Arkansas High Country Route
Clear rivers, hidden waterfalls, and ridge after ridge of gravel through Arkansas's wildest mountains.
- Distance
- 1,171 miles
- Surface
- 50% paved
- 3 weeks–2 months
- Route Type
- Loop
Ride the Arkansas High Country Route
This route consists of three large loops in northwest Arkansas. Choose the South Loop out of Little Rock, the Central Loop out of Russellville, the Northwest Loop out of Bentonville, or all three.
What to Expect
This is bikepacking in the truest sense: steep, roller-coaster gravel through hardwood forest, clear streams and swimming holes at the bottom of long descents, and small towns spaced far enough apart to feel them. Climbs and descents reach 17 to 21 percent, and some rough surfaces mean riders used to road touring should plan shorter days than usual. Large stretches run remote, with little traffic and few services.
On the South Loop, riders pass the Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site and Hot Springs National Park, then climb to Mount Magazine, the highest point in Arkansas. Two singletrack options, the Lake Ouachita Vista Trail and the Womble Trail, are both recognized by the International Mountain Bicycling Association as Epic rides. Farther north, the Central and Northwest Loops follow the Buffalo National River, the country’s first national river, past Blanchard Springs Caverns, the Victorian mountain town of Eureka Springs, the overlooks of White Rock Mountain, and the college town of Fayetteville.
The Ouachita Mountains run in ridges that trend east to west, so riding east to west across them means a steady string of climbs and descents. The Arkansas River Valley section is comparatively flat with more paved roads and denser services, while the Ozark Plateau sections in the Central and Northwest Loops bring long climbs and rougher, remote roads.
Large stretches of this route run remote, especially in the Ouachita and Ozark mountain sections, where cell service is spotty to nonexistent and services can be limited to the occasional convenience store. Bike shops are found only in Little Rock, Hot Springs, Russellville, Eureka Springs, Fayetteville, and Bentonville. Download your Ride with GPS route for offline use, and ride with a group of at least three for safety on the backcountry stretches.
Ride in spring or fall, roughly March through May and mid-September through November, when temperatures are most moderate and water is most reliable, with flowering dogwoods in spring and changing leaves in fall. Summers run hot and humid, often reaching 100 degrees Fahrenheit, with a real risk of heat exhaustion and dehydration. Winter storms tend to bring ice rather than snow.
Route Sections
Little Rock, AR to Little Rock, AR, 500 miles
This loop traverses the Ouachita Mountains and the Arkansas River Valley, passing Hot Springs, Queen Wilhelmina State Park, Mount Magazine State Park, Petit Jean State Park, and Conway. Most roads in the Ouachitas are gravel aside from the area around Hot Springs, and services and cell coverage thin out considerably in the mountains compared to the river valley.
Alternates:
- Lake Ouachita Vista Trail (LOViT) Singletrack, 46.1 mi. A rocky, technical IMBA EPIC singletrack option along Lake Ouachita, best suited to a mountain bike with wide, knobby tires.
- Woble Trail Singletrack, 23.1 mi. A less rocky but still rugged IMBA EPIC singletrack option climbing the ridges of Mauldin Mountain.
Russellville, AR to Russellville, AR, 434.2 miles
This loop crosses the Arkansas River Valley and the Boston Mountains of the Ozark Plateau, passing Petit Jean State Park, Dardanelle, Oark, Ponca, Jasper, Marshall, and Mountain View. The river valley section is flat with paved roads and frequent services, while the Ozark Mountains section is remote gravel with big climbs and scarce services.
Bentonville, AR to Bentonville, AR, 237.6 miles
This loop climbs and drops across the Springfield, Salem, and Boston Plateaus, passing Eureka Springs, Oark, White Rock Mountain, and Fayetteville. The western section along the paved Razorback Regional Greenway is relatively flat with good services, while the eastern section grows hillier and more remote as it climbs into the Ozark Mountains.
Arkansas High Country Route Photos
Plan Your Ride
Between the remote mountain stretches, scarce water sources, and rough gravel surfaces, this route rewards riders who plan carefully and are comfortable riding self-supported.
Trip Planning & Logistics
Spring and fall offer the most reliable weather and water, so plan accordingly if riding through the mountain sections. Riders accustomed to road touring should plan shorter days than usual, since this route demands more effort over shorter distances.
As a digital-only route, this loop is available for purchase through Adventure Cycling’s Shop as a Ride with GPS experience, which includes routing, detailed service information, riding conditions, and field notes for trip planning.
