Big Day in Little Rock

June 30 – We had a full schedule planned for today!  I had hoped to be on the road at 8:30 but expected it to be 9, so we were right on time.

Roundtop Gas Station

The first stop on the way to Little Rock was in Sherwood.  There we stopped at a Roundtop gas station built in 1936.  It was the only public restroom between Little Rock and Bald Knob.  It’s been recently updated with an AC unit and is a police sub-station along Hwy 67.  It’s on the Register of Historic Buildings.

La Petite Roche

Our next stop was downtown Little Rock along the Arkansas River to see the actual “Little Rock” or “La Petite Roche” as it was originally known.  The rock was originally along the riverbank and larger and was blown up in the late 1800’s to build a railroad bridge.  Someone saved the tip of the rock and it sat by City Hall starting in 1932 and was moved to this spot which is close to where it was originally when the Riverfront Park was completed.

Also from this location you get a beautiful view of the Junction Bridge across the Arkansas River.  It was the old railroad bridge that is now a pedestrian bridge.  We didn’t plan to walk the bridge as we talked the parking attendant into not charging us $5 to park just to take a couple of photos. 

Our main point of interest in Little Rock was the Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site.  The site revolves around school desegregation and the high school is till in attendance and has been since it opened in 1927 as Little Rock Senior HS and was the largest high school in the US at the time and maybe still is.  It is a massive structure.  It was honored as “America’s Most Beautiful High School” by the American Institute of Architecture.  There are 100 class rooms and it 4 stories high.  However, its importance to history took place in September 1957 when it took 11,500 soldiers to assure 9 Negro children their constitutional rights.  I can’t imagine what courage it took for those

The center section of the high school

students to face daily abuse, mentally, verbally and physically  to exert their rights to attend their local high school.  It made me think back to being in the 6^th grade in Mrs. Joyce’s class in Cumberland County, Virginia when the first black students came to my class.  Patricia Scales and Robert Trent were from the all black school and were children of teachers and administrators there.  I can’t remember a single child in our class ever treating them any different than we would any other new kid.  I guess that’s the difference being raised in the country where we all got along as opposed to being raised it the city where more distinct neighborhoods were.  I’m impressed that all these years later I remember their names.  They were both excellent students and gave us white kids a run for our money! 

Although we didn’t have time to get on a tour of the high school we did stop for a photo of

The train just dropped
off our lunch

One of the trains

the main building before heading to lunch at the “All Aboard Restaurant and Grill”.  It was a very unique little place.   You order your food at the counter and it’s delivered by a small train.  There is a set of rail tracks on each side of the room and the train runs overhead and at each booth is a drop off for your food tray that brings the food down to the table.  It is a great place to bring kids for a special meal.  They do the train noises and announce the train is coming.  The food was pretty good but the ambiance was the best!

As we headed out of Little Rock on to Searcy where we were invited to dinner with my sister-in-law Donnette’s sister, Debbie, we stopped at a couple of stores that we don’t have access to where we are.  My stop was Bed, Bath and Beyond and Bill’s was Barnes and Noble.  I will say I also stopped for ink for my printer, but that actually benefits both of us!

We made it to Debbie’s around 4 I think.  She welcomed us with open arms!  After a tour of the house that she and Donnette share when Donnette is working in Searcy, we settled in the kitchen and enjoyed a long visit of catching up and sharing stories.  I will admit some wine was also consumed and Bill thought he’d have to drive home but by the time we left after 9 I was fine.  Dinner was delicious and the strawberry shortcake was a wonderful finish to a perfect meal.  Greg, their brother, managed to stop by for about an hour and we enjoyed telling tales with him also.  We had not seen him in probably 10 years so it was nice.  The house is a beautiful split design with a gorgeous huge kitchen (my favorite room in the house), and the deck area was so perfect for entertaining.  If we get to Searcy later this week Bill may see a movie while Debbie and I visit.  It was very nice of Debbie to invite us and I’m sure I will enjoy my bottle of wine she sent me home with.  It’s called “Liquid Love”, lookout Bill!

I wasn’t crazy about the drive home on the curvy road and thought a deer was going to jump out at any minute but none did.  We did see one along the road.  We got home around 10 and Molly was VERY happy to see us.  She was out of food and also looking for some TLC.  It was a great end to a great day!

A tick strikes again!

June 29 – We did our 2 mile walk of the campground and when we returned there was no mulch delivered.  Later in the day Bill went into town and stopped by the project office and let them know we needed more mulch to finish the job.  None came all day.

Bill went to ACE, Wal-Mart and had lunch at McDonald’s and used the WIFI while I did some blogging and work on things for work.  I really need some time with quiet to get my thoughts together and get things done on the computer.  Bill is into noise and I’m into quiet.  The RV’s isn’t large enough for both!

