Day One-Hundred-Forty-Two to One-Hundred-Forty-Three - A Summer of Bluegrass, Camping and Friends - Monday 9/16/2024 - Tuesday 9/17/2024

It was raining and cooler, 64° at 6 am, on Monday the 16th of September. It was the perfect weather for a duck on my 260th walk of 2024. The water cleans the earth like positive thoughts cleanse your mind. Same bridge, different day. The all night rain filled the creek.

Today we caravan from Mountain View AR to Memphis TN. Again, along the way I give tidbits about the area. 

The Batesville Motor Speedway is a 3/8-mile red clay oval racetrack. Racing modifieds, super stocks, hobbies, super stars and front-wheel drives on Friday nights in season from March until early October. The Batesville Motor Speedway helped launch the career of NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin.

Even the silos near the track are checkered!

Many of the stone houses were built in the early 1900’s. Cottages, bungalows, farmhouses and cabins dot the green hills in a hodgepodge based on eras and building styles. And among these styles are homes affectionately known as “Giraffe Houses.” This striking rock technique can be found in many rural areas of Arkansas, but the Ozark region seems to be the epicenter for frequent sightings. The specifics of “Ozark giraffe” building styles were rooted in rock masonry techniques taught during the Depression-era. The materials required for this type of architecture were cheap, and widely available all over the Ozark region. Sandstone was split into slabs and then mortared together. These various shades and shapes of stones, along with trademark wide mortar strips, created the “giraffe” pattern of these exteriors.

Oil Trough is located southwest of the White River, in a rich area of bottomlands known as the “Oil Trough Bottoms”. Above the bottoms is the Oil Trough Ridge, composed of black limestone. There are legends that the area was named for the wooden troughs used by hunters to store their bear oil. Some accounts indicate that the bear oil was placed in the troughs and then floated downstream as far as New Orleans, for use in cooking, cosmetics, hair dressing, and tanning leather.

Arkansas is the top rice producing state in the US. Rice is grown in 40 of Arkansas's 75 counties. Long grain brown rice is primarily grown here. In 2023, Arkansas accounted for 49% of the total US rice production and harvested more than 49% of the total acres planted in the US.

Arkansas ranks 3rd in the nation in cotton production—producing approximately 11% of the US cotton. Notice the remnants of the burned fields? The use of prescribed fire in Arkansas's cropland can be an important part of a crop management plan in row crops such as rice and wheat. Agricultural burning helps farmers remove crop residues left in the field after harvesting grains.

Musicians love Memphis. According to Memphis Travel and Billboard Magazine, the city has gotten more than 400 shoutouts and mentions in songs, more than any other city in the world.

Memphis was founded in 1819 on land previously inhabited by Chickasaw Indians. It lies on the Chickasaw bluffs above the Mississippi River where the borders of Arkansas, Mississippi, and Tennessee meet. 

We arrived at Graceland Campground and had time to get set up and relax a bit, before our guided city tour. Memphis is the Home of the Blues. That facts come alive on our city tour aboard the nation’s only music bus. 

Taylor, our guide, is a gigging band musician who plays and sings selections from the city’s rich musical heritage, while entertaining us with  history, and behind-the-scenes stories of your favorite Memphis personalities.

Along the way, we saw:
Stax Museum of American Soul, which was the original home of Stax Records. In 1957, Jim Stewart founded Satellite Records, with a loan and the support from his sister Estelle Axton, the duo relocated Satellite Records to Memphis in 1959, setting up shop in an old movie theater. From this partnership, Stax Records emerged and so did its name—combining the first two letters of Stewart and Axton. The establishment of this new company marked the beginning of a transformative journey in soul music.

In Memphis, Stax Records quickly became a beacon of musical diversity, blending emerging rhythm and blues styles into a branded “Memphis Sound” of soul music that would evolve to captivate global audiences. With input from luminaries like Rufus Thomas, Stax earned a reputation as a haven for local talent. Also helping to define the label’s signature R&B sound, songwriters David Porter and Isaac Hayes scribed lyrics tailored to the Stax performers. On loan from distributor Atlantic Records, the livewire vocal duo Sam & Dave paired with Hayes and Porter with hits like “Soul Man” and “Hold On, I’m Coming,” solidifying Stax’s place as a powerhouse of rhythm & blues music.

