Jeff's Arkansas Hiking Blog: Greasy Creek Waterfalls - Shorter Loop - Arkansas Ozarks - by Deer, AR

3 / 4 / 2023 - Greasy Creek Waterfalls (WF) Shorter Loop - On Google Earth aslo

GPS Coordinates: (Latitude, Longitude, Elevation)

Parking area: 35.75551, -93.21363

Spirit Pool Falls: 35.74404, -93.19497

Rock Formation: 35.74428, -93.19502

Cascade 1: 35.74434, -93.19495

Cascade 2: 35.74450, -93.19507

Tapered Bluff Falls: 35.74565, -93.19570

Feature: 35.74583, -93.19563

Cascade 3: 35.74786, -93.19507

Rock Formation: 35.75020, -93.19566

WF 3: 35.75463, -93.19696

Feature: 35.75460, -93.19691

Misty Falls: 35.75381, -93.19709

Cascade 4: 35.75253, -93.19745

Cascade 5: 35.75214, -93.19766

Cascade 6: 35.75220, -93.19836

WF 5: 35.75225, -93.19862

Cascade 7: 35.75223, -93.19899

WF 6: 35.75225, -93.20014

Feature: 35.75225, -93.20021

WF 7: 35.75217, -93.20058

WF 8: 35.75225, -93.20087

Cascade 8: 35.75258, -93.20200

Greasy Creek Falls: 35.75280, -93.20272

Cascade 9: 35.75296, -93.20291

Markers:

Blue Waypoint = Named WF

Black Waypoint = Unnamed WF

Orange Waypoint = Cascade

Backpacker Symbol = Gravel road / Very old road

Running Person Symbol = Access Point

Stone Symbol = Rock Formation

Car Symbol = Parking area

Binoculars Symbol = Feature

Level of Difficulty: It starts out easy to moderate along a very old road. After a ways, it gets harder to see the very old road but the terrain is level for a long ways and it is moderate. After you get to the point where you can't see any resemblance of an old road anymore, it is time to start heading downhill and the hike becomes strenuous from there until you get back up to this very old road. This is a bushwhack kind of hike. Many tree's are down around here now. You have to climb over them, go under them and around them often. You also have to rock hop, climb up or down big rocks and go up, down and along steep hills to get around big boulders that are down by the creek.

Hiking Statistics for Loop: 4.42 miles / Ascent is 860 ft. and Descent is 853 ft.

