Michelle and Mike's Adventures
Past Blog Posts
Feel free to browse through our past posts to see where we have been along our journey.
Our Adventure Begins
Posted: July 20, 2022
We headed out on our new adventure and left Colorado Springs on May 27, 2022!
Here we are! On our new journey and adventure! Our new way of life! And we are loving it!
We have been on our new adventure since May 27, 2022. I had wanted to start a Blog before this, but life got a bit crazy! Deciding to sell our house and move from the state we had both lived in for a long time (Mike for 42 years and Michelle for 17 years) was a huge decision! Then, of course we had to make that happen and on top of that, sell or donate all our furniture and a lot of belongings and figure out what we would want to bring with us was a huge task. Mike’s mom was so gracious to allow us to store our memory bins (FYI: mostly bins of scrapbooks!) in her garage. Otherwise, we have only what we need with us in our RV. It’s so nice to live very simply!
We were also helping to plan our daughter, Megan and her now husband, Garrett’s wedding that was on June 5th in Texas. There were a lot of preparations to be done for that. On top of all the changes and events, Mike had decided to step down from his sales position with eTakeoff at the beginning of May! It was a huge decision but he is ready to step into the next chapter of his life. We are both excited to see what comes our way in this new season of our lives as we travel the country! With the help of Mike’s family, we threw him a surprise retirement party in Colorado Springs on May 15th. We succeeded and he was quite surprised!
At last, we finally had a minute to prepare our RV (aka: Our new house!) for the big moment of leaving Colorado. Of course we had fun setting it up and organizing it! Mike is in charge of the outside of the RV (including underneath storage) and I get the whole inside to organize! Of course I love doing it!
We finally set out on May 27, 2022. Although it was difficult to say goodbye, we knew we would be back frequently. We were also excited for our new adventure!
Our destination was Lubbock, Texas to spend 2 nights at the KOA campground. The drive was pretty smooth although Colorado Roads are NOT very smooth! It was quite windy and at our first stop we noticed some wires that were hanging down underneath the RV! Mike got out the electrical tape and put them back up where they should be! That was only an hour into the drive! It was a very windy drive and at one point Mike looked out his side mirror and saw our propane door flapping in the wind!! Duct tape sure does come in handy! We have realized that things are going to happen and you must just go with the flow!
We made it safely to our 1st destination at the KOA in Lubbock. Our journey has begun!
Because I am behind on writing about our adventures so far, I will be making some posts about what we have already done. Take a look at the photo gallery page for more pictures of our adventure!
Please bear with me if everything does not look amazingly perfect on my website. I’m still learning!
Enjoy being on the adventure with us!
First Stop.....Texas!
Posted: July 21, 2022
Our campground at The Redbud RV Resort in Hutto, Texas
After spending 2 nights in Lubbock, Texas, we drove the remaining trip to Hutto, Texas. Hutto is a little northeast of Austin and this is where Megan and Garrett live. They bought their 1st house together in March 2021.
The Redbud RV Resort is a brand new campground and luckily only 5 minutes from Megan and Garrett’s house! It was pretty full while we were there. We stayed for 10 nights! The big event we were there for, of course, was Megan and Garrett’s wedding on June 5th! We got there a week ahead of time to help with all the pre-wedding preparations. I even had the honor of photographing Megan for her bridal portraits!
We had a lot of wedding week preparations to do! Family and friends from all across the United States started arriving mid-week. We did a lot of things together such as a picnic at our RV, a big family dinner at County Line BBQ in Austin, manicures, pedicures, and spending time together. One evening, we went downtown to the Colorado River which runs through the city. We went to see the Bat Bridge! Millions of bats fly out from under the bridge at dusk during the summer months. We did see them, but it got too dark to see them very well.
Megan and Garrett had a Welcome BBQ at the Fritz Hutto Pavilion the night before their wedding. Even though it was HOT (100 degrees!) it was shaded and there was a gentle breeze. Such a gorgeous evening to celebrate Megan and Garrett and spend with family and friends. The meal was catered by Pok-e Jo’s Smokehouse of Austin.
So exciting to be here for such a special occasion!
Megan & Garrett's Wedding
Posted: July 22, 2022
June 5, 2022
Mr & Mrs Heathman!
The Big Day had arrived! Family and friends from all across the USA gathered together to celebrate the union of marriage of Megan Malm and Garrett Heathman!
The wedding and reception were held at Morgan Creek Barn wedding venue in Dripping Springs, Texas. It was a gorgeous setting and a beautiful day! Although temperatures were in the low 100s, we stayed cool in the air-conditioned venue.
We spent many hours before the ceremony getting ready. It was a lot of fun! The ceremony started at 5:00pm. Garrett’s grandfather, Jimmy Bush was the officiant. It was very special and a meaningful, light-hearted, fun ceremony.
After about 40 minutes, Megan and Garrett were pronounced married and the celebrating began!
Everyone celebrated into the night until it was time to say farewell and send the happy couple off with a grand sparkler exit!
The following morning, whoever was still in town, met at Torchy’s Tacos for a delicious brunch of breakfast tacos!
The next day, those that were still in town went to tour the stunning Texas State Capitol Building in downtown Austin. We also checked out the Museum of the Weird (Austin’s slogan is “Keep Austin Weird!”) That museum sure did have some strange stuff in it! Later that evening, we ate dinner at The Texan in historic Hutto.
Such a fantastic weekend celebration! Check out the photos in the Photo Gallery!
Hot Springs, Arkansas
Posted: July 28, 2022
Historic Bathhouse Row in Hot Springs National Park
We left Hutto, Texas after an amazing 10 days spent celebrating with family and friends. It was hard to say goodbye, but it was time for us to move forward on our new adventure.
Our first stop was Hot Springs, Arkansas. It was only a 6 1/2 hour drive from Hutto, but pulling a 5th wheel requires us to stop about every 2 hours. It’s been a bit “painful” to fill up with diesel these days, but what are ya gonna do about it?? So, we don’t look at the amount on the gas pump, and just keep on going!
We stayed at the Hot Springs KOA for 5 nights from June 8-13. It was a very wooded campground and very hilly. The sites were designed about 50 years ago when RVs were much smaller so the sites were a little more challenging to get in and out of. However, we loved the shade. Temperatures were soaring HOT and very humid.
We were excited to see what Hot Springs was all about. We went downtown to historic Hot Springs and much to our surprise, this was a very different type of National Park than most we have been to before. The “park” is based around the row of historic bathhouses that were used back in the late 1800s and early 1900s for “healing” purposes. They drew in people from all over the country to come and be healed of all types of ailments. Most of the bathhouses are not used today except for one. Others are used to house the Parks Department and also as museums.
This picture is an early form of the modern day fitness center. We enjoyed touring the bathhouses and also seeing the natural springs that run through the town. They warn you not to touch the natural springs because the temperatures are very HOT and will burn you. The bathhouses had systems set up to cool down the water so it could be used in the baths.
We also took a trolley tour around the whole town which only has a population of 38,000. However, it is a very touristy town and while we were there, it was Biker Fest. We would recommend not going during Biker Fest only because it is very loud with all the motorcycles cruisin’ on the main streets.
We enjoyed going up the Hot Springs Mountain Tower to see amazing views of the town and also the lush Ozark Mountains.
We also walked around University of Arkansas’s Garvan Woodland Gardens. Everything is designed and planted by students of the University. That is where we saw the breathtaking Glass Chapel in the woods.
We finished up our time in Hot Springs with a spontaneous tour of Crystal Ridge Distillery. We got our first taste of some real Arkansas Moonshine! We got to test out about 15 kinds (who knows how many…..we lost count!) of their homemade moonshine. What a great way to end our time in Hot Springs!
Don’t forget to check out the photos gallery for Hot Springs photos.
Onward to Harrison, AR
Posted: July 28, 2022
Our campground at KOA in Harrison, Arkansas
We left Hot Springs and drove a little over 2 hours to Harrison, Arkansas. It is further north and west. We really wanted to get into the heart of the Ozarks. We have talked about visiting the Ozark region for many years and we are finally here! It is as beautiful as we had imagined! We love the rolling hills (we call them hills compared to the mountains of Colorado!) It is lush and green! We have noticed there are a lot more bugs than in Colorado but that comes with the more humid environment. We got our campsite all set up with the intention of staying here about a week. We quickly changed our mind when we realized how much there is to do in this part of the country! We quickly signed up to stay for a month!
On the family front…..we were so excited to hear the news of our son Trevor proposing to his girlfriend, Nicole! He surprised her by proposing on a trip to a wedding they were attending with Nicole’s family in Montana. Such a beautiful setting that made the moment even more spectacular! We are so happy for them! So, it looks like the weddings will be continuing. We just finished Megan and Garrett’s and now our next child has gotten engaged!
We really liked our campsite but once we decided to stay for a month we had to move to a different site. We like our new site even better. We back up to the trees and have a lot of privacy. We are enjoying getting used to being outdoors enjoying nature.
We also discovered the local grocery stores. Harps is the big chain grocery store in this area but we prefer to shop “local” at Hudson’s. It’s been here in Harrison for over 100 years! We are really enjoying the “small town feel” here. The population is around 12,000.
