White Rock Flips ?Arkansas Switch?

Paula White says it right up front on White Rock Mountain’s Web site. The U.S. Forest Service-owned recreation area is not for everyone.

After turning west off Arkansas Highway 16 between Combs and Brashears, there’s a 16-mile bumpy climb up Forest Road 1007. Once visitors reach Arkansas’ third highest elevation (2,306 feet above sea level), signs warn against letting children run around unsupervised.

Open bluffs of 120 feet and higher rim the mountain where seven people have fallen to their death since the 1930s.

The accommodations are rustic: there’s no television or telephones, no air conditioning and the heat is strictly by fireplace. The Franklin County respite is 45 miles southeast of Fayetteville, and at least a 25-minute jog to the civilization of Mulberry.

What the getaway does offer is arguably the state’s most spectacular sunset. It’s also the perfect place, White said, to flip one’s “Arkansas switch” whether that means a day of hiking, camping, riding ATVs, kayaking, canoeing, horseback riding or just taking in the fall foliage.

White, the park’s concessionaire since 1991, leases the property from the Forest Service and manages the park. She said White Rock averaged about 350 visitors per month in 2004, or about 4,200 for the year. That figure was up about 10 percent from 2003, a fact she attributes to the March 2004 debut of the resort’s Web site.

Steve Schibler, a Web designer in Springfield, Mo., created the site at www.whiterockmountain.com.

“On weekends, we’re booked fulltime,” White said. “Right now, the first opening I have is in June. In October, every cabin will be booked solid by people wanting to see the leaves. There’s a lot of camera film burned up here.”

Because it’s typically about 10 to 15 degrees cooler on the mountain, White said, even the hottest summer months can be comfortable.

Guests frequently package a fall ride on the Arkansas-Missouri Railroad with their White Rock stay. The Van Buren train depot is about 40 miles away. It’s also a short drive to the Mulberry River where The Turner Bend Store and Byrd’s Canoe Rental sell supplies and rent equipment.

White Rock features a main lodge that sleeps 20 and three additional cabins that sleep up to eight people each, also making it a favorite spot for small company retreats. Prices start at $120 a night for the lodge and $60 per night for cabins.

Guests must bring their own bed and bathroom linens, but White helps out with the firewood. Thanks to a little help and a wood splitter, White cuts 20 to 25 cords of wood per year.

Gary Williams, the Boston Mountains district ranger for the U.S. Forest Service, said White has been a great concessionaire.

“She’s dedicated to the place,” Williams said. “She loves White Rock, and that shows through her customer service and the way she works with us.”

Greg Miller, the multiple resources assistant with the U.S. Forest Service in Ozark, said usage fees are collected for five recreation areas in the Boston Mountains ranger district: White Rock, Lake Wedington, Shores Lake, Natural Dam and Mill Creek.

Excluding White Rock and Lake Wedington, because they are concessions, the remaining sites brought in $15,000 for 2004. That was down 19 percent from $18,500 in 2003 and 12 percent from $17,000 in 2002. Miller said the amount is very cyclical.

White said on the Fourth of July guests can watch fireworks from Clarksville to Fort Smith. There’s nothing convenient about the site, she said, but she loves it for the beauty.