The label’s roster expanded to include talents like Eddie Floyd, whose anthem “Knock on Wood” became a cornerstone of Stax’s repertoire. Otis Redding, perhaps the label’s most treasured star, left an everlasting legacy with his evocative and emotive vocal performances on tunes like “These Arms of Mine” and “(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay.” Tragically, Redding’s life, along with those of four teenage members of the Bar-Kays, was cut short in a fatal plane crash in 1967, leaving a void in the music world that could never be filled. Stax launched and supported the careers of artists such as the Staple Singers, Booker T. & the M.G.'s, Rufus Thomas, Carla Thomas, Wilson Pickett, Albert King, William Bell, Eddie Floyd, Jean Knight, Mable John, and countless others including spoken word and comedy by Rev. Jesse Jackson, Moms Mabley, and Richard Pryor.

The Lorraine Motel was forever etched in America’s collective memory with the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1968, but even before that fateful day, the property at 450 Mulberry Street had a fascinating history in its own right. Before it was the Lorraine, it was the Marquette Hotel that catered to black clientele in segregated Memphis. Built in 1925, the  Marquette Hotel was a typical Southern hotel accessible only to whites in its early history; it was renamed the Lorraine Motel after the second floor was added. In 1945 black businessman Walter Bailey purchased the hotel, which he re-christened the Lorraine after his wife Loree and the popular jazz song, “Sweet Lorraine.” The motel became a destination for blacks and appeared in the Negro Motorists Green Book or “Green Guide,” which identified establishments that welcomed black travelers when Jim Crow restrictions offered limited options for services and lodging.

By the end of World War II, the Lorraine had become one of the few black establishments, and one of the only hotels providing accommodations to African Americans. Early guests to the Lorraine included Cab Colloway, Count Basie, and other prominent jazz musicians, in addition to later celebrities such as Roy Campanella, Nat King Cole, and Aretha Franklin. Partly because of its historical importance to the black community of Memphis, Martin Luther King chose to stay at the Lorraine during the 1968 Memphis sanitation workers strike. On April 4, 1968, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was assassinated at the Lorraine Motel, just a day after delivering his prophetic "I've Been to the Mountaintop" speech at the Mason Temple Church of God in Christ. 

Sun Studio is known worldwide as “The Birthplace of Rock’n’roll”. It is the discovery location of musical legends and genres of the 50’s from B.B. King and Elvis Presley to Johnny Cash and Jerry Lee Lewis; from Blues and Gospel to Country and Rock’n'roll. Today our goal is to spread the story of Memphis’ history and culture through the music that put Memphis on the map. Taylor told us stories of B.B. King, Howlin' Wolf and Ike Turner before Elvis, Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis, & Roy Orbison who were all drawn to the new Sun Sound.

We drove past Beale Street. It played a pivotal role in branding Memphis as one of the most musically rich cities in the world, and was prominent in hosting some of the first black business owners in the south. In 1841, developer Robertson Topp named the street after a Mexican-American War hero, Edward Fitzgerald Beale. After the Civil War, Beale Street became a center for Black commerce and culture. It was home to many Black-owned businesses, including the first Black church in Memphis, the Beale Street Baptist Church.

Along the high bluffs of Memphis you will find "Cotton Row." Most of the buildings of Cotton Row were constructed to meet the needs of buying and selling cotton. The Row was designed to be utilitarian instead of elaborately decorative. For example, large doors were constructed on the ground floor so cotton bales could be moved in and out easily. In its prime, the Row was full of seed and hardware stores, farming supplies, and silo companies. Cotton Row Historic District is one of the National Register-listed districts recognized (and protected) by the City of Memphis as a local historic district.

