Tea Table Rocks had been on my Arkansas hiking bucket list for years, but I wasn't sure how I was going to find it. I had stumbled across several fabulous photos of the table-shaped geologic feature, which is situated on a bluff overlooking a sweeping Ozark vista. It used to be included in one of Tim Ernst's hiking books, but was removed from later editions of the book when some of the surrounding land, including part of the trail, was purchased and became private property. However, I was tantalized by the photos I'd seen, and I knew I had to find it! I started to do some good old-fashioned snooping to see what I could find out.
There was surprisingly little online about Tea Table Rocks. Lots of beautiful photos, and a few old blog entries written by hikers who had either visited as part of a guided hike or with a local in the know. I finally found a five-year-old post on a forum for rock climbers about the area, and someone had mentioned the name of the property owner. This gentleman was a real estate agent in Jasper, and owned cabins for rent near the Buffalo River, so I was able to find his contact information and shot him an email. Within a few days, he sent me his phone number and I gave him a call.
Turns out this gentleman had sold the property in question, but he detailed an alternate route that would enable me to bypass any private property. I thanked him profusely, and had to give myself a pat on the back too... I felt like Harriet the Spy or something.
So, on a particularly bitter January day, I set out on my mission to find Tea Table Rocks. I decided to stop by Falling Water Creek as well, since it was
kinda on my way.
Falling Water Creek and the surrounding area is a treasure trove of waterfalls-- there are probably a dozen along the creek from Ben Hur to Richland Creek Campground. I've been many times, and sometime I'll have to do a full blog post about the entire area. (Rick Henry has an exhaustive blog post about the entire area
here, complete with GPS and maps.) Because I knew I was in for a bushwhack of indeterminate difficulty later on, I kept it brief here and just visited Falling Water Falls and Keefe Falls.
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| Falling Water Falls |
To get to Falling Water Falls, drive to Sand Gap at the junction of highways 16 and 7, and take highway 16 east to the tiny community of Ben Hur. Once through Ben Hur, you'll see a left turn with signs for Falling Water horse camp-- turn here and follow this road about 2 miles. Falling Water Falls will be on your right, with a pull-off big enough for several cars. This is a popular spot for hikers, and for locals to bring picnics after church on Sundays. There was nobody there when I arrived, and you can tell from the icicles in the pictures how cold it was! I think it stayed below freezing all day.
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| Falling Water Falls with icicles |
A few more miles down Falling Water road, pass over a low water bridge and go about another mile. Here, the road crosses some metal culverts and there's an obvious pull-off to the left of the road near the creek, big enough for only one car. From the parking area, cross the road and head back into the woods. When I was here, I want to say there was some spray paint on a tree near the road marking the trail back towards Keefe Falls. The trail goes up the left side of the creek bed, and in only about a half mile you have arrived at the falls.
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| Top of Keefe Falls: icicles and a drip of water |
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| The base of Keefe Falls. Told you it was cold! |
Keefe Falls wasn't really running, but what water there was was completely frozen! It looked pretty neat, and at 78 feet high, this is supposedly the tallest waterfall in the Richland Wilderness. I took some photos and ate a snack-- it was pretty hard to peel a cutie with my frozen fingers! After that, I hopped back in the warm car and headed towards Tea Table Rocks.
I won't detail the Tea Table Rocks location, since it is mostly bordered by private property, and the gentleman who was kind enough to give me directions probably doesn't want the whole world to also have them. I will say that
the Ozark Society has led guided hikes to Tea Table Rocks in the past, so follow their page for updates if you'd like to go.
When I arrived at the parking location, I bundled back up and set out along an ATV road through the forest that followed a level bench out to a ridge with a wide view of the valley beyond. It looked like a popular weekend spot for locals, as there was a fire ring and lots of ATV tracks. The valley view from here was spectacular!
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| View from the bluffline at the end of the ATV trail. |
From here, all I'd been told was to bushwhack along the bluffline for about a mile to reach our destination. This turned out to be no easy feat. After the ATV trail ends at the bluffline, I was hoping there might be some continuance in the way of a footpath or something, but no luck. So I blindly set off through the forest, fighting through thick underbrush at times, trying to stay as close to the bluff as possible. I don't think I've ever been slapped in the face by so many twigs, and I can't even imagine trying to make this hike in the summer. That mile of bushwhack, even though it was mostly level, felt more like 3 or 4, and I was concentrating so hard on not taking a branch to the eye that I almost plunged past Tea Table Rocks.
It was worth it-- Tea Table Rocks has to be one of the most picturesque spots in Arkansas. Just as pretty and unique as Hawksbill Crag, with none of the crowds. And what a view!
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| Tea Table Rocks |
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| Tea Table Rocks |
I took a ton of pictures and hung out a while, not looking forward to the difficult bushwhack back to the car. But then again, the car meant warmth and more snacks! The sun was setting by the time I got back to the parking area, and I began the long drive back to Little Rock.
What a cool place! I can't deny I was proud of my efforts and how well they'd paid off. This is definitely a cool-weather hike, and I might bring my shears next time. :)
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