Best Hikes in Northwest Arkansas

TRAIL LENGTH and DIFFICULTY: 3 miles total, out + back // easy to moderate
TRAIL HIGHLIGHT: The rock formation that juts out over the bluff line. Sunrise here can be spectacular.

This is hands-down one of the most popular hikes in Northwest Arkansas, and for good reason. This three mile trail takes you out to one of the most photographed sites in all of Arkansas. After going up and down a small valley,  the trail leads end up along a bluff line that eventually leads hikers to the hawk-head shaped bluff jutting out over a sea of trees. As I said, this is a very popular hike, and has risen in popularity even in the last few years. We’ve never been alone on this hike, but in the last couple of years we’ve shared sunrises with a lot of strangers. The drive up to this hike is up a fairly steep dirt road. If there has been a lot of rain, be careful not to get stuck – I’m sadly offering this warning from experience.

MAGNOLIA FALLS

TRAIL LENGTH and DIFFICULTY: 2.1 miles total, out and back // easy
TRAIL HIGHLIGHT: The stunning Magnolia Falls spilling into a turquoise pool at the end of the trail.

We found this hike thanks to an employee at the Buffalo Outdoor Center. It’s a spectacular waterfall hike, especially in the spring when heavier rainfall makes for a fuller waterfall. Early May was the best we saw over the course of the spring (we did it three times in April and May) because the ferns were bright green, the weather was perfect and the water was stunning! This is currently my favorite waterfall hike in the Ozarks!

SAM’S THRONE

TRAIL LENGTH and DIFFICULTY: 2.5 miles total, loop // easy to moderately easy
TRAIL HIGHLIGHT: The view of tree-covered mountains and crazy rocky overlook.

This short and easy trail is a beauty. We often add this into a hiking trip because it is so beautiful and so easy. It’s a beautiful spot for sunrise and sunset depending on which part of the trail you’re on. Sam’s throne is a haven for Ozarkian rock-climbers, as its rugged face that offers several pitches to climbers. We have fallen in love with the craggy mountain and overlook and enjoy this hike over and over again.

Important note: The road up to Sam’s Throne, although paved, is full of tight curves and very steep. I wouldn’t recommend driving up here with an RV or trailer.

STEEL CREEK to STEEL CREEK OVERLOOK

TRAIL LENGHT and DIFFICULTY: 3 miles total, out + back // easy to moderate
TRAIL HIGHLIGHT: The exceptional view of a curve in the Buffalo River.

This is a section of the Buffalo River Trail (a 37-mile trail often abbreviated as BRT) that starts at the Steel Creek Campground and continues along the river, through the forest, over a stream and up a bluff to get a stunning view of the Buffalo River. This has quickly turned into one of Matt’s favorite hikes in Northwest Arkansas. We’ve only done it once, so far, but when we talk about going back down to Arkansas, Matt constantly begs to do this one again. A view of the Buffalo is almost always a treat, because the Upper Buffalo has this striking teal color, but this view is just extra-amazing because you get to see a bend in the river with the opposite bluff line towering over.

Want to extend this hike? You can make this a longer hike, easily, if you start at the Ponca Low-Water Bridge, which we did.

CEDAR FALLS TRAIL

TRAIL LENGHT and DIFFICULTY: 2 miles total, out + back // moderate to moderately strenuous
TRAIL HIGHLIGHT: Cedar Falls, of course!

Cedar Falls Trail is inside Petit Jean State Park (Arkansas’s first state park!) and it’s a very beautiful waterfall. The trail, although short, is made tough by the first (and then last) section of the trail which is a sharp decrease and later increase to get down into the canyon where the waterfall resides. Cedar Falls is a 95-foot waterfall that cascades beautifully over a carved out section of a bluff line. Although the pool below looks quite inviting, you’re not allowed to swim down there.

SEVEN HOLLOWS TRAIL

TRAIL LENGHT and DIFFICULTY: 4.5 miles, loop // moderate
TRAIL HIGHLIGHT: Rock formations, canyons, overlooks: but probably the natural bridge.

