2018 - Blog #9 - Homeward bound... a little bit of new adventure and revisiting some favorite campgrounds

View of Hot Springs, Arkansas from the Hot Springs Mountain Tower - Bathhouse Row is in the middle of the photo

Wow, it’s hard to believe that it has been almost a month since we sent out our last blog.   Coming back through Arkansas from west to southeast this time was wonderful.  It seems to us that when people speak of Arkansas, “The Ozarks” is always the first thing that comes mind.   This time we “discovered” the beauty of Ouachita National Forest and we think it is every bit as beautiful as the Ozarks.  It amazes us that we had never heard of this mountain range too.  Hot Springs National Park is in the southeastern edge of this forest.

Hot Springs Mountain Tower, on top of Hot Springs Mountain

We stayed in the Gulpha Gorge Campground, very near the Hot Springs Historical District.   Unlike any other National Park, the Hot Springs Historical District is inside the National Park boundary so there is no fee to visit here.    However, there is a fee to stay in the campground.   We had a lot of fun here and the campground is one of the prettiest of all the campgrounds that we have visited.  Our campsite was on a beautiful mountain stream with a towering, tree-covered cliff (like a wall of green) behind it. 

Jerome and Carly out for a walk along the creek in Gulpha Gorge Campground, Hot Springs National Park

We were surrounded by magnolia trees, fragrant gardenia bushes, canopies of flaming mimosa trees abundant with their pink puffs of flowers, and large crepe myrtle bushes thick with white, magenta, and pink flower clusters.  Along the creek-bed, a big muskrat would come out to stealthily munch on the leafy greens on the banks.  For the bird-lovers out there, you will understand how much we enjoyed seeing hummingbirds, hermit thrashers, and even a scarlett tanager… what a treat!  

Bathhouse Row

inside the Fordyce Bathhouse -  on Bathhouse Row

There is so much history here in the historical district.  On Bathhouse Row, we toured the Fordyce Bathhouse, which is also the Visitor Center for the Hot Springs National Park.  We also treated ourselves to dinner in the Speakeasy room on the second floor of Rolando’s, a Latin fusion restaurant.

Camerons Bohemian and fresh guacamole at Rolando's.... YUM!

If you are ever in Hot Springs, Arkansas, don’t miss eating at Rolando’s…. it’s absolutely delicious.   Unfortunately, our after dinner plans to enjoy the “First Friday of the Month Art Walk” got rained out.

cute chipmunk on the Gulpha Gorge hiking trail at the Gulpha Gorge Campground

Leaving Hot Springs, we headed southeast towards Mississippi and traveled through all of the miles of lush green farmland with fields of tall stalks of corn, knee-high bushes of soybeans, and spikes of rice.  On an interesting note, did you know that Arkansas if the leading producer of rice in the U.S.?  As we got nearer to the Mississippi delta we noticed that the soil was black, like the muck in Belle Glade, in the Everglades, where Jean grew up.    Our next campground was just across the Mississippi River, near the town of Greenville, Mississippi. 

Jerome and his butterfly "friend" relaxing in Warfield Park Campground, Greensville, Mississippi

our campsite in Warfield Park Campground - the Mississippi River and a barge with tug boat in the background

  Warfield Park is a county park that has a campground along the banks of the Mississippi River.   It had just recently re-opened since being flooded and the restrooms are in much need of renovation but it’s a neat campground with lots of shade, an observation tower, and a great location on the river.    We thoroughly enjoyed sitting outside and watching the barge and tugboat traffic on the river.

a LONG barge and tugboat on the Mississippi River

beautiful sunset with tug and barge on the Mississippi River

The southwestern corner of Mississippi was much like the farmlands of Arkansas that we had just passed through but more flat and even farther distances between seeing houses.  We estimated that at times we could drive 40 miles at a time without seeing anything other than fields of green crops.   We returned next to a favorite campground, Twiltley Branch, in Collinsville, Mississippi, where we just relaxed and painted.   This time when we shopped at the Piggly Wigley, in “town”, we found out that there is a great little buffet in this grocery store that is quite a popular spot for the locals to come to eat and socialize.   The food is really good, the local people are really friendly, and you can’t beat the price.  We had a nice time meeting and visiting with a retired hospital CEO while we ate our lunch here.

view from our campsite in Twiltley Branch Campground, Collinsville, Mississippi

Our next stop was also a return-visit-campground.    Miller’s Ferry Campground, near Camden, Alabama is one of our favorite places to relax and this time we were determined to finally go see the “Stokes Gator” that a local person had told us about the very first time we came here.   The “Stokes Gator “ holds the world’s record for the largest gator, at 15ft. 9” and weighing 1,011.5#.   It was caught in Mill Creek which is a distributary of Miller’s Ferry Reservoir (where the campground is) on the Alabama River.  It is on permanent display at the Miller’s Ferry Dam Interpretive Center.

the "Stokes Gator" at the Miller's Ferry Dam Interpretive Center, near Camden, Alabama

Now that we are back in the “south,” Jean is getting more homesick even though she seems to always get a bad case of chiggers when we get back into camping in the warmer, moist weather.   At least she can still joke about being the “Chigger Queen.”   

We still have more camping and more to see yet before we get home, so until next time….

