Things to Do at Greers Ferry Lake

Sugar Loaf Mountain Island National Recreation Trail

Sugar Loaf Mountain Island is a 400-foot-high island in the north pool of Greers Ferry Lake and home to Arkansas's first designated national scenic trail. The island has no road access -- you reach it only by boat or via a water taxi that runs from the Fairfield Bay Marina during the boating season. The summit trail is 2.2 miles round trip and gains roughly 380 feet of elevation through rocky Ozark forest, emerging at a rocky summit with panoramic views of both pools of the lake.

The trail is maintained by the USACE and is well-marked. Peak visitation is July through September; fall (October-November) offers the combination of cooler temperatures and hardwood color that many people rate as the best experience on the island. The water taxi schedule from Fairfield Bay Marina varies by season -- confirm current times and rates before planning a visit. Private boats can anchor off the island and use the public access; the Corps maintains an overnight anchorage area.

For property owners with boats, Sugar Loaf Island is one of the primary summer activities for visiting family and overnight guests. The hike is accessible to most adults in reasonable fitness, the views are genuinely impressive, and the combination of a lake boat trip with a mountain trail is the kind of experience that doesn't exist at most competing lake markets in the South.

Blanchard Springs Caverns

Blanchard Springs Caverns sits approximately 30 miles north of Greers Ferry Lake in the Ozark National Forest near Mountain View, Arkansas. It is consistently listed among the top tourist attractions in Arkansas and is one of the premier show caves in the country -- a USFS-operated living cave with active cave formation and multiple developed tour routes.

The cavern has two primary tour options: the Dripstone Trail (lower cave, 70-minute tour, significant walking and stairs) and the Discovery Trail (upper cave, 50-minute tour, more accessible). A Wild Cave Tour for more adventurous visitors operates by reservation. The complex includes an underground stream, massive speleothem formations, and a geology that represents tens of thousands of years of continuous carbonate mineral deposition.

Blanchard Springs is not technically on the lake, but it is the most significant non-aquatic attraction within an hour of Greers Ferry Lake. It is a standard day trip for lake residents and their guests, particularly during summer when it provides cool underground temperatures (about 58°F year-round) as a relief from Ozark heat. Call 870-757-2211 or check recreation.gov for tour reservations and current pricing.

Scuba Diving the Ruins of Higden

The original town of Higden was inundated when Greers Ferry Lake was impounded in 1963. The submerged remains -- roads, foundations, structural elements -- are accessible to divers and represent one of the more unusual dive sites in the inland United States. Greers Ferry's exceptional water clarity (15--25 feet typical visibility, sometimes more) makes the ruins genuinely explorable rather than just a theoretical curiosity.

The old Higden road beds are visible on sonar and known to local divers. Basic recreation scuba experience is sufficient for most site exploration -- the depths range from shallow (10--15 feet) to moderate (30--40 feet) depending on where you dive. There are no established commercial dive operations at Greers Ferry Lake as of 2026, so divers typically arrive with their own gear via private boat. The Arkansas Underwater Explorers group has organized dives to the site; local dive shops in Little Rock (approximately 90 minutes south) can provide air fills and local knowledge.

Note that some accounts of building structures remaining at the old Higden site should be treated with appropriate uncertainty -- the lake has been inundated for over 60 years and sediment accumulation varies. The roads and general site location are well-documented; specific structures are more variable. First-time divers to this site benefit from going with someone who has dived it before.

Indian Rock House Cave

Indian Rock House Cave is a large sandstone overhang cave formation on the north shore of Greers Ferry Lake, accessible by trail from the Greers Ferry area. The cave contains evidence of prehistoric Native American occupation and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is one of the significant archaeological sites in north-central Arkansas.

Access to Indian Rock House is via a trail system on private or Corps-managed land in the Indian Hills area north of Greers Ferry. Trail conditions and access specifics change; the Greers Ferry Chamber of Commerce (501-825-6040) can provide current guidance on access. The cave itself is a geological formation rather than a developed attraction -- no lighting, no signage inside -- so it is an outdoor exploration experience rather than a guided tour.

Bridal Veil Falls and Cornelius Falls

Bridal Veil Falls is a seasonal waterfall on Spring Creek north of Greers Ferry, accessible via a short trail. It runs well in spring following rains and may reduce significantly in summer drought conditions. Cornelius Falls is another nearby waterfall in the broader Greers Ferry area. These are the types of short hiking destinations that punctuate the broader trail network in the Ozark foothills around the lake.

The Fairfield Bay trail system includes 20-plus miles of hiking and mountain biking trails within the community itself, rated for various difficulty levels. The Greers Ferry Wildlife Management Area managed by the AGFC provides additional public land access for hiking and hunting on the lake's south shore. Several informal trails access USACE shoreline property around the lake for fishing, birdwatching, and casual walking.

ATV and UTV Trails: The Fairfield Bay Network

Fairfield Bay has over 90 miles of designated ATV and UTV trails through the Ozark terrain surrounding the community. This is one of the most extensive private community OHV trail networks in Arkansas and is a genuine draw for a specific type of buyer -- those who want off-road recreation integrated into their lake property lifestyle.

Access to the trail system requires payment of the Fairfield Bay POA assessment and/or a trail pass for visitors. The trails range from easy gravel roads to technical rocky terrain. Several overlook points provide views of the lake from the surrounding ridgelines. The trail system is primarily for Fairfield Bay property owners and their registered guests; short-term rental guests at Fairfield Bay properties typically receive trail access as part of their stay.

Golf: Eden Isle and Fairfield Bay

Greers Ferry Lake has two 18-hole championship golf courses. Eden Isle Golf Club on the private island in the south pool is associated with the Red Apple Inn resort and is available to resort guests, members, and their guests. The course is designed around the island terrain with lake views from multiple holes.

Fairfield Bay has two separate 18-hole courses: Indian Hills Golf Course and Mountain Ranch Golf Course, both owned and operated by the Fairfield Bay Property Owners Association and available to POA members and their guests. Property owners in Fairfield Bay have access as part of their POA membership structure; day play for non-members is also available. Both courses are Ozark mountain terrain courses with significant elevation change and water views.

Swimming Beaches and Corps Parks

The USACE maintains 18 recreation areas around Greers Ferry Lake, several of which include designated swimming beaches. Heber Springs Recreation Area (Park Road, Heber Springs) on the south shore is one of the most accessible, with a beach, picnic areas, and a boat ramp. Shiloh and Sugar Loaf parks on the north shore also offer swimming access.

The lake's water clarity makes beach swimming particularly pleasant at Greers Ferry -- the sandy-bottomed areas near the beaches are visible from above the surface in calm conditions. Lifeguards are not staffed at these facilities, so swimming is unsupervised.