Gary Lantz

Let the masses shop till they drop: On Arkansas's Ouachita River the pace is slow and easy.

Once a bumpy stagecoache route, Arkansas's Butterfield Trail now jostles hikers.

Visit Arkansas' Buffalo National River Trail, where the huckleberries are plentiful and the views are wondrous.

History and landscape meet at Caprock Canyos State Park.

Boy Scouts paved an excellent trail in this Ozark gem.

An Ozark oasis loaded with wildlife and fall colors.

Texas' Big Slough is as wet as the Big Bend is dry.

High, cool peaks rise over 7,000 feet above the desert flats in New Mexico's White Mountain Wilderness.

Oklahoma's own Tennessee awaits intrepid hikers.

The colorful walls of Palo Duro Canyon will delight hikers with masterpiece washes of color.

The bare rocks of Oklahoma's Charons Gardens will haunt and delight hikers.

The Ouachita Mountains sheltered outlaws and gave John Wayne something to crow about. But it's not until you hike the 223-mile Ouachita Trail that you realize this country is the stuff of legend.