During the early part of our stay in Harrison, we had the wonderful chance to spend more time with my parents and brother. After Megan and Garrett’s wedding in Texas, they continued west in Brian’s RV seeing so many sites along the way. They went as far as Phoenix Arizona. On their return eastward toward their home in Pennsylvania, we all met up in Branson, Missouri. We discovered that Branson is only a 35 minute drive from our campground in Harrison! We were also so astounded to see how much there is to do in Branson too! We spent the next 2 days up there with my parents and brother. More on that in my next post about Branson!
Branson, Missouri
Posted: July 28, 2022
Mike celebrated his birthday in Branson!
On June 14th, Mike’s birthday (otherwise known as Flag Day!), we drove from Harrison Arkansas to Branson Missouri. It’s such an easy and direct drive. We met up with my parents (Donna and Ken) and my brother (Brian) and started enjoying all that Branson has to offer. We could not believe how much there is to do there. It is very family oriented with activities for all ages. There are so many show to see, museums to explore, historic things to visit, adventure things to experience, as well as outdoorsy fun. Branson is nestled in the Ozark Mountains therefore it is a hilly town. We were surprised to find out that the population only tops around 10,000 people (not including tourists of course!)
We started out in the historic part of town by going to Dick’s 5 & 10. It was founded by Dick Hartley in 1951 and still stands today as an icon to the town. It is filled with all sorts of items, but many that bring back memories from the past. It’s fun going up and down the crowded aisles reminiscing.
We went to the Picking Porch for dinner. It appears that most restaurants have live music since it’s such an entertainment town. Later that evening we went to see our first Branson show: Rick Thomas Magic Show. It was very good with a lot of illusion type magic. Rick Thomas is not only a good entertainer, but we were impressed with his sense of good character. After the show we went for ice cream at Cakes and Cream.
The following day (June 15) we went back up to Branson to meet up with our family. Brian had a full day planned for us. It started at WonderWorks. This was a fun interactive museum great for all ages. Lots of hands on science based activities to test and grow your strength and knowledge. The exterior of the building was constructed upside down! We spent about 3 hours there.
Next we went to see The Sight and Sound Experience. There are only 2 of these Sight and Sound Theaters in the country and the original one happens to be in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. We were excited to see that the drama production we got to see was “Jesus.” What an amazing experience this was! We have never seen a live performance like this! The stage and moving sets seemed like real life! If you ever get a chance to attend a theatrical performance at a Sight and Sound theater, we highly recommend it!
Our 3rd event for the day was to attend the famous Dolly Parton’s Stampede Dinner Attraction. My parents and brother had been to it before and said it’s just such an iconic attraction in Branson that we needed to do it! And we are glad we did! We were served a 4 course dinner (which, by the way, you have to eat without silverware!) while we watched a rodeo-type show full of trick-riders, dancing, singing, comedy and more. It for sure was a fun evening.
Gateway Arch in St. Louis
Posted: August 1, 2022
Gateway Arch National Park
On Thursday June 16, we drove 4 hours from our campground in Harrison, Arkansas to St. Louis, Missouri. Michelle’s parents (Donna and Ken) and her brother (Brian) had left Branson, Missouri that morning and headed East towards Pennsylvania where they live. We had all decided that it would be fun to go to the Gateway Arch together before we parted ways.
Mike has been wanting to go up in the Arch since he was in the 3rd grade. His family visited St Louis to attend a Cardinals game but they never went up the Arch. So, 45 years later, it was time to get Mike up that Arch! Michelle had been up it around 1979 when she was 10 with her family. We thought it would be neat to do again as a family many years later!
Once we arrived in St. Louis, we quickly realized that parking was not going to be easy especially with our 3500 Silverado and Brian’s Travago RV! It really would have been nice to have a parking area close to the Arch, but that was not the case. Therefore, we did eat up some time trying to find places to park. Finally we did and then walked quite a distance to get to the Arch.
The National Park grounds around the Arch are extremely well-kept and beautiful. We secured tickets prior to showing up, therefore we had a set time to go up the arch in the special cars. While waiting our turn, we walked through the really nice museum that is underground. We also got a special treat and got to say hello to the brother of our dear friend, Michele Steinman. Her brother, Jason Steinman, is a Federal Security Agent at the Gateway Arch National Park. We had just seen Michele at Megan and Garrett’s wedding in Texas!
When it was our turn, we loaded onto the special pod. There are 8 pods connected together. I won’t try to explain the scientific concept of how the pods work their way up the leg of the Arch (nor do I really know HOW to explain it haha) but if you are interested, it’s quite fascinating and you can research it online.
The pods are small and only seat 5 people. The ride to the top took about 4 minutes and soon we were at the top. We walked up some steps before entering the very top where we could see down below us on both sides. The top is 630 feet above the ground. It was cool seeing the Mississippi River down there!
Tourists are only allowed to be at the top for 10 minutes before they must get back on the pod for the return trip. It is a faster trip down than it was going up. Even with some frustrations with the parking situation, it was definitely worth it to FINALLY get to the top of the Gateway Arch!
Before saying goodbye to Michelle’s parents and brother, we all went to dinner together outside of St. Louis at a restaurant called “Lotawata Creek.” Dinner was delicious especially Mike’s. He had a huge bowl of Chili covered in Mac and Cheese!
Check out the photo gallery for more pictures of our time in St. Louis.
Cave City, Arkansas
Posted: August 1, 2022
Cave City was the home of Mike's Grandparents on his father's side.
Part of the reason for our desire to check out Arkansas (other than the beautiful Ozark Mountains) is because of Mike’s family history here. Mike’s father grew up in a small town called Evening Shade (population less than 400.) That is where he graduated from High School. After Mike’s dad had moved to Illinois in the early 1950s, his grandparents moved to the next town over called Cave City. Today the population sits around 2000 and Cave City’s claim to fame is that it has the “Sweetest Watermelons in the World!” Mike remembers traveling to these small Arkansas towns when he was a little boy and wanted to come back and see what is still standing. Mike also has an interest in ancestry research, so he wanted to walk through the Cave City Cemetery to hopefully retrieve some information.
Our first stop was the Cave City Cemetery. It is not very big and we were able to walk the entire grounds in less than an hour. Much to our surprise, there were over 25 grave markers with the name Perkey on them! Mike also found his beloved grandparents, Alvis and Virgie Perkey’s gravesites. Mike has been able to piece together some missing information on his family tree now. Below is an unusual grave marker of John Robert Perkey, Mike’s Great-Grandfather. He was in the logging business.
As we drove through town, we were excited to see a few local businesses with the last name of Perkey. We also saw some mailboxes with that last name on them as well. We hope to return to this small town while we are still in Arkansas and get to meet some of the Perkeys who might indeed be some of Mike’s long-lost cousins! And, of course, get some watermelon!
After leaving Cave City, we drove a few miles north to Evening Shade. Being that this town is even smaller than Cave City, there is basically only one main road going through it. Along this road, is where Mike has a recollection of his Grandfather, Alvis, working at a gas station. Part of the gas station was a cafe and a pool hall. We believe we located it. Most of the town is desolate unfortunately, but the gas station still stands.
We must have driven up and down the main street 10 times while we were there. I’m sure we were the talk of the town that week because I don’t think they get a whole lot of traffic going through there anymore!
After exploring all that we could, we drove through Batesville, the biggest town nearby. (Population 10,700) Mike remembers going there as a child on occasion. That was the BIG city to go to when visiting his grandparents!
We drove the 2 1/2 hours back to our campground in Harrison that evening with a lot of family history to share with our Perkey family.
Buffalo National River
Posted: August 1, 2022
Buffalo National River at Pruitt Landing
On Saturday June 25, we set out to explore what is known as the Buffalo National River. This river runs through the Ozark Mountains. 36,000 acres of the river has been preserved and protected under the 1964 Wilderness Act. The Buffalo River is absolutely beautiful as it winds it’s way through the rocky cliffs of the Ozarks.
There are many places you can enter the Buffalo River so with the suggestions of a park ranger, we did a scenic drive starting out at our campground. We stopped at Pruitt Landing and walked along the water’s edge for a while. The water was pretty clear. It is really awesome how the rocky cliffs jut straight up from the water!
We left that area and drove south to the small town of Jasper. We were excited to have stumbled upon the Annual Buffalo River Elk Festival! We were amazed at the number of people who came to Jasper for the festival. At the Ranger station, you could register to get your elk hunting license that day. There was a long line! We also checked out Emma’s Museum of Junk.
We spent about an hour at the festival and walking around the small main street. It is really interesting seeing the historic main streets of all of these small towns. There’s not much to them, but the buildings are old and typically occupied by local small shops and cafes. We left Jasper and headed on our way.
Before we had headed out on this excursion, we had been told we just HAD to eat at The Cliff House. Well, we sure are glad we took that recommendation to heart because it really was a great experience and the food was really incredible. The restaurant is known for it’s original pie called “Company’s Comin’ Pie.” It originated here at The Cliff House and the owner worked to get it to be the State Pie of Arkansas and they succeeded! We tried it and it was OK….very airy and fluffy and had some sort of fruit taste. The crust had saltines in it! Interesting….but not sure we’d get it again.
The restaurant and Inn are built on the side of a cliff of the Ozark Mountains. It has been here since 1967 and overlooks what is referred to as the Arkansas Grand Canyon. It is called the Grand Canyon because it is the deepest part in the Ozark Mountains where the Buffalo River cuts through it. The scenery was gorgeous! Everything was so lush and green!
