Overnighting in Arkansas and Oklahoma.

I must admit, initially we weren't too excited about our stopovers in Arkansas and Oklahoma several weeks ago. I'd been through both states 20 years ago and had no memory of either, and car-camping one-nighters are kind of exhausting - especially when rainclouds follow you, and especially when you're en route to Texas... which we also weren't too excited about.

To be fair, there were a few interesting sights on the way to Hot Springs National Park.

how Arkansas does rice paddies

(interesting, and not quite what we're used to)

our first and last presidential library sighting

(cool building, admission $7... no thanks)

Otherwise we stayed on highways most of the time which meant a pretty boring drive. We kept open minds during those couple of days, though, and with the help of our handy road atlas we found some amazing scenery on the handful of back roads we did travel!

First up: Arkansas. After visiting Hot Springs National Park we headed to nearby Lake Ouachita State Park. We were bummed that this park's rangers assign sites (choosing a campsite is one of Patrick's favorite pastimes) but site T-3 turned out alright, I guess...

lakeside view

if only we had kayaks

man, it sucks to be us

soup, salad and sass for dinner

and a rather lovely sunset

Obviously, by "it turned out alright," I mean it was awesome. And no rain? Even more awesome.

(Not-so-awesome was the couple next to us who were attacked by raccoons for leaving food in their tent, who also used an entire can of lighter fluid to build a giant bonfire that kept us awake and fearful that our tent would catch on fire. Amateurs! Haha.)

Heading from Arkansas to Oklahoma the next day, we left the highway and followed the beautiful Talimena National Scenic Drive, stopping at a few of the pullouts and historic sites.

it's no I-40 with a bazillion semi trucks,

but it'll do

historic Rich Mountain Fire Tower

Pioneer Cemetery -

23 graves from the late 1800s/early 1900s

the Oklahoma/Arkansas border

(originally the Choctaw/Arkansas border

which erroneously deprived the Choctaw of some of their land)

Definitely worth the side trip.

Once we hit Oklahoma we headed for Hochatown State Park near the southeast corner. Despite valiant efforts we never did find that exact park, so we ended up in Beavers Bend State Park instead. (Oregonians in the general vicinity of a park called "Beavers Bend"... it was probably fate, eh?)

The campsites were "primitive" - an understatement - and the campers at this particular state park were of the "guns + ammo + beer" demographic, but it was getting late and we were I was getting cranky so we parked ourselves next to the river in an empty campground and hoped for the best.

And then the clouds rolled in, and the thunder started booming, and we just sighed.

before ...

... another salad for dinner
before the storm soaks the fire ...

... during ...

"Let's stay at this desolate, isolated, kinda grungy, primitive campsite down by the river in this random state park in SE Oklahoma during a giant thunderstorm..." said no one, ever.

They didn't know about the mist on the river after it rains.

after, part one

after, part two

It was really stunning.

In the morning we stopped by the park's Forest Heritage Center.  Our handy road atlas indicated it was a worthwhile stop and we hadn't been steered wrong yet.

dendrochronology, illustrated!

Definitely worth the hour we spent.  National Geographic Road Atlas for the win again!

So, yeah.  Other than a few more pictures here, that pretty much sums up our time in Arkansas and Oklahoma - better than we expected, but we don't have a burning urge to return anytime soon.

As we headed toward Texas we tried to find a state park for a picnic lunch but everything was flooded.

makeshift picnic area by the overflowing Red River

Crossing the border into the Lone Star state, we crossed our fingers for better weather ahead. I think we all remember how that turned out...

Hot Springs National Park in less than an hour.

Hot springs are rarely on our "must do" list - the only ones we visited over the past 26 months were next to ancient Roman ruins and you couldn't exactly bathe in those.

But we were passing directly by Hot Springs National Park on our way from Mammoth Cave to Texas, so we stopped for a photo op.

check...

This must be the weirdest national park in the US.  It's definitely the smallest, and the oldest - Hot Springs is 40 years older than Yellowstone.  We toured around a bit while we were there...

