Jeff's Arkansas Hiking Blog: Willis Creek Waterfalls - Arkansas Ozarks

3/5/2023 - Willis Creek Waterfalls (WF) - On Google Earth also

GPS Coordinates: (Latitude, Longitude, Elevation)

Parking area: 35.76123, -93.37467

WF 1: 35.76589, -93.37793

WF 2: 35.76456, -93.37890

WF 3: 35.76442, -93.37897

Curvature Rock Falls: 35.76394, -93.37908

Angle Top Falls: 35.76375, -93.37907

WF 6: 35.76357, -93.37899

WF 7: 35.76355, -93.37920

Cascade 1: 35.76310, -93.37985

Cascade 2: 35.76271, -93.38085

Cascade 3: 35.76238, -93.38099

Cascade 4: 35.76004, -93.38554

Cascade 5: 35.75930, -93.38898

WF 8: 35.75175, -93.38660

WF 9: 35.75205, -93.38506

Leeland Falls: 35.75255, -93.38507

Venard Falls: 35.75241, -93.38414

WF 12: 35.75194, -93.38395

Watchman Falls: 35.75170, -93.38405

Cascade 6: 35.75191, -93.38417

Rock Formation: 35.75197, -93.38438

WF 14: 35.75226, -93.39250

Cascade 7: 35.75221, -93.39347

WF 15: 35.75133, -93.39483

Cascade 8: 35.75134, -93.39505

Cascade 9: 35.75126, -93.39533

Willis Creek Falls: 35.75061, -93.39706

WF 17: 35.75054, -93.39725

Cascade 10: 35.75048, -93.39736

Sparson Falls: 35.75051, -93.39856

Cascade 11: 35.75019, -93.39893

Cascade 12: 35.75028, -93.39903

Cascade 13: 35.75041, -93.39930

Cascade 14: 35.76073, -93.39391

Cascade 15: 35.76254, -93.39184

Cascade 16: 35.76289, -93.39152

Cascade 17: 35.76397, -93.39046

WF 19: 35.76479, -93.38909

Markers

Blue Waypoint = Named WF

Black Waypoint = Unnamed WF

Orange Waypoint = Cascade

Rock Symbol = Rock formation

Running Person Symbol = Access point

Hiker Symbol = Gravel road and atv trail

Car Symbol = Parking area

Level of Difficulty: Hiking along the atv trail at the beginning and end of the hike is easy to moderate. There are some moderate to steep hills along the first drainage that you go down at first and those can be strenuous. As I got halfway down the drainage, the hills got mostly moderate. I still had to go over and around downed tree's which can be strenuous. When I got most of the way down to Willis Creek, the hills were gradual. Hiking along the creek was moderate. Hiking up and down the small drainage was mostly moderate except for the one hill to get up to and down from the 2 upper WF's. Hiking up the drainage on the other side of the creek was strenuous. The hills got steeper as I got further up. I had to go over and around many downed tree's. Cutting over from the drainage to the gravel road was moderate since I mostly stayed on one level and the terrain was level all the way to the gravel road. Hiking along the gravel road back down to the creek was easy. Hiking up the other drainage back to the atv trail I started on was moderate mostly except for when I had to go over and around downed tree's. After leaving the drainage to bushwhack up the hills to the atv trail, the hills were very gradual.

Hiking Statistics for Loop: 6.86 miles / Ascent is 1,162 ft and Descent is 1,129 ft

