Buffalo National River Wilderness

Fire restrictions

County and local burn bans may also apply on private, state, or county land nearby. On federal land, follow the land manager's order; off it, follow the strictest county or local rule that applies. When both touch your trip, obey both.

Who manages Buffalo National River Wilderness

Getting to Buffalo National River Wilderness

• Ponca, AR is the nearest town, 0.2 miles in a straight line from the boundary (not a driving distance). (US Census places, accessed 2026-09-30)
• Access roads named on the area's wilderness.net page: State Route 21, State Route 43, State Route 74, County Road 6064, State Route 101, Searcy County's Cozahome Road.

Position, roads and vehicle notes: wilderness.net page for Buffalo National River Wilderness, accessed 2026-09-30. Roads and conditions change; check with the managing office before driving in.

Trailheads at Buffalo National River Wilderness

• Bench trail head (0.02 mi outside the boundary, 1,796 ft), at 36.0708, -93.2588 (mapped on OpenStreetMap)
• Schermerhorn Trail Head (0.06 mi outside the boundary, 2,077 ft), at 36.0730, -93.2651 (mapped on OpenStreetMap)
• Boxley Trail Head (0.26 mi outside the boundary, 1,154 ft), at 35.9454, -93.3989 (mapped on OpenStreetMap)
• Morning Star Trailhead (0.74 mi outside the boundary, 507 ft), at 36.1316, -92.5682 (mapped on OpenStreetMap)
• Spring Creek (0.96 mi outside the boundary, 719 ft), at 36.0531, -92.4450

Trailhead locations: Forest Service recreation sites layer , accessed 2026-09-30. Elevations from USGS 3DEP.

Trailheads mapped on OpenStreetMap: © OpenStreetMap contributors, available under the Open Database License , accessed 2026-09-30. The extract used here, with distances from the boundary: osm-trailheads-ar.json. Where an agency layer lists the same trailhead, the agency's point is shown instead.

Named summits, canyons, and springs in Buffalo National River Wilderness

• Pickert Point summit about 2,290 ft
• California Point summit about 1,820 ft
• Fisher Point summit about 1,714 ft
• Fox Den Spring spring

Features whose official location is inside the boundary, from the USGS Geographic Names Information System, accessed 2026-09-30. Summit elevations measured on the USGS 3DEP elevation model, which can read a few feet under a surveyed summit height.

Campgrounds in and around Buffalo National River Wilderness

• Steel Creek Campground (0.2 miles outside the boundary): its sites, fees, and reservations on campgroundsdb.com.
• Buffalo Point camping (0.9 miles outside the boundary): its sites, fees, and reservations on campgroundsdb.com.

Public lands next to Buffalo National River Wilderness

• National Park Service unitBuffalo National River Wilderness lies inside Buffalo National River, a National Park Service unit.
• Wilderness areaBuffalo National River Wilderness borders Leatherwood Wilderness.
• National forestBuffalo National River Wilderness borders Ozark-St. Francis National Forest.
• Wilderness areaBuffalo National River Wilderness borders Upper Buffalo Wilderness.
• State parkBuffalo River State Park (Arkansas) is 0.8 miles away, straight line between the two boundaries.

Measured between the units' boundaries as mapped in USGS PAD-US. Distances are straight line, not driving.

Other wilderness areas in Arkansas

• Caney Creek Wilderness (Polk County)
• Dry Creek Wilderness (Logan County)
• East Fork Wilderness (Pope County)
• Flatside Wilderness (Saline County)
• Hurricane Creek Wilderness (Newton County)

Arkansas wilderness areas