Bathhouse Row

What is now Hot Springs National Park was once "the nation's health sanatorium" - a spa retreat prescribed by physicians to treat a range of ailments.

torture chamber or physical therapy device?

(part one)

torture chamber or physical therapy device?

(part two)

The early 1800s facilities were primitive but 100 years later, they had improved significantly. Efforts were taken to ensure availability to everyone, rich and poor. (Although African Americans employed in the main facilities couldn't use them, they did have their own facilities nearby.)  Over a million visitors a year visited the park back in its heyday.

Fordyce Bathhouse

Tourism declined in the 1950s and the bathhouses fell into disrepair until the 1980s when the National Park Service started looking into restoration.

("let's go back to Turkey!")

Today the "park" is free; yes, it's a weird park but the self-guided tour of the bathhouse museum is definitely worth an hour.

eventually Fordyce Bathhouse sported a gymnasium

for general health and wellness

You can also still take baths in the springs for a fee (we didn't do this). The park is located in downtown Hot Springs so it's easy to explore the town too.  I'm not sure there's much going on, other than bars and cafes and a few random other things...

we didn't do this either

(but we did seriously consider it)

The hikes. We didn't do any, but there are a few paths in the woods nearby. Presumably these were created for the spa patrons. There's also an observation tower featuring "spectacular views of Hot Springs"... We didn't do this either.

The campsites. There is one but the lady at the visitor center really undersold it so we didn't even stop to check it out. Instead we headed to Lake Ouachita State Park (which was lovely!).

The food. We wouldn't know.

You can see the exact same pictures above here. We didn't take many pictures.

Sorry for half-assing our visit to you, Hot Springs National Park! We're sure your baths and your town are great. Not every national park is for everyone, though...

Next!

Friday five: walking in Memphis.

Cities are so hard to write about. You (and I mean You, The Reader) have either been and have your own memories, or you haven't been but you have your own preconceptions.

Our experience probably rarely matches your actual or perceived notions about a particular tourist destination, and surely you read some of these posts and wonder why the hell we only spent two days in Seville, or why we drank so little beer in Prague, or why we didn't have a tailored suit made in Hội An... or why we squandered two days in one of the most musically historic places in the US.

"Memphis is the blues capital of the world, we like to say"

- Justin Timberlake

That's the beauty of travel, though. We all experience places in our own way, in our own time, using our own priorities to guide us.

Our priorities for cities center around frugal exploration. So with that, here are five awesome-to-us things that we did in Memphis, in no particular order...

1. The National Civil Rights Museum: one of the best museums we have visited over the last 26 months. (The ticket lady told us to plan two hours - we ended up spending four.) The exhibits taught us so much and also raised so many questions.

"we may have all come on different ships, but we're in the same boat now"

- MLK Jr

"all I was doing was trying to get home from work"

- Rosa Parks

2. Beale Street. Best wandered at 8:30am on a Sunday morning, in our opinion.

"America's Most Iconic Street"

- USA Today National Poll

"I never use that word, retire"

- B. B. King

3. Breakfast at Elwood's Shack. Patrick's pulled pork burrito was perfect and my egg biscuit was just right.

"pulled pork jokes never get old"
- Joel Edgerton

4. Driving in Memphis. We didn't take tours but we did drive past some iconic music spots... It was particularly interesting to be there the weekend after BB King passed away.

"everybody wants to go to Heaven, but no one wants to die to get there!"

- B. B. King

"If you're not doing something different, you're not doing anything"

- Sam Phillips

5. The only cool Wal-Mart on the planet. It was necessary - Patrick's streak of breaking French presses continued with the rock-solid one from REI, and Nashville's REI wouldn't replace it. (He's not allowed to touch the crappy new Mr. Coffee press.)

"Wal-mart... do they like make walls there?"

