A TRAVELER'S GUIDE TO STATES YOU WOULDN'T THINK OF VACATIONING TO Chapter Seven Arkansas

- A TRAVELER'S GUIDE TO LIFE AND EVERYTHING -

A TRAVELER'S GUIDE TO STATES YOU WOULDN'T THINK OF VACATIONING TO

- CHAPTER SEVEN-

ARKANSAS

State motto: DON'T LOOK AT US!!! (Just kidding!!!!) "Regnat Populus"  "What does that mean?"  WE WILL KILL YOU IF YOU LOOK AT US!! Just kidding, it means, "The People Rule"

"And what does that mean?"

We have no idea!!!!

So here we are again, the greatest travel guide you didn't think you needed and well, we're not even sure why we're even writing it other than boredom and a map of the United States of America.

"As you already know, my wife wanted to go on vacation but I was like, I JUST WANNA GO SOMEPLACE DIFFERENT!!! And so we went to Google and found you!! What's an Arkansas??"

"Bill Clinton!!"

"Uh, I think we'll pass!!!"

"No, no, hold on, it's more than just the Clintons!! So much more!!! Here's what Google says about it!!!"

Capital (a forgotten piece of information from those other states we've already posted!! Sorry!!!) - Little Rock (motto - DON'T BEND OVER IN FRONT OF BILL CLINTON!!!)

AS STOLEN FROM GOOGLE -

Arkansas is a southern U.S. state bordering the Mississippi River. It's known for its abundant park and wilderness areas, with terrain encompassing mountains, caves, rivers and hot springs. The rugged Ozarks region in its northwest has hiking trails and limestone caves such as Blanchard Springs Caverns. Its capital, Little Rock, hosts the Clinton Presidential Center, housing Bill Clinton’s presidential archives.

THE OFFICIAL TOURISM OFFICE (in case you want a real tourism site and not just some bored guy's idea of a tourism site!! "But we love you Mr. Blogger!!!!" Thanks!!!!) : https://www.arkansas.com/ 

Blanchard Springs Caverns and Recreation Area

"Hiking trails??? That sounds fun!!!"

"And limestone caves??" Wifey throws in.  "Lets go!!!"

"Take me with!! TAKE ME WITH!!!"

There's also lakes, rivers, water front cabins where in a passionate moment and the breaking of a condom you can tell your kids they were conceived in the same state that Bill Clinton's illegitimate children were made!!!

"ENOUGH WITH THE CLINTON JOKES!!!! You had us at cabin!!"

 Of course, there's shopping!! So much shopping, that, after you're done, you won't want to shop anymore.

You'll literally SHOP TILL YOU DROP and won't want to stop!!! (I made a rhyme!!!!) 

"What if I did enough shopping back in the early 1980s?? And I'm hungry???"

Then Arkansas is for you!!!

There's eats!!! 

Tons of eats!!!

So much eats, you won't want to get up and do anything else after you're done eating!!"

"Can we eat in a cave or a large orange?"

You sure can!! You sure can!!! 

"Well we're set!!! But what cities are there??!'

Cities?? DOES ARKANSAS HAVE THE CITIES!!!! (Click here for a huge list of cities and towns here!!!! )

Of course, there's Little Rock but well, here's just a few as stolen from the above site!!!

ADONA

Adona, Arkansas is located in Perry County. Nearby Little Rock and North Little Rock form the vibrant heart of Arkansas. The two cities and their neighboring towns comprise a metropolitan area of some 500,000 people in central Arkansas. This metropolis, as well as Conway, Searcy, and Cabot, and nearby cities in the central region offer a cosmopolitan mix of historic attractions, imaginative shopping opportunities, fine dining, nightlife and creative arts and fine hotels.

A grand collection of museums offers something for every taste – from art to history to aerospace. And the Quapaw Quarter of restored 19th-century homes is one of the country's finest examples of bringing an older neighborhood back to life through adaptive reuse.

Be sure to visit the new River Market in Little Rock for tastes of exotic cuisines and the freshest of produce from nearby farms in season. Extensive park systems in both cities provide the chance to play golf or tennis, fish for lunkers in the Arkansas River or on area lakes, hike leafy trails, talk to the animals in the park-like Little Rock zoo or picnic in beautiful natural settings. Central Arkansas is an ideal staging area for your Natural State vacation. Its big city tempo exists side by side with small-town charm. Discover Central Arkansas's winning ways for yourself.

ALTUS

The small, rural town of Altus is a distinctive and important aspect of Arkansas's history and culture. Altus preserves the heritage of German-Swiss immigrants and the art of wine making. Its downtown pays tribute to its coal mining history while offering visitors unique shopping and dining experiences in a classic, small downtown square setting.
In the Arkansas River Valley rich soil gives life to vineyards. Thousands of visitors stop to savor Arkansas's award-winning wines, tour its wineries and soak up the history of Arkansas Wine Country each year. Six wineries – Post Winery, Wiederkehr Wine Cellars, Mount Bethel Winery, Chateau Aux Arc, Dionysys Wine and Brew, and Neumeier Winery - now operate in the Altus area. Each offers free tours and operates tasting rooms. Some offer extra amenities such as a gift shop, a restaurant, an RV park, or a bed and breakfast inn.

In nearby Paris, Cowie Wine Cellars offers tours and tastings and is home to the Arkansas Historic Wine Museum, which preserves the viticultural past of The Natural State with winemaking artifacts and biographical histories of winemakers. The pastoral landscape of the region, boasts more than 120 years of viticultural history with some historic vineyards run by the fourth and fifth generation descendants of the original wine families.