From there, we drove onward to the very small town of Ponca, Arkansas. Population of 14! We pulled over when we spotted an old general store. I have always loved these small town general stores. We went in and looked around. We got into a conversation with the owner and when we told her we were from Colorado, she told us her son and some other family were headed to Colorado that week to ride ATVs! She asked if we had suggestions of where to ride. Since we had a lot of experience with ATV riding in Colorado, we gave her a lot of ideas to pass along. You never know who you may run into along the way. It’s nice to say hello to people. You just never know what you may discover!
That was the end of our stops for the day, so we headed back to our campground in Harrison. It was a beautiful day out exploring in the Ozarks!
Colorado Springs Adventures
Posted: August 8, 2022
Balanced Rock in Garden of the Gods
We had been on our new life adventure for 5 weeks at this point. However, we always knew we would be returning to Colorado at the beginning of July for some important celebrations we did not want to miss.
We made a big decision to leave our RV at our campground in Harrison, Arkansas, and just drive our truck to Colorado. With the price of diesel being over $5.00 a gallon, it didn’t make much sense for us to pull the 5th wheel the whole way back there especially because we would have just been putting it in storage since we were going to be staying at Mike’s mom’s house for the whole 2 weeks we were there. Our campground host, Lynda, was very gracious about us doing this and promised to look after our RV while we were away. It was a 13 hour drive which we did all in one day, getting in late the night of June 13.
It was wonderful to get to spend time with Mike’s mom, Angie, and our other family in Colorado Springs. We definitely filled our time with a lot of activities and made the most of our time while we were there.
We celebrated our 5th Anniversary on July 8 while we were in Colorado. We started out our day getting coffee at Ziggy’s Coffee shop. Then, we went to Garden of the Gods Trading Post and looked through the gate where we got married in the courtyard 5 years ago. We looked around the store in the trading post and then drove through Garden of the Gods. We also ate there at the outdoor cafe. Then, we went to Old Colorado City and ate some delicious handmade ice cream at the Colorado City Creamery. After a quick stop at Costco, we went to a movie theater we haven’t been to before called The Roadhouse. They serve dinner or snacks right to your seat while you watch your movie. We saw the new “Top Gun” movie. Finally, we finished off our special day by getting a “Mountain High Mudpie” dessert at Red Robin!
Another special thing we did while we were there, was to drive up Pikes Peak on the Pikes Peak Highway. The purpose of our trip was to go to the beautiful spot that Mike’s dad always loved. So, Mike, Gary (his brother), his mom, Trevor, Nicole and I enjoyed the beautiful (although very twisty) roads almost to the top. We stopped at the beautiful location at almost 12,000 feet. We got out and walked a little bit and had some quiet time remember Mike’s dad who passed away 20 years ago and also in rememberance of Mike and Gary’s brother, Greg, who had passed away 5 years ago. It was a very special moment for the family to do this together.
While in Colorado, we made sure to get in our doctor and dentist appointments as well as haircuts with Brice. Also oil changes and helping Angie with projects.
We spent more time with Quin and Brice at their house. They have been enjoying doing a lot of renovations to it and it’s looking great! Quin just put in a cement patio and redid the front lawn.
Some of the restaurants we went to during our stay were: Lazy Dog Restaurant, Ivywild, Texas Roadhouse, Amy’s Donuts, Lulu’s, Dairy Queen, Einstein Bagels, our favorite, Taste of Philly! We ate out way too much! We went to see another movie at ICON movie theater. We saw “Elvis” and really enjoyed it! Great music, of course!
We also spent some more time with Gary and Lisa as well as Charlotte and Owen by going to Fargos Pizza, an historical icon of Colorado Springs. And, we did get to spend more time with Nicole, Ryan and Ethan. We also went hiking in Fox Run Regional Park with Trevor and Nicole and their dog, Sadie.
It was great to be back to spend time with family and friends. We are thankful that Mike’s mom likes us to stay there with her (and with Shadow, her dog.) After the 14th day there, it was time to drive back to Arkansas to our house on wheels. We will miss everyone, but we know we’ll be back again soon!
Ethan's 1st Birthday
Posted: August 8, 2022
Our Grandson, Ethan Michael Dozier turned ONE!
We didn’t want to miss Ethan’s 1st birthday party so we made sure to be in Colorado Springs on July 3rd! Ethan’s parents, Nicole and Ryan, hosted his birthday party at their home which is on the northeast side of Colorado Springs. It was a fun day celebrating Ethan with lots of family and some friends.
The house was decorated with a Camping theme. There were hundreds of balloons all over the place! They had pizza for the meal and Nicole made delicious cupcakes in all sorts of flavors for dessert.
Ethan had a fun time opening up his gifts. He was really not sure what to think of the Curious George Jack-in-the-box that we gave to him. He was very intrigued but then every time Curious George popped out the top, he would jump! He wanted to do it over and over and over again!
After Ethan opened all his presents, it was time for him to have his SMASH cake!
At first he didn’t know what to do with it. He was being so gentle and only dipping his finger in a little bit of the icing. Then, he started having fun and grabbing bigger pieces. Before we knew it, he had cake all over himself and also on the floor! He even started pounding his cup into the cake! Obviously he was having a good time and definitely needed a quick bath before he could continue on with the rest of his party.
After Ethan got cleaned up from his fun with his SMASH cake, he was having a good time interacting with his cousins. Now that he is a little bit older, he is intrigued by them and watched them and wanted to do what they were doing.
Charlotte and Owen are the children of Nicole’s 1st cousin, Allison. She is married to Cory. Charlotte is 5 years old and Owen is 3. In fact, Owen and Ethan share a birthday! What are the chances of that happening?? Ethan and Owen were both born on Jule 3rd….2 years apart. Owen did a very good job of celebrating Ethan at his party, knowing that his party was going to be the following day. It was fun to watch all the children interact and play together.
As time went on, the guests started to leave and Ethan started to get sleepy. He was exhausted from all the fun he had at his party. Finally it was time to say goodbye. It was such a fun day celebrating our grandson’s 1st birthday!
4th of July in Colorado
Posted: August 8, 2022
Quin & Brice's Annual 4th of July Party
Every year since Quin and Brice have lived in their house in the Ivywild area on the Southwest side of Colorado Springs, they have had a 4th of July party. We are so glad we made it back to Colorado Springs to attend their 4th annual party!
The weather was terrific and Quin and Brice always go over the top with their decorations and always dress for the occasion.
They always have a lot of family and friends who attend and fill up their backyard. There are always extra pets that attend too, in addition to their 3: Two dogs (Neil and Grizz) and a cat (Sox.) We got to spend some quality time with our “grandpets!”
We had delicious BBQ, Rolls, and Mac & Cheese from Famous Dave’s BBQ. We also had some yummy watermelon, popsicles, and tasty moonshine. We had introduced our family’s at the recent gatherings to the delicious creamy moonshine we had discovered. We had Butter Pecan and also Banana Cream Pie flavors!!! SO GOOD!!
After socializing and playing some corn-hole, it was time to head to our next event: Owen’s 3rd birthday. Ever since Owen was born, we now split our time between Quin & Brice’s party and then Owen’s party. It’s fun to have celebrations to attend all day long!
We left Quin and Brice’s on the southwest side of Colorado Springs, and drove 30 minutes to Cory and Allison’s house on the northeast side. Colorado Springs has been growing so much, especially recently, that it takes a lot longer to get anywhere. But, we made it to Owen’s birthday party in time for him to open up his birthday gift from us.
We had our 2nd big meal of the day, this time catered by Chipolte. It was delicious and so was the birthday cake!
Owen was having fun with his little cousins that were there from his dad, Cory’s, side of the family. Cory and Allison have a bounce-house that they blow up in the backyard and the kids love to jump around in it.
By the time the party ends, we are all exhausted! The kids have us running around playing ball or tag or “monsters!” It is definitely a fun time. We love that Owen and Charlotte love to have their Aunt Michelle and Uncle Mike come over to play with them!
When it was dark outside, we set up chairs in Cory and Allison’s backyard and watched the fireworks. Colorado Springs has multiple fireworks shows throughout the city, but we were fortunate that we could see the local one held in their community of Flying Horse. We listened to patriotic music on the radio from the local Colorado Springs Philharmonic. It was a fun family filled day of celebrating!
Branson Entertainment
Posted: August 12, 2022
Between June 18 and July 18, we continued to frequent Branson, Missouri. We love that it is an easy 30 minute drive through the Ozark mountains from our KOA campground in Harrison, Arkansas where we have been camped out for quite awhile.
There are so many shows and museums and other forms of entertainment to choose from in Branson. So, we went with ones that had been highly recommended to us and then chose a few of our own. We were not disappointed at all! Here is a recap of what we did during 4 trips to Branson.
One of the Haygoods family members entering the stage upside down, in the air, while playing his guitar!
The entertainment in Branson, Missouri is world-class. The quality of the performers is incredible and the stage lighting and design is amazing.
We went to see the Hughes Family Music Show at the Hughes Brothers Theatre. Every show has a theater that is used for their performances multiple times a week. This particular show is a multi-generational family that is extremely talented from toddlers to great-grandparents. They have been performing as a family for over 30 years! Family members have come and gone, but they are all related in some way and the show we saw had at least 40 Hughes family members performing! It was very entertaining and keep our interest with a wide range of acts and songs.
