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Arkansas Outside
The Turkey Trots are Coming!
Yes, we know, it’s not even Halloween yet but the stores are already full of Christmas displays and we feel we need to make a gentle reminder. DON’T FORGET ABOUT TURKEY TROT SEASON!. It’s that time of year folks, when we start thinking about the leftover Halloween candy...
Centennial Park trail closures Oct. 28-29 for Arkansas NICA races
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – As part of this weekend’s Arkansas National Interscholastic Cycling Association (NICA) event at Centennial Park, on Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 28-29, several park trails will be closed to the public. The two-day event is one of six-weekend events that make up Arkansas NICA’s 2023 season...
Governor Sanders Announces New Director of Tourism
LITTLE ROCK, Ark.— Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders today announced that Dalaney Thomas will serve as Director of Tourism at the Arkansas Department of Parks, Heritage, and Tourism. “I’m proud to announce that Dalaney Thomas will serve as Arkansas’ newest Director of Tourism. Dalaney has spent nearly a decade working...
Bad Jack’s Trail Festival – Photo Essay
Overnight, colors changed. The annual Bad Jack’s Trail Festival was held this past weekend at Blanchard Springs Recreation Area in the Syllamo Ranger District, just outside of Mountain View, Arkansas. This event is presented by the folks at Syllamo Events. The festival began on Friday with a 5K run, followed on Saturday with a choice of a 16-mile or marathon distance trail run through the Syllamo Trails. Back at the start/finish line family and friends enjoyed a beautiful but slightly warm day. Once the runners had returned, everyone enjoyed incredible food, live music, and the Micro Bike races in the parking lot.
Gearhead Outfitters Little Rock to Relocate and Expand in Promenade at Chenal
Gearhead Outfitters, a leading outdoor specialty retailer, has announced the relocation and expansion of its Little Rock store within the Promenade at Chenal. The company has been a resident of the Promenade since 2013 and is now moving to the former Nike store location, providing a more spacious and enhanced shopping experience for its customers.
Mississippi Alluvial Valley Awarded $3 million for Wetland Habitat
Wetland protection, enhancement, and improvements will benefit wintering waterfowl and protect critical ecosystems. Ridgeland, Miss.- Oct.17, 2023 – Ducks Unlimited (DU) and its partners in Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi recently received a North American Wetlands Conservation Act (NAWCA) grant that will protect and enhance over 2,840 acres of wetlands along the Mississippi Alluvial Valley (MAV).
Rebranding the Buffalo National River
The Buffalo River in Arkansas underwent a remarkable transformation to become the Buffalo National River, a designation that helped protect its pristine natural beauty and historical significance. The journey began in the mid-20th century when residents and conservationists recognized the need to safeguard this unique and unspoiled river ecosystem from potential damming and commercial development. Their grassroots efforts led to the creation of the Ozark Society in 1962, a pivotal organization that played a significant role in advocating for the preservation of the Buffalo River.
Batten and Swenson Win Inaugural Life Time Little Sugar Mountain Bike Race
Bentonville/Bella Vista, Ark., (Oct. 15, 2023) – Northwest Arkansas saw a stacked field of the world’s top mountain bike racers at the Life Time Little Sugar MTB, in which Haley Batten of Santa Cruz, Calif. and Keegan Swenson of Heber City, Utah took first in the elite 100K races. Life Time and OZ Brands awarded a $65,000 prize purse equally split between the top five women and top five men finishers, the largest single-day prize purse in US mountain biking. The inaugural race had more than 1,000 participants, with riders aged 12 to 70 years old from 46 states and eight countries.
Team Ozark Set for the Adventure Racing World Championship in South Africa
Expedition Ozark co-race Director Jason Bettis is about to lead Team Ozark at the 2023 Adventure Racing World Championship. The 800km, non-stop race will be hosted by Expedition Africa and takes place in Kouga, in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. Team Ozark will be amongst 109 teams from 30 countries who will gather at Cape St. Francis and prepare for the race start on October 19th.
Virginia Endurance Cyclist Wins 1,000-plus-mile Arkansas High Country Bike Race in Record Time
HOT SPRINGS NATIONAL PARK, Arkansas — Virginia endurance cyclist Abe Kaufman rode into downtown Hot Springs Wednesday evening to win the 1,000-mile-plus Arkansas High Country Race in record time. Kaufman completed the challenging race, which took racers through some of Arkansas’s toughest mountain terrain, in 4 days,10 hours, 8...
