Bentonville, Arkansas, has built an expansive public art collection over the past decade, with over 300 works citywide, spanning murals, neon signs, and large-scale sculptures. The Peel Compton Foundation is part of that public art scene, with free outdoor art across their community spaces, the majority located at Coler Mountain Bike Preserve, Osage Park, and Compton Gardens & Arboretum. All are free and open to the public!

Why Art in Nature Just Hits Different

Most public art lives within the infrastructure of cities: on building walls, crosswalks, utility boxes, and plazas. The Peel Compton Foundation’s collection is different. It’s placed into nature, alongside wetlands, creek beds, bike trails, and gardens. That distinction turns out to matter in ways researchers are only beginning to study.

Both art and nature independently improve mood, reduce stress, and support mental well-being. That evidence is well-established. What’s newer is what happens when they’re combined. Researchers studying programs that pair arts- and nature-based activities together have found what they describe as “distinct synergistic benefits,” outcomes that go beyond what either art or nature produces on its own. A 2022 systematic review from University College London noted that while the health benefits of nature and the benefits of arts are both well-documented, the interconnection between the two has received “scant attention” in the literature, which means places like Coler Mountain Bike Preserve, Osage Park, and Compton Gardens are, in a sense, ahead of the research.

The most compelling explanation for why the combination works comes from Professor Miles Richardson, who studies nature and wellbeing at the University of Derby. His research found that it was the increased noticing of nature, not the number of visits, that explained improvements in wellbeing. And that’s exactly where art helps: “It acts as a provocation or a prompt. It makes you pause. You notice, and appreciate.”

That’s what the art at these three community spaces does. It gives you a reason to stop on a trail you might otherwise move through. The questions at each stop below are meant to help with that!

Coler Mountain Bike Preserve

The public art at Coler runs along the Applegate Trail, the paved path open to both bikers and pedestrians. Start at the South Parking Lot and follow the trail in sequence, ending near Airship Coffee.

Parking: South Gateway, NW 3rd St., Bentonville, AR 72712

Stop 1: Singing Bridge

Near the South entrance, the bridge you cross is a sound installation by Craig Colorusso: prerecorded music played through solar-powered speakers. The music blends easily with wind and water, and you might not realize it’s art at all until you’re already inside it.

Ask yourself: When did you first notice the sound? Did it change how the natural sounds around it felt? Is there a song or a sound that, when you hear it unexpectedly, takes you somewhere else entirely? What does this one do?

Oversized Chair

Stop 2: shape. & Oversized Chair

Past the Firefly Sanctuary at the creek outlet, Griffin Loop’s shape. spreads across a clearing in the woods as three distinct geometric elements, which makes it feel stranger and more alive against the completely unpredictable forest surrounding it. The Oversized Chair nearby offers a more playful counterpoint. Grab a photo.

Ask yourself: The repeating frames seem to pull you deeper into the forest. Does the piece feel like it’s framing nature, or inviting you into it?

Someone and Someone

Stop 3: Someone and Someone

Continue down the trail to reach Eva Rothschild’s Someone and Someone, large interlocking geometric forms in painted aluminum. Rothschild’s work explores how negative space reads against solid material, and at roughly 13 feet wide, the piece holds its own against the tree line.

Ask yourself: Does the surrounding forest feel like it’s completing the piece, or competing with it?

Paradise Found

Stop 4: Paradise Found

At the Homestead area near Airship Coffee, Todd Sanders’s Paradise Found neon sign glows from one of two restored original barns on the property. The contrast between the weathered barn and Sanders’s lit sign is the whole idea. Sanders has created neon works at all three Peel Compton sites as well as many other locations around Bentonville.

Ask yourself: Neon usually belongs to diners, motels, and city streets. What does it feel like here, in the middle of the woods? Is there a place from your past where something out of place, a sound, a color, a sign, made it feel more alive? What was it?

Dinosaur

Stop 5: Dinosaur

Peek behind Airship Coffee to find the last piece on the Applegate Trail, Dinosaur! Easy to miss if you don’t know where to look! This is the perfect stopping point to take a rest, grab a cup of coffee, and start making your way back.

Osage Park

Osage Park packs six works of large-scale free public art into a wetland green space in Bentonville. The route loops around the lake, the prairie, and wetland areas, so you’ll end up back where you started if you are game for a long walk. If you can only make it to one Peel Compton site at dusk, make it this one, so you can be sure to see all kinds of wildlife, including the resident beavers!

Parking: Osage Park lot, off of SW D St.

Shaved Portions

Stop 1: Shaved Portions

Right next to the parking lot stands Chakaia Booker’s Shaved Portions, a massive sculpture of deconstructed steel-belted and bias tires. Booker transforms industrial rubber into dense, layered forms, and the material carries its whole history with it.

Ask yourself: Think of something worn out or used up that you’ve held onto anyway. What gives an object a life beyond its original purpose?