- Paris Hilton

Things we did not do in Memphis:

• The annual World Championship Barbeque Cooking Contest - because our carbon footprint is ridiculous enough

""there's soot under my boy's nails, you don't get that from a clean burning fuel!"
- Hank Hill

"you don't get the rich smokey flavor either"
- Bobby Hill

• Graceland - because Nepal needed our $32 more than Lisa Marie

"I'll stay in Memphis"
- Elvis

• Another cheap-to-most-people-but-pricey-to-us motel - instead, we opted for TO Fuller State Park, campsite #35 which was only 20 minutes from downtown and perfect for two nights

"Reverend Fuller sought to improve the lives of African Americans
by fostering a sense of black pride and stressing the importance of education"
- Tennessee Encyclopedia

• Go to Jackson - any of them, and there seem to be many in that area - although with all the signs it was impossible not to sing the song for a week afterward
  

"see if I care!"
- June Carter

More photos here...

So that was our Memphis tour. Have you been? What would you recommend for our next visit?

Less than 24 hours in Nashville.

Cities usually mean being around hoards of people and spending hoards of money - two of our least favorite activities.

"the best part of America"

- Nicole Kidman

We did many things in Nashville that involved both of these activities, yet for some reason it was okay. Maybe Mrs. Urban is on to something?

For example, there was Frank Turner and the Sleeping Souls at 3rd & Lindsley. Frank was our first date back in October 2012. Many of his songs speak of wanderlust and never settling for what you don't love; he's been our soundtrack over the past few years. We saw Frank at the 2013 TURF Festival in Toronto and we planned our 2015 Nashville visit around his show. As expected, it was worth it. The venue was pretty cool too, reminiscent of Portland's Doug Fir, only bigger and with TVs.  (No pictures of the show - we were too busy enjoying it, as old folks like us tend to do, so just watch this and you'll get it.)

And then there was Peg Leg Porker BBQ. So good. So, so good.

Peg Leg features the best sign in Nashville...

... as well as delicious pulled pork, dry rub ribs, cole slaw,

baked beans, green beans, mac & cheese ...

... and the second-best sign in Nashville

We also visited The Johnny Cash Museum. Surprisingly thorough!

wow... just wow...

We were expecting to see all the gold records and stage costumes but the museum was all-encompassing, focusing not only on his musical career but also his forays into movies and television, and his humbling humanitarian work.

oh yeah, and his world-famous ATMs

(anyone remember these?)

the museum also offers highly educational displays

(anyone remember THESE?)

There was also The Rodeway Inn about 10 miles outside of town. We figured we would have a late night so we wanted something safe, easy and cheap. Despite observations of a car full of hipsters driving by, it was not "all drug deals and prostitutes," it was actually just fine.

(But that's all it was - just fine. Wifi, showers, TV, free coffee. Just fine. No pictures, and don't listen to the reviews.  Just trust us.)

We thought we walked up Music Row but now, as I'm writing this post and looking again at the Nashville map, it seems that we only walked up Honky Tonk Row.

(all kinds of music, actually)

The price you pay for road-tripping without a smartphone (also known as our reason to return to Nashville!)...  We didn't have time to catch a show but the buskers were fun.

Of course we had to stop by the Grand Ole Opry for a mandatory photo op...

this one's for you, Dad

And no Nashville visit would be complete without a visit to Cooter's Place, the Dukes of Hazzard museum! Actually, we were quite happy to not visit Cooter's Place but then we drove right by it after the GOO photo op, and admission was free... So when in Hazzard County and all that.

creepy, yet nostalgic

so wrong

(but so right)
but so very, very wrong

third-best sign in Nashville

We never did find the Parthenon but we hear it's cool...

photo by Wikipedia

We even schlepped into suburbia to take advantage of REI's annual sale for new boots! Nashville was pretty much the only city with an REI for the next several weeks, and our timing coincided with their annual sale. It had to be done.

before

(note giant hole, one of many)

after

(helloooooo roomy Keens)

More pictures here... For us, just under 24 hours in Nashville was just enough to pique our interest. We've heard great things and we got a generally good vibe from the city but honestly, it's probably one of those places you don't really appreciate until after you've spent a good deal of time there. (Or perhaps a good deal of money?) We hope to return someday... preferably in the fall or winter when it's not so bloody hot. And preferably when we're employed.

Speaking of music, bbq and bloody hot - to Memphis!