28 September 2020 Lake Catherin State Park

 For his 61^st birthday, David wanted to go for a hike. We researched the local hikes on All Trails and decided on the Falls Loop Trail (2.2 miles, 236 feet of elevation gain, 775 calories burned) that would takes us past several waterfalls in Lake Catherine State Park.  We figured that was a mileage that Etta could do as well so it was a family hike! The temperatures were nice and cool and the trail was mostly in the shade. There were some parts of the trail that were a bit rough which required picking Etta up and carrying her through it. We got to se a dozen or so waterfalls and enjoy a beautiful day. Back at the Wanderer, we had planned another kayak tour but the wind had come up so we grilled so awesome steaks and called it Best Birthday Ever! 

Waterfall #1

Leslie and Etta take a break

Leslie in front of Waterfall #2

Close up of Waterfall #2

Close up of Waterfall #2

Creek alongside of the trail

Waterfall #3

26 September 2020 Kayaking on Lake Hamilton

 Since we are staying along side a beautiful lake, we had to pull out the kayaks and go for a tour. We have not had them out in a while so it took a while to get back in the swing of yaking. We rowed about an hour before turning back. We managed to not dump a kayak despite the big waves from the speedboats, but David slipped and fell in the water when trying to help Leslie get out of her yak. It was a pretty day and other than the large number of speedboats on the lake churning things up, was a pleasant diversion. But it cemented David’s desire to get a different kayak that is a bit more stable. With his height and weight, it makes his current kayak a bit unstable and is constantly fighting to keep from rolling it. 

25 September 2020 Exploring Downtown Hot Springs

 Our first trip into Hot Springs we concentrated on the National Park side of the historic downtown area. This time we went to explore the shops along Central Avenue. After wandering through a few shops and picking up a few Christmas gifts, we made our way to the Superior Bathhouse Brewery. It is built in one of the historic Bathhouses along bathhouse row and is the only brewery in a national park! The use the 4500 year old hot springs water in their beer. We really could not tell much difference from other breweries and the food was not that good. But it was a fun novelty to enjoy. Before we left downtown, we dumped our hiking water bottles we keep in the truck (for spur of the moment hikes) and filled them up with 4500 year old spring water!

21 September 2020 Hiking Hot Springs National Park

 We decided to wait until Monday to go for a hike, to avoid the weekend crowds,  on the 26 miles of trails in Hot Springs NP. The trails are primarily split between the east and west mountains. But they are generally short. There is one 17.8 mile loop around the perimeter of the park, but that was a bit more then we wanted to take on. So we grouped a series of four tails together to form a 3.8 mile loop (610ft elevation gain, 1,032 Calories burned) on West Mountain (West Mountain trail to Mountain Top Trail to Oak Trail to Canyon Trail). About halfway through we saw a group of 5 deer a bit off the trail. Otherwise we were in the woods the whole way and could not see much. But the clouds were hanging low with bouts of drizzle so we were happy to get off the trail before it started raining. Afterwards we went to our Mexican food favorite for a late lunch before heading back to the Wanderer. 

Entrance Sign for West Mountain

West Mountain Trail

Deer in the woods

 

19 September 2020 Hot Springs National Park

 We headed into Hot Springs to get some lunch and get a lay of the park. We found a Mexican food restaurant with really good review and stopped in to see how it was. The front of the building is a Mexican grocery store and the restaurant was in the back. La Bodeguita was some of the best Mexican food we have had since we left Texas. We will be going back! After Lunch we perused the store and picked up some items we never see in any of the usual grocery stores. 

 

After lunch we headed into the central district. Hot Springs NP was formed in 1921. Prior to that, in 1823, it had been designated a national reservation to protect the hot springs and the surrounding rock formations. The park is like a donut with the city of Hot Springs filling the center and surrounding the outside. The Park encompasses the mountains to the north and south of the location where the majority of the hot springs are located. The area just below the hillside where the hot springs are located, is where the historic bathhouses are located. The area began seeing the building of bathhouses after the civil war. The bath spa era really took off in the late 1800s through the early 1930s. Wooden bathhouses were replaced with more elaborate buildings in the late 1910 through 1920s. The bath spa era fizzeled out by the late 1930s. In its hay day, over a million people a year visit Hot Springs for the rejuvenating hot baths every year. The roughly 100 hot springs were enclosed and the water routed to a central cistern in the early 1900s to preserve the quality of the water. All the bathhouses get the same water from the central cistern. Only one of the bathhouses is still open for bathing. Several were torn down over the years. The remaining bathhouses are now part of the National Park and have been turned into restaurants, museums, park store, and park visitor center. Due to COVID, most of the buildings were closed to the public.  

