Three from the Road #13 – 2010 trip
West Fork of the White River, Brentwood Rest Area, Hwy 71, Arkansas
On July 2, 2010, our first day of travel for a trip out west, we were I540 in western Arkansas trying to decide where to pull over for a break and lunch. Just before we got to the Winslow exit, I remembered a rest area on old highway 71 that we used to stop at almost every time we went over the mountains. We weren’t sure that it would be still open since almost all of the through traffic bypasses that area now. We decided to check it out.
During the 1980s and 90s, we often traveled US Highway 71 to northwest Arkansas to visit Karen’s family. Along the way, we would sometimes make a stop at the State of Arkansas rest area near Brentwood. During most of that time, a new four lane highway was under construction to bypass old US 71. On January 8, 1999, the new highway was fully opened to traffic as 540, reducing our travel time from sometimes over 3 hours – depending on traffic and weather – to just over 2 hours.
We were pleased to find that the rest area was not only still open, but had been significantly improved. The rest room building and the area around it was still much the same, but remodeled, with new fixtures, and cleaner overall.
Located on US 71, between Winslow and West Fork, the park now boasts a 1/3 mile fitness trail and other recent improvements. Part of the trail is on the bank of the West Fork of the White River, which at this time of year is normally little more than a trickle.
No longer a State of Arkansas facility, it is now the Brentwood Community Park. With traffic moving to I540 (now I49) after that freeway opened in the late 90s, rest area usage plunged. The Arkansas State Highway Department closed it in 2001 because of vandalism and lack of use. It was subsequently reopened with the idea of locating a law enforcement substation there. After that never materialized, the park was on the verge of being closed again when local residents volunteered to take care of daily maintenance.
West Fork of the White River, Brentwood Rest Area, Hwy 71, Arkansas
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Hi Mike – it’s great the community got together and the Park Stop is open and encouraging to visit … cheers Hilary
We were certainly surprised to find it open. A number of these rest areas have closed over the years, especially on highways that are less used due to traffic shifting to newer roads. The new interstate highway doesn’t have any, but they’re not needed with modern commercial “travel centers” along the way, convenience stores with added amenities for professional drivers of semi-trailer trucks, plus much nicer restrooms than many of the older rest areas.