Traveling east on Rte. 271, youll soon reach Talimena State Park, just inside the boundary of Ouachita National Forest. Just ahead, where Rte. 271 intersects with Rte. 1, lies the West End Visitor Center, where you can get a map and information on overlooks and recreation areas along the drive. The Talimena Scenic Byway officially begins here, then continues all the way into Arkansas. Some 480 miles of superb hiking trails crisscross the forest, including the well-known Ouachita National Recreation Trail, which begins at Talimena State Park and runs 225 miles to the outskirts of Little Rock, Arkansas. Paralleling parts of the drives route, the trail leads backpackers through some of the roughest, wildest, loneliest terrain to be found in the region. Ouachita National Forest can also be explored by canoe. Float trips along the Ouachita River begin at two sites: Pencil Bluff and Mt. Ida.