To get to the parking area, I turned onto CR# 5570 heading east from Hwy 21. I drove along CR 5570 until I reached CR 7549 on my left. I took the left and drove along that to the parking area on the left. I hiked along the atv trail until I was right above the first drainage at coordinates 35.76586, -93.37747 that I had planned to hike down. I had a rout drawn ahead of time on how I planned to hike and explore the area. I first hiked down on the right side of the drainage and could hear water running so I had a feeling that I was almost at the top of a WF already. I used the hill on the right side to get down below WF 1. After I took some photo's and a video, I continued hiking downhill along the drainage. A ways down, I came across WF 2 and then to a taller WF, which is WF 3. I went up the hill to my right from the top of WF 3 and found a hill to use to get down below the falls. I took some photo's and marked this WF. When I was done there, I continued on hiking down the drainage. I soon came to the top of a taller WF than WF 3 was. I once again went up the hill to my right and found a hill that was doable but a little steep to use at coordinates 35.76385, -93.37915 to get below the falls. This waterfall is called Curvature Rock Falls. Once I got down the steep hill where the falls was to my left, I looked to my right and could see that I was right in the middle of Curvature Rock Falls and another WF with the top of it being only like 9 yards to my right. I then knew that I would have to climb back up the steep hill I just came down to get below the other waterfall. I turned to my left and went right in front of Curvature Rock Falls and took photo's and a video. I marked it while I took a short break. Then I scrambled back up the hill and when I got back up to where I was before, I took a left and continued along the hillside to find a hill that I could use to get down below the waterfall. I found a hill to use and started heading downhill at coordinates 35.76373, -93.37930. I had to sit down and drop down about a 3 foot bluff to get down the last part. After I got down the last part, I headed to my left along the bluff line to get over to Angle Top Falls, which is a good size and nice waterfall. I took my photo's and video of the falls while marking it on my gps and then continued hiking down the drainage quickly since I planned to do another hike after this one. Quickly I seen WF 6 up to my left so I hiked up to it and took photo's and then headed back down to the drainage to continue on. I then came across WF 7. After taking a couple of photo's, I continued hiking downstream. There are many water crossings while following this drainage as well as hills to have to go up and down. Also, there are many tree's down that you have to either get over or work your way around them. I then came across 3 nice cascades soon after leaving WF 7. Then a ways down from those 3 cascades, I came across another 2 nice cascades before reaching Willis Creek. I took a break by the creek enjoying the area and nature. I had planned to take a left and hike upstream along the creek to a small drainage on the left to see what was up that so when I was done with my break, I hiked towards that. I took the left to head up that drainage after I reached it. I could see a nice waterfall up ahead of me pretty quickly after I started heading up the drainage. I took some photo's and a video of WF 8. Then I used the hill to my right to get up above it. After I got up above it, I continued hiking up the drainage. I then reached waterfall 9 on my left, which is a small waterfall. I could see that there was a much taller waterfall up the hill above it. I then started hiking up hill to the left of WF 9 at coordinates 35.75208, -93.38517. I eventually made it all the way up to where I was in front of Leeland Falls. I took photo's and a video of the falls as well as marking it on my gps. I then could see that there was another waterfall way over to my right so I worked my way along the bluff and hillside over to another good size waterfall. I took some photo's and a video of Venard Falls, which is a nice waterfall. After that, I could see a smaller waterfall over to my right so I worked my way towards it and could see how the hillside curved to the left after that so I had a good feeling that there would be another waterfall over there. I spent a little time at waterfall 12 before following the hillside to the left. When I got around the curve of the hillside, I could see a very nice waterfall a little ways over. I then worked my way down the hill at coordinates 35.75190, -93.38395 to get down below and in front of Watchman Falls. This is my favorite waterfall here so far. I spent some time there enjoying it and taking photo's. I don't know why my track on my gps shows that I went above it because I never went above it. All 5 of these waterfalls are close to one another in a small area. After I was done there, I headed back down into the drainage to work my way back to Willis Creek. I came across a nice cascade and then a neat rock formation just up the hill a little ways to my left. I took a photo and marked the rock formation on my gps and then continued working my way back to the creek. I had planned to explore a big drainage on the other side of the creek. I knew I would have to cross the main creek to get over to that drainage so when I got back to Willis Creek, I looked for a place to cross. I looked to my right and seen where the creek was separated into 2 parts just a little ways with a dry area in the middle so I crossed the 2 smaller crossings to get across the creek. I then hiked downstream a little ways to that drainage that was on my left. I headed up that drainage after I reached it at coordinates 35.75394, -93.38962. This drainage is similar to