Winding Stair

From Hot Springs we drove west to Oklahoma through the Ouachita Mts. National Forest on Route 270.

Ouachita is an Indian word given a French spelling. It means “good hunting, good fishing.”

It would be an especially pretty drive in autumn.

Once inside Oklahoma we continued west on Route 1, Talemina Scenic Drive through the Winding Stair National Recreation Area.

We thought we would be safe driving it.

The route follows the ridgeline of the mountains and reminds me a lot of the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Like the Parkway it has many turn offs with scenic vistas.

Interpretive signs explain what you are seeing.

I found this interesting about the price the National Forest paid for all this land.

There’s a nice National Forest campground with beautiful views.

There was nobody staying there. We would have stayed if it wasn’t so hot....guess that’s why no one else was there too.

So we came down out of the mountains and found a nice COE (Corps of Engineers) campground on Sardis Lake. Here’s our site on the water.

We watched a colorful sunset.

Bandit plotting his course back to the rv so he won’t be seen by those people in the next campsite. He’s such a wimp.

Now where am I supposed to sleep?

Geese gliding by in the morning.

I'm behind in posting pictures, but we are currently heading into Colorado. Next post will be our trip across Oklahoma and NE New Mexico.

Hot, Hot, Hot Springs

We parked at the Visitor’s Center where rvs are allowed to park free and leave the generator running. Good thing as it was 105 degrees and the animals needed the AC. It’s just a short walk from there to Bathhouse Row.

People bring jugs to fill with the hot mineral water here. Joselyn filled a small water bottle with it.

Bathhouse Row

Joselyn coming out of one of the Bathhouses after checking out their prices. Decided it was too hot for a hot bath anyway.

Forsyth Bathhouse, which is the Nat. Park Visitor’s Center and open for free tours.

Detail of tile on the roof dome

People relaxing in the lobby

The women’s bathing room

The men’s bathing room with DeSoto fountain...much more ornate than the ladies’ area....wonder why.

Stained Glass Ceiling above the fountain

I’ll bet folks really needed a bath by the time they arrived back then.

Painting by an Artist-in-Residence....reminded me of someone on the forum

One of the hot springs the city is named for

And something else the city is known for

Next post will be of the scenic route through western AR & eastern OK....will try to post soon.

Natchez Trace and on to Arkansas

We traveled a portion of the Natchez Trace from northern Alabama to Tupelo.

Morning at Tishomingo State Park

Barge on the Ten-Tom Waterway after coming through the locks. The canal connects the Tennessee River and the Tombigbee River, making 459 miles of navigable water between the Gulf of Mexico and the Tennessee River.

Water lilies at that site.

Joselyn walking a portion of the old sunken trace.

Graves of 13 unknown Confederate soldiers

Each marker had a flag, a flower, and two stones. I wonder what the significance is of the stones?

From Tupelo we went west on 278 and 315, passing Sardis Lake....

...and crossing over Sardis Dam. There were nice looking Corps of Engineers campgrounds, but it was too early to stop.

We continued on to cross the Mississippi River into Helena, Arkansas.

Barge on the Mississippi.

We spent Saturday night just outside Hot Springs, AR.

Coon Dogs

We passed many cornfields in northern Alabama. And where there are cornfields, there will be raccoons. And where there are raccoons in cornfields, there is a necessity for coon dogs. In these parts, a good coon dog is not a pet, but a valued asset, and an esteemed member of the family. They are revered, I think. They have high-stake competitions. They deserve an honorable final resting place. So since established in 1937, they are immortalized in their own Coon-Dog Cemetery. No ordinary mutt is allowed to be buried here.

Some are simple and hand-made

Others are quite elaborate

All were loved.