Cragies and Snackies

Rock Climbing in Arkansas is some of the best and most beautiful climbing in North America.  Autumn in Arkansas amongst the rocks is breathtaking.  The weather is perfect for sends, and the vistas from the top are worth the trip.  With over 2,700 routes, Arkansas with its bullet hard sandstone is the best of what backwoods climbing has to offer.  Known as the moderate mecca of the Midwest, Arkansas has something for everyone!

We’ve written about Arkansas’ Horseshoe Canyon Ranch on several occasions, including this classic titled Stinky Cheese, and High-Clips adventures at 24 hours of Horseshoe Hell.  Horseshoe Canyon Ranch is one of my favorite climbing destinations, but for this iteration of Cragies and Snackies, I wanted to turn our attention, toward something a little off the beaten path.  

It came down to two North Central Arkansas locations, Candy Mountain and Cave Creek.  While Candy Mountain is a spectacular destination with numerous 4-star routes, my primary reason for selecting Candy Mountain would have been to link this terrible short of Charlie the Unicorn Goes to Candy Mountain.  After some consideration, I realized that I wouldn’t want to anyone to think less of me for posting that link and decided to stick with Cave Creek.  Now you don’t have to waste the three minutes of your life watching the link I didn’t want to show you. 

Cave Creek, despite not being associated with a legendary unicorn, does boast of some legendary routes. There is the iconic 5.9 Red Faced Lizards a beautiful 50’ slab, there is a striking 5.11a on the Meat Wall called Lips and Assholes, and also the #1 reason everyone should visit Cave Creek, Brick Attack.  The cover photo is a shot of Brick Attack.  It’s a gorgeous 5.12a, it’s 55’ and has fixed gear throughout.  Brick Attack starts off on slab and ends with a few moves through an overhanging roof, a rare occasion where one route offers a little bit of everything.  

These are three of the routes in the area, but in addition, there are 70 more to choose from.  Unfortunately, while North Central Arkansas has some premier climbing, it isn’t exactly known for gourmet cuisine.  The nearest restaurants are 30-50 minutes away, so my advice is to just keep driving the extra hour or so to MeMe’s Twisted Potato in Little Rock AR.

MeMe’s Twisted Potato is consistently rated as one of the best vegan restaurants in all of Arkansas.  Owner and executive chef Meredith Coleman aka MeMe, uses nothing but the freshest ingredients, and while her culinary skills are pure magic, MeMe has made her mark on the community with her personal touch and customer service.  Comment after comment, review after review touches not only on the deliciousness of the food but also the friendly and inviting demeanor of MeMe herself!  While driving two hours to say hello to MeMe would be a worthy endeavor, you didn’t come all the way from North Central Arkansas to chat, you came to eat, and you will not be disappointed.

So, obviously order a twisted potato, but make sure to get a side of Mac and No-Chz, and an order of fried plantains as well.  Share those sides with the crew and then get ready to plow into ultimate goods.  At MeMe’s there is something for everyone, whether it’s a vegan buffalo crispy pizza, an order of nachos, a BBQ vegan pulled pork sammich, or the fired green tomato sammich, you will not be disappointed.  There are also an array of wings, burgers, vegan seafood, and tacos.  Just good fresh home cookin’ through and through!  To wash it all down, MeMe offers 100% fruit smoothies and 100% cold press juices.  For dessert MeMe doesn’t offer an extensive menu, but she does have highly touted Strawberry/White-Chocolate and Lemon/Blueberry cookies.  They are enough to make the entire trip worthwhile.  Make sure to order a few extra for the trip home (unless you live in Little Rock, then just get a few extra to take home)!

A few fun facts about Arkansas include that it is the home to Maya Angelou, Bill Clinton, and Johnny Cash.  It is also home to Hattie Ophelia Wyatt Caraway, the first woman elected to the US Senate, and also the home of the worlds first cheese dip.  The world Cheese Dip Championship is held in Little Rock each year.  Finally, Arkansas is the only place in the US where diamonds are actively discovered and mined.  Crater of Diamonds State Park is the only diamond mine open to the public, you can literally dig for your own diamonds.

While diamonds are a big draw for The Natural State, the greatest gems found in Arkansas are Cave Creek and MeMe’s Twisted Potato.

Location: North Central Arkansas

Crag: Cave Creek

Restaurant: MeMe’s Twisted Potato

Distance: 125 miles

• Cover Photo – Sam Matthews