EagleMoon.net Journals

Journals: Week 4 (May 7-13, 2007)

[weeks 1-10] [weeks 11-20]

DAY 25: Thursday, May 10, 2007 (Fort Smith/Alma, AR)

So we decided to skip Nashville because it would mean serious backtracking. We also ended up skipping New Orleans for the same reason- it just didn't make sense to go back east or south when we're trying to head West. So instead we ventured westward to a little place on the map called Fort Smith/Alma, Arkansas. It is slightly northwest of Little Rock, and in between Hot Springs and Eureka Springs. We figured this would be a nice location to set up camp and take some day trips visiting local hot spots. The campground we are staying at is a KOA site- so it's basically a little more secure, sanctioned and safe than some others you can find right off the highway (Jonathan's three favorite "s" words when camping- although I think he would pitch a tent in the middle of nowhere if he knew it would be bug free!!). So far I really enjoy camping, while Jonathan is basically tolerating it. He would much prefer to be in an RV, and we see them everywhere in the campgrounds dwarfing our little tent. Though I like to point out that we wouldn't be able to hear the birds, bugs and frogs singing us to sleep at night if we were inside an RV, they do look much more comfortable in comparison. I think if we found a reasonably priced RV- even at this point- we might be sold! C'mon, even I like to sleep on a real bed at night (though your air mattress comes close, Lisa!).

The grounds of our campsite are really lovely. There is a pool, a duck pond with lots of mallards, Canada geese (not to be confused with "Canadian" geese, which is technically not their proper name) and their babies, a playground, and much nicer bathrooms/showers than the last place we stayed at. It turns out Jonathan is really afraid of flocks of hungry ducks- in his defense they can be kind of aggressive! Our first day here we set up all our stuff (including a new screened in canopy we got to help keep the bugs at bay- although it did not keep the "welcome toad" at bay- another thing Jonathan is apparently afraid of!!), and explored the grounds- fed the ducks, made a fire, and had a home cooked dinner- more soup and s'mores! Gotta love camp food. We tried the Coleman stove from Marsha and Elliot but it didn't want to light (I'm sure Jonathan was doing everything right!). We decided to try sleeping on our self-inflated air mats instead of the queen size air mattress- to see if they would be more or less comfortable. We found out they are significantly LESS comfortable- and neither one of us got much sleep. Jonathan asked me to read to him by flashlight, and we selected "The Alchemist"- a book given to us as a going away present by his friend Erin. This is a very famous book, though I have never read it. If you haven't read it, pick up a copy and read along with us! It is considered to be a literary work of genius by many- and a tale about pursuing one's own personal legend or destiny- VERY inspirational!!

The next morning we headed over to do some laundry at the main building, and discovered that the owners of this campground (it's a family run establishment) are going through some family difficulties. Jonathan and I talked with them for a while, hoping we might be able to help just by listening (therapists extraordinaire by day, camping novices by night). We remarked to each other afterward that you just never know what someone else might be going through. We were both impressed with how kind and helpful they have been, despite the stress they are dealing with.

We decided to take a drive into the Ozark Mountains to go on a train excursion in Eureka Springs- and perhaps to visit Blue Springs- a natural crystal blue Spring that Native Americans considered a sacred healing place while traveling the Trail of Tears. The train ride was a lot of fun- and very informative. Our conductor and guide, Travis, explained a few trivial facts that might be interesting to a few of you. The terms "rock and roll" and "shake, rattle and roll" come from hobos who used to ride the trains. When the train is going down hill, it coasts smoothly. But when it has to be pulled up hill, it rocks and rolls. And at speeds of almost 100 miles an hour, it shakes, rattles and rolls. Musicians liked the terms and decided to adopt them! Also, it used to be customary that when two trains were traveling parallel to each other, one train would stop on it's track to let the other train pass. Sometimes it stopped for a few minutes and other times it had to stop and wait for a few hours. You might be familiar with a phrase like this: "I'll be there in about an hour, unless I get "side tracked". Well, that's where that one comes from! Travis also told us that Hollywood likes to play some tricks. One of it's favorites is to create a black smoke effect coming out of the smoke stacks of the train. In actuality wood smoke or steam is white- the whiter it is, the cleaner and more efficiently it is being used. But Hollywood liked the dark smoke, so they would cut up tires and throw them in the fire to create the look you likely have seen on the big screen. Last but not least, I know you've heard this one: "End of the line".