Pulaski County to host ribbon cutting, dedication to Judy Lansky at Big Dam Bridge North Plaza, Oct. 18
PULASKI COUNTY, Ark. (October 9, 2023) – Pulaski County will host the Big Dam Bridge North Plaza Ribbon Cutting and Dedication to the Judy Lansky Pavilion on Wednesday, October 18 at 10 a.m. in Cook’s Landing Park. The new plaza aims to separate pedestrian and bicycle traffic by...
Riding a Bike for the Fun of it
“Biking is not just a sport, it’s a way of life.”– Anonymous. It’s easy to get carried away when riding a bike. The old adage, “If there is more than one cyclist, it’s a race.” can often be the case. Testosterone and the competitive spirit take over and soon, you find yourself down in the bars, butt in the air, and mashing those pedals. But it doesn’t have to be like that.
Tom Pidcock and Savilia Blunk to Headline All-Star Field at Life Time Little Sugar Mountain Bike Marathon Race
Bentonville/Bella Vista, Ark., (Oct. 5, 2023) – Olympic mountain bike champion, Tom Pidcock, and multi-time national champion, Savilia Blunk, will headline the elite fields at Life Time Little Sugar MTB on Sunday, Oct. 15. The world’s top mountain bike racers, many of whom are contenders in the Life Time Grand Prix presented by Mazda, make up the impressive fields.
Eddyline Kayaks Relocates Headquarters to Siloam Springs
SILOAM SPRINGS, Ark. (Oct. 6, 2023) – Eddyline Kayaks, an innovative paddlesports brand founded in 1971, is moving its headquarters from Washington State to Northwest Arkansas, company officials have announced. The move to Siloam Springs will be completed in December 2023. “At Eddyline, our purpose is to build quality...
USDA Forest Service Seeking Nominations for Recreation Resource Advisory Committee
RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. – October 3, 2023—The USDA Forest Service is re-establishing the Southern Region Recreation Resource Advisory Committee (Recreation RAC) and is soliciting prospective nominees. The purpose of the Recreation RAC is to provide recommendations on recreation fees for Forest Service lands within the states of Alabama, Arkansas,...
Second Annual Birdeye Gravel Festival Returns November 3-5, 2023
LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS (September 21, 2023) – StudioDRIFT is pleased to announce that the second annual Birdeye Gravel Festival is set to return on Friday, November 3rd in Birdeye, Arkansas. The three-day festival benefits the Crowley’s Ridge Gravel Trail Project, a project focused on connecting Piggott to Helena. Once complete, the Crowley’s Ridge Gravel Trail will span 249 miles – and 7,825′ of elevation.
Arkansas State Park Receives American Trails Legacy Trail Grant
The American Trails Legacy Program is funded up to $1.5M per year for 5 years through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and supports partner trail projects that further the Legacy Roads and Trails criteria on National Forest System trails throughout the nine Forest Service Regions. The goal of the program is to support projects that restore, protect, and maintain watersheds in the national forests and grasslands.
The Sandtown Shuffle – Photo Essay
Last Spring we attended the first Sandtown Shuffle and had an incredible time. So much so that when Bobby and Amy Finster came up with a Fall Edition, we signed up. This time we decided to share photos of just about everything except the bikes to give you an idea of the beauty of Independence, Sharp, and Izard Counties north of Batesville.
Outdoor Industry Non-profits Unite with a Shared Agenda
Washington D.C. (Sep. 28, 2023) — Aligned around the goal of facing unprecedented threats to public lands and waters, three well-established outdoor industry non-profits – representing a quarter million people and 800 businesses – are coming together with an aligned agenda and shared voice to protect the outdoors. The new coalition — Protect America’s Outdoors — is unified by the idea that speaking with one voice on behalf of a huge group of people makes their collective impact stronger.
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Outdoor Recreation News from Arkansas with coverage of events and destinations mainly in the state. We cover Hiking, Camping, Mountain Biking, Road Cycling, Kayaking, Canoeing, Trail Running, Backpacking, Rock Climbing, and more.
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