pictures. Just looking around, I picked out several nice Class 4 and 5 pitches to the top, though because of the moisture, I didn't want to risk sliding off the holds. The 2.7 miles went by quickly, and before we really noticed, Carol was topping out on top of Cameron Bluff.

The sun hit us full on as we gained the plateau. The now flat trail crossed a park road before leading us into the uninhabited Cameron Bluff Campground. Both Carol and I cruised for the final 0.8 miles through Magazine Mountain State Park. The Signal Hill trail was well-marked, so we had no problems getting up to the highest point in Arkansas. The park had recently put in a new display on the summit, with a rock map of the state on the ground. Interestingly, the USGS benchmark on the top of Magazine Mountain represented the top of Magazine Mountain on the map!

Carol and I had some lunch on top, while taking the obligatory summit shots. A father and son who were also intent on reaching the top of Arkansas, joined us after a few minutes. We talked for awhile, but with the drive toward Missouri ahead of us, had to leave a short time after they reached the top. Carol signed the summit log for us, and with that, we were on our way.

For the return trip, we skated quickly down the rocks and back to the trailhead after only an hour. Both of us lost our balance a few times, but I was the only one to actually taste sod. It wasn't that great. We signed out at the register, noting that we were the first ones to do the route in well over a week. Too bad there wasn't snow, since we could have broken trail all the way to the top!

The hike back to our car seemed to take forever, since we were ready for a real lunch and a break. Forever lasted a mere 20 minutes, though, as we curved around the final bend in the road. Quickly and haphazardly stowing our gear in the back end, Carol and I eventually relaxed into our seats for the next leg of our journey. Before, leaving this area, we drove into the park to take pictures from some of the scenic overlooks. Those near Cameron Bluff were particularly good!

On our way out, Carol and I passed an enormous construction site, which will eventually become the new Magazine Lodge. I neglected to mention the noise that we had heard on the summit earlier, however this was the obvious culprit. When we finally did leave, we drove for a while before stopping at a Sonic to have a late lunch. After this, we hastened on to Mountain Home, AR for the night. The next day would find us continuing to Taum Sauk Mountain, the highest point in Missouri.