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Home Valley Bluff
9/28/13
Two weeks ago I drove around the valley of Home Creek...a tributary of the upper Big Piney. Today I hiked the perimeter rim above the valley. This we will call the Home Valley Bluff Line. This almost continuous string of cliffs is near 3 miles long when you follow the edge. Before undertaking this hike a goodly breakfast was eaten at Denny's in Russellville at 3:30 a.m. Now...let's take a look at this wasted wonder of Ozark sandstone that should have been protected.
Home Valley is just south of Hwy 16 near the community of Nail. Hogert T. Nail was first to settle in the area in 1839. He is known for nothing else. After parking at an undisclosed location, I proceeded west on Hwy 16 for almost 2 miles and turned left on CR 307 then south on CR 27 then left on CR 312 then left into the woods. I must say this section of forest was about as thick as anything I have crawled through. By 6:45 the first bluff was visible. This bluff was visible from the road when I passed through here 2 weeks ago. Sunrise was to be at 7:07 so I was on time. A large cloud bank had moved in around 5:15 but stayed just barely to the south of me. The sunrise was quite nice. The temp was 73 degrees and insect pests were at a minimum.
The bluff edge continued to snake eastward and I slowly traced its path until it almost played out at 12:00. The road was found and the hike ended at 12:30 at my Xterra Outdoor Transport Unit. Total mileage was right near 7.5. As I said before, this is an amazing area that should be completely on public property...but it's not. Sad.