I drove to the town of Deer and then turned onto Parker Ridge Rd, which is a gravel road to the parking area that I provided coordinates for above. There is a very old road that goes off into the woods from Parker Ridge Rd that I parked by and started hiking along. You could see the very old road for awhile but then it became harder to see at times. I kept having to stop and look clearly after a ways. I was able to be on it a good distance. The 6 backpacker symbols you see in a row from the parking area along my track is where I'm on that very old road that is overgrown in many parts. I followed that until I could not see any resemblance of an an old road anymore and then I was completely bushwhacking. The first access point symbol you see after the 6 backpacker symbols is where I started really bushwhacking. If you put the following 5 coordinates, which are the backpacker symbols onto your gps, it will help you stay in line with that very old road for about as long as I did. They are (35.75355, -93.21292), (35.75122, -93.21062), (35.74964, -93.20803), (35.74860, -93.20614), and (35.74781, -93.20522). After I started bushwhacking, I came to where I started heading downhill at coordinates 35.74749, -93.20354. These hills are moderate at this time where I'm gradually working my way downhill. . I kept working my way downhill to coordinates 35.74651, -93.19955. At this point, the hills become steeper and tougher to where some are strenuous. I was working my way to being down in the creek right in front of Spirit Pool Falls. I kept working my way downhill to where I was at coordinates 35.74666, -93.19708 along the hills. I took a right after I got down those hills to where the terrain was level some and hiked along there for awhile. I then started heading downhill after a ways but I went down too early and had to go back uphill some. I suggest you wait until you reach coordinates 35.74488, -93.19695 to start heading down and head towards coordinates 35.74384, -93.19529 where you go down the last hill to be in front of the falls. After I got to the good hill to get down, I headed towards the coordinates where the last hill is to get down in front of Spirit Pool Falls. After I got down there, I took a break and some photo's. When I was done there, I went back up the same hill that I last came down and then worked my way to the right along the hillside and then downhill at coordinates 35.74428, -93.19540 to get to the top of the falls where Cascades 1 & 2 are. I got down the hill and went to the creek and then to the right where the cascades and rock formation are located. This is a very nice area to relax and take a break. I love this part to sit and just enjoy nature. It is my favorite part of the creek to take a break at. After I was done there taken photo's and enjoying nature, I started heading upstream along the creek. There are many tree's down along here that I had to climb over, go under and around. Also, there are some big rocks to climb to stay along the creek. While working my way upstream along the creek, I'd seen a bluff up the hill to my left and it looked interesting so I headed up the hill to it. This is where Tapered Bluff Falls is. The way the bluff tapers is different. I took some photo's and then headed back down into the main creek. After I got back down into the creek, I took a left and continued heading upstream. I came across a nice cascade before coming across another rock formation. After I passed that rock formation, I knew that I was getting close to the drainage on my right that I wanted to go up but didn't want to have to deal with all the tree's down and boulders in the drainage so I looked to my right to see which hills I could get up and be up high for awhile to where I would go down into the drainage at the top of Misty Falls. I headed up the hills at coordinates 35.75176, -93.19728. I kept working my way uphill at an angle to my left. I looked at my gps to see which contour line I wanted to get up to in order to be above Misty falls. After I got uphill as far as I needed to, I hiked along the hillside to my left and worked my way to where I could see Misty falls to my left. I took a break and looked to see which hill I could use to start working my way down to the top of Misty falls in the drainage. I started heading downhill at coordinates 35.75394, -93.19687. When I got down into the drainage, I decided that I would hike all the way in the drainage back to the main creek so I took a right and hiked up to WF 3. I took some photo's and then headed back down the drainage to the top of Misty Falls. I used the hill to my right from the top of the falls. I had to hike uphill first and then along the hillside to coordinates 35.75377, -93.19729 and then work my way downhill to get to where I was down in front of Misty Falls. This waterfall was named like a year ago by a man named Allen Smith. He explores a lot in the Ozarks in Arkansas. After I got down in front of it, I took some photo's and a small break. When I was done there, I headed down the drainage towards the main creek. I had to deal with many tree's being down along the drainage as well as going around Boulders being down. I came across a nice cascade before I reached the cascade that I knew that I would have to get down in order to be back in the main creek. There are bluffs on both sides even though they are not very told but I did not want to backtrack to go uphill and then be stuck up there for awhile so I slowly worked my way down the wet and slippery rocks on the right side of the cascade to get below it and into the main creek. I got my feet wet but I'd prefer that than dealing with the hills again. After I got down that and into the main creek, I took a right and started working my way upstream towards Greasy Creek falls. Once again, I was having to deal with the tree's being down, the rocks, the big boulders and the hills all the way to Greasy Creek Falls. Along the way, I first came across 2 cascades and a nice WF. A further ways up the creek, I'd seen a nice feature and came across 3 more small waterfalls. After I'd seen those, I continued my way dealing with the rocks and the tress by the creek and the crossings. Eventually, I decided to just go uphill some on my right to get around a boulder and then just stay up there until I reached Greasy Creek falls. I got to where I was close to the bluff and near Greasy Creek Falls and then I hiked down to where I was standing right in front of it. I took a break there because I knew it would be all uphill from there until I got back onto that very old road. After I was ready to start working my way out of there, I first went along the bluff and up at the hill at coordinates 35.75284, -93.20239. Then I got onto the trail that is being formed from the traffic to my left and followed that to the top of Greasy Creek Falls. I then went upstream in the creek to cascade 9. After taken some photo's there, it was time to start working my way uphill and back to that very old road. I started hiking uphill at coordinates 35.75289, -93.20292. I was looking at my track to see where that very old road was and seen that I had 6 waypoints along that very old road and decided to aim for the 4th one to where I would get back onto that road at that waypoint. Getting up the first 5 hills/contour lines is steep but then the rest after those to get to the old road are more gradual. I kept working my way up the hills to get to that waypoint. I ended up getting back on that road a little before I was back at that waypoint but I was back on that old road. I started hiking back towards the parking area along that road. I tried to follow my track that I had recorded while hiking in there the best I could but at times, it was hard to see the very old road. I mostly staid along the first part of the track and then reached the point where it was easier to follow that road. I eventually got back to the parking area.