Arkansas is the oldest and largest grape juice and wine producing state in the southern United States. Drawn by the Benedictine of Subiaco Abbey, a colony of German-Swiss immigrants settled in the foothills of the Ozark Mountains and began growing grapes in the 1870s at Altus in Franklin County. These early viticulturalists found great potential for grape production in this Arkansas River Valley region with mountains and valleys, and well-draining sandy soil that closely resembled the microclimates that had for centuries nurtured Europe's great wines.

In addition to wine, coal mining is a part of Altus' history. The centerpiece of the square is a beautiful city park containing memorials to coal mining memorial and veterans. In the late 20s and 30s, the coal mines played a very important part of the economy of Altus and a thorough recitation of the region's coal mining history can be found at the town's Heritage House Museum. Surrounding the park are shops containing antiques, collectibles and crafts, as well as restaurants. Enjoy a meal at one of several restaurants on Altus' historic square, such as Kelt's.
Two area churches also attract visitors. In Altus, St. Mary's Catholic Church is a 1902 Roman Basilical style church known for its paintings and ornate gold leaf work. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. About 25 minutes away, the Benedictine of Subiaco draws visitors to experience the beauty and solitude of its grounds, comprised of a sprawling campus of impressive sandstone buildings and a Romanesque-style Abbey Church set amid extensive farmland, finely manicured lawns, gardens and vineyards.

Other prime areas for exploring within an hour's drive are Mt. Magazine State Park, Lake Dardanelle State Park, the Ozark National Forest, and the Mulberry River. Mt. Magazine State Park, the highest point in Arkansas, rises out of the Arkansas River Valley to an elevation of 2,753 feet above mean sea level. The mountain's eight scenic overlooks have traditionally enticed visitors up the mountain. It also offers hang gliding, rappelling, camping, trails, and an extensive butterfly population. A visitor center contains exhibits and a gift shop, while a lodge offers a restaurant, swimming pool, meeting space and upscale rooms. Thirteen cabins flank the lodge.

For added value and fun, plan a tour to the Altus region during one of the annual wine festivals that offers more than a taste of delicious wine in a celebratory atmosphere, but also an experience of family heritage and tradition. Lodging can be found at several bed and breakfast inns and RV parks with traditional hotels just minutes away at Ozark and Clarksville. Or book a night at the bed and breakfast inn at Cowie Wine Cellars about 25 minutes away in nearby Paris. Altus is five miles south of Interstate 40, exit 41, on Ark. 186. Fort Smith is about one hour west, Fayetteville is about one hour north, and Little Rock is about two hours east. 

MAGNOLIA

The Columbia County seat, about 2.5 hours from Little Rock is a charming southwest Arkansas town with a quaint courthouse square. The town proudly displays its heritage with colorful murals on buildings around the square. Numerous shops and restaurants ringing the courthouse await visitors. Also highlighting the square are the stately trees which give the town its name. Founded in 1909, Southern Arkansas University, a liberal arts college that calls Magnolia home, offers a varied calendar of events and tours of its 658-acre Agricultural and Horticultural Farm. At 3,000 acres, Lake Columbia is one of the largest Arkansas Game and Fish Commission impoundments in South Arkansas and is popular with both anglers and outdoor enthusiasts. The Magnolia Blossom Festival and World's Championship Steak Cook-off draws thousands of visitors each May.

At nearby McNeil, Logoly State Park is an environmental-education park that is popular with school groups and scout troops. Twelve miles south of town is the tiny community of Emerson which every June hosts the World's Championship Rotary Tiller Race and Purplehull Pea Festival.

Natural resources have played an important role in the region. Cotton was the cash crop in the nineteenth century; timber, oil, and gas in the mid-twentieth century; and later bromine became instrumental. The first inhabitants of the area were Native Americans. Settlement of the area began after Arkansas achieved statehood in 1836, when small communities were formed. Columbia County was created from portions of Lafayette, Hempstead, Ouachita, and Union counties in 1852. The county seat, Magnolia, was incorporated three years later.

Columbia is the only one of Arkansas's seventy-five counties not situated on a river so transportation was an issue for the county. For early travelers, the county's creeks and bayous were too narrow and shallow to support water traffic. The arrival of railroads created a dependable transportation option. It was not until the construction of the St. Louis, Arkansas and Texas Railroad in 1882 that the first cotton was shipped from the county by railcar. Cut off from the planned railroad, leaders in Magnolia resolved to have a spur line built to the city. The branch was completed the next year. The Louisiana and North West Railroad was built between Magnolia and points in Louisiana in 1899. Magnolia grew steadily after World War II. Cotton remained the chief crop into the early twentieth century, and offshoots from the cotton industry provided the area with its earliest trade and manufacturing base. An important example was the Magnolia Cotton Mill in 1928, the first textile mill in southwest Arkansas.
The discovery of the Magnolia Oil Field ten years later was another monumental turn for the town.

This quickly led to the development of an oil and gas exploration industry within the county. While the importance of oil and gas drilling declined steadily, a new natural resources industry arrived in the mid-1960s as chemical companies discovered the high bromine content of brine, an element used in many chemical and manufacturing processes, located thousands of feet beneath the earth's surface. Columbia and Union counties sit on one of the largest brine reserves in the world. Timber also holds an important role in the area.

And so many other cities we just can't cover them all!!!! So are you packed yet?

"YES WE ARE!!"

So there you go, Arkansas!!!

Travel well, travel often, and remember, DON'T BEND OVER IN FRONT OF BILL CLINTON!!!! Have a great trip!!!

Until next time, we're off!!