We explored a quaint little downtown part of Eureka Springs- there are lots of shops, art galleries, studios and places to eat here. We bought a little fudge and just browsed around. Thinking we might not get back before dark, we skipped Blue Springs and headed back to camp. We had just enough time for a walk, and made ourselves dinner. We headed in for the night and Jonathan read me a little more of "The Alchemist". Then off to sleep on our inflatable, queen sized mattress- a much more comfortable sleep than the night before.

Now it is morning and Jonathan is making a fire to cook some eggs and coffee while I am typing this inside the tent. I just asked him what he's making and he replied "a mess!". Well, I'm sure it will be a delicious mess. It doesn't have to be pretty to taste good, right?!? Today we are planning to hike at White Rock and visit a local winery later this afternoon. It has been good to plant ourselves a little bit, and get to know the area better than we have at some other places where we haven't stayed very long. And it's added to the experience to just take our time and not rush to get where we're going. Now that we don't have anything we have to get to by a certain time, we can just relax. We'll let you know how that goes! Take care ~ E

DAY 27: Saturday, May 12, 2007 (Wichita, KS)

We certainly didn't think we'd be coming this far north into the country as we continue to head west, but the winds of change have blown us this way. While we were in Memphis this past weekend, we had heard about the tornado in Greensburg, Kansas, as did the rest of the country. Rather than continue back down to Texas as we had originally planned, Elena suggested that going to Greensburg to help out in some way would be an opportunity that doesn't happen very often. (Indeed, I know I often see news reports of awful things that happen around the country - or the world, for that matter - but feel there is very little I can do being so far away.) Our trip has given us a unique opportunity; we are no longer "so far away" from some of these events now. So we have taken a detour (inasmuch as one can take a "detour" from a trip with little-to-no structure!). We have a room at the EconoLodge in Wichita, KS - about an hour away from Greensburg - and are planning to stay here for at least a week. (The reason we're in Wichita is because all of the places to stay in or closer to Greensburg are full, with many Red Cross, FEMA, and other organizations already there.) It is currently Saturday morning as I write this, and we plan on going to Greensburg today for the first time to see how we can lend a hand.

Meanwhile, before we left Arkansas, we did try to to hike up White Rock Mountain, northeast from our campground in Alma. Harold, the owner of the campground, told us we'd hit a dirt road before we came to a trail-head where we could begin our hike - a 2-, 4-, 6-, or 8-hour hike, depending on our stamina. What he neglected to mention was that the dirt road was a rocky road lasting for 7 miles up the base of the mountain. Half-way up, after the minivan had taken some minor abuse from the "road," we decided to head back. We walked around Shores Lake at the very base, which was quiet and serene, and headed back to base camp. We both forgot about our other tentative plans to visit a local winery until it was already early evening. All in all, the day didn't turn out exactly as we had hoped, but, as Elena continues to point out, it's still wonderful just being where we're at! (Such a positive one, that Elena!)

But one never knows how things are going to turn out (unless you're psychic, in which case, you DO know how things are going to turn out, I suppose!). At our campsite, we met a lovely woman named Thelma from California, who was traveling with her husband, Chris, in their camper. We had met Thelma the previous day and spoke a bit about our respective trips. When we returned from our botched adventure up White Rock Mountain, we ran into Thelma by the campsite's office. She mentioned that she and Chris were planning on leaving in the morning, but instead decided to visit the local wineries. Go figure! She said they had a terrific time and it was well worth staying the extra day for it. As we talked some more, Thelma, who, if I remember correctly, is in her early 60s, relayed one of her philosophies of life (I paraphrase because my memory lacks that actual quote) - You might as well enjoy your life now, because you never know... We talked for a little while longer as she also gave us a recommendation to get "The Midland," a national weather radio, since we'll be heading to places where it might be very useful (which we got the next day!). Later in the evening, as Elena and I were packing some things up and getting ready for our departure the next day, Thelma walked down to our site and gave us a most thoughtful gift - a bottle of Champagne they had with them from California. She had told her husband about us, and he suggested it might be a nice gift to us for having missed out on the wineries. Talk about the kindness of strangers! So thank you to Thelma and Chris for your kindness and thoughtfulness. We truly appreciated it.

We left Arkansas the next morning and headed for Wichita, Kansas via highways that crossed Oklahoma. We checked in to the EconoLodge and, in lieu of taking a nap (neither of us slept well in our tent the past 3 nights), we decided to check out the local movie theater, The Warren, a theater that claimed to be quite the movie-going experience. Besides the movie itself (we saw "Fracture"), I thought, how could it be such a great experience?! Does a fireplace in the "lounge" area that is nestled between the restrooms explain the experience enough?!