 

The water that comes out of the hot springs falls as rain in Mountains to the North East of Hot Springs where it percolates down through the rock layers to 6000-8000 feet below the surface. The water gets gradually hotter as it descends (The temperature of the earth goes up 4 Degrees Fahrenheit for every 300 feet of depth). Between 6000 and 8000 feet it begins running horizontally along a fault until it is below Hot Springs where it percolates back up to the surface. It takes 4000-4400 years for the water to percolate down to the fault line! But only 100 years to work its way back up to the surface. The water exits the ground in Hot Springs at an average temperature of 143 degrees Fahrenheit! There are almost no minerals in the water, it has an almost perfectly neutral PH and the high temperature kills off any bacteria (They have fountains where you can get the spring water to fill your water bottles). So drinking the 4000 year old water as well as soaking in it was part of the draw to the area. There are a couple of springs that are still free flowing. You can see the steam coming off the pools even on a hot day (we tested the water with our hands and it is definitely warmer than you would want to climb into). 

 

We were a bit surprised by the crowds in the central district. It was very busy. After finding parking for the Behemoth, we walked down to bathhouse row and found the park store. After getting our passport stamp, and shopping for our usual items, we made our way down Bathhouse Row, stopping to read the history behind each building, to the park visitor center. The building was closed, but they had an information desk outside, so we talked with the ranger there and got some hiking suggestions. We walked the rest of the way down the Bathhouse Row (there are 8 buildings still standing) to the green space at the north end. We climbed up the hill to the Grand Promenade, which runs along the hillside above the bathhouses, and walked it to the south end of the bathhouses. We then went back to the Behemoth and drove up to the top of the North Hill above bathhouse row and took in the views over the Ozark Mountains. Beautiful!

Entrance Sign

Bathhouse Row

Hot Spring

Hot Spring

Grand Promenade

Ozark Mountains

18 September 2020 Carthage MO to Hot Springs AR

 We took a zig zaggy route down to Hot Springs to stay on Interstates and avoid getting on any backcountry roads through the Ozark Mountains. We stayed on I-49 down to Fort Smith, then I-40 to Little Rock and finally I-30 to the turn off for Hot Springs. It made for a longer day (7 hours) than we like, but it was worth it to avoid overhanging trees and steep inclines. We are staying at Treasure Isle RV Park ($30 a night (weekly rate)) outside Hot Springs on a lake. We are not lakeside, but close enough we can carry our kayaks to the boat launch. Water pressure is ok, WiFi is strong but slow connect speeds, no satellite TV (there is a tree preventing Satellite TV lock), concrete pad and patio, but roads arejk gravel and narrow. We are here to visit Hot Springs National Park and enjoy some time in the mountains of Arkansas. 

11 September 2020 George Washington Carver NM

 With the rain finally clearing out and the sun poking out between the clouds, we decided that it would be our best opportunity to visit the National Monument. We knew from the website that the visitor center was not open but that the grounds and walking path were. So we found the park film on YouTube and watched it to learn about the life of George Washington Carver. Born into slavery (His mother Mary was “owned” by Moses and Susan Carver) in 1864 on the Carver homestead in southern Missouri, he lived a life full of learning. His mother, sister and him were stolen from the Carvers toward the end of the Civil War by raiders. The Carvers enlisted a Union Scout to find them, but he was only able to find infant George who was suffering from whooping cough. His mother Mary and his sister had disappeared. With the end of the war, the Carvers took George and his half brother Jim into their home and raised them. George being a sickly child was not able to help with the field chores so he worked around the house and spent his time exploring the woods learning about the plants that lived there. In the 1870s at the age 12, he left the Carvers and walked 8 miles to the nearest Negro school where he enrolled. A local couple took him into their home in exchange for helping with the chores. He graduated from high school and, after doing odd jobs to earn enough money, went to the University of Iowa where he initially majored in art before his teachers convinced him to change to botany due to his extensive knowledge of plants and minerals. After graduating with his Masters, he became a professor at the Tuskegee Institute where he taught botany and did research on the uses of plants for 43 years. He developed over 500 uses for peanuts and 300 uses for sweet potatoes and led the effort to convince Negro sharecroppers to switch over to growing them instead of cotton as their cash crop. Loving art and painting his whole life, he developed and patented techniques for creating over 500 paint pigments using natural plant materials and minerals. He was the “Plant Whisper” of his time. George Washington Carver was world renown and respected. During WW1 he developed an alternative for oil using soybeans. When he passed away in 1943, at the age of 81, congress authorized the dedication of a National Monument to be centered on the homestead where he was born. In 1951, the national park service acquired 210 acres of the former Carver homestead and was donated the remaining 30 acres in the 1980s. The log home where George was born, along with the Caver’s log home were destroyed by a tornado in the 1880s. The home that the Cavers built after the tornado was still on the property but had been moved from its original location in the 1920s. Although George visited the Carvers and their new home, he did not live there. 

