Sunset over the waters of Lake DeGray.
The lake features 210 miles of shoreline, and plenty of hidden coves.
Dean Powell is an interpreter at athe state park.
For many Arkansans, it doesn't get much better than an evening at the lake, whether it be from the shore or on the water.
The pace of life is slower on the water - perhaps because there are so many beautiful things to take in.
"For skiers, boaters, fishermen, snorkeling, scuba diving, we do self-guided tours, kayaking tours, canoes, water bikes; it's a big recreation area," says Dean Powell, who is a park interpreter at Lake DeGray Resort State Park, exploring some of the lake's hidden treasures on what they call a sunset cruise.
The lake has more than 13,000 acres of surprisingly clear water. The shore is 210 miles of Arkansas woodlands.
The dam was completed in 1972, and soon the Caddo River filled up what was once a mountain valley, and once the home of many homesteaders.
Powell explains, "There was a man, Old Man Johnson was his name and he had a still, moonshine, right here where we're sitting. He had a home right here, when the Corps of Engineers came to tell him they were going to dam the lake. He basically said over my dead body and proceeded to shove them off the land with his shotgun."
Legend says Old Man Johnson never did leave, though he was warned over and over the water was coming. No on ever saw Old Man Johnson again.
Thirty years ago, Frances Johnson asked if he could place a cross on the family land in memory of his father. The legend says sometimes the cross is there - sometimes it is not.
The lake becomes surprisingly calm as sunset nears. A pair of Mallard ducks swim within feet of our boat. The smoke from a campfire hovers just above the water
And then the magic moment. There are few places in Arkansas where a tree or mountain does not obstruct your gaze. But here on Lake DeGray, the suns dips low in the sky - allowing a direct stare into mother nature's masterpiece.
Powell says, "You can feel it, you can smell it, you can see it, everything out here. And to be able to see the sun go down, yeah, it's the ending of another day. But you know what. It's the ending of another beautiful day. It's another day that you were alive to see this."