Local Attractions

• Want to canoe (find out how high the river is right now and what a good level is), swim, fish, ride, attend an interpretive presentation by the Park Service? All that can be done within 5 miles of the retreat.
• Want to go hiking? Get maps from the Pruitt Ranger Station on the Buffalo River in the National Park.
• Want to take a twenty-mile loop drive through the Buffalo National Park?
  (Scroll down the page on the National Park site until you see the Erbie Loop.)
  • Called the Erbie Loop, this route from the retreat takes you past a disabled accessible trail, canoe access points, Parker Hickman Historic Homestead, the Erbie Horse Camp and the Erbie Church.
• Want to go antique shopping? Harrison has several good antique stores that are consistently open seven days a week.
• Want to try a local auction? Unbelievable bargains and finds abound.
• How about a cave tour? Within 2 miles is Mystic Caverns.
• Want to catch a show at Branson? (or go here) It is an easy forty-mile drive (mostly highway miles).
• Want to visit Historic Eureka Springs? (or go here)It is also an easy forty mile (highway) drive.
• Planning a hunting/fishing trip to the area? Bring the whole family. You can split up and everybody will have something to do while you stalk the trophy.
• Looking for Elk?
  • You can see and photograph Elk in their natural habitat.
  • Go to the Elk Festival to be there when the lottery is drawn for the Elk hunt. Generally it is held every year in June.

The Buffalo River National Park boundary is less than 3 miles away.
(Get a printable PDF Map of the Buffalo River National Park from the National Park Service website. You will need Adobe Reader to see it.)

• The river and trail heads at the Buffalo National River's Pruitt Ranger Station and Access Area are 4 miles away, mostly driven on Scenic 7. There is a bridge crossing the Buffalo River on Scenic 7 at the Pruitt Ranger Station, so it is easy to figure out that you are there. From the Pruitt Ranger Station you can swim in the Buffalo River, hike along the river bank, and ride your horse on the horse trail.
• The Buffalo River boat access is quick and easy to get to, since it is a very short distance on a dirt road (less than a quarter mile) from the paved road, on the north side of the River very close to the bridge. There is a parking area you can't miss.
• Canoe Rentals are available from local concessionairs who can meet you at the River and pick you up when you are done, making your time on the Buffalo River as enjoyable as possible.

The Elk Festival is a big annual event that attracts people from all over the country where a lottery is drawn to find out who will be allowed to hunt elk. Find out from the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission about the elk hunt.

If you are not interested in the hunting lottery, there are lots of other things to enjoy: live music, reenactments of events, handcrafted items from local artists, and good food to eat.

Dawn or dusk is best at these places. Remember to bring your binoculars to get a good look, since they will probably be several yards away. Bring a zoom or long distance camera if you want to take pictures.

• The closest place to Buffalo River Retreat is to go to the dirt roads leading east and west from the Pruitt Bridge that is over the Buffalo River by the Ranger Station in Pruitt, only about 5 miles away.
  PDF Map of the Buffalo River National Park from the National Park Service website. You will need Adobe Reader to see it.)
  • Just go to Hwy 7 and drive South from the Retreat until you get to the bridge, you can't miss it, then turn down one of the dirt roads nearby.
  • Drive to a spot near a field that has trees nearby for the best chance to see them. They tend to come out from the trees to forage.
  • You may be the only ones that are there, since this is a lesser known area to view Elk.
• You can try looking near the Erbie campground on the south side of the Buffalo River or in the fields on the north side.
• One of the most popular places is along Ark. 43 and Ark. 21 in Boxley Valley on the paved road. On the weekends you have to get there early to get a good spot next to the fields where the elk like to graze.
• In Carver, check out the fields near the Carver Bridge and in the Gene Rush Wildlife Management area just south of the River.

Remember to be careful to not get too close to the Elk. After all, they are very large wild animals with big antlers that may not take too kindly to you getting in their space.