White Oak Lake State Park is a
state park in the southwest of the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...
of
Arkansas
Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the O ...
, a few miles from
Bluff City. The
reservoir
A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation.
Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including contro ...
sits surrounded by tall pine trees, giving it a rich, wooded beauty. The state park offers camping facilities, hiking and mountain biking trails, boat and bicycle rentals, as well as playground facilities.
Because White Oak Lake was created in a woodland area, the lake features many submerged dead trees. These serve as excellent cover for bass, crappie, and bream, all of which are reasonably abundant in the lake.
Catfish
Catfish (or catfishes; order Siluriformes or Nematognathi) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, catfish range in size and behavior from the three largest species alive ...
also thrive at the lake.
The park features hiking trails of easy to moderate difficulty, of which the Beech Ridge and Silver Maples trails give a good understanding of the "West Gulf Coastal Plain forest" setting. Deer and
heron sightings are common at the park, while some
bald eagles winter there.
White Oak Lake is reasonably popular with local residents, but its location in a part of Arkansas with few tourists keeps it from undue crowding or traffic. White Oak Lake is near the
Poison Springs Battleground State Park
Poison Springs Battleground State Park is an Arkansas state park located southeast of Bluff City. It commemorates the Battle of Poison Spring in the American Civil War, which was part of the 1864 Camden Expedition, an element of a Union Army in ...
, a
Civil War
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
battlefield.
Completed in 1961, the lake is 19 miles southeast of
Prescott, and 15 miles northwest of
Camden, off State Highways 387 and 24. It is the second largest lake created by th
Arkansas Game and Fish Commission at .
See also
*
List of Arkansas dams and reservoirs
Following is a list of dams and reservoirs in Arkansas.
All major dams are linked below. The National Inventory of Dams defines any "major dam" as being tall with a storage capacity of at least , or of any height with a storage capacity of .
Da ...
*
List of Arkansas state parks
There are 52 state parks in the U.S. state of Arkansas, as of 2019. ''Note: this list of all 52 parks is the default reference for current individual Arkansas state parks.'' The state parks division of the Arkansas Department of Parks, Heritage, ...
External links
Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism: Official White Oak Lake State Park website
References
State parks of Arkansas
Protected areas of Nevada County, Arkansas
Parks in Ouachita County, Arkansas
Buildings and structures in Nevada County, Arkansas
Buildings and structures in Ouachita County, Arkansas
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