Ouachita National Recreation Trail - 2019 (Sep.)
 |  |
|---|---|
 |  |
 |  |
 |  |
 |
With plans to visit the Ouachita National Scenic Trail in October, I thought I would drive to the trail earlier and get a better understanding of the trail and the logistics for our future trip. On Saturday, I arrived at Big Cedar Trailhead (Mile 30.5) at around 10am. It is a difficult trailhead to see from Google Street View, but it is withdrawn into the treeline. Unfortunately, a few ATV parties parked their truck and trailers in the same space, making it unavailable to subsequent hikers. Regrettably, I parked my car off the main highway, hoping it would be OK. From the trailhead, I headed east and very quickly encountered a nice stream. I drank some water, and topped off my stores. I would later realize this was my last water source. A few hours later, I reached the Pashubbe Trailhead (Mile 34.3) where a few horse carriers were parked. Although the Pashubbe Shelter looked appealing, I wanted to go further. I thought I would press forward to the Kiamichi River (Mile 39.2), refill on water and camp. Reaching the river at approximately 3pm, I was very disappointed. The landscape is very thick vegetation, low-lying near the creek, and not appreciable water. Kind of depressing. I had two liters of water remaining. I decided to return west back toward the car, and setup at one of the hilltop overlooks I saw within the past two hours. Near dusk, I found a suitable location. Conserving my water, I had dinner and slept in the warm summer-like air.
The next morning, I decided to conserve my one liter of water, and head back toward the car. Since it was a warm weekend, I was noticing the strong affects of the lack of water. Finally, I returned to the small creek that I refilled the previous day. I drank copious amounts of water, and then finished the short section to return to my car. Fortunately, no damage, and after eating in Talihina, returned to Dallas.