We also went to see the Haygoods. This is Branson’s #1 rated show and is in it’s 30th season. It is a group of 6 siblings who grew up in the Ozark Mountain region. They didn’t have much money but their father put the love of music in them by teaching them to appreciate music and be creative with making music with what you had. The show was AMAZING and these siblings who have been performing together since they were very young, are now in their 30s and 40s. It is amazing how talented they ALL are with their singing, multiple instrument playing, and dancing, as well as some comedy thrown in here and there. The theatrics and lighting was incredible and we throughly enjoyed the 2 hour performance!
We strayed from the “show” circuit, and went to the World’s Largest Toy Museum Complex. They claim to have over 1 million toys and I have to say I believe it! We spent about 4 hours walking up and down and throughout the multi-level structures (yes, there is more than one building!) The extensive collections are incredible. We have to admit, though, we did feel a little bit old that the toys we once played with are now ancient enough to be in a museum!! This was definitely worth the visit and the walk back through memory lane. Make sure to check out many more nostalgic toy pictures in the photo gallery under More Branson!
We made an attempt at another museum, but we must be honest and say it was kind of a disappointment. It was the Retro-Mania Totally Awesome 80s Museum. It looked more attractive online and in the brochure (every show, museum, entertainment has a brochure.). However, we paid our $18 per person entrance fee and walked around reading about 80s movie paraphernalia and actors. We were through the entire museum within an hour. Don’t worry, this did not in any way ruin our deep LOVE of the best decade there ever was! Later that evening, just to make our day an 80s day, we went to see the show “Anthems of Rock” at the King’s Castle Theatre. We were definitely not disappointed by this 2 hour performance complete with songs from the 70s and 80s along with choreographed dancing! The singing and instrument playing was very good and brought us back to our youth and the music we have such a love for. They rocked the roof off the place and we throughly enjoyed it! I think I even saw Mike singing along here and there!
Something we have definitely be developing a taste for is flavored Moonshine! What better place than Arkansas to acquire this love?? As we were exploring the Historic Downtown and Waterfront district of Branson, mixed within the local and namebrand stores and restaurants, we discoverd Smith Creek Moon Shine! It was a hot and humid day so when we entered the distillery and cooled down a bit, we noticed that they were offering free Moon Shine tastings at the bar! Of course we had to partake! After trying about 15 flavors, we knew we needed to get out of there! Luckily we didn’t have to drive anywhere for while. Our top flavors were Salted Caramel, Sweet Tea, and Orange Dreamcicle!
Branson is known for extravagant, unique and unusual architecture. In that sense, it’s like a mini Hollywood or Vegas. This is a photo of a restaurant we ate at called Pasghettis. See what I mean by unique architecture? We had some yummy Italian food that evening. We also went out for lunch during one of our visits to Branson to Mel’s Hard Luck Cafe. The food was really great diner type food. But, the neat thing was that the waiters and waitresses take turns singing while walking throughout the cafe while guests are eating. They were really talented too! Finally, we wanted to make sure to eat at the historical Farmhouse restaurant. It is a small quaint building with a restaurant downstairs and a cute little gift shop upstairs. (Browsing the gift shop gives you something to do while waiting for a table….smart idea!) We didn’t have to wait long and before we knew it, we were enjoying some of the most delicious country-style home cooking that we have ever had in a restaurant. We highly recommend this place! I had the chicken fried steak (SO tender!) and Mike had the fried catfish and hush puppies! Very traditional meal for the south. Enjoy more photos in the gallery of our adventures in Branson, Missouri!
Eureka Springs, Arkansas
Posted: August 12, 2022
Michelle & Mike in Basin Springs Park downtown
Eureka Springs was one of the locations that we were told we had to visit. It was only an hour drive west of our campground in Harrison. An easy drive, however, very windy and hilly through the Ozark Mountains. Beautiful scenery and neat small towns along the way. A lot of the small towns still have some of the original buildings remaining from when the town was founded. A lot of northwest and north central Arkansas seems to have been founded in the mid to late 1800s.
Eureka Springs itself only has a population of around 3000 people. However, it is a true tourist destination, therefore, that boosts the number of people in the town on a daily basis. Eureka Springs is one of the largest historic districts in Arkansas. It was founded in 1879 and was built in the hills and valleys of the Ozark Mountains. It has been referred to as “The Little Switzerland of America” and “The Stairstep Town” because of it’s European look, mountainous terrain and winding, up and down paths of narrow streets and walkways. There are still hundreds of Victorian home still remaining. There are also hundreds of cottages, quaint motels, and even treehouses to house the many tourists who come to this small eclectic town.
Eureka Springs is also known as “The City that Water Built.” There are many natural springs throughout the town and were once sacred to Native American tribes and it attracted thousands of people for the healing power of this natural spring water. Today there are still some bathhouses remaining. However, when walking around the town, there are areas in which you can see the natural spring water running between rocks and under surfaces. The natural rock formations in Eureka Springs as well as in most of the Ozarks, are stunning.
As we walked all around and up and down the winding and hilly streets of Eureka Springs, we were astounded by the way that houses were just built into the sides of the rocky cliffs! A lot of times, the houses did not appear to be very stable. However, people who live there don’t seem to let that bother them. It looked like most of the houses were occupied.
Eureka Springs is an artsy town. Very eclectic types of locally owned stores and restaurants. We browsed along the many hilly and narrow streets along with a lot of other tourists. Very unique and specific merchandise was sold in most of the stores.
When we originally got to Eureka Springs, we attempted to find our own parking spot. However, being that it was a Saturday, all the small lots, parallel street spots, and side street parking was taken. Mike did a great job of navigating these very narrow and winding streets with our big truck, however, he got tired of doing that and we ended up at a trolley station! Lucky for us, it was only $5/day per person and it took us all over the entire town. We could get on and off wherever we wanted to. This was a MUCH better way of getting around the town and not having to find a parking place. Note to selves: Do the trolley right from the start next time! We definitely saw more of the town this way as well.
This random artwork is typical of the area. Like I said, it is a very artsy town. We are glad we visited it. It really is an interesting place to see and explore. We really enjoyed learning the history of why this area always drew people to it….the natural springs and their healing power.
We finished off our time in Eureka Springs by selecting a restaurant in the historical downtown. We climbed the many stairs to Springs on Main. Apparently we arrived in between their lunch and dinner menus so we were only permitted to order one of their charcuterie boards. We found that odd, but we went with it, and it was really a very delicious array of cheeses, crackers, grapes, fig spread, mustard dip, and various meats that they smoke in-house. We were quite pleased and satisfied while we sat at a table upstairs in this slopping floor tiny restaurant looking out over main street watching the uniqueness of our country pass before our eyes. Following dinner, as we were heading to the nearest trolley stop, we happened upon a tiny (I mean TINY) ice cream shop. What was unique about this shop owned and run by this grandmotherly looking lady was that she did not fill the waffle cones with ice cream, but she filled them with cheese cake filling and our choice of fruit or peanut butter and chocolate! We never had anything like this before, but wow was it delicious! We both chose the peanut butter and chocolate, complete with a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup!
Now that we definitely had our fill of Eureka Springs, we hopped on the trolley and headed back to our truck.
The Passion of the Christ Play
Posted: August 14, 2022
Christ of the Ozark statue in Eureka Springs, AR
While we were in Eureka Springs the week before, we saw signs for the Great Passion of the Christ Play and the Christ of the Ozark statue. We were intrigued so we did further research to learn what this was all about.
We decided this was something worth seeing, so purchased tickets online for the play and also for the tour of the Holy Lands. Seeing the statue was free admission. On Tuesday, July 26th, we drove the hour from our home base of Harrison to Eureka Springs, Arkansas. We wanted to get the most out of the experience so we spent the entire day there.
The Christ of the Ozarks statue is for sure a sight to be seen. Besides the beautiful landscape surrounding the statue of the the Ozark Mountains, the statue itself stands 67 feet tall with an arm span of 65 feet! Christ of the Ozarks was built back in 1966 and has been there ever since.
We signed up to do the Holy Land Tour. They have it set up like a life-size replica of Jerusalem when you first enter the gate. Then you get on an old school bus that has the windows removed and the driver drives you around the winding roads and points out sights and gives interesting facts along the way. We stopped at 5 points and got off the bus to hear stories from various Biblical characters who were acting out what it was like back in the time of Moses and then of Jesus. It was interesting hearing them speak from the actual character’s point of view from back in their day. We heard from Moses, Jesus’ mother Mary, Peter, and even saw “Jesus” walking on water! We were shown the Tabernacle where the Ark of the Covenant is safely kept. We “attended” the Last Supper. We had a tour of the Inn in Bethlehem where there was no room for Mary and Joseph to stay. And we saw the tomb from which Jesus rose from the dead. We enjoyed hearing from the various characters and seeing sights along the way.
The tour lasted a little over 2 hours. It was an extremely hot (100 degrees) and humid day so being on an old school bus filled with people and no air conditioning was a bit rough, but we are glad we chose to do it. Both Mike and I learned a lot that really supplemented some of our recent readings in our Bibles.
Following our tour of the Holy Land, we had some time before the Passion Play was to start at dusk. We took advantage of some of the other sites to see on the Passion Play grounds. One of those sites, was an actual piece of the Berlin Wall. The Berlin Wall was erected in 1961 to keep the people of East Germany from escaping to West Germany. The wall finally came down in 1989 after so many people were killed over time trying to escape. A lot of the artwork was done on the wall after dark. This piece was donated and brought here to display to show that Christ will set you free.
