7 Great Arkansas National Parks

Natural scenery and cultural history abound at national parks in Arkansas.

From colonial outposts and Civil War battlefields to one of America's most scenic wild rivers and a civil rights landmark, the National Park Service preserves a series of sites in Arkansas that may be unparalleled.

Arkansas National Parks

Outdoor enthusiasts know that Arkansas was nicknamed the Natural State for several reasons.

They know that Arkansas is home to several beautiful lakes, breathtaking rivers, jaw-dropping mountain views, and wildlife abound.

There is outdoor adventure to be had from each of the seven national park site locations throughout the state.

Even history buffs appreciate some of the best-preserved Civil War battlefields at the Battle of Pea Ridge.

Arkansas State Parks has perhaps the most unique adventure in all of the state parks throughout the U.S., you can search for diamonds at Crater of Diamonds State Park. You even get to keep what you find!

Whether you wish to explore the Ozark Mountains, learn about the civil rights movement or just take a hot soaking bath and have a beer at the only brewery in a national park, Arkansas has a park for you.

Arkansas Post National Memorial

Top Things to do - Visitor Center and Museum, go fishing, watch the historic weapons demonstrations that include Muskets and Cannons, go for a walk one one of the trails, have a picnic and one of the many picnic areas, wildlife viewing, and junior ranger programs

Lodging - There is no lodging within the park

Camping- There are no National Park Campgrounds within the park.

Park Address - 1741 Old Post Road, Gillett, AR 72055

Arkansas Post NM is located in southwestern Arkansas near the small community of Gillett in the Delta region approximately 80 miles southeast of Little Rock. The park is open year-round and offers the opportunity to explore and study a 17th-century French settlement.

Arkansas Post National Memorial preserves the site of the first permanent European settlement in the Mississippi River Valley. The site of an outpost founded by the French in 1686, Arkansas Post was occupied over time by France, Spain, the Confederacy, and the United States.

One of only two battles of the American Revolution fought west of the Mississippi took place here, as did an important Civil War battle. The memorial includes the ruins of the old town of Arkansas Post, an interpretive center with exhibits on the rich history of the park and the scene of some of the heaviest fighting of the 1864 Battle of Fort Hindman or Arkansas Post.

Buffalo National River

Top Things to do - paddle the river by canoe, tube, or kayak, hiking, camping, picnicking, guided tours, hunting, fishing, horseback riding, backcountry camping, night sky viewing, wildlife viewing, visiting historic districts, and bird-watching

Lodging - In the Lower District (South Maumee to Buffalo City), Buffalo Point Concession operates the only accommodations within the park boundary. Located at Buffalo Point, rustic cabins (CCC built circa 1939), the four unit lodge (also CCC constructed) and modern duplex cabins are available for rent. Rustic Cabins open from March 1st to November 22nd ; Modern Cabins and the Lodge are available year around. These rentals are very popular and may be reserved 18 months in advance. For more information and reservations, contact Buffalo Point Concession, 2261 Hwy. 268 E, Yellville, AR, 72687, or call (870) 449-6206. On the web at www.buffalopoint.net

Camping- there are several developed and primitive campgrounds throughout the park and backcountry camping is permitted.

Park Address - 170 Ranger Road, St. Joe, AR 72675

Buffalo NR is located in north-central Arkansas approximately 90 miles northwest of Little Rock. The park is open year-round and offers the opportunity to experience white-water canoeing, hiking and wildlife viewing.

Buffalo National River preserves the 135-mile-long Buffalo River, one of America's truly wild and scenic streams. The river winds its way through beautiful Ozark Mountain country, flowing past towering bluffs, mountains, historic sites and more.

A popular stream for canoeing and floating the Buffalo River area can also be explored by car and hiking trail. The Buffalo National River Visitor Center is located at tyler Bend off of US 65 approximately 10 miles north of Marshall.

Fort Smith National Historic Site

Top Things to do - Walk the River Loop Trail, Time Ranger Scavenger Hunt, Explore the Parade Ground, Park Passport Stamps, Become a Fort Smith Junior Ranger, and picnicking

Lodging - There is no lodging within the site

Camping- There are no camping options within the site

Park Address - 301 Parker Ave, Fort Smith 72901

Fort Smith NHS is located in west-central Arkansas within the town of Fort Smith. The park is open year-round and offers the opportunity to tour the foundations of the original fort.

If you want to experience the real "Old West," then a trip to Fort Smith National Historic Site on the Oklahoma border is in store. The site of two important frontier forts, Fort Smith is perhaps best known as the headquarters of the "Hanging Judge" of the Old West.

It was here that U.S. District Judge Isaac C. Parker sent more than 70 outlaws to the gallows during the rough and tumble days following the Civil War. Parker's deputy marshals provided the inspiration for such Hollywood classics as "True Grit," "Rooster Cogburn" and "Hang Em High." Ironically, Parker opposed the death penalty but in cases of murder and rape, U.S. law allowed him only one sentence - death.

The National Historic Site features ruins and buildings from the original fort, the notorious "Hell on the Border" jail, Parker's courtroom, exhibits on the deputy marshals and outlaws of Fort Smith and the reconstructed gallows where so many outlaws met their fates.

Hot Springs National Park

Top Things to do -Hot Springs is a great place to go for a soak in one of the still-operating bathhouses, drink the water, have a beer at Superior Bathhouse Brewery, fill up some water jugs, and take some water home with you from one of the many public water fountains, tour the Fordyce Bathhouse Visitor Center, go for a scenic drive, go to the top of the Hot Springs Mountain Tower, touch the thermal springs, go for a hike, birding, biking, and photography

Lodging - Hotel Hale (historic bath house) offers accommodation

Camping- Campsites at Gulpha Gorge Campground vary in size and can accommodate both tents and recreational vehicles (RV's).