 We wish you bright days and cooler nights, 

 

Jerome & Jean (and Carly, too)

2018 - Blog #8 - A Warm Welcome to the Texas Panhandle

our campsite in Palo Duro Canyon State Park

Last year we after passing through the lower half of Texas we decided that in the future (except to someday return to visit Jean’s childhood friend, Chip, in Anahuac) we would try to plan our trips so that we would not have to travel through this state again.    However, while planning this trip, we remembered a Texan who we had met in Wyoming last year told us not to miss seeing Palo Duro Canyon in the Texas Panhandle.   We’re glad that we took his advice because our experience this year in the panhandle has changed our first impression of this state completely.

our T-shirt and pillow gifts from sweet Anahi (the lifegaurd in Hereford)

Although we have already told you about our time in Hereford in our last blog, we just have to tell you about the surprise we had on our last evening there.   Just as we were finishing eating dinner, a black mustang with black windows pulled up to our front door.   Jean was scared until Jerome recognized that the person getting out of the car was the darling lifeguard that we had met and visited with at the pool that afternoon.   She had the sweetest smile on her face and handed us a big gift bag.   In the bag were Hereford Herd T-shirts for each of us and two Texas throw pillows.   What a wonderful feeling to meet such a thoughtful, giving young person and what a wonderful first introduction to the Texas panhandle.

Palo Duro Canyon State Park, near Canyon and Amarillo, Texas

When the hosts at Ute Lake State Park found out that we were going to be staying in Palo Duro Canyon State Park, they told us not to miss the “Texas” show in the canyon.    Of course we have learned to pay attention when someone recommends that something is “not to be missed,” so we got on line and reserved tickets.   The show is a 2 ½ hour musical, in an outdoor amphitheater surrounded by the red canyon walls, in the state park, based on history of Texas in the Palo Duro Canyon.  What fun!   Only in Texas can you see an incredible big production play in a state park!  This play has been running for five nights a week for the past 53 years now and people from all over the world have been to see it.

wild turkeys in Palo Duro Canyon State Park

Palo Duro Canyon is the second largest canyon in the U.S.   It isn’t as deep as the Grand Canyon but has a beauty all it’s own.  We stayed in the Mesquite Campground, 8 miles back into the park, at the end of the state park part of the canyon, in the “dark sky” area.    Except for the 109 degree heat during the day (it was a WARM welcome "heat- wise", as well as "friendly-wise"), we loved camping here. 

Jean and Carly walking on one of the many trails just outside of our front door

 There were so many trails just outside of our front door and Carly nearly drove us to distraction begging to go out walking on the trails and climbing the boulders as soon as we woke up each morning and as often as we would bear the heat for a short hike.  (We think she must be a dog in disguise sometimes!)

the 1948 Flxible Bus used by the Gornike family in the Robin Williams movie "RV" - at the Jack Sizemore RV Museum in Amarillo, Texas

While we were here we also spent a fun day sightseeing in Amarillo.   Our first stop “in town” was at the Jack Sizemore RV Museum.   It’s located in the back of the Jack Sizemore Traveland RV dealership and it’s free – you just go inside the dealership and tell them you are there to see the museum.  He and his wife have been restoring and collecting unusual vintage RVs for over 25 years.  It is so interesting and well worth the stop.   We caught up on laundry, errands, and grocery shopping, and even treated ourselves to Jimmy Johns – our favorite sandwich shoppe – for lunch. 

Jerome walking out to see the Cadillac Ranch in Amarillo, Texas

Us at the Cadillac Ranch

 Of course, you just can’t go to Amarillo without seeing the Cadillac Ranch, so we did that too.  In fact, there was a partially used can of lime green spray paint on the ground, so Jean just had to add to the graffiti.   Seeing the inscriptions at El Morro inspired her to add our “JJ” to the graffiti on one of the cadillacs for a brief bit of immortality!

Jean adding our "JJ" to the Cadillac Ranch

   We really enjoyed our visit to the Texas panhandle but with temperatures of 109 degrees, even at 6pm, on the last two days of our stay, it was time for us to hitch our wagon to a different “star” and boogie on down the road.   As we crossed into Oklahoma we were so happy to see lots and lots of green everywhere for the first time since we left Denver, Colorado a month ago.   Blue-greens, yellow-greens green-greens, and great big, leafy trees…. eye-candy to us. 

that's our campsite in the right foreground - at Fort Cobb State Park, Oklahoma

We stayed in Fort Cobb State Park, just southwest of Oklahoma City.  Our campsite was shaded by big  pine and oak trees, on a little knoll overlooking a lake.  It was a bit cooler here and had a nice breeze.  It didn’t take us long to notice the humidity though and to remember what it’s like to feel like we had taken a shower and not dried off, even though we hadn’t.   Heading east out of Fort Cobb, we were surprised to see all of the miles and miles of giant windmill farms here in Oklahoma.  The difference here from the ones we have seen out west and in Texas is that here the windmills are spread over green, rolling hills and tucked between areas of big green trees.   Sadly, we even saw a few new fracking sites and wondered if the nearby homes realize that their wells will probably soon be contaminated if they aren’t already.

Our campsite at Brooken Cove Campground - the fireworks were across the river, on the hillside on the right, behind us

It is now 4^th of July and we are in Brooken Cove Campground near Stigler, Oklahoma.  It’s a great campground in the middle of nowhere on the Canadian River.  The first night we were here the people that live across the water threw a big party and had an early, fabulous fireworks display that we thoroughly enjoyed.   Now we’re wondering if we’ll see more fireworks tonight.   We leave for Arkansas in the morning.

We wish you all a wonderful 4^th of July and a time of reflection on what a great, beautiful country we live in.

‘Until next time,   Jerome & Jean (and Carly too)