Brooksher Crooked Creek Preserve

Brooksher Crooked Creek Preserve
© Mike Fuhr/TNC

Why You Should Visit
This preserve features half a mile of river frontage and several large bluffs overlooking Crooked Creek and an old railroad trestle. The creek is considered one of the finest smallmouth bass fisheries in the nation. Also found on this site are bluff-top glades and savanna plant communities with a suite of Arkansas wildflowers.

Location
Marion County

Size
115 acres

How to Prepare for Your Visit
Terrain throughout the preserve ranges from level and easy to steep and rough. One can access the river on foot, but there are no marked trails. There are several tall bluffs on the property overlooking the river. Bluffs are not fenced; please use extreme caution when hiking near the edges.

Sturdy hiking shoes, insect repellent and sunscreen are recommended. Bring water shoes for river activities.

Directions

From Yellville, take Highway 62/412 west
After about 5 miles, turn left (south) onto County Road 4005
Veer right at the fork (i.e., do not take Gebert Road)
Once the road bends to the west and you pass a small house on the left, you are driving through the preserve
Park anywhere along the road and hike on the south side of the road to access the bluff-top vistas of Crooked Creek and its watershed. (Don't be confused by the old barn on the north side of the road; it is also on the preserve.)

For floaters: The preserve is located halfway between the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission access at Pyatt and Kelley Access Area at Yellville. Plans are under way to create a one-night primitive camping area on the Brooksher preserve.

What to See: Plants
Lowland and streamside areas have been converted to pasture, which is dominated by non-native species. Native river cane (Arundinaria gigantea) is dominant along the south side of the river. Limestone glades along the cliff have some native glade species including big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii), pale purple coneflower (Echinacea pallida), and tall dropseed (Sporobolus clandestinus).

Redbud (Cercis canadensis) and dogwood (Cornus florida) trees provide early springtime color in the predominantly oak woodlands.

Showy wildflowers include:

purple prairie clover (Dalea purpurea)
cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis)
black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta)
bird's foot violet (Viola pedata)
several species of sunflower (Helianthus spp.) and goldenrod (Solidago spp.)

Plants of state conservation concern include Ashe's juniper (Juniperus ashei) and purple beardtongue (Penstemon cobaea).

List of plants here

What to See: Animals
Crooked Creek is home to many aquatic species found only in the Ozarks. Ozark endemics such as the checkered madtom (Noturus flavater), a native miniature catfish, and the Arkansas saddled darter (Etheostoma euzonum euzonum), are of special concern because of their limited range. Also found on the preserve are two hawk species considered rare in Arkansas: Cooper's hawk (Accipiter cooperii) and red-shouldered hawk (Buteo lineatus).

List of animals here

Why the Conservancy Selected This Site
The Conservancy received the land in 2001 as two gifts. William Riley Brooksher of Washington state and his sister Nita Zimmerer of California made the initial donation of 71 acres, followed by 44 adjacent acres donated by their cousins Dan and Robert Brooksher of Georgia and Louisiana.

The preserve is part of a larger Crooked Creek conservation partnership that includes a nearby Arkansas Game and Fish Commission Wildlife Management Area and a privately owned tract under conservation management.

What the Conservancy Has Done/Is Doing
The Conservancy and partners are preparing restoration and educational interpretation plans for the Crooked Creek conservation area. Stewardship activities will focus on restoring native plant communities and stabilizing stream banks to reduce river sedimentation.

The Conservancy and Arkansas Game and Fish Commission have entered into an agreement to create a primitive public float camp on the Brooksher Crooked Creek Preserve.