Park Address - 369 Central Ave. Hot Springs, AR 71901

Hot Springs NP is located in west-central Arkansas approximately 45 miles southwest of Little Rock. The park is open year-round and offers the opportunity to tour historic bathhouses and miles of hiking trails.

Another of the state's natural wonders can be explored at Hot Springs National Park in Hot Springs, Arkansas. The city rightfully calls itself "America's First Resort" because the national park was the first area set aside by the U.S. Government specifically to preserve natural resources.

The park preserves the famed Hot Springs of the Ouachita. Heated by natural pressure as it rises from deep in the earth, the steaming water flows from the sides of a mountain at Hot Springs. Within the park, which is located in the downtown area, visitors can see and touch the water as it cascades down the side of the mountain.

Historic Bathhouse Row, where visitors from across the nation visited Hot Springs for its healing powers. Even Al Capone visited Hot Springs. Other features of the park include thousands of acres of wild mountain scenery and the Hot Springs Tower which offers stunning views of the Hot Springs Valley from above.

Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site

Top Things to do - Explore the Park's Visitor Center, Walk the Footsteps of History, Earn the Junior Ranger Badge, Stamp Your Park Passport

Lodging - No lodging within Little Rock Central High School NHS

Camping- There are no camping options within the historic site

Park Address - 2120 W. Daisy L. Gatson Bates Drive, Little Rock, AR 72202-5212

Little Rock Central High School NHS is located in central Arkansas in the capital city of Little Rock. The park is open year-round and offers the opportunity to take a guided tour of the high school and visit an amazing visitor center.

Finally, in the state capital, there is the Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site. Here, on the morning of September 23, 1957, nine African American students made the historic walk through a jeering crowd that successfully tested the Supreme Court's Brown vs. Board of Education ruling.

The high school is still an operating educational facility, the only actual school preserved as a national park. Tours of key points relating to the 1957 crisis are available, along with exhibits and more.

Pea Ridge National Military Park

Top Things to do - auto tour, visitor center, wildlife viewing, picnicking, birding, scenic overlook

Lodging - There is no lodging within the park

Camping- There is no camping available in the park

Park Address - 15930 National Park Drive, Garfield, AR 72732

Pea Ridge NMP is located in northwestern Arkansas approximately 75 miles northeast of Fort Smith. The park is open year-round and offers the opportunity to take an auto tour of the park and view a movie within the visitor center.

Pea Ridge National Military Park, with its miles of tour roads, reconstructed tavern and scores of cannon, preserves the scene of one of the largest Civil War battles fought west of the Mississippi River.

Tens of thousands of men fought a bloody battle here in 1862 for control of northern Arkansas and Missouri. Union troops won the dramatic two-day fighting, ending Confederate General Earl Van Dorn's dreams of conquering St. Louis.

President William Jefferson Clinton Birthplace Home National Historic Site

Top Things to do - Tour the Visitor Center, Guided Tour of Birthplace Home

Lodging - There is no lodging within President William Jefferson Clinton Birthplace Home NHS. You can consider staying in the nearby cities like Hope, Camden, and Texarkana

Camping- There is no camping available on the site

Park Address - 117 South Hervey Street, Hope 71801

President William Jefferson Clinton Birthplace Home NHS is located in southwestern Arkansas approximately 110 miles southwest of Little Rock. The park is open year-round and offers the opportunity to take a guided tour of the 1917 house where Bill Clinton lived as a boy.

Visit the birthplace home of our 42nd president, William Jefferson Clinton in Hope, Arkansas. This small National Historic Site includes a visitor center and the birthplace home. You can easily tour this site in an hour or two.

Arkansas also has a great variety of national forests and state parks. We can't wait to get back to explore more along the Arkansas River and White River along with more of the epic scenery that truly surprised us.

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List of National Parks in Arkansas

Affiliated Sites

Trail of Tears National Historic Trail (AL, AR, GA, IL, KY, MO, NC, OK, TN)

There are 7 National Parks in Arkansas with over 3.2 million visitors each year. The National Park Service states that this produces over $222 million in economic benefits from tourism.

Arkansas National Parks include 1 wild and scenic river managed by the National Parks, 1 National Trail, 2,680 National Register of Historic Place listings, 17 National Historic Landmarks, 5 National Natural Landmarks, and 178 places recorded by the heritage documentation program.

There are over 1.9 million objects in the National Park Museum Collection in Arkansas. 1,173 Archaeological sites are located within the Arkansas Parks.

The National Parks in Arkansas protect 8 threatened and endangered species.

If you have dreamed of working in the National Parks make sure and check out our article on How to Become a Park Ranger. Working in the parks is one of the most amazing jobs you can find. There is just something special about waking up and knowing you are going to work in a beautiful park.

Additional National Park Travel Resources

Planning a National Park vacation? America the Beautiful/National Park Pass covers entrance fees for an entire year to all US National Park Sites and over 2,000 Federal Recreation Fee Sites.

The park pass covers everyone in the car for per vehicle sites and for up to 4 adults for per-person sites.

Buy on REI.com and REI will donate 10% of pass proceeds to the National Forest Foundation, National Park Foundation and the U.S. Endowment for Forestry & Communities.

Free Entrance Days -Mark your calendars with the five free entrance days the National Park Service offers annually.

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