Roadtrip 2017 – Exploring The West – Day 19 & 20

Roadtrip 2017 – Exploring The West – Day 19 – July 28th:

We started the day by leaving the motel and heading east on US 166. There wasn’t any towns around, but I planned to stop at a McDonald’s for breakfast when I came to one.

We turned south on US 77, and then east on US 60. US 60 took us across the Osage Indian Reservation. We finally came to a McDonald’s in the city of Pawhuska and stopped to eat.

Afterwards, we continued east on US 60 to SR 82 and turned south. We followed SR 82 to SR 20 and turned east. We stayed on SR 20 all the way to Arkansas, and then turned south on SR 43. We continued east at SR 102, and followed that to US 62. We then took US 62 east to SR 187 just outside of Eureka Springs. Turning south on SR 187 lead us to the Eureka Springs KOA campground.

Even though it was a Friday, we were still able to get a campsite for Friday and Saturday night.

Marley loves the tent. I can’t open it without him wanting to go inside and lay down.

Eureka Springs is a city in the Ozark Mountains of northwest Arkansas. The city has steep winding streets filled with Victorian-style cottages and manors. The historic commercial downtown of the city has an extensive streetscape of well-preserved Victorian buildings. The buildings are primarily constructed of local stone, built along streets that curve around the hills and rise and fall with the topography in a five-mile long loop. Some buildings have street-level entrances on more than one floor. The streets wind around the town, and no two intersect at a 90 degree angle; there are no traffic lights.

It’s known for the preserved Victorian buildings of its Historic District, such as the Palace Bath House, Basin Park Hotel and Crescent Hotel, all built around the city’s natural springs.

It’s an interesting area, but I get the sense that it’s prime resort days were in the early 1900’s. Back when people traveled to quiet getaways to relax. Now, people tend to vacation in areas that have entertainment and things to do. You’ll find a lot of businesses for sale here. I saw closed shopping centers, restaurants, and even a putt-putt course and go-cart track. I overheard a guy mention that every motel has been for sale at one point or another.

This is more of a biker paradise than a family vacation spot. There’s bars and music downtown, and I even saw places with secured parking spots for motorcycles. They were actual cages to lock your bike in so nobody can mess with it. The businesses that thrive here are probably the ones that cater to motorcyclists.

After checking out Eureka Springs, we spent some time by a campfire, and then headed to bed.

Roadtrip 2017 – Exploring The West – Day 20 – July 29th:

The next morning Marley and I headed out to explore more of the area. Beaver Lake is on SR 187 just south of the campground. They say that the water is so clear, scuba divers like to come here and dive.

And they were right. When we stopped to check out the lake, we saw a diving flag and bubbles coming up from the bottom.

Here was another group diving and exploring the lake.

Although it’s in the Ozark Mountains, there’s not much to see here. The local highways take you up and down the mountains, but there’s such dense forestry, that their isn’t any scenic views.

We stopped at the grocery store, and then went back to camp. I cooked up some steak and a sweet potato smothered in butter and brown sugar.