Camp Ouachita

Arkansas Traveller 100 race headquarters at Camp Ouachita, 2002

The Ouachita Girl Scout Camp located on Lake Sylvia in the Ouachita National Forest, Perry County, Arkansas, was built during the Great Depression by the federally financed Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) and the Work Progress Administration (WPA). The camp was in continuous use by the Girl Scouts until 1979 when the site was closed mainly for lack of an adequate supply of potable water. Because of the camp's historic significance, it has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In 1994, a local citizen's group, Lake Sylvia Community Project Group, and a number of public and private organizations (Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism, West Central Arkansas Planning and Development District, Arkansas Trails Council, the University of Arkansas, and Arkansas Tech University) in conjunction with the Ouachita Forest Service began working towards restoring the historic Camp Ouachita/Lake Sylvia as a working facility.