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Commission OKs new life for Camp Ouachita Friday, Jan 25, 2008 Arkansas News Bureau The plan is not for scouts in this reincarnation but for a conservation education facility under the direction of the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission. The commission on Thursday approved $75,000 to be used in a 50-50 match with the federal government to rebuild roads, parking areas, trails and signs at the camp. Camp Ouachita is next to Lake Sylvia in the southeastern corner of Perry County and not far west of Lake Maumelle. It was built in the late 1930s as a Civilian Conservation Corps project, and a centerpoint was its Great Hall, a stone structure with a massive fireplace. It is within the commission's Winona Wildlife Management Area, which is within the Ouachita National Forest. The Girls Scouts gave up the camp in 1979, and it deteriorated. In recent years, the U.S. Forest Service and the U.S. Department of the Interior spent $2.5 million restoring the camp, part of the national Save America's Treasures program. The restoration includes the Great Hall, seven cabins, a caretaker's residence and an outdoor pavilion, according to Lucy Moreland, chief of education and outreach for AGFC. Ten miles of hiking trails are in and near the camp. "The fully refurbished Great Hall and the cabins will give the Game and Fish Commission permanent locations in which to provide hands-on teacher trainings and education programs for the public," Moreland told the commissioners. "Overnight accommodations will enhance these opportunities and give families an opportunity to enjoy conservation-related activities in a Game and Fish Commission-provided environment." The Arkansas Game and Fish Foundation has made fundraising for the camp a top priority. The commission is waiting for a special use permit from federal authorities to take over the camp. In other action, the commissioners renamed a wildlife management area in Madison County. It is now the McIlroy/Madison County Management Area in recognition of the prominent Fayetteville family that played a large role in its establishment and its role in the restoration of Arkansas' deer. Some 7,516 acres were bought from the McIlroys in 1958 at $10 an acre. The commissioners also designated $82,700 for the completion of renovation of the Lake Hindsville Dam in Madison County. Lake Hindsville was the first AGFC lake to be completed, in 1949 after the lake proposal was presented to the AGFC by then-Madison County Judge Orval Faubus. Lake Conway had been approved earlier but was delayed by property and legal issues and not finished until 1951. The commissioners also agreed to rebuild the boat launching ramp at Lake Millwood State Park in Southwest Arkansas. Materials for the project will cost about $36,000 with park personnel to do the work. The money will come from Marine Fuel Tax funds, which are state taxes paid on fuel used by boats. Wildlife Officer Ken Key of Camden was recognized as Shikari Safari Club's Wildlife Officer of the Year in Arkansas. |
