Day, Date:  Saturday, January 16, 2021

Name of Hike:  Wedington Twin Peaks Loop

Location:  Ozark St. Francis National Forest, Wedington WMA west of Fayetteville AR

Type of Hike:  Day-hike, trail 60%, forest road 15%, primitive trail 10%, mild bushwhack on old trail 15%.

Hiking Distance:  6.1 miles.

Maximum Elevation Difference:  380 ft

Rating:  Moderate, due to distance, gradual slopes, and some uneven terrain on primitive trail with overgrown areas on abandoned trail portion.  Most of the hike is on well-maintained multi-use trail with no undergrowth.

Features:  This is the hike for those with summit fever.  We’ll drop down on forest road to the bottom lands of the Illinois River (1011 ft).  We follow the bottomlands along primitive trail and ascend up the old abandoned Twin Peaks trail to join the new multi-use Wedington Twin Knobs Trail.  This new trail takes us through forest land with deep ravines to the top of Lower Round Top (North Peak @ 1394 ft) and Upper Round Top (South Peak @ 1404 ft).  There are views in all directions from the top of North Peak.

Hike Leader:  Luke Parsch (contact hike leader for more info).

Telephone & Email:  479-442-3817 (home landline) or lparsch@uark.edu or 479-935-0859  (mobile on day of hike).

Meeting Place and Time:

• Meet at Harps Food Store parking lot (behind Hunan Manor) on W. Wedington Drive (Hwy 16) immediately west of the I-49 interchange in Fayetteville for a 9:15 am departure; (Harp’s locator address is 1274 N. Colorado Dr. on the north side of Wedington Dr); or,
• Meet at the Wedington Trailhead paved parking lot on AR Hwy 16 across from Lake Wedington Recreation area 12 mi west of Fayetteville at 9:35 a.m.; or,
• Meet at the parking area near the Twin Peaks trailhead on Co Rd 867 (FR 15001) at 10:00 am.  (The parking area is about 500’ before the new marked trail crossing).  Google map location = https://www.google.com/maps/dir/36.1425774,-94.3801791/@36.1418719,-94.3802404,390m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m2!4m1!3e0
• Car-caravan means we drive as a group in our own cars to the trailhead.

Driving Distance:  18 miles from the Fayetteville car caravan to the trailhead parking area.  The last 4.5 miles is on gravel road suitable for 2WD low clearance vehicles.

Comment:  Wear a mask and plan to social distance.  Bring water, snack or lunch, rain gear, gloves, and wear hiking boots/shoes.  Hiking poles will be helpful.  No pets are allowed on any hikes, and children under 12 years are discouraged and must be accompanied by a guardian.   Participants are required to sign a “liability release” http://www.ozarksociety.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/OS-Sign-Up_Sheet_rev4.pdf  at the trailhead to take part in any Ozark Society outing.  Everyone is welcome to hike with the OSHC, whether an Ozark Society member or not.

Links to Pictures of recent OSHC hikes can be seen on the Ozark Society Website atwww.ozarksociety.net  Go to Chapters & Activities/Highlands Chapter and look for Frank Millett’s and Luke Parsch’s  Flickr websites links.