The 2026 season at Blanchard Springs Caverns and Recreation Area is well underway, and there’s good news for fans of one of Arkansas’s most spectacular underground destinations. Arkansas Outside recently spoke with Jeff King, Deputy Director of Arkansas State Parks, to get the latest on tours, the ongoing state-federal partnership, and what visitors can expect this summer.
A Partnership That’s Working
Blanchard Springs Caverns entered a new era late last year when Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders and the Arkansas Department of Parks, Heritage and Tourism signed a memorandum of understanding with the U.S. Forest Service, setting in motion the process of designating the site as Arkansas’s 53rd state park. This season, Arkansas State Parks and the Ozark-St. Francis National Forests are operating the facility under a cooperative operating agreement, with state park staff providing guides, ticketing personnel, transportation drivers, and maintenance support while the Forest Service continues to oversee facilities and provide operational leadership.
King says the arrangement is going well. “We’re operating the caverns in partnership with the U.S. Forest Service,” he said, “and that partnership has been successful.”
How the Partnership Is Funded
One question that has lingered since the December 2025 MOU announcement is how Arkansas State Parks is paying for its role at Blanchard Springs, a question state officials had declined to answer in detail. Federal grant records reviewed by Arkansas Outside through HigherGov.com provide the most concrete answer yet.
According to those records, Arkansas State Parks received a five-year cooperative agreement from the Ozark-St. Francis National Forests valued at approximately $966,545. The agreement consists of $716,184 in federal funding and a $250,361 non-federal match from Arkansas State Parks. Notably, the agreement specifies that the federal portion comes from recreation fees previously collected at Blanchard Springs Caverns, meaning the cave’s own ticket revenue is being reinvested to keep it staffed and operating.
The agreement identifies the funded services as visitor center staffing, cavern tour guides, ticket sales operations, maintenance and cleaning, and general recreation area support, precisely the roles Arkansas State Parks has been filling this season. The U.S. Forest Service, meanwhile, retains ownership of the facilities and overall operational oversight.
That funding structure helps clarify a story that had previously been short on specifics. When Arkansas Outside asked about financing after the MOU was signed in December, the department’s response acknowledged only that “details related to costs, operations, and logistics will be developed as we move forward.” The federal grant record suggests those details had, in fact, already taken shape.
Discovery Trail Is Back
The biggest news for cave enthusiasts this season is the return of the Discovery Trail tour. The lower-level route, a more demanding 1.2-mile journey that descends 366 feet underground, passes rimstone dams, threads through the dramatic Ghost Room, and follows the path of the cave’s original discoverers along an underground stream, had been closed for several years.
“We reopened the Discovery Trail tour over Memorial Day weekend,” King said. “That lower-level section hadn’t been available for several years, so we’re excited to bring it back.”
The Discovery Trail joins the Dripstone Tour, the popular half-mile walk through the upper chambers of the cave, as one of two guided tours now available this season. Both tours are reservable online at recreation.gov. The Visitor Center and caverns are open Thursday through Monday, 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., with the last tour departing at 4 p.m.
Wild Cave Tour Still on Hold
Those hoping to get muddy and crawl through undeveloped passages on the Wild Cave Tour will need to keep waiting. That adventurous program, which offers access to parts of the cave well beyond the built pathways and requires participants to don helmets and headlamps, is not currently on the schedule.
“We’re still working through various aspects of our agreement with the Forest Service,” King said, “and there are currently no plans to reopen the Wild Cave Tour.”
Campground Work Underway
Visitors making a weekend of it at the Blanchard Springs Recreation Area campground can expect tidier surroundings this season. King confirmed that cleanup and maintenance work has been completed, though he was careful to note that larger projects will take more time.
“We’ve completed some cleanup and maintenance work, and there are certainly opportunities for future improvements,” he said. “However, any major changes will require additional coordination and planning with the Forest Service.”
Group campsites and reservable day-use facilities are bookable at recreation.gov. Individual campsites remain first-come, first-served starting May 1.
Looking Ahead
Despite frequent references to Blanchard Springs as Arkansas’s 53rd state park, there is currently no official enabling legislation establishing the site within the Arkansas State Park System. Instead, the park’s creation is presently governed by a Memorandum of Understanding between the State of Arkansas and the U.S. Forest Service.
Under that agreement, Arkansas State Parks is assisting with visitor services, cavern tours, maintenance support, and other operational functions through a Cooperative Operating Agreement, while the U.S. Forest Service retains ownership and overall management authority for the site.
State officials are utilizing the general administrative framework outlined in Arkansas Code Annotated 22-4-106 to guide the park’s development and operation. However, formal legislative approval will ultimately be required to officially incorporate Blanchard Springs into the Arkansas State Park System and establish its long-term governance structure.
For now, though, the caverns are open, a beloved tour has returned, and the partnership between Arkansas State Parks and the U.S. Forest Service continues to shape the future of one of Arkansas’s most unique recreation destinations.
Blanchard Springs Caverns is located at 704 Blanchard Springs Road, Fifty-Six, AR 72533. Tours can be reserved at recreation.gov. For more information, visit the Arkansas State Parks page or the U.S. Forest Service page for the caverns.
This article was originally published on ArkansasOutside.com, your trusted source for outdoor news and updates in The Natural State. Unless otherwise credited, all photos included in this piece are the property of Arkansas Outside, LLC. We take pride in sharing the beauty and adventures of Arkansas through our lens—thank you for supporting our work!