Since the main route runs roughly half gravel and half pavement with climbs and descents reaching 17 to 21 percent grades, bike choice matters here. Riders prioritizing speed often choose a race-geometry gravel bike, while riders prioritizing comfort often choose a hard-tail or fully rigidi mountain bike for wider, fatter tires.
A minimum of 37mm tires with some tread is recommended regardless of setup, since gravel sections can include washboard and loose rock. Additional comfort gear like suspension seatposts, front-suspension forks, and quality handlebar grips help absorb the rough surfaces, and a first aid kit, extra tubes, a pump, and spare parts are all worth carrying given the distance between bike shops.
This route passes through several national forests where dispersed camping is allowed as long as riders pack out everything they bring in. It also crosses Wildlife Management Areas administered by state and federal agencies. Federal WMAs follow national forest dispersed camping rules, but state WMAs require camping in designated areas only. Some campgrounds charge solo cyclists the same rate as a full tent or RV site, often $10 to $20 per night, though hiker/biker rates are sometimes available.
Services are sparse in the mountain sections of all three loops, while the Arkansas River Valley offers more frequent towns and services. Water can be hard to find on the remote stretches, especially in summer, so carry more than you think you’ll need and treat anything from streams. Check your digital route in Ride with GPS for service phone numbers, and call ahead, since hours in small towns can be unpredictable.
Cell service is spotty to nonexistent through large stretches of this route, and a minimum group size of three is recommended for remote sections in case a rider needs help. Watch for logging trucks on backroads, and be alert during deer hunting season, when Arkansas law requires blaze orange while in the woods. Flash floods are a real risk at low-water crossings in spring, so never attempt to cross a flooded stream. Always check Adventure Cycling Route Updates and Corrections before you go.
No bikes are permitted in designated wilderness areas along the route, including the Flatside, Caney Creek, Upper Buffalo and Buffalo, and Richland Creek wildernesses, so stick to the route in these areas.
Routes change. Bridges wash out, businesses close, and construction pops up overnight. We strive to keep routes updated as those things happen. When we learn about a change, we reroute around sections that have become dangerous, update service information as businesses open, close, or move, and reroute around temporary road and bridge closures or construction. Digital routes are updated as soon as we’ve reviewed a reported issue.
You’re often the first to spot these changes out on the road. Help us keep this route accurate for the next rider by reporting anything you notice with our Route Feedback Form.
This Route Is Part of Something Bigger
It’s one piece of the Adventure Cycling Route Network, began in 1976 and built on a simple mission: to empower people to travel by bike. Our team maps and maintains it; our members and donors make it possible.
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Frequently Asked Questions
It’s our flagship, staff-built route network. The one that started it all 50 years ago with the TransAmerica Trail, the route that launched bicycle touring and bikepacking in America. Every route in it is designed and researched by our own team of cyclists and cartographers: months of research and on-the-ground testing go into each one, so what you get is more than a line on a map. Each Adventure Cycling route has detailed logistics, terrain and elevation info, points of interest, camping and lodging, safety alerts, and history, all in one place. It’s the most in-depth of our three networks, available as digital routes and most as paper maps too. It’s the route network we update most regularly as conditions change.
They’re related, but not the same thing. The Adventure Cycling Route Network is made up of routes we’ve researched, ridden, and mapped ourselves, chosen specifically for a great touring or bikepacking experience. The U.S. Bicycle Route System (USBRS) is a state-by-state national system that we serve as technical experts for, made official through each state’s department of transportation. The two overlap in a lot of places, but an ACRN route carries our own on-the-ground vetting; a USBRS route carries official state recognition.
It depends! If you want a route we’ve personally scouted end to end, with services, camping, and terrain notes built in, start with the Route Network. The ACA Route Network has routes of many different lengths and can be a much easier starting place for someone new to bicycle travel. If you’re an experienced cyclist piecing together an officially designated corridor, or riding somewhere the two systems converge, the interactive USBRS map is a good resource to use.
The Adventure Cycling Route Network is a premium network because of everything that goes into it. Unlike the U.S. Bicycle Route System (built by state DOTs) or Short Routes (submittedby cyclists in their own communities), every Adventure Cycling route is researched, ridden, and vetted end-to-end by our own team. Unlike other routes, Adventure Cycling routes come with extensive information on riding conditions, terrain notes, camping and lodging info, logistics, safety alerts, and points of interest. We also keep it current as roads and services change. The price supports that ongoing research and maintenance work, done by a nonprofit whose whole mission is making sure the route in your hands is one you can trust.
