When Arkansas Was the Wild West: German History Hike at Devil's Den

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The German section is partnering with Kara Helton and Terry Anderson, state park interpreters at Devil's Den, to host a hike on April 15 for anyone who would like to learn about German author Friedrich Gerstäcker and his impressions of Wild West Arkansas. The event is free and open to the public, but space is limited, so advance registration is required. It takes less than a minute.

Helton offers these tips: "Devil's Den is a fantastic hike, since it's 1.5-mile moderate trail that takes them right to one of the foundations of one of the historic homesites, the Cold Springs area, the Twins Falls, the Devil's Icebox and the Devil's Den Cave. Given the rocky terrain, we recommend sturdy, comfortable hiking boots and a hiking stick/trekking pole. For parking on a Saturday morning, it may be best to encourage carpooling as much as possible and to park either down by the store or the Lower Devil's Den Trailhead (the area around the highway bridge) and have them walk the road up to the Visitor Center. This will help with keeping the Visitor Center parking lot from getting as congested with vehicles."