As a young man, Danny Thomas had a simple goal: to entertain people and be successful enough at it to provide for his wife and family. But work wasn’t easy to come by. As he and his family struggled, his despair grew. He wondered if he should give up on his dreams of acting or find a steady job. He turned to St. Jude, the patron saint of hopeless causes. “Show me my way in life,” he vowed to the saint one night in a Detroit church, “and I will build you a shrine.” That prayer to St. Jude marked a pivotal moment in his life. Soon after, he began finding work, eventually becoming one of the biggest stars of radio, film and television in his day.

And as one of the world’s biggest celebrities, Danny used his fame to fulfill his vow to St. Jude and to change the lives of thousands of children and families. Danny’s shrine to St. Jude was originally to be a general children’s hospital located somewhere in the south. Danny’s mentor, Cardinal Samuel Stritch, recommended he look to Memphis, Tennessee, the cardinal’s hometown. By 1955 Danny and a group of Memphis businessmen he’d rallied to build the hospital decided it should be more than a general children’s hospital. At the time, the survival rate for childhood cancers was 20%, and for those with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) — the most common form of childhood cancer — only 4% of children would live. St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital opened its doors on February 4, 1962, based on Danny's dream that "no child should die in the dawn of life." Since then, they have made incredible strides in childhood cancer research. They have helped improve the survival rate of childhood cancer from 20% to 80%. And ALL, the disease with a virtual death sentence in 1962, now has a survival rate of 94%.

Elvis Presley's early apartment in Memphis, Tennessee was at 328 Lauderdale Courts, a public housing complex located at 185 Winchester Street. The Presley family moved to Memphis in November 1948 and lived in rooming houses for almost a year before moving to Lauderdale Courts. The Presley family lived in the two-bedroom apartment from 1949 to 1953. When Elvis got a job and the money he made, pushed the family above the threshold of income to live there. Today, the apartment is available for overnight stays and includes a stack of Elvis movies in the living room and a 1950s refrigerator in the kitchen. Some say that guests are handed a parking pass with "Elvis's Guest" written on it when they check in.

Memphis is one of the birthplaces of blues music and is associated particularly with composer W.C. Handy, who immortalized the city’s Beale Street in one of his songs.

B.B. King also occupies a central place in the history of the blues in Memphis. A blues festival is held annually in August, and other events throughout the year celebrate the city’s musical heritage.

Memphis made a huge contribution to the development of soul music as well, with Otis Redding, Wilson Pickett, Sam and Dave, and Al Green being just a few of the significant soul artists who recorded in Memphis or called it home.

Also located in the city is the Memphis Rock ’n’ Soul Museum, which was developed in partnership with the Smithsonian Institution. 

A park on Mud Island, in the Mississippi, includes a five-block-long scale model of the river. Located near Mud Island is the 32-story stainless-steel Pyramid Arena hosts sports events, concerts, and shows. FedEx Forum (opened 2004) houses the Grizzlies, the city’s professional basketball team. 

We stopped at the Peabody Hotel, to see the ducks. How did the tradition of the ducks in The Peabody fountain begin? Back in the 1930s Frank Schutt, General Manager of The Peabody, and a friend, Chip Barwick, returned from a weekend hunting trip to Arkansas. The men had a little too much Tennessee sipping whiskey, and thought it would be funny to place some of their live duck decoys in the beautiful Peabody fountain. Three small English call ducks were selected as "guinea pigs," and the reaction was nothing short of enthusiastic. This began the Peabody tradition.

In 1940, Bellman Edward Pembroke, a former circus animal trainer, offered to help with delivering the ducks to the fountain each day and taught them the now-famous Peabody Duck March. Mr. Pembroke became Peabody Duckmaster, serving in that capacity for 50 years until his retirement in 1991. For more than 90 years after the inaugural march, the ducks can be seen in the lobby fountain daily.

We enjoyed dinner at Marlowe's. Since 1974, they have been providing the best in Memphis hospitality and BBQ to locals and visitors from around the globe. 

Missy always does an awesome job with our group. The meals are always delicious and plentiful!

Memphis has also been called the birthplace of rock and roll. Elvis Presley was one of many musicians who launched careers from Memphis’s Sun Studio. After Presley’s death in 1977, his city mansion and burial site, Graceland, became a shrine (opened to the public for tours in 1982).