Turn-by-turn directions with a bike icon aren’t the same as a route built for specifically touring or bikepacking. Every mile in the Adventure Cycling Route Network has been researched and ridden by our staff and researchers, chosen to avoid dangerous traffic, and mapped with what a touring cyclist actually needs — food, water, camping, hotels, bike shops — spaced out along the way. The Adventure Cycling Route Network was built for cyclists by cyclists, is regularly updated, and comes with the resources and information needed to plan your ride.
No. The network includes routes for a wide range of experience and difficulty levels, from a first multi-day trip to a cross-country expedition. What every route has in common is that it was chosen with a touring cyclist’s needs in mind, whatever kind of trip you’re planning.
Not at all. Alongside iconic long-distance routes like the TransAmerica Trail, the network includes shorter regional routes, so it works for a weeklong vacation or a two-month journey.
For many years, we focused on paved routes, but today the network includes plenty of unpaved gravel riding for bikepacking. In fact, Adventure Cycling mapped the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route in 1998, arguably the most impactful bikepacking route in the world. The Adventure Cycling Route Network also includes the Golden Gravel Trail, Idaho Hot Springs Mountain Bike Route, Arkansas High Country Route, and more. Some routes are a 50/50 mix of pavement and gravel. Some routes follow paved and unpaved bike paths and rail trails. The Adventure Cycling Route Network has terrain for every cyclist.
We revisit our printed maps every three to five years, and push corrections to our digital route data as we learn about changes on the ground. If you have an Adventure Cycling Route in Ride with GPS that we’ve updated, you’ll get a notification when you open the route to update to the newest version of the route. Updating will ensure you have the latest data, information, and points of interest vital to being on route. For cyclists who have Adventure Cycling paper maps, we keep a list of route- and section-specific updates current on our Map Updates and Corrections page.
Change comes from two directions: our own staff research and reports from the cyclists actually out there riding them. If a bridge washes out, a shoulder disappears, a campground closes for repairs, or a town loses its only grocery store, that’s the kind of thing that triggers an update. You can help us keep our routes accurate; fill out our Route Feedback Form.
Most of our Adventure Cycling Routes come as waterproof print maps and digital Ride with GPS navigational data. Our print maps are the #1 longstanding popular resource for traveling cyclists. They are waterproof, highly detailed and always work. For long trips, many cyclists use a combination of print maps and digital routes.
If you’re already comfortable and familiar with a GPS navigational aid such as Ride with GPS or a Garmin, our digital data packages are an excellent choice. We do not recommend GPX data for beginners since there are a few extra steps to installing and troubleshooting.
Once you purchase a digital route, you’ll get an email with a link to unlock it in the free Ride with GPS app — no separate subscription required for basic navigation. From there you get turn-by-turn voice directions, curated points of interest like campgrounds and bike shops, and field notes on the history, geography, and climate along your route, all available 100% offline. If you’drather use a dedicated GPS device, you can export the route as a GPX file to load onto a Garmin, Wahoo, or similar device.
To export GPX files of your Adventure Cycling digital route, use your laptop or desktop to open the email you received after purchasing your digital route. Click on the link that allows you to access your Digital Route. Finally, click on EXPORT ALL at the bottom of the screen. This is the only way to export files that include the route line, points of interest, and services. Files will be exported as one ZIP file.
Adventure Cycling uses abbreviations across its paper and digital routes to indicate particular services, land or road types, route names, direction of travel, and route type. Please see our key to abbreviations.
If you have questions on how to purchase a digital route or about the route content, please contact Adventure Cycling: cartography@adventurecycling.org or 406-721-1776.
If you have questions on how to use your Digital Route in Ride with GPS, please check the Ride with GPS support page or email them at info@ridewithgps.com.
If you’re new to Ride with GPS, please check out the following resources:
Our print map panels aren’t always oriented northwards for space and layout reasons. Refer to the north arrows to help orient yourself if you’re not sure.
No. The Routes and Mapping Department does not do custom routes for individuals. Check out the routes we’ve already mapped, and use the interactive map to piece our route networks together, forming a route that gets you from a point A to point B of your choice.
It started with a single route. In 1976, we mapped the TransAmerica Trail, and more than 4,000 cyclists crossed the country together for Bikecentennial — the nation’s bicentennial cycling celebration our founders organized. That one route became the seed of a network we’ve spent the decades since expanding. Today it’s more than 58,000 miles of mapped routes across the U.S. and Canada, from classic epics like the TransAmerica Trail, Great Divide Mountain Bike Route, and Pacific Coast, to shorter regional routes.