the one I hiked down regarding having to go up and down hills as well as over and around downed tree's. A ways up the drainage, I'd seen a waterfall to my left that wasn't running good but was very wide so I could imagine how that would be running after a heavy storm. I then came across a nice cascade before reaching WF 15 on my left. After I was done taken photo's there and marking it on my gps, I continued on and came across 2 more cascades before reaching Willis Creek Falls. This is the other waterfall that I liked a lot. I took my lunch break here and enjoyed the waterfall. I took many photo's and a video before moving on. To get up above the falls, I had to backtrack along the drainage for a little while. I finally found a hill on my left to hike up to get above the falls. I started hiking up the hills around coordinates 35.75090, -93.39664. I had to go up the hill higher than I wanted to but that is what you have to do often so that you don't have to walk along too steep of a hillside. After I got up high enough, I started working my way along the hillside to my left. I eventually started working my way downhill at coordinates 35.75080, -93.39719 to get back down into the drainage along the water. Just a little ways up the drainage from there, I came across WF 17 and another cascade. Then a ways up the drainage from there, I reached this nice waterfall called Sparson Falls. I spent some time there taking photo's. Then I used the hill to the right to get above the falls. I hiked up the drainage a little ways further where I came across 3 more cascades. I originally planned to hike back down that drainage to get back to Willis Creek but then decided that I did not want to go through all that I just had to go through to get up there so I looked at my gps and seen an atv trail showing on it. I decided to hike up the hill to it and hike along that with it going all the way down to the creek. I started heading up hill to my right at coordinates 35.75055, -93.39995. I got up the hill far enough to where I was at a good level where the terrain was level and then I turned to the right to hike along that all the way to the atv trail. The terrain was level all the way so it was easy. When I got close enough to where I could see it, I thought to myself that it looked like a gravel road instead of an atv trail. It is a gravel road even though the gps makes it look like an atv trail. I got onto the gravel road at coordinates 35.75493, -93.39677 and hiked along it all the way down to the creek. I was thinking with that gravel road going all the way down to the creek and along it, that I could drive down to the creek some time and camp along it. The gravel road was in good shape. I also thought about how I could park on that side and hike a smaller loop to see the falls in that drainage and make it an easier hike than the big loop that I was hiking. Next time I can separate it into 2 hikes to cover all the area. I can hike a loop on each side since I now know that I can park on both sides. That gravel road I hiked on to get back down to the creek is off of Hwy 21 in the town of Salus. I marked multiple waypoints along my track as I hiked along that gravel road. They are the hiker symbol waypoints. After I got back down to the creek, while the road went along the creek to the left, there was an atv trail going to my right from the road. I took the right and started hiking on the atv trail. I then looked at my gps and seen that I was going the wrong way from how I planned on getting back up to the atv trail on the other side that I started out hiking on. I should have stayed on that gravel road to where I was just across from the drainage that I planned on hiking up to get back up high on the other side. Since I was already over where I was, I decided to just cross Willis Creek there. I crossed the big creek and then took a left and hiked along the creek downstream until I reached that drainage on my right at coordinates 35.75992, -93.39459. I took a short break by the creek before starting to work my way up the drainage. This drainage is shorter than the one I first came down so I knew that after I got up to the top of it, I would still be a ways from the atv trail so I'd just be hiking through the woods up hills more here to get back to the atv trail. This drainage does not go all the way up to the atv trail like the one I hiked down does. I passed by 4 nice cascades while working my way up the drainage. Once again, there were tree's down that I had to get over and work my way around. Then there was a nice waterfall near the top of it. I took some photo's of it and marked it on my gps. When I was done, I worked my way up the hill to the top of the falls and back in the drainage. I went just a little ways further in the drainage and then looked at my gps and could see that it was time to just start working my way up the hills and back to the atv trail so I took a right and started working my way up at coordinates 35.76457, -93.38814. I continued working my way uphill at an angle to the left where the contour lines were spread out more and the hills were not steep and I eventually reached coordinates 35.76437, -93.38610 along the hills. From there, I started hiking more straight up since I was along the easier hills in that area. I provided a photo of how the hills are at those coordinates. I worked my way all the way back to the atv trail. I was on it again at coordinates 35.76643, -93.38102. I took a right onto it and hiked along it all the way back to the parking area. This was a long loop that I hiked to cover all this area. Now I know that I can do a loop on this side of the creek from this parking area and then I can park along that road on the other side of the creek and hike a loop on that side to see the waterfalls over there.