Robbers Cave, Wister Lake and the Ouachita Trail - October 2020

Me and a couple of friends had a group Slackpacking trip planned to Georgia on the AT, however, COVID-19 messed up our plans. We decided to plan our own Slackpacking trip in the OK/AR on the Ouachita Trail.

We first stopped for a hike at Robbers Cave in Wilburton. Lots of people enjoying the trail. The Fall colors were starting to be noticeable.
The sky was foggy - but the trees were showing some color!

We did a little rock scramble through the hole in one of the caves. 😳










                                                                                    Eye catching leaves all along the trail.

                                                                    American Beauty berry

                                                                                Cattail pond

                                This guy was all up in our business when we stopped to enjoy a snack                                                     at the Cattail Pond.

                                                                        Late Purple Aster

                                        Amanita Fungi - not edible aka mini Sesame seed buns.


On our first and second night, we stayed at Hootie Creek Guest House in Talihina, Oklahoma and it is an interesting historical place.

The Ouachita Trail starts at the Talimena State Park in Oklahoma and is 222.3 miles long and ends at Pinnacle State Park in Arkansas. The first day, we hiked an in and out portion of the trail from Talimena State Park and spurred off the trail to Panaroma Vista for lunch. Lots of people at the Panorama Vista on Talimena Drive checking out the Fall colors. The elevation gain hiking in is a booger. It is a rocky, beautiful hike. I will definitely do it again and next time take my hammock for a nap on the trail after lunch.

Let the hiking begin....
Walking sticks were everywhere, it was their mating season. They were falling out of trees on us. 
Creepy crawler
Stiff Goldenrod
Climbing Aster
Big Heart
Pacman or a heart
Red flower rag leaf
Great resource.  Also, learned about Guthook app
 
Lunch spot - spotted Cavanal hill, world's tallest hill, in Poteau.


The second morning, I started out with an omelet from Pam’s Hateful Hussy Diner in Talihina. We hiked Cedar Lake and Winding Stair Mountaintop view trail, which spurs off the OT. We then checked in at Queen Wilhemina Lodge and hiked Lovers Leap trail around lodge. We ended the day with dinner at the Branding Iron restaurant and Austin Powers was our waiter.
Praying Mantis
Mountaintop view
Welcoming bear at the lodge
White Snakeroot
True Grit novel and movie was set in the Winding Stair Mt. I saw John at the Branding Iron in Mena.

3rd day hiking.... Big Cedar Trailhead to Pashubbe Shelter. The trail blazes were a little confusing. We finally got back on track after our WRONG TURN 😳 and we gained an extra unplanned 2 miles. The day started out chilly, but warmed up nicely.
Thanks to FoOT (Friends of the Ouachita Trail) for the trail and shelter upkeep.
We thought this looked like the shape of a puppy 🐶 head.

I was tired starting the fourth day. It was nice to get up early and have coffee sitting in front of the fire
🔥 place at the lodge. It was a windy day, but sunny day. ☀️ We headed out from the lodge to the State Line Shelter, however the trail was very unmaintained in parts and we didn’t make it to the shelter for lunch. When we headed back, we had to get off the trail and walk on gravel road and the highway for a bit to get back to the lodge. Trail maintenance was scheduled for a week after our hike. We had great Mexican food in Mena and saw Big Foot on the way back to the lodge.
So relaxing....
The colors were a little more vibrant today.
Rat snake we saw.
Fun stop in Mena.
Calico Aster


A chilly morning!


We were ready to head toward home. We stopped by Wister Lake to check out hiking trails. We completed just shy of a total of 50 miles of hiking on our trip. The only reason we did not complete our goal of 50 miles was due to the bad conditions of portions of the trails on the last day. The trip was such a great first time on the Ouachita Trail and hope for much more hiking there in the future. Enjoyed time with friends and already planning another trip for next fall.

Common Lantana
The trail looked nice from a far, but we soon found out it was in pretty bad shape.
Nice benches in the park.
We offered to beautify the park. Dang litterbugs!

OUR HIKING DEVO.....























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