Lake Dardanelle State Park

This park is located in two areas on Lake Dardanelle, a 34,300-acre reservoir on the Arkansas River. The main site is in Russellville where you’ll find the Sport Fishing Weigh-in Pavilion, a fishing pier, swimming beach, boardwalk, trail, and visitor center with five aquariums, and the Lakeview Room meeting facility. Park interpreters lead a variety of programs and lake tours. There are 57 campsites in the Russellville area of the park (16 Class AAA, 14 Class AA, and 27 Class B) with 18 Class B sites in the Dardanelle area of the park.

Lake Dardanelle State Park is a certified Trail of Tears National Historic Site. The Visitor Center, located on the Russellville side of the park, offers spectacular views of the river, along with exhibits that tell more of the removal story. During the time of removal, Dardanelle was more of a village than a town and was a popular stopping point between Little Rock and Fort Smith. More important was Norristown, just across the river, which had a ferry crossing. The Norristown ferry played a vital role in this process. Removal parties choosing a more southerly route to “Indian Territory” crossed the river from Norristown to Dardanelle. Many continued on the north side of the river, taking the road to Dwight Mission, or the road that became Hickeytown Road. Between late 1831 and 1859, groups of Cherokees, Choctaws, Muscogees (Creeks), Seminoles, and Chickasaws passed through or by Norristown. Learn more about the Trail of Tears in Arkansas state parks.