After dinner we sat outside until dark waiting for the deer.  The little doe showed up but with the traffic she wouldn’t actually come up close.  Bill said we were too close but I don’t think so!

When we came in I noticed a dark spot on Bill’s neck and darn if he didn’t have another tick!  Geez, I hate being hailed as the “tick lady”.  This time I just used the tweezers and yanked and he yelped but the tick was out.  It was still alive as wasn’t as large as the last one.  Since we are done with the bushes and trees I hope we’re done with the ticks!

Boring Sunday

June 28 – I made a good Sunday breakfast and then we headed back to Sugarloaf.  Bill asked if I wanted to go to the summit again and I was adamant, “NO”.  Once is enough for me!  Instead we did the perimeter walk of 1.4 miles around the base.  We were under the impression it was all pretty level but it was up and down and more challenging than we expected.  We stopped at the old car that’s turned over in the woods.  We can’t figure out how anyone got that car that far into the woods.  It was a good workout and maybe next Sunday we will do the last walk out to the pond.

Once we got back I went out and finished my weeding job.  No mulch was delivered so that was it for us for the day.  Bill will do the mulch if they ever bring more.  He did some “chores” while I was out.  I made 2 fresh peach cobblers with the last of the peaches I bought last week.  I put a small one in the freezer and we’ll eat on one for a couple of days.  Yum!

I did some work on manuals for work and a load of laundry.  Nothing exciting for a Sunday afternoon.  I’m glad I’ve finished my outdoor work for the park.  It’s getting hotter by the day and I think the chiggers are getting worse.  We watch the traffic coming and going from the park and are still amazed at the number of pontoon boats we see.

New Project under Way

June 27 – OK, I gave in and walked the 2 miles this morning.  Only, because we were done with the shrubs and the new job is under trees and today was only 70 out went we went to walk.  Last night’s rain cooled things off a lot and it stayed a bit overcast most of the morning.

I started on the weeding while Bill mowed our grass and the neighbor’s so everything would look nice.  I worked about 2.5 hours and was still not done.  Bill came behind me and put down the mulch but 10 bags was not even close.  He called Jason and told him we needed more but since it’s Saturday we didn’t expect it.  Probably Monday.   It’s looking pretty nice already!

Eventually after lunch we went to town.  I wanted a book at the used book store, but no luck!  Then we dropped mail off at the post office and I wanted a few things a Dollar Tree. 

I received an email from the ranger in Idaho and she has us baffled!  She complained that our arriving one day late will mess up the schedule, then her next email says that if we arrive on the 11^th we’ll have to dry camp or take a space in the campground with no water.  I don’t get it!  She’s known for months when we thought we’d arrive and now she says we’d have to dry camp and now suggested we “dawdle” on the way up or she’d see if one of the volunteers that is leaving wants to leave a day or so early!  Geez!  So now we’re waiting to hear so we know how to plan.  Ticks me off!

We caught up with email and I needed to save some forms to print and work from for my work. 

He looks good with a new paint job but not his left arm
and a toe missing.

My big frog we put on the front window of the RV fell off the night Jean and Paul were here and broke the leg and one toe off him.  I bought some spray paint and sprayed him and left him to dry so next I’ll see what I can do to fix him.  He’s the first one we bought and I don’t think they guy makes them anymore.

I heated up my ribs and other grilled leftovers for dinner.  I microwaved the last ear of corn for Bill and heated up a sweet potato for me and then we had sliced tomato and cukes to finish it off.  That’s Bill’s favorite kind of dinner.  We had our peach crisp and ice cream later and headed off to work. 

It was pretty slow tonight.  I made two scrubbies and wrote in my “Story of my Life” book.  Bill usually watches TV and sometimes he reads.  That’s our duty now for the week!

The Shrubs are Done!!!!!

The first ones we could not reach
the tops

June 26 – Bill wasn’t happy with me this morning as I didn’t feel like walking.  It’s gotten

These we trimmed the most

hotter and humid out and it really drains me to walk 2 miles and then go work outside on those shrubs.  Oh well!  He went and then we went to the shrubs and FINISHED today!  At least we thought we finished.  We didn’t cut the first set back as far as the others but we had piles of limbs all over.  After we got back one of the rangers stopped and told us how much they needed trimmed and how good they look.  She was going to let Jason know we thought we were done and to let us know.   He stopped by and said they looked really good and they were good like they are.  He gave us a new assignment.  He and Bill loaded up the gas trimmer and paint from a few weeks ago and came back with 10 bags of mulch.  They want everything spruced up for the holiday weekend so asked if we could weed, trim and mulch the small garden area by the gatehouse.  I had worked on it before and it’s not a problem for us.  Will start on it tomorrow.

