Jeff's Arkansas Hiking Blog: Sink Holes, Natural Bridge and Arch - In Buffalo National River boundary - Marion County

1/28/23 - Sink Holes and Natural Bridge

GPS Coordinates: (Latitude, Longitude, Elevation)

Parking Area: 36.09750, -92.52309

Peak 1: 36.10760, -92.53327

Peak 2: 36.10757, -92.53355

Peak 3: 36.10705, -92.53731

Arch: 36.10636, -92.53516

Feature 1: 36.10814, -92.53770

Peak 4: 36.10811, -92.53757

Sink Hole 1: 36.10850, -92.53690

WF 1: 36.11229, -92.53268

Feature 2: 36.11221, -92.53256

Feature 3: 36.11182, -93.53172

Giant Sink Hole: 36.11227, -92.53098

Sink Hole WF: 36.11220, -92.53108

Inside Big Sink Hole: 36.11215, -93.53097

Sink Hole 3: 36.11179, -92.53011

Shelter: 36.11176, -92.52987

Below Sink Hole: 36.11179, -93.52975

WF 3: 36.11065, -92.53079

Sink Hole 4: 36.11089, -92.53005

Cascade: 36.11116, -92.52927

WF 4: 36.11090, -92.52916

Natural Bridge: 36.10101, -92.51857

Markers:

Black Waypoints = Unnamed WF

Orange Waypoints = Cascade

Peak symbol = Peak

Binoculars symbol = Feature / Sink Hole /Natural bridge

Stone symbol = Arch

Shelter symbol = Shelter

Hiker symbol = Trail

Car symbol = Parking area

Running Person symbol = Access point

Level of Difficulty: Hiking along the trail is easy. The hike to the peaks and along the hills around it are moderate and mostly level. The hills down to the Arch and back up are moderate to strenuous. The hike back to the trail and down to the Sink Holes are moderate. The hike from the other trail down to the Natural Bridge and back is a little strenuous with the hills.

Hiking Statistics: 6.12 miles round trip / Ascent is 1,076 ft / Descent is 1,105 ft

To reach the parking area, I took Hwy 14 south from Yellville and some ways after driving over the Buffalo National River, I took a left onto Cozahome Rd / 61. It is paved for a ways and then becomes a gravel road. Eventually it turns into CR 650. I started hiking along the trail to the left. There is a trail that goes to the right also. I followed the trail to the left for awhile and then took a left and started bushwhacking at coordinates 36.10775, -92.53240. I worked my way along the hills to Peaks 1 and 2. I spent some time there enjoying the views of the river and marked the area. I then worked my way along the top of the bluff area and hills to Peak 3. The Arch is along the river below the bluffs. I worked my way along the hillside and started working my way downhill at coordinates 36.10776, -92.53789. I found a way down below the bluffs at coordinates 36.10739, -92.54069. I was down below the bluffs and was bushing along them at coordinates 36.10600, -92.54096 where the terrain is level. I had to walk through a lot of brush between the river and the bluff to reach the Arch. I spent some time there taking photo's and enjoying the Arch and the River. When I was done there, I headed back the way I came down and hiked back up the hills that I had hiked down earlier. I eventually reached Feature 1 and Peak 3. I took photo's of both and marked them both before moving on. I passed the first sink hole while working my way back to to the trail. I was back at the trail at coordinates 36.10966, -92.53520. I crossed the trail and headed down the hills on the other side along the drainage to WF 1 and another Feature. I took some photo's and marked those. I took a 10 minute break at the WF. After my break, I started hiking along the hillside at that level to another Feature. After I was done there, I started hiking down hill at coordinates 36.11186, -92.53159. I then reached the Giant Sink Hole and hiked down into it. I spent a lot of time down there taking photo's and videos. It's like a big bluff in a circle. I was looking to see how far under the bluffs I could get and if their were any caves. There is a smaller sink hole down there with water going through it so I call it Sink Hole Falls. I wish I had more time to spend searching down in there. I will have to go back and spend more time there eventually. After I got back up above it, I continued hiking where I came across another Sink Hole. I took a photo and marked it before working my way down the hills to get below it. There's a neat room and shelter down below it. I'm sure water goes through this one also very good after heavy rain. I spent awhile down there before being ready to move on. There is a drainage right after it so I headed up the drainage to another Feature and WF 3. After I was done there, I worked my way to the hollow where WF 4 was and crossed that and worked my way up to the other trail that went to the right when I was first hiking in. I reached the trail at coordinates 36.10962, -92.52753. I took a right onto the trail and hiked along that back towards my car. I hiked along that until I reached coordinates 36.10141, -92.52549. I took a left from there and bushwhacked down to the Natural Bridge. I spent awhile there and took many photo's and marked it. When I was done there, I bushwhacked back to the trail and got back on it at coordinates 36.09949, -92.52496. I took a left onto the trail and hiked along it back to my car.