Au Naturel

"Wait.....didn't the guide book say the trail becomes very steep here? Isn't that the truck over there? We're done? We're done!"

36.5 miles from our starting point in Boxley Valley we limped into Pruitt picnic area to heave our 40 lb packs into the truck bed, shed our muddy hiking boots, change into clean clothes, and drive to Russellville for our first "non-rehydrated" meal in four days.



This past Friday afternoon we drove from Ozark to Ponca, on the Buffalo National River two hours to the northeast. We began hiking Friday afternoon and finished Monday afternoon. We spent four days hiking the "hollers" and hills of the Buffalo River valley and wading the waters of the river itself. We passed monumental bluffs, scared up 3 bull elk (a somewhat frightening experience!), wondered if we could keep our backpacks out of the river as the crossings got deeper....and deeper, and ate more rehydrated eggs than we care to remember.

We've shared already our plans to incorporate the great outdoors into our upcoming DTS program. Well, we hadn't actually attempted any lengthly backpacking ventures ourselves so we thought it might be a good idea to do that before setting out with a team of people to guide! So, we were able to take the time to hike the BRT (Buffalo River Trail), both an educational and enjoyable experience for us.