A few weeks ago, my buddy emailed me asking if I wanted to do a trip into Arkansas through the mountains. Having ridden up there a good bit, I said, "Hell yes!" It started as a bigger group ride, but one by one, everyone else dropped out until it was just the two of us. No big deal, we kept making the plan anyway! So, the plan was to leave from home in Brandon, MS, On Thursday, April 26, go to Hot Springs, Eureka Springs, Branson, MO and leave it open from there.

Day 1:

We decided to meet at the good ole Huddle House for some eats and fuel for the bikes:



I wasn't there long and here comes Mean Joe Green:


His big, bad beast:


Heading out; turns out, there was a huge traffic jam not far from our meeting spot, so we had to start out with a re-route:


It was a very cool morning and a pleasant ride:



The Rez:



We wiggled our way up through the Mississippi Delta through miles and miles of farmland:


MJG prefers to remain anonymous:


Yours truly, on the other hand, is happy to show off his good looks:


Crossing the bridge at Greenville, MS:



MJG in the mirror:


The route I made took us mostly west until we ran into Highway 7 and then north toward Hot Springs. I don't remember the little town this pic came from, but the food was good!:


MJG got the jumbo burger:


I wasn't paying attention to the menu and ended up with the regular burger:


Old bridge pic:


Finally starting to get to the good stuff:



And then, this happens:


Another old bridge:

 

Day 1 continued:

I was disappointed that this pic didn't turn out better; I was trying to show how sparkly those braces are. Note that we are on Highway 7:

Finally made it to Hot Springs. Met these two cats who are not only from MS, but are known to me through another motorcycle forum I frequent:


We stayed at the Arlington Hotel. It's old and not in pristine condition, but it's more than adequate for a nights rest. We got settled in and stopped at the hotel bar for a refreshment:


After wandering around downtown, we stopped for another refreshment at this funky little bar:


We found a cool German restaurant and both ate schnitzel. We stopped back by the hotel bar and had some fun with the staff; good bartender and gave back the bs as good as I was giving it!:


That's the end of Day 1. Tomorrow, the fantastic Highway 7, Mt. Magazine and a visit with the lawman.

 

Great photos! Can't wait to see the rest. But really?? A Batman shirt??? LOL

 

Yea, really what's up with the "Batman Shirt"

 

Day 2:

We planned to make Eureka Springs that night, riding the fantastic Highway 7, but first, we stopped at the Harley dealership in Hot Springs:


The entire staff was very nice. The young lady checking me out asked about the camera around my neck, so, of course, I had to take her picture:


I love all the little towns you go through on the backroads:


I can never seem to capture the fun-ness of the road, but here are a few shots of the good stuff:









We stopped for a break in Ola, AR. MJG has done some significant engine work to his bike and asked me if I wanted to ride it. I told him I would love to, so, I took off. I rode four or five miles from the store and was very impressed with the power! Here is a pic from the cockpit:



Just before the intersection where the store was located, the speed limit drops to thirty-five. Of course, I wasn't doing thirty-five when I met THE MAN; he told me to ride on down to the store so we could have a chat:


He asked me what the speed limit was. I said, "Forty-ish?" He said that the speed limit was definitely not "forty-ish." He was nice enough to let me off with a warning.

What an odd mascot (the sign on the building says, "Sand Lizards"; no offense to anyone from Dardanelle!):


We rode up to Mt. Nebo. The sign says, "Crooked and steep next 4 miles". WOOHOO!


We met some more folks from MS at the first overlook, but I failed to get a pic of them. I did manage to shoot one of the group of bikes in the parking lot:


This is the view from the second overlook, higher up:


Living on the edge:

I managed to get a few shots of MJG coming down the switchbacks:

 

Lol! I like my Batman shirt! Matches my Batman drawers!

 

"Arrrgg"

 

Day 2 continued:



This is the Arkansas River. In a couple of days, we'll be drinking beer sitting beside it further east:


Coming into Jasper, I think; this is Highway 16 or Highway 23 maybe. Doesn't really matter because it's hard to pick a bad road up there!:


I know I'm supposed to have a subject in the picture, but I can't help taking these shots of my surroundings. Every time I look at these, I feel the wind blowing and smell the outdoors:


We get to Eureka and elect to climb the stairs, rather than wait on the shuttle. It's a damn long way up, but it feels good to stretch:


We stayed at the Basin Park Hotel. Supposedly it's haunted, but we never saw any ghosts. It's also an older hotel, but it's really cool. I would recommend it to anyone.

I only got a couple of pics. This one is from the balcony and my buddy is starting to get tired of me taking pictures!:


Newlyweds:


We stopped at one restaurant, but decided it wasn't what we thought it would be, so we found an Italian place that was pretty good. I think the name of it was Devito's. Our server was very nice and agreed to let me take her picture while she was telling us about the specials:


We started with a crab cake appetizer, but sadly, I didn't get a pic of our entrees:


Eureka is a neat, eclectic town. It's very biker friendly and would be a great base for spending a few days exploring the area.

Up next, Day 3: my birthday and the trouble with tires.

 

Matty Ross was from Dardanelle. Didn't know the place actually existed.

 

Been to Devito's a couple of times, usually good food. I think it's on Center street.