Seven Hollows Trail is a wonderful example of the many types of beauty that the Ozarks has to offer. There are interesting rock formations, the most striking and worth seeing of these, though is the beautiful natural bridge. There’s a wet-weather fall, but we didn’t get to see it, but next time we’re hoping to visit in the spring so we can see it. Another highlight of this trail is when you get out of the canyons and can look down over it. It’s definitely a must-hike and is also located in Petit Jean State Park.

PEDESTAL ROCKS

TRAIL LENGTH and DIFFICULTY: 2.4 miles, loop // moderate
TRAIL HIGHLIGHT: The crazy, unusual rock formations.

In the Pedestal Rocks Scenic Area you’ll not only find the Pedestal Rocks trail, but the King’s Bluff trail as well. (If you’re short on time, I only truly recommend the Pedestal Rocks loop – King’s Bluff is pretty, but others are much prettier.) The Pedestal Rocks trail is absolutely one of the most unique on this list. This trail leads to an area of insane rock formations that seem almost other-worldly and definitely had us saying over and over, ‘How did this happen?’. It’s a wonderful trail to see something different, let your imagination soar and explore the nooks and crannies of these alcoves and formations.

LOST VALLEY TO EDEN FALLS

TRAIL LENGTH and DIFFICULTY: 2.2 miles total, out + back // moderate
TRAIL HIGHLIGHT: The natural bridge and waterfall that runs through it.

This is absolutely one of the most popular hikes in Northern Arkansas, and for good reason too! In the spring and fall, especially after rains, you’ll be able to see it at its height of beauty when the waters are truly flowing. The trail is easy to navigate and relatively easy to conquer. The first waterfall you come to flows through the natural bridge and I’ve never seen it completely dry, although the more rain we have, the heavier it flows. Continuing on, you eventually come to Cobb Cave, a massively thick bluff overhang that was a Native American shelter at one point, as made evident by the discarded corncobs that give the cave its name. Eden Falls, when it’s flowing, is worth the hike. It’s not large, but it cascades beautifully into a small pool.

Looking for an added adventure? There is a cave above Eden Falls that you can crawl in and explore. We have not done this, but many, many people have. You can crawl in to see a waterfall that flows inside the cave. Just know, you’re going to get wet and muddy.
Important note: Eden Falls is a wet-weather waterfall. If it’s been a dry season (especially in summer) it’s likely that Eden Falls will not be flowing.

ARTIST POINT WATERFALL

TRAIL LENGTH and DIFFICULTY: 1.1 miles total, out + back // easy to moderately easy
TRAIL HIGHLIGHT: Artist Point Falls and Lover’s Leap

Artist Point Waterfall is located on private property, so be sure to sign into their log book if you decide to hike it, out of respect for the people who share their land with you. Also, those people own a darling little gift shop and odd little museum atop the trail, which is where the logbook is. The trail is short, but it does have an incline/decline. Just be ready for that. The trail was easy to follow and quickly leads to the beautiful waterfall. We were there in mid June and there was still a good amount of flow to it. This trail is very near Fayetteville and is a nice addition to a trip there.

Important Trail Note: This trail is temporarily closed. This is supposedly due to a black bear and her cub living on the trail, and has been closed for almost two years, so it should *hopefully* be opening up again soon!

GLORY HOLE FALLS

TRAIL LENGTH and DIFFICULTY: 1.8 miles total, out + back // moderate
TRAIL HIGHLIGHT: the waterfall flowing through the cave top

Glory Hole Falls is one of the most popular hikes in Northwest Arkansas which makes it much easier to spot the “parking area” as there’s only space for two cars there, so you’ll see a lot of cars lining the road. This is a trail I very much want to see in the spring. I’ve done this trail twice and both times the water was just a mild trickle and I’d love to see it with a fuller flow. That said, the trail is beautiful and you pass a very short, but decently wide cascade along the way – it’s big enough that I could stand behind it. Be very careful when going down the cave area as the rock can be quite slippery. You’ll know you’re very close when you get to the top of the cave with a hole where the water runs through – that’s the top of Glory Hole Falls!

Important note: This is a wet weather fall. If you can get here in the winter after a good amount of rain and freezing weather, you’ll potentially get to see a really awesome ice column.

