Mena is a small Arkansas town at the foot of the Ouachita Mountains, near the Oklahoma border, with a little over five thousand people and an old railroad main street. The story goes that Dutch investors who backed the railway named the town after the wife of one of their number, and the Dutch connection has stuck, so that the state park on the mountain above is named for Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands.
Queen Wilhelmina State Park sits on top of Rich Mountain, at one of the highest points in the range, reached by the Talimena Scenic Drive. The lodge there, built in the style of a mountain retreat with a tower, has a restaurant and a view over the forested ridges. It was originally built in the 1890s by the railroad hoping to attract tourists to a mountain resort, and later rebuilt. A narrow-gauge train for children runs in the park in the warmer months.
For riders, the Talimena Scenic Drive starts just outside the town and climbs onto Rich Mountain through a series of bends, a road that runs for about eighty-seven kilometres along the crest to Talihina in Oklahoma. It is a road for a slow, easy rhythm, with curves that follow the contours of the ridge and views over forested hills to the north and south. In autumn, when sweetgum, maple and hickory turn bright red and gold, it is among the most visited roads in the region, and the best light comes in the late afternoon.
Mena has fuel, groceries and a handful of diners and family restaurants, and the sort of friendly main street where strangers get a nod. The nearest larger towns are some distance away, so it makes sense to stock up before heading up the mountain, as services on the ridge are limited. Mobile signal fades in the valleys.
The best seasons are spring and autumn. Summer brings heat, humidity and thunderstorms, and winter can bring ice, with the upper road sometimes closed. Deer are common, so ride carefully near dusk. The night sky on the mountain is very dark, and on a clear evening the stars are impressive.