Sunny and 66° at 6:30 am on Tuesday the 17th. It was an excellent morning for my 261st walk of 2024. Experiences shape our lives, don't you agree?

“We do not learn from experience…we learn from reflecting on experience.” – John Dewey

It was a full day at Graceland for our caravanners. First they got to see a film about Elvis.

Then they boarded the bus and went across the street to explore the personal side of Elvis Presley with an interactive iPad tour of Graceland Mansion, hosted by John Stamos and featuring commentary and stories by Elvis and his daughter, Lisa Marie.

In early 1957, Presley gave his parents, Vernon and Gladys Presley, a budget of $100,000 and asked them to find a property to purchase, with buffer space around it. At the time, Graceland was located in southern Shelby County, several miles south of Memphis's main urban area. Presley purchased Graceland on March 19, 1957, for a price of $102,500. Constructed at the top of a hill and surrounded by rolling pastures and a grove of oak trees, Graceland was designed by the Memphis architectural firm, Furbringer and Erhmanis. It's a two-story, five-bay residence in the Colonial Revival style, with a side-facing gable roof covered in asphalt shingles, a central two-story projecting portico, and two one-story wings on the north and south sides. 

The Living Room is to the right of the entrance. The painting that hangs in the room was Elvis's last Christmas present from his father, Vernon. Behind an adjoined doorway is the Music Room, framed by vivid large peacocks set in stained glass.

Downstairs in the basement is the TV room, where Elvis often watched three television sets at once, and was within close reach of a wet bar.

The last room in the basement is the billiard room. The walls and ceiling were covered with 400 yards of pleated cotton fabric after the two basement rooms were remodeled in 1974. It is such a cool look, but the fabric pattern is very bold!

Presley enlarged the house to create a den known as the Jungle Room which features an indoor waterfall of cut field stone on the north wall. The room also contains items both related to and imported from the state of Hawaii because, after starring in the tropical film "Blue Hawaii."

Presley's grave, along with those of his parents Gladys and Vernon Presley, his grandmother Minnie Mae Presley, Elvis's daughter, Lisa Marie Presley, and his grandson Benjamin Keough are located in the Meditation Garden next to the mansion. A memorial gravestone for Presley's stillborn twin brother, Jesse Garon, is also at the site.

Once you are done in the mansion, you can board the bus back to the more than 200,000 square foot entertainment complex featuring museums, restaurants, gift shops, and more.

I love the display of iconic performers who's outfits are located in one museum.

Also the barbie doll looking display of Elvis's jumpsuits and capes. I am sure this is just a small portion of the collection!

Each caravanner got a voucher for lunch. We enjoyed lunch at Gladys' Diner. It features classic American cuisine, including burgers, hot dogs and pizza - plus one of Elvis' favorites - Peanut Butter and Banana Sandwiches. I did not get that sandwich....

We ended a great day, by preparing for our move with our Travel Log Review. We also included some of the "little known facts" about the caravanners and some tips and tricks.

Day One-Hundred-Thirty-Nine to One-Hundred-Forty-One - A Summer of Bluegrass, Camping and Friends - Friday 09/13/2024 - Sunday 09/15/2024

It was misty, dark, and 60° at 6 am on Friday, September 13th, for my 257th walk of 2024. It was my final walk in Branson for this trip. Darkness gives you ample time to reflect. I found this quote fitting... "Ambition is the path to success. Persistence is the vehicle you arrive in." -- Bill Bradley

We departed Branson MO on Friday September 13th. I said an extra prayer that morning for safe travels... not that I am superstitious or anything! Bob & Tammy and Tim & Debbie did a great job getting us out of the campground and on the road for our first of three moves on this caravan.

On our drive to Mountain View, I gave the directions from our road log over the radio. I also interjected information about the area and interesting points we were passing. Here are just a few.

Buffalo National River was America’s First National River. Established in 1972, Buffalo National River flows freely for 135 miles and is one of the few remaining undammed rivers in the lower 48 states. The river includes running rapids to quiet pools while surrounded by massive bluffs of the Ozark Mountains.