We also toured the Bible Museum which has over 7000 Bibles in 625 languages and dialects! It was an amazing display of historic Bibles and Biblical artifacts. We also visited the History Museum that was filled with information and artifacts going back 1000s of years.
Before the play, we signed up to attend the Supper that was served buffet style in a cafeteria type setting. We were served Shepard’s Pie!
At last it was time to go find our seats in the 4000 seat outdoor amphitheater. It was a gorgeous night out, although the temperatures were still in the 90s. The Great Passion Play in Eureka Springs, Arkansas has been going on since 1968 and is considered “America’s #1 Attended Outdoor Drama.”
There is a cast of over 125 actors and dozens of live birds and animals, including camels, mules, dogs, and horses. The set for the play is built into the hillside that is 3 stories tall and 550 feet across! The lighting and sound are incredible, adding to this already amazing set, backdrop and talent of the actors.
The Great Passion Play tells the story of Jesus’ final months and days. We are shown the Last Supper, the betrayal of Judas and Jesus’ trail. Finally, we see the heart-wrenching crucifixion of Jesus and then how he rose from the dead and assended into heaven. The actors were amazing as they told the story of Jesus. It was a 2 1/2 hour show. We really enjoyed it and can see why millions have come to see this outdoor play for the past 54 years.
Perkeys & Watermelons Cave City, Arkansas
Posted: August 18, 2022
At the end of July, the annual Watermelon Festival was held in Cave City, Arkansas. If you aren’t aware, Cave City (the small town in Arkansas with a population of close to 2000) is home to “The Sweetest Watermelons in the World.” This is also the town that Mike’s father’s side of the family, The Perkeys, are from. I had posted a few weeks ago about our trip we took there to see the town. This time, we had every intention to attend the Watermelon Festival, however the weather did not cooperate. It had been very dry and hot here, but the rains decided to pour down that exact weekend. We didn’t take the 2 1/2 hour trip to the festival, but we instead went a few days later on August 3rd.
We found out that The Perkeys are watermelon farmers!
As we were researching the watermelon festival online, I discovered that there were 2 farms that would be at the festival selling watermelons with the name of Perkey! I also discovered that one of the farms had t-shirts for sale with the farm’s name on it. So, I messaged the girl who had the t-shirts in her beauty shop that was next door to the Wooldridge-Perkey farm stand and told her we were Perkeys also and would love some t-shirts!
One thing led to another and Mike ended up contacting both of the Perkey farms and told them who he was and that we’d be coming to town to hopefully get some watermelon and maybe meet some Arkansas Perkeys!
We drove to Cave City to the first Perkey farm stand the following week. There was a stand in front of a house loaded with watermelons. No one was around. Things are done differently in rural Arkansas than they are where we come from in Colorado Springs. A lot of things are done by the honor system. They had prices on the watermelons based on size. Then, there was a jar there where you place your money. You take your watermelon and leave. How nice it is to see that there are still areas of the country where people can be trusted to do the right thing!
After we selected our watermelon, we were fortunate in that a man pulled up in his pick-up. He got out and greeted us. Mike told him who he was and much to his surprise, he said his name and come to find out he is a Perkey too! They obviously got to talking and Mike said how he was hopeful to find out some family history and ancestry. So, he said, “My grandmother lives here. I will go in and see if she can come out and talk with you.”
His grandmother came out of her house and sat on her chair in the carport. She is 89 years old and is the widow of Mike’s Great Uncle, the brother of Mike’s grandfather! The had a great time talking about the Perkey family and everyone that she knew. It really meant a lot to Mike that they both took the time to share with him about his family and the history there in Cave City and nearby town of Evening Shade. Much to Mike’s amazement, there are still A LOT of Perkeys living in that area of Arkansas. Mike has a much bigger family than he ever knew. Turns out that the man that was there is his 3rd cousin! It was a meaningful day as he heard stories of his father and his grandparents that he had never heard before from when they lived in that small town. We stayed and talked with them for about an hour. Mike was able to get confirmation on some of the questions he had about branches on his family tree.
After we finished our conversation, we headed to the other Perkey farm stand location. It was just down the street. The name of this farm is Perkey-Wooldridge Farm. Unfortunately, no one was at this stand and we came to find out that they were sold out of watermelons for the season. We did, however, meet up with the woman I messaged about buying the t-shirts. She had married into the Perkey family recently. When Mike told her that he was trying to talk with people about his family, she asked him, “Why don’t you know who your family is?” It was kind of funny. We realized that because she lives in a small town where she is related to a lot of the people who live there, it was a foreign concept to her to not know your relatives!
We also found out that Mike’s cousin that he met for the first time, also owns the construction business in town. We learned that it seems that as a watermelon farmer, it is necessary to do other things in order to bring in more income. Some of the Perkeys in the area are also cattle farmers or grow other produce in their fields.
We finished off the day by having lunch in the local Cave City Park where the festival had been held a few days earlier in the rain. We also drove around the small town trying to locate where the homes of Mike’s grandparents might have been. Mike was 8 years old the last time he had visited them so his memory is a little fuzzy. But, with the help of Mike’s newfound relatives, we think we may have located the general areas where they had lived.
The day turned out to be a great trip down memory lane and a special opportunity for Mike to learn about his family history AND meet some new relatives!
And in case you are wondering….we have to agree that the Cave City watermelons are indeed the “Sweetest Watermelons in the World!” Oh, and they do have the black seeds (just like the way they all used to be!)
Ozark Folk Center State Park
Posted: August 18, 2022
A historical printing press being demonstrated
While we are enjoying our stay in Harrison, Arkansas, we also have been taking advantage of it’s north central location in the state. We have been trying to visit everything within a 2-3 hour drive in all directions.
On this day, we drove east with our main purpose to visit the Ozark Folk Center State Park. Arkansas has 52 state parks. The Ozark Folk Center State Park is the only park of its kind in the country and the only one dedicated to the music, crafts, and culture of the Ozarks. It is located in the town of Mountain View, which is called the Folk Music Capital of the World.
In the park, the visitors can stroll through the Craft Village and watch live artisans at work, doing their various crafts ranging from the art of Blacksmith to Pottery, Weaving to Leather. There are 20 different artisans at work and are happy to explain how they do their craft as you watch them work. The opportunity is also there to purchase some of their beautiful and creative handiwork. We especially enjoyed learning about the old printing presses and also mosaic glass cutting. The old time weaving looms were very interesting as well.
Besides crafting, music is also central to the Ozark Folk Center State Park. Live music can be heard throughout the park and in the various amphitheaters. The day we were there, it was the State Championship competition for young fiddle and banjo players!
Throughout some of the music buildings, there are wall displays of various instruments and how they came into being such a historical part of the Ozark Mountain sound. Fiddle, banjo, mandolin, dulcimer, and autoharp are just some of the old-time instruments that combine to produce this Ozark sound. We even saw a display on playing the “spoons!” We are glad we visited this unique state park. It gave us a good taste of what it is really like in the Ozark Mountains and the history behind the music and arts.
While we were driving through the north central area of Arkansas, we explored a lot of the small towns there. The county is Searcy County. There is a population of less than 8000 people in the entire county. It is made up of tiny little towns. We enjoyed driving through them and seeing some of their historical downtown districts basically comprised of a few old store fronts lining a main street and that is it. What we have discovered is that there is a Dollar General in every one of these small towns. We have done some research on Dollar General and found that they have 18,190 stores as of February 2022! Arkansas alone has just over 500 of those stores! Even the smallest little towns have a Dollar General. It really is a great business model…..reaching out to those smallest of communities that don’t even have close access to a grocery store!
The town of Flippin is one of these such small towns with a population of 1357 as designated on their town sign as you enter it. We wanted to especially visit Flippin because we liked the name and thought it was funny to see the sign for the “Flippin Church of Christ” !!
Also, in case you didn’t know this, but Searcy County is designated as the “Chocolate Roll Capital of the World.” Hey, every town needs its claim to fame, right?? Unfortunately we did not get a chocolate roll while we were there.
Before we head out on our adventures, I try to do some research ahead of time to see what might be of interest to see and do along the way. I sometimes use the web, but I mainly use brochures and booklets we pick up at the local visitor centers, books that we own, or I use apps such as Roadside America to discover these unique and historical points of interest. Then, I plot out a course and Mike does all the driving! He just asks me where the next point of interest is and he plugs it into his GPS. I on the other hand, supplement the GPS with the old-fashioned map! I love maps and always have!
One of these interesting points along our route was the Swinging Bridge near Mountain Home, Arkansas. We had trouble locating it and ended up on some back dirt roads, but eventually when we were just about to give up, we found it!
The Swinging Bridge was built in 1914 as part of the first road that was built through the Ozark National Forest. Its cable weighed 1400 pounds and was brought in on the railroad and then by horse-drawn wagon to the site of the bridge. It has been restored after being damaged in a flood in 1982. We did drive across it although we were a bit nervous in our 4 ton truck! (Check out the Photo Gallery for more photos of the bridge and a historical sign with more information.)
Finally, we stopped along the Buffalo National River at the Tyler Bend Visitor Center. Refer back to my post on August to find out more about the Buffalo River. Because the river flows freely for 135 miles through north central Arkansas, we have met up with it frequently during our adventures. The river is celebrating it’s 50th Anniversary in 2022 as designated America’s First National River. We talked with a nice Park Ranger at the visitor center who gave us a lot of great information about this beautiful river surrounded by massive rocky bluffs in the middle of the Ozark Mountains.
