Kessler Mountain Regional Park comprises some 620 acres, spanning part of the old Judge Cummings property and the top of Kessler Mountain, which reaches 1,856 feet (565 meters) above sea level.
The park serves two primary purposes — a regional sports park in the lowlands and a 400-acre nature preserve in the highlands.
The sports park includes numerous soccer fields and eight baseball fields, a children’s playground, restrooms, concession stands and parking.
The nature preserve offers miles of natural-surface trails for hikers and mountain bicyclists. The city of Fayetteville described the natural amenities of the park: “The park terrain includes open meadows, rolling hills, scenic bluffs, and a mature forest featuring native Ozark oaks, hickories, dogwoods, and redbuds. Two intermittent streams flow through the property, providing an invaluable supply of water for the wildlife residing on the site. This land is now preserved as natural playground for outdoor recreation and a valuable environment for appreciating and learning about our native flora and fauna.”
Two trails — one paved and one primarily natural-surface — provide connection between the park and the rest of Fayetteville’s trail system.
The paved Cato Springs Trail, the beginning leg of the Razorback Greenway, starts at the park and leads northeasterly out of the park.
The natural-surface Fayetteville Traverse trail also crosses through the park paralleling the Cato Springs Trail before climbing over Kessler Mountain and leading to nearby Centennial Park. Refer also to the Kessler Mountain and parks entries.