Neon Sign

Stop 2: Fluttering Quilts & Osage Park Neon Sign

Follow the path toward the prairie to find Greely Myatt’s Fluttering Quilts, which cuts traffic signs into traditional quilt patterns (Lady of the Lake, Tumbling Blocks, Drunkard’s Path) and rivets them to painted aluminum plates. Myatt grew up in the Mississippi Delta watching quilts on his grandparents’ clotheslines. At the fork in the road, you’ll find Todd Sanders’s Osage Park Neon Sign.

Ask yourself: Is there an object from your childhood that carried a whole world inside it? What would it look like translated into something else? Could you create your own Fluttering Quilts with this object? What would it be called?

Launch Intention

Stop 3: Launch Intention

At 25 feet long, Griffin Loop’s Launch Intention is based on the paper airplane, one of the first things we make as children. Loop describes the piece as “a reminder for all to free yourself. Set intention and launch into action and the world.” It’s one of three in a series by Loop throughout Bentonville, and one of the works you’re encouraged to touch.

Ask yourself: What’s the last thing you made with your hands just for the joy of it, with no particular purpose? How did it feel to let it go?

Garden Boats for Osaege Park

Stop 4: Garden Boats for Osage Park

Past The Quiver Archery Range, Jennifer Torres’s steel boats slowly rotate in the wind, their fins catching the breeze. Torres drew the shapes from Osage Park’s own winding paths, and for her, the boat holds multiple meanings: escape, return, utility, and recreation.

Ask yourself: These boats slowly turn in the wind, never quite settling in one direction. Is there a decision in your life you keep turning over the same way? The boats are shaped from the paths of this park, built for a place they can almost touch but never quite reach. Is there somewhere you keep coming back to in your mind?

Tall Grass

Stop 5: Tall Grass

Asia Ward made Tall Grass specifically for this wetland, growing the piece from a specific imaginative act: “I wanted to make something that made me feel like I was a wetland creature looking up through the water at the tall grass.” Stay on the elevated platform and let Ward’s piece reorient your perspective.

Ask yourself: Ward made this to shift your point of view, to make you feel small. Does it work? When you look up through the piece, do you feel more inside the wetland or more outside of it?

Compton Gardens & Arboretum

Compton Gardens & Arboretum is the most contained of the three Peel Compton Foundation sites, a mature garden and arboretum just north of downtown Bentonville. Start on 3rd Street outside the parking lot.

Stop 1: Compton Gardens Neon Sign

You’ll see Todd Sanders’s neon sign before you enter the garden: Dr. Compton in a canoe, set against a large orange sun. Classic Sanders-style Americana, completing his neon trilogy across all these three Peel Compton sites.

Untitled (Wind Chimes)

Stop 2: Untitled (Wind Chimes)

On the Razorback Greenway into the garden, you’ll find Sam Falls’s Untitled (Wind Chimes). Despite its name, Falls’s piece makes no sound.

Ask yourself: You expect sound. The name tells you to. What does the silence feel like? Does the garden’s ambient sound fill the space you expected the piece to occupy? Is there something in your life that promised one thing and quietly delivered another? Was it better or worse than what you expected?

Heartland

Stop 3: Heartland

Make a right into the meadow to find Daniel Popper’s Heartland, a large-scale sculpture of human hands holding an open heart. Popper is a South African artist who moved from painting into large-scale installation, with commissions including a Nelson Mandela memorial statue in the Eastern Cape and major festival installations across Europe, the US, and Mexico. Heartland is among Popper’s first permanent public sculptures and one of the most visited outdoor artworks in Bentonville.

Ask yourself: Popper chose hands over arms, a torso, a full figure. Why do you think just the hands were enough? The heart is open, not enclosed or protected. Does that feel like an act of courage or an invitation?

Group of Bears

Stop 4: Group of Bears & Red Clay

When you come out of the meadow, walk toward the house to find Paul Manship’s Group of Bears. In 1929, Manship began work on a bronze gateway for the Bronx Zoo that was never built, and sculpted these bears as part of that design. He later combined three individual bears on a single base. Nearby, Ed Pennebaker’s Red Clay is a structure of textured, colored glass panels in a steel frame, worth visiting at different times of day as the light through Pennebaker’s glass shifts considerably with the sun’s angle.

Ask yourself: Manship made these bears for a zoo, a place where animals are framed for human viewing. Here they’re in a garden, without an enclosure in sight. Does that change what the sculpture is about?

Before you go

You don’t have to think about any of this to enjoy these three sites. You can bike or walk past all of these without looking up, and still leave these spaces feeling better than when you arrived. That’s what nature does on its own.

But the research suggests you’ll get more out of it if you pause. Not for long, and not with any particular expertise. Just long enough to notice something: the way the mirrored cube makes the forest look a little foreign, the way Booker’s tires feel stranger the longer you stand next to them, the way Ward’s wetland piece makes the sky seem further away than it did a moment ago.