 

With the visitor center closed, we walked the nature trail through the woods where George played as a child and learned about his life. It was a beautiful day for a 1 mile stroll through the Ozark woods. David later called the park and asked if they could send us a sticker with the stamp for our passport book.

 

Following the NM, we decided to visit the Grand Waterfall in Joplin, the #1 tourist destination in Joplin. We found the falls and took a few pictures, watch the kids jumping off the falls into the water pool below before heading back to the Wanderer for dinner.

 

Entrance Sign

Young George Washington Carver

The Carver 1880 Home

Grand Falls, Joplin Missouri

Yes, we were really there

11 September 2020 Fantastic Caverns

 We have seen billboards for Fantastic Caverns since we entered Missouri. It’s the only drive through cavern system in the USA. We were interested to learn that there are over 10,000 caves in Missouri! Since it was still a misting and cool day with the threat of heavier rain, we decided an underground tour would be a great way to spend a day. The drive over to Springfield was short and we soon found ourselves at the Caverns. The cavern was discovered by the land owner in 1862 when his dog disappeared down a hole and he had to go in to find him. The owner kept the existence of the cavern quiet until after the end of the civil war because he did not want one of the armies (Union or Confederate) confiscating it and his home to use for barracks or to search for bat guano (Used to manufacture Salt Peter). In 1867 he advertised in the local newspaper for cave explorers and was surprised to have 13 women from the Ladies Adventure Club show up. They climbed through the small hole into the cavern and mapped the cavern system out. In the 1870s, the cavern opened for walking tours. In the 1890s, they installed the first generator and put in incandescent lights, a relatively new invention at the time. In the 1920’s and 30’s, they opened a speak easy in the cavern. Some of the first bands to play there later went on to start the music theaters in Branson Missouri. The owner also grew mushrooms in the cavern during the great depression to get by. In the late 1940s, they began doing tours with Wiley’s Jeeps and towing trailers full of paying guests. 

 

The tour took about 55 minutes and cost $28 per person. It is not the most awesome cave we have toured, but it was a unique experience riding through the caverns.  After our cave tour, we decided to find a local brewery and end up at the Lost Signal brewery in the center of town. We had a couple of beers and some BBQ nachos before heading back to the Wanderer.

Entrance Sign

1940 Willy's jeep and camper

1890's Original Steam Generator

Cave Formation

Driving Tour

First Explorers left their mark

Cave Formation

Cave Formation

Cave Formation

9 September 2020 Platte City to Carthage MO

 The weather was cool and misting, perfect for towing. The drive from Platte City to Carthage was only 3 hours, so we were in no rush. We managed to avoid any heavy rain. We are staying at the Coach Light RV Park ($24 per night, weekly discount) south of Carthage and east of Joplin. The RV park is part of a RV Dealership next door. The sites are gravel and fairly level. They do have concrete patios but no tables or fire pits. The majority of the park is long term leasers, but they are all well maintained and picked up. We chose to stay in the portion of the park with no trees so we could get sat TV reception. Water pressure is very good and the WiFi signal strong but slow. Our primary reason for being here is George Washington Carver National Monument, but there are some other interesting sites within an hour or so from our location. 

7 September 2020 Historic Weston

 With our last free day in this area, we decided to head over to the historic town of Weston. We had heard that there was a good winery and brewery in addition to a quaint downtown area. We arrived in town late in the afternoon. The streets were so narrow, they were a bit difficult to navigate with the Behemoth. But we found a central parking place near the brewery and winery. We decided to visit the winery first and do a tasting. We were again pleasantly surprised at the quality of some of the wines at the Pirtle Winery. Our host turned out to be the owner and head vintner! We had a great time talking with him about his wines as we tasted. With a new crop being picked as we drank, he was anxious to move stock and offered us some great discounts. We picked up 6 bottles made with their locally grown Norton grapes and even a Blueberry Wine (It was surprisingly dry!). We had them open a bottle for us and we went out on their wonderful patio in the shade and enjoyed a relaxing bottle of wine. Leslie decided it was a good time to get some post cards done as well. We finished our bottle just as they were closing the tasting room, so we went back to the Behemoth and decided to drive to the old downtown. The buildings lining main street date back to the 1860s. Unfortunately, most of the shops had already closed for the day but we enjoyed checking the old town out before heading back to the Wanderer. With the number of motorcycles parked at the brewery, we decided it would be wise to skip a visit this time. 