I made some phone calls.  We arranged to go see Donnette’s sister, Debbie, on Tuesday in Searcy.  We’re going into Little Rock in the morning to finish sight seeing there and then up the road to Searcy and relax and visit over dinner.  It was really nice of her to invite us.

We mapped out our trip to Idaho and finished making our reservations.  Ended up changing one night so Bill will have to call and cancel that one.  I emailed the ranger there to let her know we’d be there on the 11^th, one day later than originally planned.

We did some cleaning and the floors.  Later in the day we went in to town to use the wifi.  We left there and went to Chuck’s Diner for dinner.  Luckily we didn’t have a wait but there were a lot of cars in the lot.  Bill had a steak and said it was perfectly cooked.  I couldn’t decide but finally went with a half rack of ribs.  I rarely eat ribs but thought maybe this time I’d get lucky!  Well, I did!  They fell off the bone and were juicy and not all stringy and sticking in my teeth.  After a salad and sweet potato and a roll I didn’t even have room to finish them so brought home the last 2 for lunch.  They had some good looking desserts but we passed as we had peach crisp with ice cream at home.

We went to work at 8, well we always go about 10 til to chat with Barb and Bob and get any info from them we might need for the evening.  It was a slow night, nothing like last night but still folks coming in without reservations.  It started pouring rain about 5 and a lot of the reservations didn’t show.  Guess they will come tomorrow instead.

No Lyme Disease, just a Spider Bite!!!Whew!

June 25 – Last night I noticed one of the bites on Bill’s leg had circle around it and he was concerned so we waived the walking and he dropped me off at the shrubs while he went to the doctor.  The doctor said he thought it was a spider bite so gave him a prescription for an antibiotic that he dropped off at Wal-mart.

We finished up and went home.  There was more laundry to do and I had some phone calls to make.  After lunch we went to town again.  I got light bulbs for the shower stall at Auto Zone, stamps at the post office and then to McDonald’s.  We made a quick Wal-mart stop to get Bill’s prescription and some spaghetti sauce for dinner.

I had meatballs in the freezer I made so put the sauce on to simmer and read for a while.  Bill was busy mapping still.  We made reservations for 3 nights of travel but now will be changing one I think. 

I made us salads for dinner and rotini pasta with the sauce.  I had made a peach crisp yesterday so we had that just before heading to work at the gatehouse.  We had bought some vanilla ice cream so we each had a scoop on it after warming it a bit.  Yum!

Time to go to work at 8.  

Back to reality

June 24 – We were up and walking after breakfast this morning.  We walked down to Jean and Paul’s space to see when they were heading out.  From here they are going to see his children in Little Rock and Benton for a few days.  He was doing some work under the RV and then they were having breakfast.  We told them they would see us trimming shrubs as they left!

We loaded up our gear and headed down.  Bill went to fill the hedge trimmer with gas and we worked for 2 hours.  Jean and Paul stopped on their way out and said our good–byes until we get home.   

After lunch we headed to Wal-mart for some wifi time.  We got serious about mapping our trip from here to Idaho since it’s only 2 weeks away.  We stopped at Wal-mart for a couple of things then headed home.  The rest of the day was mostly reading, resting and catching up on laundry.

Blanchard Springs and Caverns

June 23 – We told Jean and Paul we’d pick them up at 8:30 for our trip to Mountain View for our tour of Blanchard Springs Caverns.  It’s over and hour away, our tour was at 10:40 and we needed to check in a bit early.  Timing was on our side as when we checked in we were offered the opportunity to go on an earlier tour at 10:00.  Perfect!  The temperature in the caverns was 58 so Bill, Jean and I wore a light jacket. 

One of the cool formations

Our guide was great and so full of information.  He’s been there for 24 years and was really good.  They offer 3 tours and we took the shortest, easiest one that lasts an hour.  The 90 minute one has 700 steps and after my climb up Sugarloaf I could barely get in and out of the car so that was not an option for me.  No one else was really interested in it either.  The other tour is 4 hours and you get dirty and crawl through spaces.  If I was in better shape I would

One of my favorites, see the ship?

have given it a try!  The use of light in the caverns was beautiful and certainly added to the experience.  The group size was perfect and our guide never made us feel rushed or discouraged from asking questions.  It was one of the best caverns we have been in.  They have 2 campgrounds for overnight

Jean and Paul at the
springs

stays and some other activities near by.  We all went to see the Blanchard Springs when we finished the tour.  It’s a short drive and shorter walk to the springs which have a nice water fall and it’s very easy to walk out on the rocks to get close for pictures.