That noticing is the whole point. It’s what the art is there to prompt, and it’s what these green spaces are there to support. The fact that you can do all of it for free, on a Tuesday afternoon, with a cup of coffee from Airship at the end, is its own kind of remarkable thing.

Looking for pickleball at Osage Park in Bentonville, Arkansas? Osage Park is one of Northwest Arkansas’ top outdoor pickleball destinations, featuring eight courts, lessons, camps, tournaments, and open play opportunities in a beautiful park setting.

Whether you’re new to the game or a competitive player, Osage Park offers pickleball experiences for all ages and skill levels in the heart of Bentonville.

Why Play Pickleball at Osage Park?

Located in Bentonville, Arkansas, Osage Park combines high-quality pickleball courts with the energy of a community park. Players enjoy:

• Eight outdoor pickleball courts
• Beginner, intermediate, and advanced lessons
• Youth pickleball camps
• Seasonal tournaments and events
• Easy access in Bentonville
• Nearby food trucks, trails, and park amenities

If you’re searching for pickleball courts in Bentonville, Arkansas, Osage Park is a must-visit destination.

Youth Pickleball Camp in Bentonville

Explore Pickleball Summer Camp

Ages 9–16
June 8–11

Join us for four fun-filled mornings of pickleball at Osage Park in Bentonville. This youth camp helps players learn fundamentals, improve skills, stay active, and enjoy friendly competition in a supportive environment.

Campers will learn serving and rallying, rules and scoring, court movement, teamwork and sportsmanship, game strategy, and skill-building drills.

Perfect for families searching for kids’ pickleball camps in Bentonville, Arkansas.

EXPLORE PICKLEBALL SUMMER CAMP →

Pickleball Lessons at Osage Park

Train with coach Kip Lacey through weekly lessons designed for every level.

Beginner Pickleball Lessons

Ideal for new players learning the game. Topics include grips and paddle control, rules and scoring, dinking basics, court positioning, and beginner drills.

BEGINNER PICKLEBALL LESSONS →

Intermediate Pickleball Lessons

For players ready to improve consistency and strategy. Recommended for 3.0–3.5 players. Topics include dinking strategy, drops and drives, volleys, shot selection, and match play drills.

INTERMEDIATE PICKLEBALL LESSONS →

Advanced Pickleball Lessons

For 3.5+ players and tournament competitors looking to elevate performance. Topics include advanced strategy, reset volleys, offensive and defensive play, placement serving, and competitive drills and games.

ADVANCED PICKLEBALL LESSONS →

If you’re searching for pickleball lessons in Bentonville, Arkansas, Osage Park offers options for every skill level.

Pickleball Tournaments in Bentonville, Arkansas

Dam Slam Pickleball Tournament

June 6 & 7, 2026

The Dam Slam Pickleball Tournament returns to Osage Park for another exciting weekend of competition, prizes, and community.

DAM SLAM PICKLEBALL TOURNAMENT →

Monster Match Pickleball Tournament

October 24 & 25, 2026

Celebrate Halloween weekend with a tournament that blends serious play with festive fun and costumes.

Great for players searching for pickleball tournaments in Bentonville, Arkansas.

Visit Osage Park

Whether you’re looking for courts, lessons, camps, or tournaments, pickleball at Osage Park in Bentonville, Arkansas offers something for everyone.

Come play at Osage Park and experience one of the best places for pickleball in Northwest Arkansas.

At Osage Park, your experience doesn’t begin on the trails or along the wetlands. It begins the moment you step into the pavilion.

Designed by modus studio, the Osage Park Pavilion is more than just a structure. It’s a transition. A shift from the pace of the city to something quieter, slower, and more connected to nature.

It’s the gateway to everything that follows.

EDG

A Gateway by Design

The Osage Park Pavilion was never meant to be just a structure. It was designed to be a threshold.

As Michael Pope of modus studio explains, “the pavilion really sets up the experience for the visitors… it’s a transition piece, moving from the city into the wetlands.”

From the moment you arrive, the pavilion begins to shift your perspective. It frames your entry into the park and prepares you for something different.

“It kind of prepares you mentally for a different experience… it puts you in a good mindset for disconnecting from the city and starting to tune your senses to nature.”

That sense of movement is intentional. Set beside an airport, “the pavilion derives its playful form and structural expression from aircraft wing design,” as modus studio describes.

The result is a structure that doesn’t just sit in the landscape. It guides you into it.

EDG

A Gateway to a Restored Landscape

Before Osage Park became what it is today, this land told a very different story.

As Michael Pope shared, “thousands of people drive past the property every day, and it was this kind of damp, wet, swampland that collected trash and was almost an eyesore in the community, and nobody really paid any attention to it.”

That perception could have defined the site. Instead, it became the starting point for restoration.

“By cleaning it up and bringing attention to the amazing natural resource that was there… most people… would say, ‘there’s no way… we should just fill it in and build something else.’”

But the vision was different.

“I think the vision to restore the wetlands and allow them to perform the hugely important task that they have in the ecology of the city… the amount of cleaning that it’s doing for our waterways is phenomenal.”

