Spring has come and April is one of my favorite times of the year to be in Arkansas.   The trees are beginning to leaf out and after a nice rain there can be numerous waterfalls.  I recently spent a couple of days in the Ouachita National Forest.   This section southeast of Mena is one of my favorite places to explore in Arkansas.  There are numerous cascades and waterfalls in this region of the Ouachitas. There are some well known cascades, such as Little Missouri Falls and Cossatot Falls, and also some hidden waterfalls within a short walk from a dirt road, such as Blaylock Creek Falls pictured below. You can see below the environment is lush and green and has an almost tropical appearance with the moss and ferns clinging the cliff.  Not only the 40 foot or so tall waterfall is nice, but in front of the waterfall is an attractive large pool in Blaylock Creek.  

I met up with William Rainey, a photographer in Mena who knows these mountains better than anyone else I know.  He showed me a couple of places that I have not seen before.   All of these pictures are within a short drive of the Albert Pike Recreation Area of the Ouachita National Forest.  He took me to Crooked Creek.  In the upper reaches of Crooked Creek, a beautiful stream begins.   Here the water is not wide and the falls are not tall, but the water is crystal clear and the slate rock that is carved out has some interesting square patterns.  

Further down Crooked Creek, the falls get bigger but the water is just as clear!

William also took me to some unnamed waterfalls.  This one was near Statehouse Mountain.  

Oh yeah, and the wildflowers are coming out too!