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. 

 

 

May 13-15

Little Rock, Arkansas

We reluctantly left the little hidden gem of Rising Star Campground to head to Little Rock where we had made reservations for three nights at the Downtown Riverside RV Park.  We don’t usually make reservations but we did this time because we wanted to make sure we would have a spot for a couple of days. 

Downtown Riverside RV Park is located in downtown North Little Rock on the bank of the Arkansas River.  We chose this spot because it was close to a couple of places we wanted to explore in the city.

The park is basically a parking lot.  But it was reasonably priced for a full hook-up and clean showers.

 

 

An added bonus was the nightly light show from the two bridges near the campground. 

In keeping with my love of American History I had to include a visit to Little Rock Central High National Historic Site. 

 We began our tour at the visitor center where we watched a short video before walking through the exhibit hall.

Central High is still an active school so the only way to visit it is with a ranger led tour. 

When Central High was built in 1927 at a cost of 1.5 million dollars it was designated as the most expensive, most beautiful, and large high school in the country.

At that time in Arkansas, and other states across the south, public schools were legally segregated.  In 1954 the Supreme Court ruled in Brown v. Board of Education that segregation in schools were unconstitutional. 

Nine black students were denied entrance to Central High provoking a showdown between the Governor and President Eisenhower.

The Little Rock Nine faced an angry mob of over 1,000 Whites in front of the school prompting President Eisenhower to order the U.S. Army’s 101s Airborne Division to escort the students into the school.

As we were touring the school I couldn’t help but think about the courage it must have taken for those young students to stand up to the mob.  But just walking into the school was not the end of their courage as they faced challenges everyday from some of the other students.

After dinner we took a ride into the River Market district. 

 

 Most of the shops were closed so we just strolled along until we came to the one place Monte couldn’t pass up-Kilwins where we shared a New Orleans praline ice cream.

One of the advantages of staying at the Downtown Riverside RV Park was that we could ride our bikes across the Clinton Presidential Park Bridge to the William J. Clinton Presidential Center. 

 

We began our tour with a temporary exhibit, Louder Than Words-Rock, Power, and Politics.

The exhibit includes several videos narrated by music icons detailing how rock and roll has been the soundtrack of American life.  In war and peace, in the struggle for human rights and in triumph and tragedy-music has been there at every moment.

 

 

 

After watching a 12 minute orientation film that presented President Clinton’s life and political career, we toured a replica of the Cabinet Room, the Oval Office and exhibits chronicling Clinton’s early years as Governor, Life in the White House and gifts given to the Clintons.

 

 

After leaving the Clinton Center we stopped in at the Central Arkansas Nature Center. 

The 16,230-square foot center tells the story of conservation and the efforts of the game commission in bringing back some of the natural resources.

 

 

 

On our last evening at Downtown Riverside RV Park we enjoyed another bridge light show.