Arkansas Off-Road Trails

A quiet, peaceful journey awaits as you travel along Barker Road. Situated near one of the main roads crossing the Ozark National Forest, Barker provides a great off-highway access point into the heart of the forest while experiencing a small waterfall along the way. This road is an excellent start to your journey through the spectacular Ozarks National Forest.

Cove Creek Crossing is a very easy, scenic, smooth, graded dirt road in the Ozark National Forest connecting Cove Creek Road and Old Cove City Road at the intersection with Bug Scuffle Road. The thick forest along the road shines with Fall color. Along the way, numerous spur trails spread out into the forest with varying degrees of difficulty. Most require a 4WD with high ground clearance. There are also a few spots along this road with fire rings where you can pull off to camp.

C16 is a lesser traveled off-road trail at Hot Springs ORV Park, possibly due to its​ difficulty level (or maybe the lack of a catchy name?) If you love extreme downhill grades on large, loose rocks or you enjoy scaring your passengers to death you will love it! Most people that rock crawl think of going up and over, but C16 is all about the downhill slide at Waypoint 4. Experienced wheelers will enjoy the challenge, as it demands every bit of attention and experience you can muster.

Excitement awaits off the path of this wooded connector trail! The entrances to some of Hot Springs ORV Parks most popular destinations are accessed here. One of the three Jeep "Badge of Honor" trails the park has to offer can also be accessed from The Loop. It can stand on its​ own as an easy, shaded drive through the woods, with a few water/mud holes and a spring crossing along the way. If you are headed down Main Road 1, cut through here on a hot summer day to cool down with under some shade and enjoy the woodland scenery!

Squid's Jaunt at Hot Springs ORV Park is a rock filled, medium difficulty trail that can be enjoyed by both stock and modified 4x4 vehicles. It ascends 366' over the course of half a mile, and is rated a 3 out of 5 on the Park's rating system (which suggests at least 32" aggressive tires and a locking differential). There are enough larger rocks, ledges, and loose gravel to entertain a seasoned veteran. Mildly challenging bypasses around harder sections will also allow a beginner in a stock rig (and use of a spotter) to complete the trail and feel proud to have done so. Traveling from west to east (uphill) is the more challenging route, with a two foot ledge midway up the trail being one of the more notable obstacles. The view back to the west as you get to the top is picture worthy, and warrants stopping along the way to take in the scenery.

A steep rutted out hill climb and several water crossings are the highlights of Power Wagon Point. The grade of the climb ranges from approximately 20 to 50 degrees and is enough to be exciting, and high clearance is desired to avoid scraping your undercarriage. During this write-up, the depth of the rutted out area was miscalculated, and a camera lens met its fate in the middle of the trail. The first water crossing can be deep after heavy rains, so proceed with caution! Power Wagon Point is also heavily wooded, so it can provide respite from the hot sun on a sweltering summer day. This is a one way only trail and is marked as such. Do not attempt to run it backwards, as it would be almost impossible to move off to the side of the trail in some spots.

Old Cove City Road is an easy scenic dirt road in the Ozark National Forest running between the 3-way intersection with Bug Scuffle Road and Cove Creek Crossing and paved Lee Creek Road, State Highway 220. Like Cove Creek Crossing, numerous trails spur off this road. Most notable is Pannell Road, a popular technical route for 4x4 vehicles with high ground clearance.

There aren't many places to camp on Old Cove City Road. However, there are a few roadside spots and campsites on the spur trails in the area. A 4x4 vehicle may be required to access those spots on the spur trails.

Bee Hollow is a scenic, wooded drive with creek crossings, mountain views, a lot of pinstriping, overgrown areas, and moderate rock climbing. It is located in the Ozark St Francis National Forest between the towns of Mountain View, Arkansas, and Calico Rock, Arkansas. Stay on the trail since it runs behind the Sylamore gun range. You will see warning signs when you reach that area. During October, the trail has amazing fall colors. There are several creek crossings, be aware of water levels during the rainy season and watch for washout spots along the tops of the creek beds. Due to the rocky terrain and deep ruts, there are several off-camber spots along the trail. The trail begins off Arkansas Highway 5 - Sylamore Scenic By-Way. Expect to send a couple of hours on this trail.

Ozark-St. Francis National Forest Road 1108, locally called Barkshed Road, is the north end of a road that ends at a closed bridge at the Barkshed Recreation area. The road is gated off about a mile from the closed bridge. It is a nice easy drive through the forest with several OHV trails branching off for further exploration.