Towering Pines Trail is only a half-mile but it is the rockiest trail in DeGray Lake Resort State Park. It is also the trail with the most change in elevation. Even so, park interpreters say the trail is still acceptable for most hiking abilities. The state’s website even lists it as “easy” and welcomes children on the trail. Dogs are also welcomed, as long as they are leashed for the duration.
Parking is located at the nearby amphitheater, which hikers can see as they start the trail. Also at the beginning of the trail is a short wooden footbridge that crosses a small creek. Watch for snakes as you cross. The early section of the loop trail is shaded by pine forest, indicative of the land’s former use by the timber industry.
While the trail gets its name from these large pines, don’t be surprised to see a number of dead trees along the path. Some have died due to recent drought and forest fires.
When the trail reaches the lake’s shoreline, watch for eagles and osprey. A beaver lodge has even been sighted from this area!
Towering Pines Trail is the most challenging DeGray Lake Resort State Park has to offer. This half-mile loop builds to an elevation of 72 feet and is the rockiest trail in the park. Even so, this trail is suitable for more healthy hikers of various levels of ability.
Parking at the amphitheater is convenient; the trailhead is near the amphitheater stage. The trail starts with a quaint wooden bridge to cross a small creek. The trail proceeds over a hill then around a ravine, taking the hiker along the edge of the lake before looping back. This particular part of the shore provides a look at a beaver lodge and, in the winter months, eagles and osprey feeding on fish from the lake.
As the name implies, pine forest is the backdrop to this trail. Long before the lake was created in 1972, pine trees from this area were harvested for lumber. Don’t let the charred look of some of the trees fool you into thinking they are unhealthy. They have been part of a prescribed fire used to control the tree population in the area. Some of the char may also be due to wildfires of recent droughts. White dogwood trees stand out against the dark pine forest every spring.
Towering Pines Trail is one of five trails at DeGray Lake Resort State Park in Bismarck, Arkansas. The trail and other recreational opportunities around the lake, were created through a partnership between the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism in 1971. The lake, created by damming a section of the Caddo River, was a nine-year project that was completed in 1972 for a total cost of about $64 million.
Talk of a dam on the Caddo dated back to 1909 when Arkansas Power & Light (AP&L) founder Harvey Couch first considered it for a hydroelectric generator. More than 20 years later, the federal government did geological studies in the area. Congress authorized a dam there an additional 20 years later, in 1950, with the River and Harbors Act. Funding was not available, however, because of the federal expense of the Korean War. Money was finally available in 1961.
Careful consideration was given to fish preservation downstream from the river. The lake features the state’s largest earthen dam – 3,400 feet, 243 feet above the river. Scenic Highway 7 runs on top of the three-mile earthen dike, giving highway travelers a view of two beach areas.
In addition to the five hiking trails, DeGray Lake Resort State Park provides an 18-hole golf course, a marina, lodge/convention center, tennis courts, and a pool.
