OZARKS KEYSTONE TRAIL EXPEDITION!

 One of the benefits of being a member of the North Central Arkansas Master Naturalists, is the opportunity to volunteer on worthwhile projects that are near and dear to my heart---such as hiking!

My first experience on the trail that follows the shoreline of Norfork Lake, in Baxter County, Arkansas, was as a hiker, with a coed group (of mostly strangers to me) that a friend--Dea-- from church, had told me about.  The group met at the trail head for the Robinson Point Overlook and walked over the hills and hollers that led to the top of a bluff, overlooking Norfork Lake.  It was around the year 2002.    I had visited Norfork Lake all my life, but mostly for watersports activities, rather than hiking. 

The photo below shows the overlook at Robinson Point, which was my first group hike on Norfork Lake, over twenty years ago.  Now, I get to help keep that overlook free of weeds, by being a part of the trail maintenance volunteers.  Photo below shows me and fellow volunteer, Wendy,  at the Robinson Point Overlook, with the tools we use to cut back weeds.

 

This is a photo of the small brown and white OKT sign at the entry of the trail to the overlook.   The short wooden fence at the beginning, is to help define the entry point, and was the service project of a local Eagle Scout.  

That co-ed group I first hiked with, "fizzled out", so I started hiking with a group of ladies I met at a Becoming An Outdoors Woman conference in central Arkansas (www.agfc.com).  There is a story about that in my blog archives, dated September 23, 2008.  That core group of ladies congealed later, to  became what came to be known as Women Hiking (the) Ozarks---WHO---for short.  The photo below shows one of our WHO hikes that took place in December (as evidenced by the Santa hat on one of the hikers!)

I published a blog about David's Trail (dated April 26, 2010 and available in the archives of this blog), explaining some of its history.  The person the trail was named after, was the son-in-law of a lady in my Sunday school class, so I knew the story of his being an avid supporter of physical activity, who passed away suddenly, at a young age.  

There are very few sections of the trail that are completely flat, and some of them are so steep, that a rope has been added over the ravine being crossed, to assist hikers in the ascent and descent.  That is me, holding onto the rope, as I try to make my way to the top of the hill!

 

The concrete marker pictured below is also at Robinson Point, but it is on the north side of the entry road, whereas the section to the overlook, is on the south side of the entry road.  

As this close-up of the sign shows, the purpose of the trail is to encourage an active lifestyle.  

When an effort began to expand and link the trails along the Norfork Lake in Arkansas, a new name was coined, which became the Ozarks Keystone Trail, or OKT, for short.  This trail marker, nailed to a tree shows where the name "keystone" comes from.  It is the link, or "keystone" between the Ozark Trail in Missouri, and the Ozark Highlands Trail in Arkansas.  Notice this particular sign, has a "YOU ARE HERE" flag in red, which shows your approximate location within the 680+ miles of trail through the two states.  The Ozark Trail in Missouri has over 430 miles, and the Ozark Highlands Trail in Arkansas has about 250 miles, starting at Lake Fort Smith State Park, near the Arkansas/Oklahoma border.  Thanks to the addition of the Ozarks Keystone Trail, it now extends to the Missouri border!

 

The trail sign nailed to a pine tree, shown below, says the same thing as the previous sentence I wrote, but in a more concise form!

Most of my hiking time recently has been spent as a volunteer that meets on the first Saturday of the month, at the Raymond James office in Mountain Home.  There we pack sack lunches, provided by the Ozarks Keystone Trail Endowment, and then divide into teams, to do maintenance along the approximately 80 miles of the OKT.  The January 3, 2026, volunteers are shown below: 

Funds provided by the endowment have purchased two all-terrain-vehicles that are used to haul both volunteers and heavy equipment to remote parts of the trail, that are otherwise difficult to reach on foot, when carrying heavy equipment.  A trailer is used to transport the ATVs to whatever site is being worked on.

 The photo below shows one of our first outings with one of the ATV's, fully loaded with some of the equipment strapped on top.  It is clearly marked as a VOLUNTEER vehicle, because otherwise, ATV's are not allowed on the trail.  

The reason we need chain saws is because, invariably, one or more trees have fallen down across the trail! 

Because we often drive our personal cars to a staging area along the lake, the volunteers have been provided with a magnetic sign to identify their car.  

Once we are deep within the forest, we get out and start using loppers to cut back sprigs and leaf blowers to clear the path, so hikers can see where the trail is.  

The photo below shows me and fellow volunteer Dawn, with the tools we were using one Saturday.  

This photo shows a volunteer who is a retired physician, carrying a heavy back-pack blower, and pointing the high pressure air left and right, to help hikers see where the trail is.  

In addition to leaf blowing and weed whacking, the volunteers (this is Pam), often are putting up new signage, or repairing/replacing old signs.   Although it may be confusing to newcomers what is Davids Trail and what is OKT, the signs help.  Since the trail goes through some areas along the lake that are traditional spots for deer hunters, metal gates are at some locations, to discourage unauthorized use of vehicles for hunting. 

One of the newer sections of the trail goes all the way to the Missouri border.  Photo below shows Mark, and Bob on either side of the marker located on the shores of Lake Norfork, with Deb behind them, up on the trail.  

I had been told of this marker for years, but this was my first time to see it, so I wanted to give a gesture of praise, to finally get to have a photo with it!

I found a rock along the shoreline there, with holes in it, so I could make a commemorative marker to keep at my house, to help me remember this milestone!

For the last two years, the Ozarks Keystone Endowment has hosted an appreciation dinner for the First Saturday volunteers at The ArkanZEN in Cotter.  Photo below shows Mike and Deb, awaiting other guest arrivals.

As a souvenir for the volunteers, Steph made coasters with the OKT logo burned into the wooden "tree cookies".  It was such a nice surprise and greatly appreciated!

In addition to participating in the organizations listed above, I participate in a healthy living program called First Place 4 Health (www.FirstPlace4Health.com), that teaches us how to rely on God for strength and perseverance.  One of the memory verses that we are learning, in hopes of increasing our perseverance during difficult times, is Proverbs 24:16.  It is meant to be an encouragement to not give up, even when we fall down.  You can be assured, I have fallen down many times on the hiking trails described here, as well as in the bigger picture---The Trail of Life.  But God's Word tells us not to give up.  Our memory verse from Proverbs 24:16 says, "For though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again, but the wicked stumble when calamity strikes." 

I want to keep getting up after each time I fall, so that I can continue to hike with "MILES OF SMILES"!  Tricia