Big Bluff [Suggest Edits]

Description

At 550 feet tall, the entire face of Big Bluff is one of the tallest natural features between the Appalachian Mountains and the Rocky Mountains. Ages ago, the Buffalo River carved a ledge in the limestone cliffs that confined it. Time passed and the river continued its downward erosion. The Goat Trail runs along its face, following that 5-foot-wide ledge in the rock, hundreds of feet above the Buffalo River.

All-Day Hike: Take Hwy. 43 out of Harrison and travel approximately 22.5 miles to the Centerpoint Trail parking area located on the left side of Hwy. 43. The trailhead is approximately 3 miles north of Ponca.

Follow the Centerpoint Trail east for 2.6 miles to the unsigned Goat Trail which goes sharply to the south. Follow it downhill and along a limestone face to where you can crawl through a natural tunnel (an "eye" in the rock) – which can be bypassed by a use trail on the right) before continuing onto the 5-foot wide ledge, which soars 350 feet above a perfect U-bend in the Buffalo River. Below are expanses of oaks and hickories, which turn colors in October. Be extremely careful on that ledge as it's edge is abrupt and unprotected and it's a long fall to the river below.

Gem Type: Geologic Feature