Ozark Highlands Trail

The Ozark Highlands Trail (OHT) is a combination of simple footpath and old forest roads favoring the heights of land, and located for minimum reliance on construction for protecting the resource. Views from the OHT are predominantly forested, sporadically intermixed with old fields, pastoral valleys, and cultural landscapes. The OHT offers a diversity of topography and a variety of vegetation and animal life exposing the hiker to the entire range of landforms, clear water features, history, and uses of the land found throughout the Ozarks.

Facilities include the OHT footpath itself, trailhead parking areas, information boards at road crossings and developed recreation areas. Management practices are modified to recognize the nationally significant aesthetic and recreation values of these lands.

The western terminus of the Ozark Highlands Trail begins behind the visitor center at Lake Fort Smith State Park. The park manages the first 3 miles in the park with the Ozark Highlands Trail Association managing the rest of the trail system. Waterfalls, ridges and valleys are all viewable as one hikes the trail. This trail can be completed all at once or by breaking it up into sections. The eastern terminus is located along the Buffalo National River at the location known as Woolum, 165 miles from Lake Fort Smith State Park.