OUTDOOR AWARENESS

This would be our third portion of the Ouachita that we attempted. Looking at the trailheads and shelters, we decided for this more moderate 26 miles over 4 days which seemed more favorable than 32 miles over 5 days. For this trip, we started at our previous completion point, the Foran Gap Trailhead. Having spent the previous night in Poplar Bluff, MO, I met my partner who traveled from St. Louis at the Big Brushy Trailhead. After dropping a water cache at the 88.2 mile marker, we drove to our starting point at the Foran Gap Trailhead. From the trailhead, it was a very short hike of 0.9 miles to the Foran Gap Shelter. The Fall colors were well in progress, and the entire trip was very colorful and scenic, except water was extremely sparse. Although the evening temperature was 34' and the winds fairly strong, we managed to get a decent sleep. The next morning, we hiked the 6+ miles to find the one reliable spring. Although it was plotted on my GPS, we turned on an earlier forest service road, and was very disappointed what we found. From the small puddle we found, we loaded a few small water bottles. Afterward, when we saw the "Spring" sign we replaced this questionable water with the water from the spring. Unfortunately, these exercises consumed a bit of time. Although it was only another 6 miles to the Turner Gap Shelter, our water supply was low for the night and remaining day. We were fortunate to have shared the shelter with a resident of Dallas who was very familiar with the trail. With that knowledge, we walked south with him about .25 miles to find favorable water puddles to refill our bottles. This was very valuable knowledge. Again, the night was somewhat cold at 37'. However, we slept a little more comfortably.

The third day we continued east to Brush Creek Shelter. Again, we started to get low on our water. So it was with great relief that we intersected our water cache at mile marker 88.2 in the warm afternoon sun. We elected to take the three 1.5 gallon jugs with us to the shelter. Although the distance was 1.7 miles, the 25# of water was noticeable. At 2:30pm, we completed the 11.7 miles to Big Brush Shelter. The warm weather of 74' made us question if we wanted to put on sunscreen. However as soon as the sun set, so did the temperature. With the lack of wind and a protected rock area around the fire ring, we lit a fire and enjoyed a later evening with the comfort and pleasantness of a fire. Even the evening temperatures were higher than earlier nights, making our last night of sleep wonderful. Recognizing the travel times back to our homes, we awoke at sunrise and finished the 4.5 miles in a little over 2 hours. My partner and I had breakfast at the Bluebird Cafe and afterward we traveled our separate ways home. Another great trip on the Ouachita.