The pavilion does not just sit beside this system. It introduces you to it.

Novo Studio

A Gateway Through Light and Movement

That transition is felt most clearly through light.

With no opaque roof, sunlight filters through the structure and transforms the space throughout the day. Shadows shift. Brightness softens. The entire pavilion feels alive.

As Pope describes, “one of my favorite times is when there is a partly cloudy day… when the sun is moving behind the clouds, and then the whole pavilion animates from the shadows and the light.”

It is not just something you see. It is something you experience as you move through it.

Novo Studio

A Gateway That Feels Like an Invitation

Material choice plays a powerful role in how the pavilion welcomes visitors.

“The wood is all cypress… sourced in Arkansas,” Pope explains. “Having wood, people relate really well to wood… that warm color welcomes you from the parking lot.”

Before you even step inside, the pavilion feels approachable. Natural. Familiar.

It does not just mark an entrance. It invites you forward.

Novo Studio

A Gateway for Community Connection

Once you pass through the pavilion, it becomes more than a threshold. It becomes a place to gather.

As modus studio notes, “the pavilion acts as a hub within the larger park and contains a covered gathering space, restrooms, green room, and an outdoor stage and amphitheater.”

From events and performances to quiet afternoons and shared moments, the pavilion supports connection in all its forms.

And as it rises from the ground, the green roof becomes a viewing platform, offering a place to pause, look out, and take in both the park and the sky above.

Novo Studio

A Gateway That Had to Be Different

For a gateway to work, it has to feel distinct.

“I think if you had put more of a catalog building on that site, I don’t think it would set the experience as well as it does right now,” Pope says.

Instead, the pavilion was designed to stand apart.

“It’s a gateway and a marker… something that looks different, that feels different, that performs different.”

It signals, clearly and immediately, that you are entering a place unlike anywhere else in the city.

Recognized for Design Excellence

The Osage Park Pavilion has earned national recognition for its design, including:

• Merit Award for Design Excellence from the Gulf States Region of the American Institute of Architects (2021)
• AIA Arkansas Honor Award (2022)
• Finalist, Architizer A+ Awards (2023)
• Popular Choice Winner, Architizer A+ Awards – Pavilions (2023)
• Honorable Mention, Architecture MasterPrize (2024)

These recognitions reflect what visitors experience every day. This is not just a pavilion. It is a defining feature of Osage Park.

Step Through and See for Yourself

At Osage Park, the pavilion is not where your visit ends. It is where it begins.

It marks the shift from city to nature, from movement to stillness, from passing through to truly experiencing a place.

Step inside and see where it takes you.

At Osage Park, beavers play an important role in shaping the wetlands that support birds, amphibians, insects, and aquatic life. But when dams form near culverts or park infrastructure, water levels can rise quickly. Rather than removing the beavers or destroying their dams, Osage Park uses a thoughtful solution: a Beaver Deceiver, a device designed to control water levels while allowing beavers to remain in the ecosystem. Recently, the team at Osage Park had the opportunity to speak directly with Skip Lisle, whose invention has helped communities across North America and Europe coexist with beavers. His insights helped explain exactly how these deceptively simple devices work.

Science Spin

What Is A Beaver Deceiver?

A Beaver Deceiver is a flow device designed to regulate water levels behind a beaver dam without triggering the beavers’ instinct to repair it.

The system typically includes:

• A pipe installed through a dam or culvert

• A large protective fence or cage that keeps beavers from clogging the pipe

• A design that spreads water intake across a wide area so beavers cannot detect the current

Lisle explained the strategy during our conversation:

“You are basically sneaking water away from beavers, thereby controlling damming behavior.”

Beavers respond strongly to the sound and movement of flowing water. When water spills over the top of a dam, they instinctively add sticks and mud to repair it.

Flow devices change that signal.

“By putting a pipe system, or a Beaver Deceiver, in a dam, you’re trying to hold the water down below the top of the dam.”

Without water spilling over the dam, the trigger to keep building disappears.

“You’re eliminating spillover stimuli, water going over the top of the dam. You’re getting a lot less damming behavior.”

Why Getting Rid of Beavers Doesn’t Solve the Problem

For many years, the common approach to beaver flooding was trapping or killing the animals. But Lisle says this rarely solves the issue. Beavers are excellent explorers of the landscape, constantly searching for new territory with a good place to build a dam. If beavers are removed from one location, new ones often arrive soon after. When that happens, the same culvert or drainage point becomes clogged again. This cycle, sometimes described as “boom and exhume,” can repeat indefinitely.

Culverts are especially vulnerable because, from a beaver’s perspective, they function like small openings in an existing dam. Blocking them is simply part of the beaver’s natural building behavior.

Without a protective system in place, roads and trails may need constant maintenance. Culverts can clog repeatedly, and cleaning them often requires heavy equipment. In some cases, a flooded road can cost tens of thousands of dollars to repair. Flow devices break this cycle by protecting infrastructure while allowing beavers to remain on the landscape.

