Ozark Highlands Scenic Byway
Ozark Highlands Scenic Byway is a State Scenic Byway in Arkansas. Within Arkansas it covers roughly 35 miles. The map below shows its route. Use “Plan a drive” to open it in the Road Sorties route planner — already routing along Ozark Highlands Scenic Byway with scenic roads turned on, ready to add your own stops.
Arkansas' Ozark Highlands Scenic Byway follows 35 miles of State Highway 21 from north of Clarksville to the Buffalo National River. It crosses the Ozark National Forest's Boston Mountains, and for eight and a half miles near Fallsville, State Highway 16 joins the route before splitting off again at Edwards Junction, roughly the midpoint between Johnson County in the south and the Upper Buffalo Wilderness in Newton County to the north. Rather than following a river valley, the byway is a genuine 'highlands route,' running the ridgelines between the headwaters of several major Ozark streams, which keeps traffic and towns to a minimum. The Arkansas Department of Transportation designated it a state scenic byway in 2005, and it serves as the main travel corridor linking Clarksville to Harrison, Jasper, Berryville, and Eureka Springs, along with access to the Ozark Highlands Trail and the White River's headwater tributaries. Dense national-forest hardwoods, ridge-top overlooks, and a noticeably cooler, higher-elevation feel set it apart from the flatter drives elsewhere in the Arkansas River valley.
- State Highway 21
- Boston Mountains
- Buffalo National River
- 35 miles
- Ozark National Forest
- Ozark Highlands Trail
- 2005 designation
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What is a State Scenic Byway?
State Scenic Byways are roads a state has formally recognized for their scenic, natural, historic or cultural value — each state's own curated collection of drives worth taking slowly.
Where to Stay along Ozark Highlands Scenic Byway
2 campgrounds and RV parks sit within about 5 miles of Ozark Highlands Scenic Byway.
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