NEWTON COUNTY, Ar. (BRPROUD) – Authorities in Arkansas announced Tuesday (November 1) afternoon that a hiker from Baton Rouge who’d been missing for several days has been found near Buffalo National River, in the vicinity of Horseshoe Bend.
According to officials in Arkansas’s Newton County, 67-year-old Clinton Preston Smith of Baton Rouge “was found in good spirits and rescue personnel assisted him out to Kyles Landing.”
Smith’s family became concerned and reported him missing when he didn’t return for days after embarking on a solo hike Thursday, October 27 along the Hemmed-in-Hollow trail within Buffalo National River.
The area Smith chose to venture through is known for being rugged and steep. Authorities say that off-trail travel in this national park is often dangerous.
Search and rescue efforts led by Park Rangers and deputies with the Newton County Sheriff’s Office as well as Buffalo National River Search and Rescue volunteers were conducted over the weekend and on into Tuesday, until Smith was found.
Authorities say Smith was found around noon, Tuesday.