Lunchtime!!!!  Bill and I had eaten at PJ’s Rainbow Café and it was

Which one is Edith Ann?

great so that’s where we took Paul and Jean.  Paul said everything he saw them bring out from the kitchen looked good and we all cleaned our plates and enjoyed our lunch.

The town of Mountain View’s town square

One of the historic buildings

is on the Historic Register as all of the buildings are hand cut and laid block.  It’s a really nice little square and those buildings should never fall down! 

We had talked about visiting the Ozark Folk Center State Park but it was getting pretty hot out and since we planned to grill out tonight we didn’t want to be late getting home.  We visited some of the little shops and stores along the square and everyone had something for dessert or bought something to take home.

Jean and Paul came over at 5:30 and when we got ready to eat we put the grill on.  It was a simple meal of corn on the cob, potato salad, fresh veggies and for dessert there was cheesecake with whipped cream!  Yum!  We sat out and watched TV and I fed the deer and we waited patiently for them.  Five could be seen and 2 got pretty close and one poor doe stretched and reached for the corn but would not take that extra step she needed for success.  Then they all stampeded into the woods and didn’t come back.  Jean and Paul called it a night and headed home.  We had a fun day like we do every time we get together!

Kam heads home....boo hoo!

June 22- Kam wanted to leave at 7:15 and Jean volunteered to ride with me to take her to the airport for her flight home.  Jean was ready when we got to her RV and on the road we went.  There was no weather, no accidents and the traffic was fine.  We arrived in plenty of time for Kam’s flight.  It’s not a large airport so we scooted right back out to the highway.  I wanted to go to a regular grocery store and we found a Kroger’s in the direction of home.  We both got a few things to cook out so then we went home.

The guys hadn’t done much while we were gone.  Bill walked down to see Paul and they visited.  I don’t think they thought we’d be back as soon as we were.  After lunch we headed out for the afternoon.

First stop was the base of the Dam.  They were very impressed to see it from the bottom after seeing it from the top.  Next stop was the National Fish Hatchery.  Now that was impressive!  They raise brook and rainbow trout from eggs brought in from other sources.  One tank is really full grown trout, from 16- 26 or so inches and so fat!  They are

The itty bitty fish in the building

living the good life.  The other tanks contain 1 of 3 sizes from what we could tell.  The little ones were about 3-4 inches, the next size were 6 – 8 and the largest were around 12.  They looked so crowded in the tanks and some tanks they would all be at one end and leave lots of space at the other.  When you approach the tank they jump around and then settle back down.  Some of the tanks looked like there were sharks.  The visitor center has a display explaining the process and a map of all of the National Fish Hatcheries in the US.  In the back half of the building are tanks of the itty bitty trout.  They are the hatchlings and stay inside until they are big enough and can digest a full size pellet of food.  This hatchery distributes more than 200,000 pounds of rainbow and brook trout in Arkansas and Oklahoma. 

We went into town for a snack at McDonald’s followed by a visit to our awesome ACE Hardware store.  They can furnish an entire house, which is not your standard ACE.  We stopped at Auto Zone for a part Paul needed but no luck there.  Our last stop was the outlet store or Aromantique.  It’s a fragrance company that does candles, diffusers and all kinds of smelly things for the house.  The owner started making items in her home here in Heber Springs and turned it into a nationwide business.

The plan was to cook out tonight but since it was Paul’s birthday we opted to eat out tonight at Mack’s Fish & Steak House.  Bill and I had eaten here before and were not overly impressed but tonight the food was much better, although they were very busy for a Monday evening and our waitress was having trouble keeping up. 

Time to go home and rest up for another busy day tomorrow.

Conquering Sugarloaf Mountain!

June 21 – No one was in any hurry to get up and going today!  Two long days and we were

Sugarloaf Mountain

 ready for a little extra sleep.  After breakfast Kam, Bill and I headed out to Sugarloaf Mountain behind the local campus of Arkansas State.  The first challenge was actually finding the parking area to ascend the mountain.  We had a brochure but it didn’t actually tell you where to start.  It was on the left side of the campus as we approached and there were several cars already parked.

Kelly trying to wedge her
butt into the crevice

The trail we chose was to the summit and most steep and challenging but not terribly long.  Once we reached as far as we could without scaling the actual mountain, we could not figure out how to get to the summit.  We saw a guy and asked him and he’d only been up once but said he thought he could find the way up again.  The first crevice he looked at was not it but the second one he was sure it was.  Bill was definite that he was not going to attempt to climb up or down 40 feet or so of rock wall.  Kam and I debated it and thought going up would not be so bad, but getting back down might be.  We thanked the guy and declined and he ended up not going up.  About the same time a young couple appeared and she said this was her 4^th time going up this summer and had been numerous times and it was easier to get down than to get up.  She was no taller than me but considerably smaller!  Some of those crevices looked pretty tight but  there was no way I was going to wimp out and not get to the top.  Onward and upward!