The Ecological Value of Beaver Wetlands

Beavers are widely considered a keystone species because their dams create wetlands that support hundreds of other life forms.

These wetlands provide:

• Habitat for fish, amphibians, birds, and insects

• Natural water storage during drought

• Flood reduction during heavy rain

• Sediment and pollution filtration

• Increased biodiversity across the landscape

Historically, North America had far more beavers…and far more wetlands.

Before the fur trade, scientists estimate there were 100 to 200 million beavers across the continent. Their dams created vast networks of wetlands.

Lisle noted the scale of the loss:

“Due to the fur trade, we have drained maybe a million beaver-created wetlands on the continent.”

By the early 1900s, beaver populations had dropped to roughly 100,000 animals in North America, and many wetlands disappeared with them.

Today, beaver populations have rebounded to an estimated 10–15 million, but the continent still contains far fewer beaver-created wetlands than it once did.

Why Beaver Deceivers Work

Beaver Deceivers allow humans to protect infrastructure while preserving the ecological benefits of beaver wetlands.

The advantages are significant:

Long-term infrastructure protection

Roads, culverts, and trails remain safe without repeated excavation or repairs.

Lower maintenance costs

Flow devices can function for many years with minimal upkeep.

Wildlife conservation

Beavers remain in place and continue creating wetlands that benefit countless species.

Healthier landscapes

Wetlands improve water quality, support biodiversity, and store water during drought.

Lisle’s work has demonstrated that when culverts are protected instead of repeatedly cleared, communities gain both economic savings and ecological benefits.

A Better Way to Coexist

At Osage Park, the Beaver Deceiver helps maintain the park’s wetland ecosystem while preventing flooding near infrastructure.

Instead of fighting the natural behavior of beavers, the system works with it.

As Lisle’s invention shows, the best wildlife management solutions are sometimes the simplest—understanding how animals behave and designing tools that quietly guide that behavior.

In the case of beavers, it’s as simple as sneaking a little water away from the dam!

Spring Break is the perfect time to get back outside! From blooming gardens to thrilling trails, here’s how to make the most of your break at the community spaces supported by the Peel Compton Foundation.

Peel Museum & Botanical Garden

400 S. Walton Blvd., Bentonville, AR 72712 | Tue–Sat, 10 am–3 pm

Kick off your day with breakfast at nearby local favorites, like Ozark Mountain Bagel Co. on the Bentonville Square, then arrive at Peel Museum when it opens a little later at 10 am.

• Guided Home Tour: Start with a free guided tour where our expert tour guides will take you back in time to immerse yourself in Bentonville’s past, learn what life was like in the 1800’s, and get insights on how the Peel family lived.
• Garden Walk & Scavenger Hunt: Explore the gardens, early spring blooms, and complete a family-friendly scavenger hunt inspired by your tour.
• Cabin Store: Before you go, pick up locally made goods, gifts, and keepsakes.
• Extend Your Day: Enjoy lunch like a local at Archie’s Sandwichery just down the street, and continue your day of learning & curiosity by visiting nearby museums like the Museum of Native American History, the Walmart Museum, or Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.

Learn More

Compton Gardens & Arboretum

312 N. Main St., Bentonville, AR 72712 | Gardens, Sunrise to Sunset | Exhibit Room, Mon–Fri 8 am–5 pm

Tucked in the heart of Bentonville, Compton Gardens is a peaceful seven‑acre oasis of seasonal blooms, towering trees, and nature trails.

• Morning Coffee & Garden Stroll: Grab a coffee from Onyx Coffee Lab or Field Notes in The Compton Hotel, stroll through the historic Bentonville Square, and make your way up the A Street Promenade, where you will link up with the southern entrance of the garden through The Razorback Greenway.
• Bloom Watch & Art Walk: As you stroll through the winding paths of the gardens, look for spring blooms, native flowers, and Champion Trees like the Black Willow, Pagoda Dogwood, and American Chinese Chestnut Hybrid. You’ll quickly come across several art pieces as well! Check out our spring blooms here.
• Exhibit Room: Head to the newly renovated Dr. Neil Compton Exhibit Room and learn about Arkansas conservation history.
• Scavenger Hunt & Photo Moments: Grab a free scavenger hunt from the Exhibit Room or download it here to guide your adventure. Along the way, snap some memorable photos — don’t miss iconic spots like Heartland by Daniel Popper, the towering sculpture of hands holding a heart.
• Lunch & Crystal Bridges: Head back to the Square for lunch at Flying Fish or The First Seat Pub & Grill, or continue on the Razorback Greenway toward Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art to continue your afternoon of art and nature.

Learn More

Coler Mountain Bike Preserve

2500 NW 3rd St., Bentonville, AR 72712 | Sunrise to 11 pm

Coler offers outdoor fun for all interests, from peaceful strolls to big adventures in nature.