Pirtle Winery

Winery Sign

Old town Weston

Sharing a wonderful bottle of wine

6 September 2020 Exploring KC and Arabia

 While looking for interesting things to do in Kansas City Missouri, Leslie found out there was a Chuy’s Mexican Food Restaurant in the south part of Downtown. It has been a long time since we were able to indulge our Mexican Food Sunday’s cravings. 

So right after watching Church on YouTube, we headed for downtown. The area around where Chuy’s was located is an area in transition, and we did not like some of the graffiti that was on the walls of some of the abandoned builds, but we took a chance to enjoy some of the first really good Mexican food we have had for months!. Of course we had to have margaritas to go with our green chili enchiladas! After indulging ourselves, we decided to check out the Steamboat Arabia Museum ($18 per person admission) on the north side. We had considered going to the National WW1 museum, but it was only going to be open for another 2 hours and we did not think we could see that much of it in that short a period. The Steamboat Arabia was a good choice. The Steamboat Arabia sank on the Missouri River in September 1856 when it hit an underwater log snag. The snag plowed into the hull of the boat like a torpedo (The log was later recovered still embedded in the hull) and the boat sank in minutes with 200 tons of its cargo. Everyone aboard was able to make it safely to shore except one poor mule that went down with the boat. The river and mud quickly swallowed the wreck and nothing was salvaged. 132 years later, a group of Kansas City treasure seekers (A Father, two sons and two local businessmen) identified the place where the Arabia had sunk. Now ½ mile away from the current river channel and buried 45 feet deep under a farm field. Using their own funds, and doing most of their own labor, they dug down to the wreck during the winter of 1987/88 and recovered tons of goods that had been in the ship’s hold along with the boilers and portions of the ship’s hull. They had planned to sell what they found, but when they discovered the extent of the find, they decided instead to preserve the find as a collection and create a museum. Thousands of items from shoes (4000 pairs of shoes and boots), dishes (from England), silverware (from Spain), tin goods, iron pots/pans, hundreds of tools, barrels of nails and screws, medical items, food items (many still edible) and clothing. They have completed restoration of only 2/3rds of the items recovered so far with restoration still ongoing. It was like walking into a 1856 Walmart of home goods. We even got to meet one of the original five explorers who came by to ask if we had any questions. We thoroughly enjoyed our visit.  

Entrance Sign

Some of the recovered dishes

Recovered wood and tin items

General Store items

Recovered Tools

More recovered tools

Even more recovered tools

Can never have to many tools

larger tools

 fasteners and hardware to use with all those tools

The boilers

One of the two side paddles

Stern section and rudder

5 September 2020 The Pony Express

 We returned to St. Joseph today to visit the Pony Express Museum. The Museum is housed in the building which was the 1858 stables for the eastern terminus of the famous Pony Express.  The first pony express run was on 3 April 1860. Johnny Fry was the first westbound rider of the relay. He rode 80 miles of the trail, which covered almost 2,000 miles. Local legend says that at a farm close to Cold Springs, several young ladies would wait for Johnny Fry to pass so they could hand him cakes and cookies. The cakes and cookies were shaped like doughnuts to make it easier for him to catch and hold while riding.  Riders set off from both the eastern and western ends of the Central Trail between St. Joseph, MO and Sacramento, CA. Riders rode between 75 and 100 miles, changing horses roughly every 10 miles. The fastest delivery time was 7 days, 17 hours. In the summer, delivery averaged 10 days and in the winter 12-16 days. Cost was $5 for a half pound letter. A maximum of 20 pounds of mail would be carried by a single rider. Riders rode through summer heat and winter blizzards for the 1,996 mile trail. Over 190 riders were hired, 480 horses used across the route, and stations established for changing horses and resting riders every 10-15 miles. Other methods of delivery took three weeks to two months. The Pony Express shut down in October 1861after the telegraph was finally extended to California (The final mail packet was not delivered until mid November). The Pony Express went bankrupt shortly after the first telegram was sent coast to coast on 24 October 1861. It wasn’t until 1868, when the railroad was finally linked coast to coast, that the speed of mail delivery was matched. A rather ignominious ending to the iconic Pony Express.  The Museum was quite interesting and well worth the $7 entrance fee. We were surprised that many of the riders lived into their 80s. We were also surprised by how many converted to Mormonism during their early lives. On the way back to the Wanderer we decided to check out one of the local wineries. We stopped off at Jowler Creek Winery, about 6 miles from where we are staying. It was a hot and humid afternoon, but we picked out a couple of wines to try and enjoyed sitting in the shade and watching people. A great way to spend a hot sunny afternoon. It reminded us of our favorite winery, Lost Oak, in Texas. We ended up buying a couple of bottles of wine to take with us. 

Pony Express Stable entrance

Pony Express Rider gets ready to head out.

Bowler Creek Winery