...It is now Saturday afternoon. We left to go to Greensburg this morning, but the local paper stated the following: "I don't think they need a lot of individuals over the next few days, so we're continuing to encourage people to not just show up." So we left our information with the United Way - they're coordinating some of the volunteering - and will likely head out there on Monday. Today we went to the Great Plains Nature Center, where we saw plenty of wildlife, like turtles, fish, butterflies, birds, and even a snake (though the snake was hand-held by one of the staff). They had several trails which we walked during what turned out to be a beautifully sunny day in the high 80s. After getting nice and hot, and after a PB&J, we went to cool off in the very same theater we went to yesterday, The Warren. I know I mentioned the fireplace, but I neglected to mention the curtain going up before each movie, the extremely comfortable seats and fully carpeted floors (tell me the last time you saw a fully carpeted movie theater!), previews that start prior to the listed movie start time so the movie actually starts when it supposed to start, and the final touch: no commercials before the movie! Now THAT'S a class act! Today we saw Disturbia, which was not as good as yesterday's Fracture, which I liked (see Katy? I actually liked a movie!), but still held us in suspense throughout.

We topped off the day at Wyldewood Cellars Winery, where we tasted several wines, as well as several jams and fudge also made by the winery. Unfortunately, the people who could give us a tour were not there. Also unfortunate was the fact that the winery where they actually make the wine was not at the site we were at; we were told the site we were at was mostly "for show" and for some experimentation. Oh well. Tomorrow, we might take our bikes to a local park, possibly hit a local Art Gallery or Museum, and/or spend some time at the Wichita River Festival in beautiful downtown Wichita. Until then... ~J

DAY 28: Sunday, May 13, 2007 (Wichita, KS)

Let me begin today's entry by first wishing a "Happy Mother's Day" to all of the mothers out there. After calling our mothers, step-mothers and other various mothers we know, we thought about what we should do today. (Jonathan also called his grandmothers. My grandmother is in a long-term care facility and can't answer her phone, so I didn't get to wish her a Happy Mother's Day- although I was thinking of her and sending her my love from Kansas). We weren't sure what we might do today since we had a few options (and because we haven't yet heard from the United Way about helping out in Greensburg). After doing a little research, Jonathan discovered a 5-hour drive on a scenic byway through Cheyenne Bottoms, (a wildlife preserve and wetland area) as well as through the Quivira National Wildlife Refuge. It took about two hours to get to the top of the byway, approximately five hours to drive to the bottom, and another hour and a half back to our "home" in Wichita.

Though it was a full day of driving, it was well worth it. The views were amazing, as you will see in our photo gallery. The Kansas fields are startlingly green. They stretch for miles in all directions and contrast sharply with the brilliant blue sky. The tall prairie grasses sway like a soft ocean in the winds that blow and blow. When I got out of the car to take pictures of red-tail hawks and cows, all I could hear was the wind whistling. It was a beautiful day, 80 degrees and sunny, but constantly breezy. We saw a lot of animals today and many different species of birds, including: red-winged blackbirds, cardinals, plovers, blue jays, hawks, vultures, Baltimore orioles, gulls, red-necked pheasants, woodpeckers, and many others I could not name. We got out of the minivan to walk one of the "interpretive trails" in the Quivira refuge that meandered through the preserve for about a mile. This trail twisted through the shaded plains, into a wooded forest (the Cottonwood Tree is common here) and around the marsh. It smelled like sweet flowers and pine inside this part of the refuge - very refreshing in the breeze. We saw a white tailed deer, many birds and got a few extra mosquito bites. Minus the mosquito bites, this was a really lovely and exquisite place to discover. I felt extremely lucky to be here on this day in Kansas (such an unlikely place I thought, to find such beauty) and with such a wonderful companion!

We arrived back in Wichita pretty tired and hungry. We decided to make our own dinner (to try to save a few bucks!!), watch a few movies, and just laze around this evening- instead of going out to the River Festival. After three days of festival in Memphis, I think we're both okay with just hanging out, reading, resting, and updating the website. Tomorrow we hope to head to Greensburg to help out those folks who have lost their homes in the tornado last week. We hear there is a lot to do, but the United Way is being careful about how they coordinate volunteer efforts. We have been discouraged from just "showing up" and want to be respectful of that. We'll wait to hear if they need people like us- who want to help but don't necessarily have any tornado/disaster relief skills. Even if all we can do is help people clear out their lots, work in a shelter or soup kitchen, or even just talk to folks, that would be great as far as we're concerned! We'll be here until the end of the week, hopefully making a bit of a difference. We'll be sure to let everyone know how this goes. Until then, take care. ~E

[weeks 1-10] [weeks 11-20]