Our guide said she would show us all the foot holes along the way so she went first, then

Closer to the top

Kam, then me.  It was rather grueling, and I have no upper body strength so depended on my legs to push me.  The guide and Kam were there to give me a hand for any stabilizing or energy bursts.  We went up through the first crevice, then over and up again to the top.  It was one of the most exhilarating things I’ve ever done!  At 61 and in the physical condition I am in, I was elated to be on top of the world in Heber Springs!  I later told Bill it was like Mount Everest for me!  The view was spectacular!  Our guide said we needed to walk the entire summit so she took us all the way around and warned us where to be careful and pointed out places we were seeing far below.  It was primarily flat with trees clustered pretty much in the middle.  There were many cracks and crevices we had to jump or climb over. 

Happy Climbers

Then it was time for the descent!  I was not so worried but Kam really didn’t like the first step down into the crevice.  The guide went first and this time I was next and then Kam.  Once we made the first step down it was pretty easy.  You

And we made it down!

didn’t need to use your upper body as much as gravity was working on the way down.  Bill and the guide’s boyfriend (who really didn’t want to climb it anyway) were waiting at the bottom for us and had a good visit while we romped and took photos from the top.  The 5 of us walked down together.  Going down was easier than the walk up but due to the steepness we had to go slow and watch our footing.  At the bottom we said our thank you’s and good byes to such a nice young couple.  We were tired puppies!

Bill filling his jug with spring water

We thought Jean and Paul would be arriving soon so we headed back to shower, have some lunch and wait for them.  By the time we showered they pulled in but their spot was not available yet so they parked along the road by our spot and they had their lunch while we had ours.  Their car is bigger so they drove the 5 of us.  We started in Heber Springs at the park for them to see the springs there and Bill wanted to get some of the water to try.

Then we headed to Bridal Veil Falls just outside of the town

Bill zoomed on us from the top of
the falls

proper.  Everyone walked down to the top of the fall and we took photos and scoped out whether we could get to the bottom from there or needed to take the longer way around.  Poor Jean slipped and got her butt wet but was OK and didn’t lose her phone or her sunglasses!  Bill stayed at the top and once Paul found the way down the 3 of us followed.  It was so cool down there, literally.  It’s a tall falls but at this time of year not a rushing fall.  After taking turns  of everyone getting pictures we headed back the way we came and met up with Bill.

Just up the road is the Ozark Country Store and Kam had wanted to check it out and we had a couple of things we wanted to get also.  Everyone enjoyed the shopping stop and we all left with something.

Jean and Paul at the Dam

Kam had not seen the dam yet so it was a good time for Jean and Paul to see it also.  We crossed the dam and stopped at the viewpoint for the normal photo op!  We drove through the JFK campground that is along the Little Red River just past the dam.  It’s park of the Corp campgrounds and very flat and maybe larger spaces. 

 It was 4:00 and Jean and Paul’s space should have been vacant by now so they dropped us off and checked in and settled into their spot down the road a ways from us.  We were re-grouping for dinner.  Bill and I had some places in mind, BUT, had no idea that on Sunday almost EVERY restaurant was closed!  The one we found on line that was open on Sunday was going to be it unless we went with fast food.  We drove to the pizza place and darn if there wasn’t a sign on the door, “Sorry, closed for Father’s Day”.  The only major place that had open restaurants was Searcy, so we headed in that direction but when we got to Pangburn there were cars at Susie’s so we whipped into a spot.  It was originally an ice cream shop but she just added some food items a week ago.  So, everyone got a small meal and ice cream for dessert.  It wasn’t the best but when you consider our options, it was pretty good!

Paul dropped us off and Kam did her packing and we headed off to bed!

Trip to Hot Springs

June 20 – I set the alarm for 7 again so Bill could get up and go get the oil changed in the car. Kam and I really got up around 8 and I made bacon, grits, toast and fruit. I rarely make grits for just me so it was nice to have someone to share with. We saved bacon and fruit for Bill when he got back.

We didn't get the car packed and leave until after 9 but then we were on our way to Hot Springs. We routed west of Little Rock and the traffic was not bad at all. Being a Saturday, there was a lot of traffic in the narrow main street of the National Park area. Kam spotted free parking in a garage directly across from the area we wanted to visit but it was up

Not the experience he
expected!

the hill so we had to continue down and turn around and go back up past where you could see the lot, go up the hill, turn right and the lot was on the left overlooking the promenade below and across from the old bathhouses. Luckily someone was pulling out on the second level and we got a good spot close to the stairs.

