Arkansas: Steep and Crooked June 15-16

 Wednesday, June 15, 2016

76 degrees at 8:15 – gonna be another hot one!  We learn that the Mulberry River is one of the wildest rivers for kayaking in the Spring, though it looks tamer now.

We are off to find Triple Falls,  quite a drive through beautiful woodlands.  Saw a few more deer, rabbits, squirrels and Greg saw a turkey with a brood of young ones.  Triple Falls turns out to be at the bottom of a crazy steep and “crooked” road, as they say here. (The write up we saw just said steep dirt road. But the warning at the start of the road suggested 4-wheel drive and high clearance!) Yikes! All dirt and stone and very steep  and rutted in places.  We finally stop at a spot after about 3 miles (all downhill) where Greg can safely turn around.  We park here and walk the rest of the way, about a quarter of a mile, then another ½ mile or so to the Falls. 

Pretty falls and lots of neon dragon flies. 

We pause for a while and explore, then head back to the Trek. This is one small section of this road from hell...

Whole lot of huffin’ and puffin’ goin’ on by the time we reach the Trek.  Greg expertly maneuvers back up the hill, though the Trek is a bit overheated by the time we reach the top and we stop to let it cool.

We drive a little further to the town of Jasper where we treat ourselves to cold drinks and share a Subway sub – and give the Trek a rest..  Subways seem to be pretty standardized and reliable.  Then we turn south on Scenic 7. 

Beautiful, with many “Steep & Crooked for next ______ miles”  anywhere from 1 ½ to 53 miles.  We stop at Buffalo River Canyon Scenic Overlook at the summit of Mount Judea in the Boston Range. 2169’ elevation with a great view. Beth climbs an overlook tower.

We stop at the Big Piney Ranger station and talk with Kendra about National Forest Campgrounds in the area, and we decide to head to Bayou Bluff, just 8 miles up the road.  Turns out to be a great choice, as we spend some time in the Illinois Bayou there – cool, clear water that feels oh so good!  

Water aerobics?

selfie attempt

  

After playing in the water, Greg gets the grill going and we make hamburgers and do some photo work.  A few others show up for a swim, but don't stay long.

 Then, back into the water to cool down again.  It hit the mid 90's today and takes its time sinking back to a mere 74!  

We decide to try some light painting photography, but give up shortly because it has gotten too buggy. 

Lightning bugs are great, but the mosquitos and some little tiny  ¼” grasshopper

-looking things are too annoying.

Thursday, June 16, 2016

74 degrees at 8 AM.  This is getting old but the forecast doesn’t show much of a break.  We walk a bit this morning and take some photos in the soft morning light.

Have cereal and fruit for breakfast – too hot to cook – then head out on 27N toward Clinton and Arkansas’ Natural Bridge.

It is down another steep road, but this one at least is paved!  We enter through an old cabin from 1867 and meet Jim.  He is friendly as he explains some history and shows a few old photographs.  The walk to the bridge is a short one. 

The rock bridge was used as a road  for logging back in the day, but is closed to any kind of  traffic now.  There is another cabin from the 1800’s with old items including a still, complete with moonshine recipe.

Jim tells us of a few things to do in Mountain View, our next destination, and confirms that the weather we are having is about 15 degrees above normal.  We talk about rocks and he shows us some specimens, including concretions which look like giant cannonballs.

Found near a small town called Prim, he said you can google Prim and read about their formation.

We continue north to Mountain View and the Ozark Folk Center State Park.   It is a collection of shops operated by 22 different craftsmen who demonstrate their craft (and sell items as well, surprise surprise).   We watch a gunsmith and quilter, then go to listen to a cowboy poet named Smitty. 

He is humourous and spins a good tale for us and about 24 folks on a Road Scholar (formerly Elderhostel) group.  At one point he consults his “portable memory devise” (cellphone) to read a poem that his Dad often read to him. 

Then more crafts, including pottery, baskets, knives, clothing, candles, weaving and our favorite, a colored copper craftswoman, Rachael Mathews, who shows how heating copper with different temperatures brings out different colors. 

She and her husband both work there and have some lovely items as well as many small things for sale.  We buy a hummingbird that is really lovely, 3-dimensional, about 4-5” tall.

Above is blacksmith Pat Thompson showing how a good anvil gives a true ring and bounce.

Art- Ruth Butterfield whose one painting showed nurses (with wide straw hats) that worked during the civil war.  Dolls- Erlene Carter.  Apothecary- Nancy Howsman. Quilter -Jennifer Whitman showed a piece she is working on that includes a stitch called Chicken Scratch, which she said she learned from a 90+ year old quilter.

We go to a musical performance at 1:45, featuring a group called Sibling Rivalry. 2 brothers and 2 sisters who play guitar, mandolin, fiddle and base.  They are young but talented.

First time we have seen what is called a Picnic Swing -  a donkey-powered amusement ride!  We didn’t want to make the poor donkey work any harder, so abstained from riding.

From here we went into town to find the “Swinging Bridge” Jim back at the Natural Bridge told us about.  It was built in the late 1800’s using steel cable.  The wooden part was destroyed by flood once, but the concrete and cable held and the wood was replaced.  It is still used today and we drove across just cause.  It really doesn't swing much.

We stop at a Walmart for a few supplies and find we are in a dry county, so no wine tonight.  Sigh. But we do buy a rotisserie chicken for tonight's dinner.

We head to Blanchard Springs National Forest Park because it has 1. Showers and 2. A place to swim, though we use them in the other order.  The first part of the campground is closed due to recent flooding, but we continue on across the water crossing and find a nice site, one of only two available!

 

Some nice rocks in the stream fed by Blanchard Springs.  And the water is delightful!  

We have turkey sandwiches and carrots for dinner ‘cause it is too hot to cook.  Worked on photos.  Again, thankful for the small battery-powered fan Greg purchased recently!