• Applegate Trail: Begin at the North Parking Lot and enjoy a paved trail ideal for walkers, cruisers, and adaptive riders. It connects to The Rise and Airship at Coler.
• Climb The Rise: Challenge yourself on the iconic 185-step outdoor staircase for a great workout and an even better view!
• Creekside Exploration: Cool off at Coler Creek, restored with natural curves and wildlife habitat. Watch for birds, fish, and all kinds of critters!
• Lunch at Airship: Grab coffee or lunch at Airship at Coler, or enjoy a creekside picnic near the Homestead barns.
• Trail Time & Scavenger Hunt: Wander scenic singletracks, meadows, and forests, with art placed along the way! Look for art placed along the trails! Make it interactive with a family-friendly scavenger hunt (download here)!
• Camp Under the Stars: Extend your adventure with an overnight at Coler’s campground, complete with tent and van sites, hammock hangouts, and trail access.

Learn More

Osage Park

700 SW 16th St., Bentonville, AR 72712 | Sunrise to Sunset

Osage Park blends nature and activity right in town. It’s an ideal spot for wildlife lovers and active families.

• Wetland Walk: Start your morning along floating boardwalks and paved trails through a 12‑acre wetland habitat, great for spotting birds, beavers, and other wildlife.
• Scavenger Hunt & Art: Discover public art, educational signage, and natural treasures with a park scavenger hunt (download here)!
• Fishing: Cast a line at Lake Bentonville (bring a valid Arkansas fishing license) for catfish, trout, and bass.
• Lunch & Food Trucks: Enjoy local flavors at the pavilion food truck court, including favorites like Mymito, Manduca Tacos, and Oh, Snap Ice Cream.
• Pickleball & Archery: Play on 8 first‑come, first‑served pickleball courts, or head to The Quiver Archery Range with 20 lanes, rentals, and friendly instructors.
• Happy Hour: End the day at Bentonville Brewing Co., located just off the boardwalk!

Learn More

The Quiver Archery Range

1701 SW F St., Bentonville, AR 72712 | Wed–Fri 2 pm–5 pm; Sat & Sun 10 am–5 pm (Typical hours of operation)

• Spring Break Series (March 23–27): From 1 pm–2:30 pm daily, join themed archery games and challenges, from archery art to lawn darts, jenga, and relay races.
• Hourly Reservations: If you’re just looking to shoot, reserve an hour of shooting time! Equipment and expert instruction are included.
• Special Spring Break Hours: During the week of spring break, The Quiver is extending its hours to the public!
  • Monday, March 23: 3 pm – 7 pm
  • Tuesday, March 24: 3 pm – 7 pm
  • Wednesday, March 25: 10 am – 5 pm
  • Thursday, March 26: 10 am – 5 pm
  • Friday, March 27: 10 am – 5 pm

Learn More

In 2025, the Peel Compton Foundation experienced such a meaningful and transformative year. Across five community spaces, our work connected people to nature, education, recreation, and preservation in ways that will shape Northwest Arkansas for generations to come.

Thanks to the support of donors, partners, volunteers, and visitors, this year was defined by growth, stewardship, and community impact. Here are just a few highlights from across our properties.

Education

Learning came to life across all Peel Compton Foundation properties in 2025. From field trips and school programs to hands-on workshops and guided experiences, education remained at the heart of everything we do.

In total, the Foundation offered 644 unique programs, welcoming thousands of participants of all ages. Nearly 4,000 students took part in field trips, including 1,362 fourth-grade students who attended School Days at the Peel Museum & Botanical Garden, experiencing Northwest Arkansas history in an immersive, memorable way.

Nature

Caring for the land means investing in long-term ecological health. In 2025, Osage Park led the way in conservation and habitat restoration, removing 121,691 square feet of invasive species, planting trees and native plants, and removing more than 2,150 pounds of trash from the wetlands.

At Compton Gardens & Arboretum, a year-long renovation culminated in a long-awaited reopening, restoring landscapes, improving accessibility, and strengthening its role as a place for environmental education, reflection, and connection.

Recreation

Outdoor recreation continued to bring people together across the region. Coler Mountain Bike Preserve celebrated its fifth anniversary and received statewide recognition as Arkansas Tourism Attraction of the Year, reflecting its impact as both a community space and a destination for visitors.

At The Quiver Archery Range, the Foundation hosted the first-ever USA Archery Arkansas State Outdoor Target Championship, welcoming archers from across Arkansas and showcasing Bentonville as a premier location for competitive outdoor sport.

Preservation

Preserving history and place remains central to the Foundation’s mission. In 2025, the Peel Museum & Botanical Garden celebrated the 150th anniversary of the historic Peel Home, honoring generations of stories and community gatherings rooted in Northwest Arkansas.

The Foundation also announced the addition of the Bud Walton House, expanding its portfolio of historic and cultural properties and opening new opportunities for preservation, education, and public engagement.

Reflecting on 2025

“As I reflect on 2025, I am filled with gratitude and pride,” said Executive Director Debra Layton. “Together with the support of our community, donors, partners, and dedicated staff, we strengthened our mission and expanded our impact across Northwest Arkansas.”