First stop for everyone was the bathroom! Then we stopped in the gift shop and I got my National Park Stamp and we looked around and made our way down the block to the Fordyce Bathhouse which is park of the park service. I believe there are 47 different springs and many have been capped in the woods to prevent

Add caption

contamination.  We did the “on your own” tour and it was very interesting all of the steps they take you through.  The steps are tub bath, shower, steam cabinet, hot and cold packs, whirlpool and massage.  The ladies’ changing rooms were tiny but had lounges in the center.  The ladies had a beauty

Lady's day dress and
gym outfit

salon and along one side of the third floor was a mixed room for guests to relax, play the piano and socialize.  There was a “gym” for the men and various older models of modern day exercise equipment.

The history of the springs is very interesting, dating back to the late 1700’s.  How they started in canvas buildings, then wooden buildings, then block and more modern.  They were used for relaxation and medicinal purposes.  Men and women were separated and blacks were not allowed so in 1905 they built their own bathhouse.

Leg machine --
looks painful

We were going to actually partake of a bathhouse experience but thought we better have lunch first. We ate at a small diner across the street. The food was good but the service was really slow which ended up causing us to miss getting a bathhouse spot. They don't take reservations and it is first come, first served. Bill could have gone right away to the men's side but we would have had up to a 40 minutes wait to start and then up to another 40 minute wait for the Swedish massage. Double crap! It would put us so late trying to leave for home and see the observation tower that we decided not to.

Bill and I filled 2 gallon water jugs from one of the public thermal fountains to bring home and try.  That water was 137 degrees and carrying the jugs we had to keep changing hands all the way back to the car.

Bill is about to get a really hot bath!

We drove up the hill and zig zagged to the Hot Springs Mountain Tower.  The tower is 216 feet high.  The three of us went to the top and got to see all of Hot Springs.  The view was great and one level down is a history of the area all around the platform.  It was interesting to see the changes in order of progression.

Time to head home!  We had to work

The Tower

again and thought we might have time to stop at the Wilkinson Mall in Conway for Kam to check out all of the shoes there.  We managed to arrive 30 minutes before closing.  Kam didn’t buy but I left with another new pair of shoes.  Since again it was eat out or scrounge at home, we stopped at a Mexican place just before leaving town.  We got in right away, served very quickly (and the food was pretty good) and managed to get home with about 10 minutes to spare.

Kam and Bill unloaded the car and I grabbed what I needed and went to work.  Bill arrived just before Barb and Bob left.  It was not as busy as last night.  The only major thing was a camper called in that someone was setting off fireworks so we radioed the ranger but by the time they got out there it was done.

It was a long day, but a fun day!

Kam arrived!

June -19

It was an early and long day today! We got up at 7 and left at 7:50 to drive to Little Rock to pick Kam up. It was not nice driving weather with drizzle and clouds. We were just about there when she text that she was arriving late and was taxiing in. That worked great for us. We found a parking spot at the Baggage Claim at door “G” and told her where we were. Once she changed clothes we headed for Crater of Diamonds State Park.

It was another 2 hours or so there. She hadn't had breakfast so we made a pit stop for her to go to Starbucks and later we stopped at a Love's Truck Stop so I could get Bill's beef sticks he likes. Then we stopped for lunch at a little place in Murfreesboro. We all enjoyed our home cooked lunch!

When we finally made our destination it was rather surprising

Kelly and Kam hard at work

to see how many cars there were. Crater of Diamonds State Park is 911 acres along the Little Missouri River. The “diamond mine” is a 37 acre field where a massive volcano brought diamonds to the surface of the Earth. It is the only diamond producing area in North America open to the public. In addition to diamonds you may find amethyst, agate, jasper, quartz, calcite and barite. It was getting to be a hot day but it was better than the predicted rain we expected a couple of days ago. It had passed through during the night. Bill brought 2 shovels, 2 buckets, gloves and Kam rented box sifters for us to use. When we went out there had been

Using the box sifter

2 diamonds found already today! One was a 4 carat brown diamond and the other was a 3 carat white. We spend at least an hour out there and we came back with 2 buckets of rocks! We had jasper, calcite, quartz and some others but not a diamond. It was still fun and if we were staying the night at the campground we would have stayed longer. When we finished up another 1 carat diamond had been found. They said most of the diamonds found are the size of the end of a match. The largest diamond found was in 1924 and was 40.23 carats, the largest ever found in North America. There were people who set up canopy tents along the edge of the field and spent the day.

