Nestled in the Arkansas River Valley, Russellville is the home to Lake Dardanelle State Park, where there’s world renowned bass fishing, boating, skiing, kayaking and swimming. If up-hill is where you are headed, visit one of the three mountainous state parks nearby for hiking, hang-gliding, rock-climbing and mountain biking.

Located roughly ten miles from the center of Russellville, Mount Nebo State Park is rich in history, with many of the facilities built by the 1930s Civilian Conservation Corps and having been a popular vacation destination prior to that, dating back to the 1800s. Mount Nebo State Park is also a certified Trail of Tears National Historic Trail Site.

Approximately 30 minutes from the center of Russellville, Petit Jean State Park was Arkansas’s first state park. It is the home of 95-foot Cedar Falls, Seven Hollows Trail, Bear Cave, the Grotto, Natural Bridge, and other formations like carpet rocks and turtle rocks. Stop at the visitor’s center for maps and program schedules.

A part of the Ozark-St. Francis National Forests and boasting the highest peak in the state at 2,753 ft, Mount Magazine State Park is located just under an hour’s drive from Russellville.