Read the Full Impact Report

These highlights offer just a glimpse into a year shaped by community support and shared purpose.

Read the full 2025 Impact Report (PDF)

Valentine’s Day tends to celebrate love as a single moment… a card, a bouquet, a reservation. In nature, love is rarely that brief. Instead, it shows up as shared work and long-term commitment. Few animals demonstrate this better than the North American beaver. At Osage Park, beavers offer a living lesson in what lasting partnership look like!

Do Beavers Really Mate for Life?

Yes! Beavers are socially monogamous, forming long-term breeding pairs that often remain together for life. Once paired, a male and female establish a shared territory centered around a lodge and a dam system, raising their young (called kits) together year after year.

Beaver families usually include a bonded adult pair, kits from the current year, and sometimes older offspring (called yearlings) from previous years.

This structure allows beavers to divide labor, share responsibility, and pass down learned behaviors.

Shared Work

Beaver parenting is a full-time commitment. Both adults participate in:

• Building and repairing dams
• Maintaining lodges with underwater entrances
• Harvesting and storing food for winter
• Protecting kits from predators

This shared workload increases the survival of their young and stabilizes the family unit across seasons. From an ecological perspective, long-term pair bonding reduces energy costs and improves reproductive success.

When Partnership Builds an Ecosystem

Beavers are often called ecosystem engineers because their behavior physically reshapes the environment. By building dams, beavers slow flowing water and create wetlands that would not otherwise exist.

These wetlands:

• Reduce erosion and flooding
• Improve water quality
• Recharge groundwater
• Create habitat for birds, amphibians, insects, fish, and mammals

Because so many species depend on beaver-created wetlands, beavers are also classified as a keystone species, one whose influence far outweighs its population size.

At Osage Park, today’s wetlands are the result of beaver families working together over generations. Their partnership didn’t just create a home. It created a community.

What Beavers Can Teach Us About Partnership

Understanding beaver pair bonds reveals a broader ecological truth: long-term relationships create stability. In the wild, cooperation supports not only families, but entire ecosystems.

This same principle guides conservation and land stewardship at Osage Park—protecting natural systems so they can thrive well into the future.

A Valentine’s Day Inspired by Nature

This Valentine’s Day, take a cue from the beavers and celebrate connection in a way that’s meaningful, grounded, and shared.

Plan a date at Osage Park:

• Walk the boardwalk at sunset, when the wetlands grow quiet and reflective

• Stroll through the path lined with trees in the shape of a heart

• Watch for birds and wildlife settling in for the evening

• Grab dinner from the nearby food trucks

• Play a round on the pickleball courts

• Continue the evening at The Quiver Archery Range

Love That Lasts

Beavers remind us that the strongest bonds aren’t built in a single day. They’re built slowly, through shared effort and mutual care, shaping something bigger than ourselves along the way.

This Valentine’s Day, celebrate love that lasts—the kind that builds, protects, and leaves the world better than it found it.

1. Cardinals Brightening the Bare Branches

Cardinals are winter icons in Northwest Arkansas. Their bright red feathers stand out beautifully against bare trees and muted meadows, making them easier to spot this time of year.

Where to See Them:

• Compton Gardens: Excellent cardinal habitat thanks to dense understory shrubs and winter food sources.

• Osage Park: Look for them in the forested areas of the Beaver Wetland and Urban Watershed.

• Coler: Frequently seen near forest edges, especially around the Homestead.

Tip: Cardinals often perch high to survey their surroundings. Scan treetops or listen for their clear morning call.

2. Wetland Birds That Stay Active All Winter

While much of the landscape settles into dormancy, the Osage Park wetland stays full of life. Winter brings ducks, red-winged blackbirds shifting through cattails, and great blue herons patrolling shallow water. Because wetlands maintain open water and consistent shelter, they become reliable winter habitat for many species.

Where to See Them:

• Osage Park: The floating boardwalks make perfect viewing platforms.

• Look for feeding behavior early in the morning and roosting activity late in the afternoon.

Note: These species are not typically found at Compton Gardens or Coler.

3. Seedheads That Feed Winter Birds

Though the blooms have faded, meadow plants still play a vital role in winter. Their dried seedheads provide nourishment for small birds and add beautiful structure to the landscape. At our community spaces, we intentionally leave seedheads standing through the winter to support wildlife!

What to Notice:
Birds perching on seedheads, feeding on coneflower and aster seeds, or flocking through grasses.

4. Tree Silhouettes Revealing Their Winter Architecture

Winter is the perfect season to appreciate the structure of native trees. Without leaves, you can clearly see branching patterns and shapes that help with tree recognition and deepen your understanding of local ecology.

Where to See Them:

• Compton Gardens: As an urban arboretum, this is one of the best places in Bentonville to study tree architecture up close.

