Arkansas with Leslie & Shirley

Highway 9 in North Central Arkansas

Returning to North Central Arkansas, we planned to leave early enough to stop in at Grand Gulf State Park and Mammoth Springs State Park along the way. The early departure was easy enough, but it was around 11 am by the time we reached Springfield. It was a cold and windy day, and it would likely be 2 pm before we reached those stops. That really did not leave much time for the parks, as well as reach our final destination before dark, which was another 2 hours from there. It was deer season after all, and those pesky critters would be lurking along the roadside looking to pounce on any unsuspecting traveler. Since there was no hurry on the way home, and the forecast for our return trip looked to be a bit sunnier and warmer, we decided to postpone that diversion until then.

Bonniebrooke signage

We did make a few random stops along the way though. Nearly every trip south we note a faded billboard near Walnut Shade pointing the way to the “Home of the Kewpies,” and wonder about it. With nothing but time on our hands this particular Saturday afternoon, we decided to make a detour and check into the situation. Our timing could not have been better. After winding our way up the hill and into the empty parking lot, we discovered the place was closed for the season.

Mural in Historic Leslie, Arkansas

Seeking another minor diversion along the route, we stopped in on the little town Leslie. This is another spot we have noted a couple of times, based on signage indicating indicate that “Historic Downtown Leslie” is quite a happening spot. Set back from the main road a few hundred yards, it is mostly a collection of buildings from around the turn the 19th century housing little or nothing but antique shops. That seems to be pretty typcial for a lot of small towns these days. There seems to be signs everywhere to visit one historic downtown or another, and they all seem to end up lacking any sort of recognizable history. There were a few interesting architectural items here though, but clouds deterred any true photographic exploration of the scene, so we hit the road again, to make our destination prior to sunset.

The Little Red River near Heber Springs, Arkansas

This particular visit to Heber Springs did not offer much opportunity to explore. While it was a 5-day adventure, two of those were devoted to driving and one to getting a little work done. We did manage to squeeze in day trip back to Gunner Pool for a closer look around, and making our way back to base that same day, dropped in on the Turkey Creek Schoolhouse. I had discovered it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places while doing a bit of research earlier in the month, along with a several other points of interest, providing me quite a catalog of spots to investigate in the future. There was one other on that route too, but we must have missed it.

River Road near Shirley, Arkansas

Along the route, there were a few other oddities, as well. Eventually we ended up in Shirley, so dropped in on the old Missouri & North Arkansas railroad bridge that crosses the Little Red River. We crossed the old rickety thing and followed the road for about 10 miles or so, just to see what we could see. The old rail bed offered nothing more than a flat gravel road though, but that was good enough at the time. The only other day we had, we spent at the shooting range.

Woods Fork

Waiting to visit the two State Parks on the return trip turned out to be a poor decision. Thunderstorms rolling through the area put a stop to those plans. Indeed, severe weather was everywhere the day we returned. It did break momentarily, just about the time we were passing through the Branson area, so we stopped at one the last places available on the route to get out and get some air and enjoy the forest. A couple of riders on horseback provided some comedy relief there, but inevitably, the rain returned and chased us from there too.

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Further Reading

School at Turkey Creek

A neatly preserved piece of Arkansas educational history

Quiet Gunner Pool

A beautiful little space for a Confederate storage depot

Busiek at Woods Fork

A quick and quiet spot along the US-65 route

Busiek at Woods Fork

Walking Bridge crossing Woods Fork

Tucked just off US-65 between Branson and Springfield, is a great little spot to get out and walk around for a minute, if you need a break from the road. There is actually quite a bit more to do there than that, but we only have ever had time for that. Looking a little closer on our last visit, we should probably plan to make some time for the space in the near future.

Woods Fork

Named in honor of locals, Dr. Urban and Marie Busiek, and originally purchased from their son in 1981, the 2,502-acre Conversation Area hosts a fantastic forest full of woodlands, glades, and old farm fields. Camp Creek and Woods Fork cut through this section of land that provides 18 miles of trails for hikers and horseback riders. Primitive camping is also available by permit only, and a shooting range is also available. While the streams are insufficient for fishing anything more than minnows and tadpoles, hunting is available for all game in season.

Horses crossing Woods Fork

This last pass through, we wandered a little along the trail along Woods Fork, and explored the creek bed near the bridge mostly. It had been raining all day, and threatened more, so we did not want to get too involved. Indeed, it started up again, forcing a return to the dry safety of our car. While we were there though, we had the opportunity to see a couple passing through on horseback. It was amusing watching them try to keep control of the younger of the two, as the horse was more interested in playing in the water. After they passed through the creek bed, the horse turned back, in spite of protests by the rider, and began to splash about. The rider finally convinced the horse to return to the trail, but not before pressing the issue one last time.

Missouri Department of Conversation Map of Busiek State Forest and Wildlife Area - Nov 2015

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Further Reading

Busiek State Forest and Wildlife Area - Missouri Department of Conservation

Parade Directions Fail

As a cartographer and geographer, nothing is more irritating than bad directions. They confuse people and create unnecessary chaos. The problem is compounded when these directions come from a “Trusted News Source.” I suppose the only thing that could be more annoying would be someone attempting to justify, or argue in favor of the bad directions.

After the Kansas City Royals won the World Series, a parade was in order to celebrate the momentous occasion. Everyone wanted to be The New Source for the parade information online, and everyone seemed to get it right, except for KMBC; not only did they get it wrong, but when several of us notified them of the inaccurate directions, they refused to correct it. Additionally, there were those on their comment forum attempting to argue the accuracy of the directions originally provided by KMBC as well. I am still not quite sure what to think of that. One individual asked, “What does it matter?” It matters a lot to those that are not from Kansas City, or know nothing about the layout of the downtown streets. Providing good advice is better than arguing though, so I suggested they take a look at a map.

See if you can follow the directions, as posted on the KMBC web site.

Here’s the starting point… 39.097790, -94.581003

The parade will start at Noon on Grand Boulevard between the Sprint Center and Power & Light District.

From there it will head north on 9th Street before turning east on Oak, south to Truman, then west back to Grand.

The parade will then head south on Grand to Pershing Road and head west.

The parade will end in front of Union Station where a victory rally will begin at approximately 2 p.m.

If you are not familiar with Kansas City, or are admittedly directionally challenged, here are a few notes about what went wrong.

You cannot travel North on 9th Street from the Sprint Center. It is five blocks away! Is the parade going to teleport there?

You cannot turn East on Oak. That street runs North/South; that is, unless they are only crossing the street, then by all means, go right ahead. Although, you are going to have some trouble getting to Truman Road, turning East on Oak.