Northwest Arkansas
Posted: August 18, 2022
View from a high ridge in the Ozark Mountains
Today’s journey took us to the Northwest corner of Arkansas. We try to take as many scenic roads as we can. That’s not hard to do because the majority of the roads are scenic which also means they are winding through the Ozark Mountains going up and down over the many ridges. We stopped at Inspiration Point to take a few photos. It looks like it used to be a booming stopping point with a restaurant and gift shop, but today it stands deserted. We have encountered quite a few of these types of stops. It almost gives these places a “ghosttown-like feel.”
One of our stops along our route was Pea Ridge National Military Park. Because we are so used to Gettysburg National Military Park in Pennsylvania where I am from, I didn’t realize there were other National Military Parks across the nation as well. Although on a much smaller scale than Gettysburg, the interesting thing about Pea Ridge is that Arkansas served both the Union and the Confederate armies. This is mainly because this northwest part of the state is so closed to Missouri and Missouri was part of the Union while Arkansas was part of the Confederacy. The battle at Pea Ridge was a turning point for the Civil War battles in Arkansas. As the two armies came head-to-head in this area, the Confederate soldiers could not hold off the Union soldiers and the Union eventually took over the state of Arkansas after some very bloody battles at Pea Ridge.
It was interesting looking around the museum, watching the informative movie, and then driving the 7 mile loop around the battlefield.
We headed west after touring the Pea Ridge battlefield to Bentonville, the birthplace of Walmart. We visited the extensive museum complete with a lot of memorabilia from the early days of Sam Walton’s, founder, life and his stores up to present day. It was very interesting reading how Walmart got its start and how it developed into the multi-billion dollar company that it is today.
As we found out, Sam Walton, born in Oklahoma, purchased a Ben Franklin franchise back in the 1950s after serving in the military. As he found success with this store, he purchased a few more. Soon, he was doing very well and wanted to develop his own store. So, with the help of his brother “Bud” they opened the first Walmart in Rogers, Arkansas, a neighboring town to Bentonville in 1962. Soon, the company began to grow and grow until it was in all states and also many different countries. The story of the founding, the early days, Sam Walton and his family’s lives, and into the present day company we know and shop at, the museum was quite fascinating. It was very well done! We even stopped in the little 5&10 that is right there on Main Street of historic Bentonville.
We continued our our tour of Northwest Arkansas by going through the metropolis that contains Bentonville, Rogers, Springdale, and Fayetteville. It is a much more heavily populated area with a lot more traffic. We had been getting used to and liking not dealing with much traffic, so from that aspect, we didn’t prefer this area of the state. However, we are glad we had a chance to visit these little cities.
We especially enjoyed driving through the campus of University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. The campus is beautiful. It is extremely hilly so the students definitely get a workout out walking to class. It appeared that school was back in session as we drove around Fraternity and Sorority Row. We were astounded by the size of the fraternity and sorority houses. Mike found the Sigma Chi house and I found the Phi Mu house. At Penn State where I went, sororities were not allowed to have houses because of some old fashioned “blue law” stating if more than 7 or 8 women lived in the same house it was considered a brothel! Mike’s Sigma Chi house at Colorado State was not even close to being as large as the house was at U of Arkansas! We saw the stadium which is right on campus.
We took time to enjoy some “real” Arkansas BBQ in Springdale. Yelp is our friend when trying to discover really great local restaurants. After having authentic Texas BBQ many times, we can be pretty picky about our BBQ. But as one Yelp reviewer stated “this is as close to Texas BBQ as you can get”, we decided to give it a try. We were NOT disappointed! It was called Wright’s BBQ and it was a hole in the wall type place where you go in to order (after standing in a long line) and they put your food on a metal tray and then you take it outside and sit at one of the picnic tables. Mike had the brisket and I had the pulled pork. The mac and cheese was SO good too!
We also visited the town of Bella Vista. It has been highly rated as one of the best small towns to retire in. It is pretty there with all the lush hills and valleys. We never did find a “downtown” area. It seems to be spread out across the whole area. What we did see where a lot of golf course and country clubs. Now we have a better understanding of why it may be considered one of the best small towns to retire in. In fact, the whole northwest area of Arkansas has been spoken of as best small towns in America and they have been ranked on many scales of up and coming towns. We can see there there has definitely been growth happening in this region as more and more people are finding out about it and moving here.
Abandoned Amusement Park Dogpatch USA & Ghost town in Rush, AR
Posted: August 22, 2022
Dogpatch USA was a theme park that opened in 1968 and officially closed it’s operations in 1993. It is located about 7 miles south of Harrison in Northwest Arkansas in a town that is called Marble Falls. The town was initially called Marble City because it is claimed that some of the marble that was used to build the Washington Monument in Washington DC came from this area. In fact, there is a historic roadside marker in the area that marks the spot the marble came from. (Check out the MORE PHOTOS page to see that). Then, the town was renamed Dogpatch USA after the theme park, but since it closed, the town is now called Marble Falls.
Dogpatch USA was a theme park based on the comic strip “Lil Abner.” The rides, scenery, little shops, restaurants and characters who roamed around and acted were based on the very popular at the time comic strip.
The owners had great hopes, in fact a bit too high of hopes, for how well this theme park was going to do. It did well for a few years, but the trouble was that it is in the middle of no where in the midst of the Ozark Mountains and it wasn’t easy to access. The end of it’s big demise was that as time went on, “Lil Abner” was no longer as popular as it used to be and therefore the newer generations were not familiar with the theme of the park.
It is sad to see the once lively park so desolate and falling apart, in fact, they recently gated off the entire area so you can only catch glimpses through the gates at different spots. However, the good news is that it was purchased 2 years ago by the owner of Bass Pro Shops and from what we have read, he is planning to make it a nature park complete with fishing areas and hiking trails. There are some small water falls within the park grounds which will be nice to be visible to the public once again.
Marble Falls original Post Office – still in use!
The town of Marble Falls was pretty much centered around the Dogpatch USA theme park and now only has a population of about 600 residents. The homes that we saw look like ski mountain chalets and we found out why that is the case. Apparently, as Dogpatch was not bringing in the amount of people that the owners had hoped, they opened a ski resort on top of the nearby hill. This is not an area that can really support snow as it does not stay cold enough so they were constantly making snow every night in order to maintain enough on the slopes. The ski resort didn’t last long, but the chalets still remain as local residents’ homes. Also on top of the ski resort was a lodge and some other large buildings with places for live entertainment, restaurants and some motels. The post office is also on the hill that is still in operation today. It is a very eerie and desolate drive around that whole area. The only life we saw on the hill was one car which probably belonged to the Marble Falls postmaster!
Hopefully with the future plans for Dogpatch USA, it will bring some liveliness back into this small deserted town.
The next stop on our daytrip was the small town of Rush. Rush is now on the National Register of Historic Places. It once was a booming mining town, but today all that remains are a few dilapidated houses and various other structures.
The Rush Ghost town is the only standing ghost town between the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains. It is deep in the Ozark Moutains and pretty secluded from anything else.
Back in the 1880s, as more settlers were starting to head west, a few men came upon this area and thought they had discovered silver. They built a smelter to extract the silver, but much to their dismay, discovered it was not silver, but it was zinc.
This turned out to not be a bad thing, and they set up what they called Morning Star Mine and opened a large mining operation. The town began to grow as more people started to move there to work in the mine. At one point, there were over 5000 people living in Rush! The boom of the town was between 1914-1917, however after World War I, the bottom fell out of the mining business for zinc as it was not as high in demand and people started leaving the town. The Morning Star Mining Company held onto it’s land until the 1960s when they finally sold it and the town was deserted.
We enjoyed the well laid out walking trail with historical signage along the way pointing out the points of interest and explaining the story of the once booming town of Rush, Arkansas.
Our final stop of the day was Gilbert, Arkansas. This is also a historical small town with only a population of 17! The town once was a hub of commerce when the railroad came to town, picked up or delivered merchandise that came in on small ships on the Buffalo River. The town’s original inhabitants were from a Christian missionary group from Illinois that moved here. Today the group is gone and the railroad is gone, but the General Store still remains. It originated in 1901. It was pretty quiet on the day we went there, but when the river is running high, it is a huge access point to river activities. The town has it’s own River guide business complete with rafts, canoes and kayaks. Other than the general store, the river guide company and a campground are the town’s only activity around. The access point to the Buffalo National River was quite beautiful from Gilbert.
Glass Chapels of Arkansas
Posted: August 22, 2022
Something really beautiful that we stumbled upon in Arkansas is the fact that there are 3 glass chapels built here. When we saw the first one in Hot Springs, we did not realize that there were two more! So, we made it a point to see the other two before leaving the state. And we succeeded. We have never before seen any chapel of the like, and now we have seen three. All of them are similar in some ways, but have their on unique architectural features. Here are the 3 different ones in this order: Hot Springs, Eureka Springs, and Bella Vista.
From the photos, you can see the slight differences in architecture. However, they all are similar in that they were built in gorgeous settings of the lush mountains. Because there are so many windows, the effect is that it appears to be one with nature even when on the inside of each one. They all have a beautiful serene walking path to get to them and sit far from the road so it is very peaceful. when inside, you get a calming peaceful feeling that almost takes your breath away. This picture gives an idea of the beauty of the chapel from the inside and the feeling that you are one with nature. All the chapels are air conditioned and have a ceiling height of 58 feet.
