Eagle Rock Loop from DFW: A Weekend Backpacking Guide (2–3 Days)
By: Haley Cottey
CJ and I have backpacked Eagle Rock Loop a few times in the Ouachita National Forest and fell in love with this adventure gem that’s just about 4 hours from DFW. We’ve done it both the “push hard” way and the “soak it in” way—and honestly, we recommend the latter. 😊
Why we love it (and how to plan fast)
-
Beautiful loop close to home: ~30 miles of ridge views, waterfalls, river swims, and tons of established camps all only 4ish hours from DFW.
-
Trip length: 3 days/2 nights is the sweet spot. We’ve crammed it into 2 days/1 night, but our feet let us know about it. The next time we savored the swimming holes and views and did it in 3 days/2 nights. Next time we plan to take our kids and will probably expect to do it in 4 days/3 nights and let the kids set the pace.
-
Difficulty: It’s challenging. You will need to be physically prepared. One section stacks six steep climbs back-to-back over an 8ish mile section and another section has almost 20 river crossings so good river shoes AND good hiking shoes are a must. A little training goes a long way. I personally just hike most of the trail in my keens instead of trying to switch shoes at every crossing. I do take my trail runners though and change it up especially if I feel blisters coming on.
-
Start window: Many hikers kick off between 11am–2pm on Day 1 and finish around the same time on Day 3. We have also headed up late on a Thursday and set up camp and got an earlier start Friday morning but you can leave and start on the same day.
Clockwise or counterclockwise?
-
Counterclockwise = Get the hard ridges done early → easier Day 3.
-
Clockwise = gentler Day 1 → ridges on Day 2 (this is what we did starting north of Albert Pike).
- Both work—choose when you want the grind.
Trailheads & bailouts
There are multiple trailheads, so don’t stress about the “perfect” start. Bailouts exist, but you’ll need to arrange a ride back to your car if you exit early.
Want the exact camps, mileage splits, packing list & GPX?
We put everything into a quick Eagle Rock Loop PDF guide so you can just download and go—maps, campsites, daily miles, water notes, and a printable checklist.
Enjoy! Let us know how you like this loop if you try it!
You can also watch a video of our gear packing list HERE or below and a video about what food we packed for our group trip to ERL HERE.
