May 16-17

Hot Springs Arkansas

We enjoyed our short time in Little Rock but after two nights of hearing city sounds as we were trying to fall asleep, we were ready for a more natural setting.  We left Downtown Riverside RV Park early because we were headed to a campground that does not take reservations.  Gulpha Gorge CG is a National Campground very close to Hot Springs National Park.  I knew by doing research and reading reviews on line that the campground fills up quickly but when we arrived at 10:30 we were pleasantly surprised to discover there were quite a few sites available to chose from. 

 

We drove through the campground a couple of times and chose site 13. 

After setting up we walked to the Ranger Station where there is a self-check in machine that was very easy to use. 

 All sites offer full hookups including sewer for the great price of $15/night with our National Parks Senior Pass discount.

We took advantage of the free parking lot directly across the street from the Visitor Center.

Hot Springs National Park is unique in that it is in a city surrounding by low-lying mountains.  The park has the distinction of being the first U.S. reservation created to protect a natural resource when the federal government set aside four sections of land in 1832.

The Visitor Center is located in the restored Fordyce Bathhouse in the middle of Bathhouse Row.

We began our tour with a demonstration by a geologist showing how the water is heated.  Outcroppings of Bigfork Chert and Arkansas Novaculite absorb rainfall in an arc.  Pores and fractures in the rock conduct the water deep into the Earth.  As the water percolates downward, increasingly warmer rock heats it at a rate of 4 degrees every 300 feet.  In the process the water dissolves minerals out of the rock and eventually the water meets faults and joints leading up to the lower slope of Hot Springs Mountain where it surfaces. 

When asked for a volunteer to assist in the demonstration Monte was the only one to raise his hand.

Following the demonstration we watched a short film detailing how the springs became popular for drinking and health remedy seekers.

We took the elevator down where the bathrooms are located as well as a glassed in area of the spring access. 

 

A ranger-led tour of the bathing and treatment rooms gave us a better perspective and a glimpse into the past. 

The original bathhouses were crude canvas and lumber structures.  They frequently burned or collapsed because of shoddy construction.  Eventually the government took control of the springs in 1877 when it approved blueprints for private bathhouses.  It operated a free bathhouse for those unable to pay for baths recommended by their physician.  Because minorities did not have equal access to the bathhouses on Bathhouse row, African Americans opened their own facilities nearby. 

In 1921 the Hot Springs Reservation became the 18^th National Park. 

 

The new houses built along Bathhouse Row decorated the walls, floors, and partitions in marble and tile.  Some were embellished with polished brass, murals, fountains, statues and stained glass. 

In the Fordyce Bathhouse the north and central portions of the building house the men’s facilities; cooling room, pack room, steam room, hydrotherapy room and bath hall.  The women’s facilities are at the south end of the building. 

 

 

In one treatment room there was a needle shower, steam bath chamber and enema table.  All modesty out the window as several patients could be treated at the same time in the same room.   

 

 

Beauty shops and gymnasiums helped cure-seekers in their efforts to feel and look better.

 

The Ranger encouraged us to taste the water from the fountain in the walkway adjacent to the Visitor Center. 

 I was surprised by two things-the water had no taste to it.  I guess I expected it to have a metallic taste and it was hot enough to brew a cup of tea.

 

 

 

 

There are a set of steps on both sides of the fountain leading up to the Grand Promenade which offers views of historic downtown Hot Springs.

There are two bathhouses in operation today.  The Buckstaff and Quapaw bathhouses offer a variety of services. 

We concluded our tour by visiting the Bathhouse Row Emporium located in the Lamar Bathhouse.