We had planned to have dinner at Doe's in Little Rock but they didn't open

Kam hosing off the mud

up for dinner until 5:30 and the drive from there to Heber Springs is about an hour and 20 minutes and we had to be at work at 8. So we stopped for gas and headed towards home. I had not planned anything for dinner so Kam started looking at Yelp for recommended places and there was one just before heading into Heber Springs. It was home cooking and bbq. The Arrow's Cafe and BBQ. There were lots of cars, always a good sign, so we stopped. We all had a bbq platter with 2 sides and a roll or cornbread. It was all good and we were stuffed.

We managed to get back in time to unload the car, Bill get a shower, me feed my deer and show Kam how everything works. We left her to shower and do some work for her job. She came out while I fed the deer and almost as soon as I went back in my little doe came and Kam got her camera out and took some photos.

We arrived at work on time and it was a super busy first hour. The place was almost full and then people kept coming in with no reservations. There was someone parked on someone else's site and we had to call for a ranger. We sent people to the loops we were told had vacancies and they'd come back and say there were no spaces. Bill drove down to check and didn't see any spaces but we later realized those were family spaces that had one drive with 2 spaces and only one space was being used. It was the worst night we've worked so far. We used the radio for the first time and then had to give directions here to people when we barely can find our way ourselves. Tomorrow has to be a better work day!

Boring day

July 18 -  Rain, rain, go away!

It started pouring at bedtime and rained on and off all night.  We didn’t manage to get in our 2 miles this morning.  We headed out and since it was overcast we were going to do the whole long road down and back but then the drizzle started so we turned and cut through a couple of loops and managed to get back before the skies opened up.  It meant no outside work today!  It rained on and off most of the day.

We did housework instead.  Cleaning and putting things away and pitching a few things too.  After lunch Bill went to Wal-mart for a few things and stopped at Auto Zone for replacement bulbs for some of our RV lights but they didn’t have what we needed.

Kam gets in tomorrow morning so if all goes well we will pick her up at 9 AM.  I sure hope the weather is better as she/we have a full schedule during her stay.  We still have to work at night but as long as we can spend the days out and about it will be great!

More Eureka Springs

June 17 -  We were off on an adventure right off!  We packed up our things as check out is at 11 and the plan was to go to breakfast, check out some shops and take a few more photos then go on a walking tour at 11. 

Park beside our hotel

Joe recommended The Mud Room Café for breakfast but it was closed.  We then found out that all of the places on that side of the street were closed due to a power outage.  Bill asked at the hotel where we could have breakfast and the doorman sent us up the street to the Main Street Café.  It was slammed due to the power outage, but it was good business for them.  Timing was good and we only waited a couple of minutes for a table to be cleared.  Breakfast was OK, a bit pricy though.

We walked back in the direction of the hotel and the

Bill and Humpty

weather was so iffy that we decided if we went on the tour it would rain and if we didn’t it wouldn’t, so we didn’t go.  We visited a few shops and walked around a bit more until it was time to vacate our room.  The shuttle took us to our car in a lot on another street further down. 

Christ of the Ozarks

We both wanted to see the “Christ of the Ozarks” 7 story Christ statue on the grounds of The Passion Play just outside the town.  It was not far but some steep narrow roads to get there.  The entire facility is on the top of a mountain.  They have RV sites which was a bit surprising.  That statue is totally impressive!  There are a couple of viewpoints.  Christ’s

Section of the Berlin Wall

extended arms are 60 feet.  It could use some minor repairs and repainting, but it’s still impressive.  Near the parking area is a small church and a section of the Berlin Wall.  I needed to make a phone call so Bill went to see that and take a photo.

Magnetic Spring

We stopped at the Magnetic Springs on the road down the mountain where we could take a drink from the spring fountain.  It wasn’t the best water we’ve ever had, but not bad.

We took some turns and twists back in Eureka and saw some of the “off the main drag” homes before heading out to the road home.  We stopped at Joe and Rik’s campground but Rik was gone to an appointment.  We had a nice visit with Joe and toured their RV.  It was nice to see them and we will see them in December back in Florida!

We stopped for lunch, at Aldi and for ice, then later down the road we stopped for the bathroom!  It seemed shorter going home but we know that’s in our heads. 

Molly was very glad to see us!  After putting everything away and thinking about what to do

Ticky the tick

for dinner, Bill wanted me to look at his neck.  He had a tick embedded in his neck.  He called Carole who said to try getting heat on it to make it let go.  Well I’m not a medical person but I heated the tip of a table knife over the stove and lightly put it on the tick several times until it didn’t seem to be moving.  Then I used tweezers and grabbed it as close as I could to Bill’s skin and pulled that little sucker out.  Doused him (Bill, not the tick) with alcohol several times and my job was done!  Yuck!  Bill named him Ticky the Tick.  Later we both did inspections and found no ticks, just chigger bites!

