I Tried a “Perfect” Ozarks Waterfall Road Trip—Here’s the Truth
I Tried a “Perfect” Ozarks Waterfall Road Trip—Here’s the Truth
By: a.d. elliott | Take the Back Roads - Art and Other Odd Adventures
Dear Henry,
I finally felt good enough to get out and try to take some photographs again, which felt like something of a small miracle after weeks of not being able to trust my own strength. And because I’m back in the Ozarks, where some of the best waterfalls live, and because the rain had settled in for the weekend, we decided to go looking for them.
And instead of trusting either one, I downloaded a “perfect five-hour waterfall road trip” from the internet. It was lies. Not exaggerations. Not optimism. Just… lies.
None of the waterfalls on that list were places you could simply pull up to. The shortest hike was two miles round-trip. The longest stretched to eleven. Whoever wrote that itinerary either never did it or didn’t care whether anyone else could.
Somewhere along the way, we started mistaking visibility for truth. A post goes viral, gets saved, shared, and passed around, and suddenly it sits on a kind of pedestal, as if popularity alone has made it trustworthy. Maybe it’s time we take a closer look at those pedestals.
Because there is no version of that day that fits neatly into five hours. Not if you’re walking to the falls, not if you plan on seeing a single thing.
And then there was the rain.
The forecast had promised morning showers and clearing skies, the kind of day that makes waterfalls worth chasing. But the clouds never broke. The rain stayed steady. The roads slicked over, the hills softened into mist, and whatever plan we thought we had dissolved right along with it. So we drove.
Through the hills of Arkansas, through fog and wet pavement and trees just starting to come alive again. We talked. We watched the world pass by in shades of gray and green. We let the day be what it was, rather than what someone else said it should be.
It wasn’t what we planned. But it wasn’t a waste either.
Still, there’s something about realizing how much of what’s out there isn’t built on truth. Just recycled lists and pretty promises, written by people who haven’t stood where they’re sending you.
It makes me think I need to start mapping these places myself. Because the road deserves better than that. And so do the people trying to follow it.
Stay tuned!
xoxo a.d. elliott
____________________________________________________________________
About the Author
a.d. elliott is a wanderer, photographer, and storyteller traveling through life
She shares her journeys at Take the Back Roads, explores new reads at Rite of Fancy, and highlights U.S. military biographies at Everyday Patriot.
You can also browse her online photography gallery at shop.takethebackroads.com.
✨ #TakeTheBackRoads
If you value slow travel, thoughtful essays, and quiet places, your support helps continue the journey.