The three chapels all have different names and were built for different reasons.
The one in Hot Springs which we discovered first, is called Anthony Chapel and is located in Garven Woodland Gardens. These beautiful gardens are part of the University of Arkansas’ school of Architecture and Design.
The Chapel in Eureka Springs is called Thorncrown Chapel. This was built from an inspiration from a man named Jim Reed in 1971. The Chapel opened in 1980.
The third chapel is called the Mildred B. Cooper Memorial Chapel and it is located in the very northwest part of Arkansas called Bella Vista. It was built by Mildred’s family in her memory.
The chapels were designed by E. Fay Jones (1921-2004) who was an apprentice of Frank Lloyd Wright. E. Fay Jones practiced organic architecture making his designs one with their environment.
We feel very fortunate to have gotten to experience the absolute beauty and peacefulness of these incredible chapels. They do offer wedding packages starting around $4000! We thought it would be a gorgeous place for one of our children to get married in.
Harrison, Arkansas
Posted: August 22, 2022
The Visitor Center in Harrison where we have been staying for 3 months!
I thought I would do a post on Harrison, which has been our “home” for 2 months and as I write this, we just paid for another month at our KOA campground. We feel we lucked out on finding this area. We knew we wanted to come to Arkansas and be in the Ozark Mountains, but had no idea what Harrison would be like. Well, we really like this town of 12,000 people! It is a small town like we were seeking out, yet it’s big enough to have just want you might need such as ample stores, restaurants, and services.
We are liking the KOA campground which is pretty small and wooded. Our site backs up to trees and only on occasion have we had other campers on either side of us. The owner, Lynda, is super friendly and very accommodating and so is all the staff that works here. We have gotten to know all of them! We are getting used to full-time RV living and really like our little spot here in the Ozarks in Harrison.
What we also like about Harrison is that it has history to it and has a historical downtown that seems to be partially thriving. We went to the Saturday Farmer’s Market in the square of downtown and got some locally grown peaches. There were also some local artisans selling their products. Mike got some spiced pineapple jam which he loves.
We decided to walk around the historical downtown area and were pleased to find that a lot of the buildings have historical signs on them explaining when the building was built and what it was used for over time.
Harrison was established in 1876, however it was inhabited by the Quapaw, Shawnee, and Caddo Indian tribes prior to that.
Something we have discovered in the state of Arkansas is that they are very proud of their veterans. Every town, whether big or small, has some sort of Veterans Memorial. They are very well kept too. Also with Harrison being in the north central part of Arkansas, they did have both Union and Confederate soldiers. It is still interesting, but maybe not surprising that we do see some confederate flags hanging outside of some residences and a few businesses.
Harrison is the county seat of Boone County.
Something neat about the downtown is that local artists have painted a unique variety of murals that have something to do with the heritage of the town and the area. There is a walking tour that we took to discover all 12 of the murals. It is obvious that the town is trying to spruce up the downtown and revive it once again. It has a ways to go, but it is definitely not a lost cause!
We spent some time driving around and exploring this town of 12,000. Most of the homes lie within the hills on all sides surrounding the “shopping and dining” areas of the town. Because it is in the Ozarks, a lot of neighborhood streets are hilly and windy. Most of the homes are very modest in size, some very small and run down, but we have not found an extremely impoverished part of town. As one local business man told Mike while he was sharpening Mike’s axe outside of the local hardware store, “We may be poor, but we are not down and out.” There also looks to be some recent growth in a few newer communities with bigger homes outside of town. You can quickly get from the town into the country, which is absolutely beautiful. There is one school district which has 2 elementary schools, 1 middle and 1 high school.
Harrison does appear to be healthy with some local growth in stores, restaurants and services. There is a Walmart. In fact, Harrison is one of the first Walmart locations! The Walmart here now, has definitely replaced the original one.
There is a Home Depot and a Hobby Lobby. Of course there is a Dollar General but also a Dollar Tree! There are a number of locally owned clothing and various other types of shops. Antiques, thrift and flea markets are a big thing here. We spent some time browsing around a huge indoor flea & antique market called Rust, Dust & Wanderlust.
The chain grocery store here and around the area, is called Harps. However, we prefer to shop local. Hudon’s is great small, yet big enough grocery store that has been around since 1920! It is kind of refreshing shopping at a grocery store that doesn’t have a hundred choices of ketchup or 1000 choices of cereal! Plus, it’s great because it’s never busy and we never have to fight for a parking space!
Harrison is big enough to have 2 McDonalds and 2 Sonics! But only 1 Wendy’s, Burger King, Dairy Queen, Arbys, and Taco Bell. We have been enjoying the Dunkin Donuts for an iced latte mid afternoons on some days.
We have tried some of the local restaurants and our favorites are La Torcia Brick Oven Pizza, Jamie’s, and Buckets Sports Bar and Grill.
We have truly enjoyed being in the town of Harrison. It may not seem like that much, but it is definitely enough and being greeted with friendly smiles and kind words is sometimes all that is needed to make a place feel comfortable.
Check out the MORE PHOTOS page for many more pictures of Harrison
Trip to Minnesota -- Brainerd and Baxter
Posted: September 10, 2022
We had planned a trip about 4-5 months ago to go to Minnesota for an extended weekend. There were two main reasons for our trip. One was to visit with Trevor’s fiance, Nicole’s, parents who had moved a little over a year ago from Colorado Springs to Brainerd, Minnesota. The other reason was to attend the Minnesota State Fair to meet up with Mike’s Perkey family who live in the Minneapolis and surrounding areas. So, the timing was right for both of these purposes to happen at the end of August.
We decided that since it would just be a 5 day trip, we would leave our RV at our favorite KOA in Harrison where we have been staying the past 2+ months and drive our truck north to Minnesota. Because it was a 12 hour drive, we stayed in Mason City, Iowa in a hotel the first night before completing the drive the following day. We picked up Trevor and Nicole from the Minneapolis Airport the following afternoon on our drive from Mason City, Iowa to Brainerd. It was nice that we got to spend more time with Trevor and Nicole while we visited with her parents.
We got to know Tracy and Roger while we all lived in Colorado Springs. A little over a year ago, they decided to sell their house of 20+ years and move to Minnesota. They found a beautiful piece of property with a sweet cabin-like home right on the lake in the small town of Brainerd, which is right next to Baxter. They essentially run right into one another.
Again, we stayed in a hotel. It was called Arrowwood Lodge. It wasn’t bad, but we were definitely missing our new King size mattress in our RV after the 4 nights! Our room at the hotel had a full-size bed.
Taking a break from boating at Zobaz Bar and Grill by the lake
Roger and Tracy have a love of the water and a passion for boats. In fact, Roger has a boat restoration business and therefore it was a perfect place for them to move to Minnesota, the “Land of 10,000 Lakes.”
They particularly have a love for old wooden boats and have 2 of their own. They took us out on one of their boats, called Miller High Life (named after their last name, Miller). They took us from lake to lake, going through many channels that connect the lakes. It was a gorgeous weather day, and very relaxing for us, as we could just sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride!
We were on the water for over 3 hours enjoying the scenery along the shorelines. We saw a blue heron, lily pads, and lake-life landscapes. We also noticed some very large homes along the way! One such home belongs to a man who owns 42 of his own wooden boats! Roger works on some of his boats.
Mike and I had never been on a boat together before so this was a new experience for us together. We really enjoyed it!
We also did some fishing off the Miller’s pier at their house. Mike and Trevor did most of the fishing and even went out in a rowboat together. Mike was a bit nervous because Trevor was doing the paddling and let’s just say, it took him a little bit at the start to get the hang of it!
I even tried fishing! Although I didn’t catch anything, it was fun (for about 15 minutes) I hadn’t fished since I went with my Pop-Pop when I was about 5 years old near his hunting cabin in north central Pennsylvania. Mike used to fish a lot in his younger years in the summer with friends at Springlake in Rockford, Illinois where he grew up.
Mike was very successful at catching fish, in fact, he caught one the very first time he cast his line! Trevor was very impressed and although he tried, he didn’t catch nearly as many as his dad. What they were catching was Bluegill.
There happened to be a wooden boat show at Bar Harbor, about 10 minutes from the Miller’s home, while we were in town. We had never been to a boat show before, so it was interesting learning about wooden boats and the history behind some of these boats. Some were newer, but the majority of them were historical, and had been restored. Some being 100 years old! Lake life and boat life is not something Mike and I are that familiar with, so we enjoyed trying and being exposed to something new during our stay in Minnesota. Check out my “MORE PHOTOS” page under Brainerd & Baxter for many more photos of boats and our time in that area.
Brainerd and Baxter are pretty small towns with populations of 13,500 and 8300 respectively. However, they are very civilized areas with big retailers such as Costco, Target and Walmart as well as most fast food restaurants. There are however, a lot of locally owned shops and restaurant giving the areas a much more small town feeling. We tried out a diner called 371 for breakfast and a restaurant called Grizzly’s for dinner. Both were very good!
We went to some cute shops that were in the historic buildings called the Northern Pacific Center. This used to be a huge train depot where locomotives were built and repaired. It is now a historical landmark.
