(click to enlarge) A spectacular view over the Arkansas River Valley
(click to enlarge) At one's feet on the overlook, picturesque rocks and grasses
Petit Jean State Park is the first of Arkansas' state parks, and the flagship of the state park system. The legend of its naming (probably not true) is romantic. According to Wikipedia,
"According to legend Petit Jean was actually a young French woman. When she discovered that her fiancee had signed on with De Soto to explore the area, she cut her hair, disguised herself as a boy and managed to find a position as a cabin boy. She survived the voyage and the expedition began their exploration. Once they had reached the area of the mountain, the young woman became ill, on her deathbed she revealed herself to her fiancee, and was buried on the mountain, not under her own name, but under the name she had been known by on the ship 'Little John'."
