The Highest Point Between Minnesota and the Gulf of Mexico

 

After a stroll in the woods to hit the highest point of Louisiana, I was excited for an actual hike to the high point of Arkansas.  And instead of having to drive for 4 & 1/2 hours, it was only an hour's drive from Russellville to the Mount Magazine State Park.

I arrived at the Visitor Center at 10:15 AM.  The building is well constructed, clean, and features several informative kiosks about the surrounding flora, fauna, and geological history.  Mount Magazine is not a part of the Ozarks Mountain range, but belongs to the Arkansas River Valley region of the Frontal Ouachita Mountains.  It's a mesa, not a peak, with several square miles of area on the top.  Signal hill is a small hill at the top of the mesa and is the highest point in the entire state.

I decided to leave my car at the Visitor Center and hike the 2 & 1/2 mile North Rim Trail to the Signal Hill trailhead.  The North Rim Trail skirts the north edge of the Mesa and occasionally offers views of the Arkansas River Valley.  For most of the hike, I was unable to see much as I was surrounded by groves upon groves of scrub oak and juniper, but every now and again I stumbled upon an opening with a view.  

An hour after beginning my hike I was higher than anyone else in the state.  The Highpointers Club along with some local organizations had put together some informative displays and a couple of park benches where I rested and enjoyed some refreshing gulps of H2O.  Signal Hill on Mount Magazine is the highest point between the Minnesota/Canadian border and the Gulf of Mexico and is higher than any point in Alabama, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, and Wisconsin.  Another cool feature of this particular highpoint is a stone monument in the shape of the state of Arkansas at a scale of 1 foot to 13 miles. 

  

The only downside of this highpoint is that you are surrounded by trees and are afforded no views of the surrounding countryside.  But about a mile away is a Lodge that on clear days offers scenic vistas to the countryside below.  Unfortunately it was a bit hazy, so I was unable to capture any stunning photographs.  I was, however, able to enjoy a Mount Magazine Red Ale that I had learned about the evening prior in Russellville.  For dinner on Tuesday night, I visited the Point Remove Brewing Company which serves up tasty pizzas and calzones and offers a variety of refreshing craft brews.  One of their featured beers is the Mount Magazine Red, but due to their seasonal offerings, it wasn't on tap at the Russellville location Tuesday.  However, the owner let me know that it would be available at the Lodge at Mount Magazine, so I made sure to seek it out on Wednesday.  The restaurant staff at the Lodge were friendly and welcoming, despite me wearing a Texas Longhorn cap, and so I enjoyed my pint at an outdoor table while surveying the beautiful Arkansas landscapes.  

Instead of retracing my steps on the North Rim Trail, I made my way back to the Visitor Center via the Mossback Ridge Trail and the Greenfield Trail.  Overall, I hiked about 7 miles and spent around 3 hours up on the mountain.  That's 4 down and only 44 (or 46) to go! - Shay