We also went to the old Brainerd High School that is now converted into the Franklin Arts Center. Each classroom has been rented out to different artisans and small business owners to do their trade. Tracy is an artist and has her studio here. She gave us a tour of the entire Franklin Arts Center as well as her studio. You can check out some of her artwork at tracymillerfiineart.com.
Last but not least, it was a special treat to be invited by Nicole to go wedding dress shopping for upcoming wedding! She made an appointment at a cute locally owned bridal shop in the nearby town of Nisswa. Nicole’s mom and I were there with her when she said YES TO THE DRESS!! It was very special to be part of this exciting moment!
We thoroughly enjoyed our time with Roger and Tracy, Nicole and Trevor. It was fun experiencing some new types of adventures in some small towns that we had never been to before. We appreciate the warm hospitality the Miller’s provided in their home, from the delicious dinners to the cozy campfires! We will look forward to our next visit!
Minnesota State Fair and Mall of America
Posted: September 10, 2022
After spending 3 days in north central Minnesota in Brainerd and Baxter, we drove early in the morning on Sunday, August 28 to Minneapolis/St Paul to attend the Minnesota State Fair. The fair had just opened up a few days before and it runs until Labor Day. Trevor and Nicole had just been visiting along with us at Nicole’s parent’s house in Brainerd and therefore, they all came along to the fair too. We were meeting up with Mike’s late brother Greg’s wife, Sue and their children, Ben (and his wife Meghan), and Katie (and her boyfriend Sahr). Unfortunately their other son, Matt and his girlfriend, Jenni, were not able to make it due to illness at the last minute. We got to the fair around 10am and were astounded by the size of it!
The Minnesota State Fair started over 150 years ago in the year 1959! It is commonly referred to as the “Great Minnesota Get-Together.” the Minnesota State Fair is only second in size to the Texas State Fair with over 2 million visitors each year! There are over 300 concession booths offering over 500 food options. We did try our fair share of those options too! Sweet Martha’s cookies, for instance, come in a large plastic bucket overflowing with warm right out of the oven chocolate chip cookies. Apparently, word has it, that Sweet Martha makes 2 million dollars during the fair! It wouldn’t surprise me with the length of the line we had to stand in!
Apparently, going to the fair is all about the food. Sue enlightened us about the best treats at the fair that her and Greg had eaten over their many many years of attending the fair. We tried the Pronto Pups (corndogs) and of course we had to have fried cheese curds. We had fried chicken in a waffle cone with gravy on it. And one of Mike’s brother, Greg’s, favorites is the Walleye cakes. They were really delicious!
Of course there are animals at the State Fair. There are the buildings for the cows, the pigs, the sheep, the chickens, and the horses. But, a really interesting experience was visiting the building for the pregnant animals. Farmers can bring their animals there that are due to give birth during the 12 days of the fair. The veterinary students from the University of Minnesota come to the fair and assist with the birthing process of the animals. It is a great place for them to get hands on experience with a lot of different species such as cows, pigs, chickens, goats and sheep. It was fun walking through the building and seeing the baby piglets and the baby lambs. We even got to pet some of them that were just a few days old! We were surprised to discover that a mother pig can give birth up to 24 piglets at a time!! The one that had just given birth 3 days prior to our visit, had birthed 18. That’s a LOT of babies!
We also went to the Pet Experience and got to see one of Mike’s favorite breeds, German Shepards, going through obstacle courses and performing tricks.
We also watched a Lumberjack competition. There were competitors carving things out of wood and there were log rolling competitions. It was interesting to see this Minnesota sport in action!
The Fair is full of events and activities to see and do. There are so many little shops and vendor booths set up on both sides of many many streets and in between all of the shops are food trucks, stands and large restaurant buildings and brew pubs.
There are also the amusement rides. We did not ride anything, but it looked like a lot of fun. There is a ski lift ride and a gondola ride that take you above the entire fair as well as the famous ferris wheel.
There is something for everyone at the Minnesota State Fair! We could not believe the amount of people that were there. We believe this is the most people we have been around since March 2020 when the CoVid pandemic began. As far as it would seem, the pandemic is over, as we only saw a small handful of people wearing masks at this huge event.
Not only did we want to spend the day with our Minnesota Perkey family, but we also wanted to see the “Perkey Bench.”
Mike’s older brother, Greg, sadly lost his 4 year battle with pancreatic cancer 5 years ago. A year after he passed away, his children, Matt, Katie, and Ben surprised their mom, Sue, by purchasing this bench in Greg’s memory. She was overwhelmed with emotion when they showed it to her the year they had bought it. The bench is on display every year at the Minnesota State Fair, which was one of Greg’s favorite places to go each and every year.
There are benches in people’s memories and honor all throughout the fairgrounds, so the hunt is on every year to find where the bench is located! It’s always in a different spot because the benches are stored indoors, out of the snow, in the winter months.
When we started searching the fairgrounds (with 11 of us looking) it took about 15 minutes once we got to the appropriate area to locate the bench. Mike spotted it first only to find that 2 men were sitting on it enjoying their cheese curds! We were very patient with them, giving them time to finish up their snack and when they were done and still didn’t seem to get the hint that we wanted to take some photos of the bench, Sue finally decided to explain to them who she was and the significance of the bench. The men were very understanding and even offered to be our photographer!
It was a very special moment being there all together to celebrate Greg’s memory.
It was a very special day spending time with our Perkey family. It meant so much more to be there celebrating Greg’s memory at one of his favorite places, all of us together.
And finally, during our trip to Minnesota, we spent a few hours at the Mall of America in Minneapolis. Let me tell you, it is very hard to cover the entire mall in 4 hours! We did our best, but still missed a few sections…..AND we only briefly went into 3 stores: The M&M store (of course), Bath & Body Works, and the Crayola Store. Let’s just say the place is HUGE and has pretty much every type of store, restaurant, and activity you can think of including a full amusement park right in the center of it!
Hot Air Balloon State Championship
Posted: September 12, 2022
We were excited to see that there was a Hot Air Balloon Festival here in Harrison. In fact, it is the 27th Annual Arkansas Hot Air Balloon State Championship! It was held at the local soccer complex. We had no idea what to expect but we knew we were definitely going to check it out!
It was a weekend event with the balloons taking off on both Saturday and Sunday mornings between 7-9am. On Friday and Satruday nights, on the soccer fields, they did the Balloon Glow which is when the balloons are tethered to the ground but they light them up with their flames to make them glow in the dark. There were also events throughout the day, mostly for kids. Helicopter rides were offered and vendors were set up selling their crafty items, clothing, as well as food and drinks. About 10 different forms of bouncy houses were set up for kids. The event ended Sunday at noon.
We decided to get up early Saturday morning to see the event. We had read on the balloon event website that the best place to see the balloons was from the Baptist Church. So, we headed in that direction. We were amazed to see the number of people who were there to watch the balloons fly overhead. It was a bit of a cloudy start to the day, but it did make for interesting photography backgrounds! There were plenty of places to pull our truck off the side of the road and watch without being crowded out by other people…..a very nice feature of being in a small town!
We found out at least part of the “competition” aspect of the Hot Air Balloon Championship. If you look closely at the photo above, you will see a white pole in the bottom righthand corner. This is one of three “targets” within a mile wide area. The object is to get close to the target and then drop a bean-bag weight with a colored ribbon and try to be as accurate as possible to get close to the target. The closest one to the targets wins monetary prizes.
We saw many attempts of this and found that depending on the wind currents, it was very difficult to get it “right.” It gave us an appreciation as to the difficulty in steering a hot air balloon and making it go where you want it to go.
We stayed and watched the balloons circle around in the sky for the 2 hours. We never did find out who had won. But it was an interesting experience seeing a competition in action.
Having lived in Colorado Springs for many many years, we have been exposed to a Hot Air Balloon Festival each year. We have both been to it a few times. So, we definitely had curiosity as to how the Colorado Springs event compares with the Harrison Arkansas event, being that one is a large city and the other is a small town. The Colorado Springs event definitely brings in more balloons than the 13 that were at the Arkansas event. However, due to wind and weather, a lot of times it seemed that at the Colorado event not all the balloons could fly. The actual event itself was much easier to attend and navigate than in Colorado Springs where you have to contend with traffic and lack of parking availability. And, once you find parking, you have to walk a mile to get to the event. And then, there are so many people jam-packed onto the field for the Balloon Glow that it is hard to move around.
In Colorado Springs there are more vendors, but there are also more people. Overall, we feel that it is really pretty to see the Hot Air Balloons in Colorado up against the Rocky Mountains. Plus there are more of them. However, we were more impressed with the Balloon Glow event in Arkansas because it seemed there were more balloons actually taking part in the nighttime event and it was easier to move around and get closer to more of the balloons. They both have their pluses but overall, we were really impressed with the Harrison Arkansas Hot Air Balloon Championship!
At the Balloon Glow event they offered tethered rides. They would tie off the balloons so that it would only go so far up in the air so people could experience what it is like to be in a Hot Air Balloon. A lot of people where taking advantage of this opportunity and paid the $20/person fee. We did not take part, but we enjoyed watching all the happenings and seeing all the balloons light up the night sky. Overall we were very impressed with the Arkansas State Hot Air Balloon Championship event. AND, we were not exhausted or stressed because it was hard to find parking or we had to fight with traffic and people. It was a very enjoyable morning and evening out here in Harrison!