As we passed through Fayetteville, Arkansas and headed east, the road wound through autumn-colored hills and green valleys.
Cows... Yup, they have them in Arkansas also.
Run-down buildings like this one spoke of the glory days of long ago.
We arrived at the trail-head around 2:30pm, packed everything we needed for 4 days in our packs, and hiked in.
Joel's posing for "Backpacker" magazine
Unlike most hikes, we actually hiked downhill most of the first day. Starting at the top of a hill-mountain where the highway ran, we hiked down into the river bottom.
Peephole
As you can see, Joel and I took pictures of each other. There weren't too many other options.
"Big Bluff" was the first (and the best) lookout we came to.
Pose #2 for Backpacker Magazine
Trying to pose for Backpacker Magazine, but lacking the scruffy, outdoor look of Joel.
Pondering the deep stuff of life (if you can find me)
Joel looking pensively into the distance
After about 3 hours, we finally reached the Buffalo River and set up camp for the night. It got dark by around 6pm and we were in the tent by around 8:30pm. The weather was cool, getting down to around 35 degrees each night. Snuggling up in a two-person tent brought back memories of when Joel and I used to share a bed as little kids.
