Darling daughter’s Fall Break was three weeks ago. We headed to Arkansas again for a road trip. My dear husband had been wanting to go check Fayetteville, Eureka Springs, and Fort Smith. Also he wanted us to visit a few caves around there. I’m sharing a few photos from our trip.
Fayetteville
Friday
We left Texas around 5:00 P.M. Thursday afternoon, an hour after DH and I picked DD from her UIL (University Interscholastic League) tryouts after school. Driving through Oklahoma in heavy rains that evening, we arrived around midnight in Fayetteville. Gladly checking in at Holiday Inn Hotel was very quick that we were able to haul our stuff up to the room, cleaned up, and fell asleep in no time.
We woke up well-rested and ready. The temperature dropped after that rain. Looking out the window colors of the leaves are starting to change. It’s very nice to see. After breakfast, we head on to the road and drove by the University of Arkansas. Talking about someday, maybe, our darling daughter will go there for college.
Eureka Springs
On our way to Eureka Springs, we did a quick stop in Seligman, MO (took a photo at the border proof that I’ve been to Missouri) and drove up to Cassville. We stopped at a fishing area which is a part of the Roaring River State Park. It was cold. It was a nice day for fishing. ‘Gave us the idea that we should try to do fishing next year.
It was a nice drive in the country to Eureka Springs. We arrived hungry so we ate lunch at a Mexican restaurant. We checked in at Quality Inn Hotel near downtown. It’s a Victorian-style hotel. Our room was at the back facing the west with the views of the garden and the pool. The pool sure was inviting but temperature was not!
In the hotel room we were like “now what?” sort of question. What are we going to do for fun in the next few hours? The temperature has dropped to the 40s and it’s gonna get dark soon. I saw a magazine on the table and grabbed it. As I was browsing through the pages I saw this Ghost Tour ad. I asked DD if she’s interested to go. She was like “yea, that sounds interesting”. DH wasn’t sure though.
I tried buying tickets online but had no luck so I called the number on the ad. By the way, it was the Crescent Hotel who was hosting the Ghost Tour that night and over the weekend as part their Halloween event. The guy I had spoken to said tickets online was sold out, but he has a few left at the register. Because we really wanted to do it, I asked the guy if he’ll be able to hold three tickets for me and we’ll come pay at the door at 7:00 P.M.. He said he can’t guarantee the availability by then. And so the three of us immediately drove to the Crescent Hotel to pick up the reserved tickets.
We came back to the hotel an hour early. The ghost tour time was at 8:00 P.M.. The hotel’s lounge was occupied so the three of us went upstairs to look around and reached the 4th floor where the pizza parlor and bar were located. We ordered pizza and some drinks while waiting for the tour to start. The pizza took a while to serve so DH had to take it down to the car because the assembly for the tour was starting. DD, myself, and all the other guests were in the assembly room when DH came back.
The guide talked about the Crescent Hotel’s history for a few minutes then she guided us to the certain places in the hotel where paranormal activities took place according to the people who stayed in the hotel years ago. Being in a more than 130 year-old building, it felt really spooky.
The Crescent Hotel had an interesting and quite mysterious history. Click here for more details, events info, and room availability.
Saturday
Friday evening was super cold so was Saturday morning. The next thing we did after eating breakfast was head to Walmart Superstore to buy DH a jacket. Haha! It was about 35 F. We grabbed lunch at Sonic Drive-In in Berryville then moved on to our next destination.
The Saturday itinerary was to visit caves. We visited three caves: the Crystal, the Mystic, and the Cosmic caverns. Our most favorite was the Cosmic Cavern.
Crystay Cavern
Mystic Cavern
Cosmic Cavern
Eureka Springs is a neat lively little town. But it’s quite touristy for us. You know what I mean?
Sunday
We just took our time checking out Sunday morning. We ate a good breakfast so we just had a light snack bought from a convenient store along the way to Russellville.
Driving through the Ozark National Forest, it was a bit of a challenge–winding roads, ups, downs, cliffs…it was scary. But I did it. We stopped at the Buffalo River Canyon Scenic View to stretch out and rest for a few minutes. It was very beautiful and relaxing. Imagine the place at this time of the month. So colorful.
Then we moved on.
Russellville
Sunday
We arrived there near dark and checked in at Best Western Hotel. After the challenging drive through the Ozarks, DH needed some drink. You know, beer or something. He went out to ask the staff at the front desk only to find out it’s a dry county. What a bummer.