• Coler: The forest canopy offers striking silhouettes of oaks, sycamores, and maples — especially at sunrise or sunset.

• Osage Park: Because the wetland is more open, silhouettes are visible but less prominent.Try observing them in the forested area between the Beaver Wetland and the Urban Watershed.

Try This: Hold your phone at chest height and take a silhouette photo against the sky — you’ll capture the unique character of each tree.

5. Tracks, Clues, and Tiny Winter Mysteries

Winter turns the parks into natural storybooks. Soft mud, frost, and leaf litter reveal signs of animals that often remain unseen.

Where to See Tracks:

• Coler: The best location for wildlife tracks — deer, squirrels, and birds leave patterns along trails and creek edges.

• Compton Gardens: Look for bird prints near puddles or small mammals along woodland borders. We have a resident groundhog, lots of chipmunks, and deer that travel over from Crystal Bridges.

• Osage Park: Tracks are less common but occasionally appear along edges of the wetland or in softer soil near the boardwalk entrances. The image above is of a beaver in the Beaver Wetlands.

What to Look For:
Distinct bird hops, deer hoof prints, squirrel bounding patterns, and the long-toed tracks of wading birds.

Winter Is Made for Quiet Discovery

Across all Peel Compton Foundation properties, winter invites us to slow down and appreciate the textures, sounds, and subtle wildlife movements that define this season. With fewer distractions and a calmer landscape, it becomes easier to connect with nature in meaningful ways.

We hope you enjoy exploring Osage Park, Compton Gardens, and Coler this winter — and discovering the small wonders waiting in the quiet.

A Calmer Season, Not an Idle One

For native plants, winter is a strategic pause. Dormancy allows them to conserve energy, protect their growing points, and strengthen their root systems for the year ahead. The grasses in the meadows at Compton Gardens hold their structure not because we haven’t cut them back, but because those seedheads continue to provide food for finches and sparrows all winter long.

At Osage Park, the wetland plants settle into a quieter phase too, but their root networks remain active, supporting water filtration and stabilizing habitat for wintering birds. Even at Coler, where the forest canopy stands still, the trees are channeling resources belowground, preparing for spring growth.

Nature uses winter to rest—and to get ready.

The Hidden Work of Native Plants

Even in their dormant state, native plants continue to support the ecosystem.

Seedheads become bird feeders.
Coneflowers, asters, and grasses hold seeds through the winter, feeding small birds when insects are scarce.

Leaves become blankets for the forest floor.
Leaf litter shelters overwintering insects, amphibians, and beneficial pollinators. Fireflies, butterflies, and countless soil organisms depend on these layers to survive until spring.

Evergreens offer shelter.
Holly, cedar, and other native evergreens provide windbreaks and cover for wildlife, creating pockets of refuge in colder weather.

This quiet work is essential to the ecological health of Northwest Arkansas — and it’s why our stewardship practices look different in the winter. Sometimes, the most supportive thing we can do for nature is simply to let it rest.

How Wildlife Survives the Season

Winter wildlife is far more active than most people realize.

At Compton Gardens, woodpeckers drum on tree trunks in search of insects overwintering beneath the bark. Chickadees and cardinals fluff their feathers to trap warm air close to their bodies. Squirrels build nests high in the branches and cache food to fuel their winter days.

Osage Park’s wetlands remain lively with ducks, red-winged blackbirds, and great blue herons that rely on open water and steady habitat throughout the colder months. And at Coler, deer, foxes, and small mammals navigate the winter woods, leaving tracks that reveal just how much life persists in the quiet season.

Winter challenges wildlife — but it also showcases their resilience and adaptability.

What You Can Notice on Winter Walks

This time of year offers some of the best opportunities for nature observation. With less foliage, patterns and details emerge that are easy to miss in summer.

Look for:

• Tree silhouettes that reveal branching patterns unique to each species

• Animal tracks in soft soil or frost

• Winter berries on native shrubs

• Subtle meadow textures that catch the low winter light

• Woodpecker calls echoing through bare woods

A slow walk through Osage Park or Compton Gardens in winter becomes a lesson in noticing — and a reminder that beauty isn’t tied to blooming seasons.

Simple Ways to Support Nature at Home This Winter

You don’t need acres of land to make a difference. Small changes in your own yard can support winter wildlife and healthier habitats.

• Leave leaves and plant stems where they are until spring

• Avoid pruning native shrubs too early

• Offer clean, unfrozen water for birds

• Keep seedheads on native plants for natural feeding

• Create small brush piles for winter shelter

These small actions mirror the stewardship we practice on our properties. Together, they help protect the ecosystems that make Northwest Arkansas special.

A Season that Reminds Us to Pause

Winter invites all of us to slow down — just as the landscape does. At the Peel Compton Foundation, we protect spaces where the community can experience this quieter side of nature, learn from it, and reconnect with a pace that’s easy to overlook during the busy months.

As you walk through our parks and gardens this season, we hope you’ll see winter not as nature’s absence, but as its reminder: rest is part of resilience.