Gone Heiken: May 2018

ROAD TRIP: NW Arkansas & more

Sunday, May 13th through Monday, May 21st

Sam. Mary. Canyon. Wayne. Remy. Blackjack.

Sunday, May 13th: We head straight south on I-35

From Laura and Nathan's house, we planned to follow I-35 S signs for the foreseeable future. We hit somewhere in post-Kansas City, MO and that's where summer hit: 93F!

Tired pups.

Our destination for tonight: Hobbs State Park.

Narrow, windy road around Beaver Lake. Found a camp spot at Rocky Branch, overlooking a marina across the water. ~12hr drive took a lot out of us, so early to bed!

Monday, May 14th: hike, then bike in Bentonville, AR

View of the high water of Beaver Lake where we camped at Hobbs State Park.

Went on a ~4 mile hike (Dry Creek loop) from Pigeon Roost trailhead. Beautiful, thick, GREEN forests! And, water access for Canyon.

After the hike and a quick stop at the Visitor's Center, we found a dead-end road with lake access. Very secluded, sunny - and tons of butterflies gathering!

Checked into our AirBnB, settled in, played some fetch in the backyard. Then, suited up for our first ride in Bentonville, AR! Very incredible trail system with purpose-built mtn singletrack alongside multi-use trails, sidewalks, etc!

We made it to Slaughter Pen; then up the climber for a rad time on The Downhill. Unfortunately, Sam took a decent tumble resulting in a gaping wound requiring stitches at the local MedExpress Urgent Care. I spared you all the bloody pictures :)

Beer, salad and pizza from Gusano's for dinner back at our AirBnB.

Tuesday, May 15th: Bentonville, AR

Walked about cute downtown Bentonville this AM. Stopped at the bakery.

Headed to Bella Vista for Blowing Springs trails. Mary road the trails while Sam and Canyon hiked and played frisbee. Solid 11+ miles for Mary.

Back to Bentonville for Yeyo's burritos, so good!

Just an evening on the town from there. HH at Oven and Tap, walked Canyon around then back to the AirBnB.

Dinner at Flying Fish!

Scotch and Soda for a rick-rack & cord.

Wednesday, May 16th: Lake Leatherwood, Eureka Springs and Ozark Nat'l Forest

Packed up into Wayne headed toward Lake Leatherwood for more trails. Rocky, technical riding - and very fun - loop around the lake (5.7 miles).

After quick PB&Js for lunch at the lake, back on the road.

Stopped at Thorncrown Chapel: stunning and peaceful.

Onto Eureka Springs! In all it's confusing, entertaining, completely quirky glory!

100' observation tower - gorgeous view of the Ozarks!

Drove around Eureka Springs a bit:

Plan was to head SE toward Ozark Nat'l Forest. Beautiful scenic drive.

Stopped for legit ice cream near Boxley.

Up the steepest gravel road ever to find camping near the Whitaker Point trailhead.

Upper Buffalo mtn bike trails seem really great - we'll have to come back someday!

Thursday, May 17th: Whitaker Point hike, Glory Hole, AR Grand Canyon, Lakeview

Breathtaking views of the tree-covered canyons at Whitaker Point/Hawksbill Crag this morning! Watching the sun slowly burn off the fog was awesome.

Next up, Glory Hole!

Jumped back on Scenic Hwy-7 with great views of Arkansas Grand Canyon:

Continued our tour of northern/NW Arkansas in search of cool spot to camp for the night. We headed toward two lakes on the map: Norfold lake & Bull Shoals lake (both reservoirs). Found a spot in Lakeview on Bull Shoals lake.

No swimming for Sam - but his stitches look great and no signs of infection!

Canyon loves the lake life.

We ate dinner at this legit resort right on the White River with an airstrip, swimming pools, conference halls, nature trails and more!

Wildlife refuge at Gaston's with peacocks! (hard to see, sorry)

Friday, May 18th: on to Branson, MO (why not?) and Lake of the Ozarks

Not a long stay in Branson, but we did want to see what the hype is about. Parked near Branson Landing and cruised the riverwalk with the pup.

We did try to book a last minute AirBnB, but it fell through - and most viable options had pet charges of > $50, so we split after lunch at Waxy O'Shea's.

Made our way to/through Lake of the Ozarks. Threw the fris for Canyon at Osage Beach City Park (soccer fields) then settled in to a campsite at the massive Lake of the Ozarks State Park!

Saturday, May 19th: Uranus, MO and cruising up the Great River Road

Found ourselves on Historic Route 66 upon driving out of Lake of the Ozarks State Park!

Our sights were now set NOT on the presumed wonderful Capitol city of Jefferson City, MO, but we took a slight detour to follow signs for ... URANUS, MO!

What followed was likely the weirdest thing Sam and I have done as a couple, maybe even as individual humans. What a damn unique tourist trap!

I will spare you all pictures from the Circus Sideshow Museum ... go see for yourselves!

"Welcome to Uranus!"

"Thanks for picking Uranus!"

This is a summary map of where we've been thus far:

We continued further on I-44 NE. Lunch at Blue Duck in adorable Washington, MO, right on the Missouri River. There was an art fair/winefest, so we wandered about town a few blocks.

Started north on the Great River Road (GRR) in Hannibal, MO, which is very proud of their Mark Twain heritage:

"... the extensive view up and down the river is ... one of the most beautiful on the Mississippi"

We crossed over into Illinois - pretty much for the pictures of the road signs. Not too much keeping us there. So, here are the road signs!

Back onto the GRR in Missouri (see sign below) and continued northbound, our sights on Davenport to camp at Summit Campground for the night.

Sunday, May 20th: Dubuque, IA, Bridal Veil Falls and Lacrosse, WI

Up early in Davenport for a wonderfully surprising breakfast at Tommy's Cafe, with a dozen free donuts to go! Tell your friends! CASH ONLY

Cute park near the Village of East Davenport strip.

Tired pup.

Much cuter towns along the GRR in Iowa (compared to Missouri and Illinois). We stopped at a farmer's market in Clinton, IA.

Next stop: Dubuque, IA.

Washington Park Farmer's Market. 7 Hills Brewery for lunch.

Onto McGregor, IA for Pikes Peak State Park; Bridal Veil Falls. It was nice to move the legs and walk the pup. Nice views, but unimpressive falls.

Crossed over into WI at Prairie du Chien. Made it to Lacrosse, WI around 6pm. River parks and nice downtown. Dinner at Fayze's which, believe it or not, gives free bakery item per entree on Sundays - just what we need after the dozen donuts from Tommy's!