Ozark-St. Francis National Forest · Arkansas

North Sylamore Creek Trail

23 mi of trail, end to end · native material surface · trail No. 2101 · trail class 2 · typical grade 12-20% · tread 18-24 inches wide · hiking

Campgrounds

Along the way Barkshed Recreation Area Gunner Pool Recreation Area

Begins at the forest's mile 0, 35.9421, -92.1251 - no trailhead mapped Drive to where the trail begins

North Sylamore Creek the Forest Service's write-up

season Year-round to

4/7/25: Section between Blanchard Springs and Gunner Pool closed due to tornado damage.

The trail follows along the North Sylamore Creek, a federally designated scenic river, from which it is named. Hikers will encounter a wide variety of forested landscapes ranging from lower streamside elevations to high ridges. Main points of interest include Slick Rock Hollow, numerous scenic overlooks, and beautiful open fields managed as openings for wildlife. In addition to the original 13.75 mile section, the trail now extends from Barkshed Campground, upstream along the creek to a new trailhead on Cripple Turkey Road where it intersects the Ozark Highlands Trail. The ten mile extension was completed in 2006, largely through the efforts of the Ozark Society and American Hiking Society in cooperation with the U.S. Forest Service. Three trailheads are located within the District’s developed recreation areas: Blanchard Springs, Gunner Pool, and Barkshed. Camping is available only within developed sites at the recreation areas, but primitive camping is allowed at the Allison and Cripple Turkey Trailheads. With caution, the access roads for the extension can be negotiated in almost any vehicle. The roads are gravel, narrow, rough, and not populated or heavily traveled. Cole Fork Road is subject to flooding, and caution should always be used crossing Cole Fork Creek near the end of the road.

Map of the North Sylamore Creek Trail

General trail information

Restrictions Foot travel only. Vehicles, motorcycles, bicycles, OHVs and horse traffic are not allowed.

This hike on fs.usda.gov

Every trail in Ozark-St. Francis National Forest

All 171 trails in Ozark-St. Francis National ForestFind a trailForest on fs.usda.gov

About this trail's facts

The lines are the US Forest Service's National Forest System trails layer (public domain), read 2026-10-16 and simplified for the map; the length is the line's, end to end, and the class, surface, grade and tread width are the forest's own entries where it publishes them - a forest that publishes the centreline alone has none. The trailheads and the points along the way are the Service's recreation points, and the write-ups its own recarea text, unedited. Heights come from USGS 3DEP through Terrain Tiles on AWS (Mapzen/Tilezen), read along each line and rounded; a short trail on steep ground can be off by a few tens of feet. Closures change: check the forest's own site before you go.