SWEDEN CREEK FALLS

TRAIL LENGTH and DIFFICULTY: 1.5 miles total, out + back // easy to moderately easy
TRAIL HIGHLIGHT: Sweden Creek Falls

This super easy trail is great for people of all hiking levels. After driving down a dirt road (4-wheel drive is not necessary) you will come to a parking area. The trail is very clearly marked and leads to the top of the waterfall, which is the super easy part. If you choose to go down to the base is where I would classify it as moderately easy because you’ll have to do a bit more of a scramble on potentially wet and slick rocks. We visited in the winter and there was still a good amount of flow to it. I’m excited to do this trail again very soon!

Important note: This is another wet weather waterfall.

KING’S BLUFF

TRAIL LENGTH and DIFFICULTY: 1.8 miles, loop //  moderate
TRAIL HIGHLIGHT: the beautiful overlook over King’s Bluff

As I mentioned earlier in this post, this trail in Northwest Arkansas is in the same parking/hiking area for Pedestal Rocks. It’s almost completely through the forest until you come along a bluff-line. You’ll see some funky rock formations that will be a nice preview for the Pedestal Rocks trail. King’s Bluff is very obvious when you get there as it has board railings. The view is quite beautiful and you can really see the rolling hills beyond this bluff.

PAIGE FALLS

TRAIL LENGTH and DIFFICULTY: 1/2 mile total, out + back // easy
TRAIL HIGHLIGHT: Paige Falls

Paige Falls is a short hike down a super steep and fairly rough dirt road. At the parking area you cross a small section of a narrow stream, we could simply step over it, and then once you’re across you simply follow the stream down until you come to the top of the waterfall which although it’s small, it’s quite pretty and it flows down into a beautiful pool! Although we haven’t done it yet, you can follow further down the creek and it leads to Broadwater Falls which is much taller but also relies much more of a good amount of rain to get to see.

Recommendation: I highly recommend getting to the trailhead in a 4-wheel drive or AWD vehicles with fairly high clearance.

HEMMED-IN-HOLLOW

TRAIL LENGTH and DIFFICULTY: 5 miles total, out + back // difficult
TRAIL HIGHLIGHT: the waterfall in the almost boxed in canyon of bluffs

Hemmed-in-Hollow is one of those trails that I want to love. The waterfall that flows down through the hollow is the tallest waterfall between the Rockies and the Appalachians. However, it truly requires a good amount of rain to see a beautiful, fuller flow. The hike down is really beautiful, but it is about 2 miles straight down, a half mile into the beautiful canyon-like hollow to the waterfall. Then the repeat back but it’s a strenuous straight up! Although I’m disappointed that we’ve never seen the water flow – only a trickle – the geology of this hollow that’s boxed in is a wonder on its own.

Important note: Like many of the other waterfalls in the Ozarks, this is a wet-weather waterfall. However, it’s an extreme example because you’ll need to come after a couple of days of lots and lots of rain to get to see it. We’ve yet to see it truly flow, but we’ve seen some trickle a couple of times.
Looking for an easier route? You can also access this trail from the Buffalo River if you take a floating trip. The hike is much less strenuous and only about a mile each way.

TRIPLE FALLS

TRAIL LENGTH AND DIFFICULTY: 1/3 mile total, out + back // easy
TRAIL HIGHLIGHT: the stunning triple waterfalls and teal pool below

This hardly counts as a trail because it is so short! But talk about bang for your buck! We’ve visited this waterfall over a dozen times because it’s so easy and so beautiful! You have to go down a fairly steep dirt road that leads to Kyle’s Landing, but you turn off at Boy Scout Camp Orr, where you’ll find a parking area. We’ve seen several cars down there, but we’ve never attempted it in a non AWD/4WD vehicle personally. The short tree-covered trail follows a creek that leads to the appropriately-named Triple Falls. Three consistently full waterfalls flow over a small bluff into a small turquoise pool. There is also a new path that leads up to the top of the falls – Matt has done this and I can’t wait to do it the next time we go down to Arkansas!

BONUS: FALLING WATER FALLS

This is a bonus because, realistically, it requires no hiking. Instead, you pull off the road and voilà there’s the waterfall. It’s a popular swimming hole and beautiful waterfall worth a stop, for sure! It’s fairly close to Pedestal Rocks and King’s Bluff and makes for a perfect end-of-hike dip while you’re in the area!