What a strange end to a great couple of days!

Trip To Eureka Springs

July 16 – It was a long day, but a good one!  We managed to get on the road at 9 for Eureka Springs.  The road was slower going than we expected.  Lots of curves and up and down hills.  Pretty much all 2 lane.  This was a good test as we will be going this way when we leave for Idaho, but not all the way to Eureka Springs.

Mid-morning we stopped for a potty break.  Later we decided to stop at the Tyler Bend Visitor Center for the Buffalo National River.  We’ve been there before in 2010.  Truly nothing looked at all familiar but Bill said he remembered us being in that area.  We watched the movie of the river and met a couple who’d come over 200 miles to float on the river but the river is up and they cancelled all trips for 2 days.  We felt bad for them.

When we reached Harrison we stopped at Wendy’s for lunch and texted our friend Joe that we were stopping for lunch and where we were and we’d let them know once we checked in to our hotel.  As we drove out of Harrison we spotted an Aldi.  Great!  We are going to definitely stop on the way back as there isn’t one anywhere near us.

We checked into the 1905 Basin Park Hotel which is down in the valley of the original

1905 Basin Park Hotel

downtown for Eureka Springs.  It reminded us of Bisbee, AZ and Jerome, AZ.  It’s all up and down hills and narrow roads.  All of the modern places are on the main road.  There was motel after motel.  There are only a couple of the old places downtown.  Our

Hotel Lobby

hotel was built in 1905 and is 6 stories tall.  We were on the 4^th floor with access to a small balcony just outside our door.  There is a tiny elevator about the size of the ones in Europe.  We just took a standard room and it was very large with a nice size bathroom.  It was a king bed but due to years of settling, the floor dipped and my head was lower than my feet so around midnight I turned and slept upside down.  Although it wasn’t fancy, it had everything we needed and was appointed with vintage or reproduced furniture and accessories except for the bed and the TV.

Local Flavor

Unique Hotel Sign
former bordello

Once we settled in Joe and Rik met us in the lobby for a walking tour in the drizzle.  We have not seen them since December and they looked great and love Eureka Springs.  Joe manages 2 restaurants from April thru October for people he worked for before when they were there.  They winter back in Eustis when most of the town closes up.

Although the weather was not good, the visit was great!  They pointed out many buildings and springs of interest and shared some stories about places.  One of the most impressive places was the bank.  It’s a single bank, no branches and in the original building with the original oak teller stations and offices, all with glass.  It was a museum in addition to being a bank.  There are all kinds of vintage office equipment and law books as one end must have been leased to a law firm back in the day.  It was a gorgeously maintained building.  There was one attempted robbery in 1922.  Six of the townspeople killed 3 of the 5 robbers.  The other two were caught and sent to prison. 

Local Home

Joe showed us his two restaurants and we stopped Local Flavor which was the one that was open.  He treated for drinks and I had the best red Sangria!  By then the rain seemed to be clearing so we walked back in the direction of the hotel but from the other side of the valley.  It’s a very different perspective.  We said our good byes for the day as we are stopping on our way out of town tomorrow to see them and their new RV.

Joe made a dinner reservation for us at 6:30 so we had

Cool stairs

time to relax in the room before showering to go out.  Of course it was raining when it was time to go.  The hotel has a shuttle so they dropped us off.  Joe and Rik already had plans but that was OK.  Joe compted us an appetizer and dessert!  How awesome is that?  We shared the crabcake appetizer and it was all crab and no filler with a lime dill sauce.  For dinner Bill went with chicken parmesan and it as the thickest chicken we’ve ever seen in that dish.  It wasn’t pounded down, just plump and juicy.  I had Chicken Saverio which is chicken layered with olive tapenade and goat cheese with a balsamic drizzle over a bed of arugula.  I was in heaven!  We should have shared a dessert, and I suggested it but no, Bill wanted his own.  Since it was late he couldn’t have any of the chocolate choices so he had pecan pie in a shortbread crust.  I had bread pudding in a bourbon sauce.  The pudding was heated and swimming in the sauce.  I wasn’t about to let any go to waste!  We were both so miserable as we don’t normally have an appetizer and dessert and I had a glass of wine!  Thankfully the rain had stopped so we walked back to the hotel.  Too bad it wasn’t further.  I was still stuffed by the time we went to bed.  It was a truly wonderful meal with excellent service.  It was so nice of Joe to do that for us.

We were able to watch the season opener for Rizzoli and Isles and then Bill’s show Royal Pains.  I only posted one day and was too tired to write today.