Harrison was named after Marcus LaRue Harrison, a surveyor who laid out the city along the Crooked Creek at Stifler Springs. The community has a sad history of racism. There were two race riots in the early 20th century and an influx of white supremacist organizations during the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Because of this, a few sources have called this town “the most racist town in the US.”

The history and Folklore of Searcy County Arkansas states that St. Joe was originally called Monkey Run. No one liked that name. Around 1900 when six miners from St Joseph Missouri, received the largest quantity of mail to come into the post office, the town name of St. Joe was adopted.

We arrived at the church across the street from Mt View Guest House and RV Park and the caravanners started unhooking their tow cars, while I got together with Shawna and determined the order that the caravanners had to enter the park and get into their spots, so no one blocked anyone else from getting in.

Shawna does a great job assisting us while we are in Mt View. She caters a lovely pizza dinner with entertainment from her friends, Roni & Scott. 

Since the weather was not cooperating, the music was unplugged in the rally room and we enjoyed the pizza, salad and music as a cozy group of friends.

The rain showers scrubbed the Friday night music at the courthouse and there were very few pickers in the park... dampness, rain and stringed instruments do not mix well. So, several caravanners went to the Jimmy Driftwood Barn. Jimmy Driftwood's features folk, gospel, country, and bluegrass music performed by local performers and friends from around the country. 

James Corbitt Morris, known professionally as Jimmy Driftwood, was a prolific American folk music songwriter and musician, most famous for his songs “The Battle of New Orleans” and “Tennessee Stud”. Driftwood wrote more than 6,000 folk songs, of which more than 300 were recorded by various musicians. Jimmy Driftwood was born in 1907 in Richwoods Valley seven miles from Mountain View, Arkansas. He grew up working on his parent's farm. As a small boy he wanted to be a school teacher. When he was sixteen he finished the eighth grade and took the county teacher’s examination and got a three month’s summer teaching contract at $40.00 a month.

They say Jimmy wrote his first poem when he was eight and his first song when he was 12. There were no libraries in the hill schools, so Jimmy wrote poems, tales, songs and plays for his own students, In 1936 Jimmy wrote a song for his students, The Battle of New Orleans, in an attempt to get his students interested in learning history. In 1957 he recorded the song for RCA in an album. When recorded by Johnny Horton, the song was #1 of the Billboard Top 100 for the entire year of 1959. That song and others took Jimmy Driftwood out of the public schools and into concert halls over much of the world, including Carnegie Hall, the Ozarks Jubilee, the Louisiana Hayride, and he was a member of the Grand Ole Opry.

Jimmy was an environmentalist, and led a successful fight to block the United States Army Corps of Engineers when they planned to dam the Buffalo River near his home in the beautiful Ozarks. He had a major role in preserving Blanchard Springs Caverns which later came under management of the Unites States Forest Service. After leaving the Grand Ole Opry in 1962, Jimmy returned to his home in Timbo, Arkansas, and was instrumental in establishing Mountain View Arkansas as the Folk Music Capital of the World. He built the Jimmy Driftwood Barn where folk and mountain music is still played today by local and visiting musicians.

There was an off and on mist for my 258th walk of 2024. Saturday the 14th of September, it was my first walk in Mountain View for this trip. I went back to my happy, peaceful place here, the stone amphitheater. "Energy and persistence conquer all things." - Benjamin Franklin

I talked about it in an earlier blog, but it is such a special place, it is worth mentioning again. It stands to reason that the Folk Music Capital of the World, Mountain View, Arkansas would have an amphitheater.  They do and it is quite unique!  It was built using stone quarried from the area. Mountain View is also in Stone County. There is not much water in the creek right now, but in the spring it can be very full! 

Shawna has coffee and donuts for us every Saturday morning that we are here with our caravan. We get to enjoy a leisurely morning at the campground before everyone heads out to see what they want to see on their free day in Mountain View. There is so much here to enjoy, besides music! 

We have an entire free day in Mountain View, after our donuts and coffee! You can visit McSpadden Mountain Dulcimers Shoppe. McSpadden Mountain Dulcimers made their first mountain dulcimer in 1962. Their craftsmen have over 75 years of experience among them. They use their hands at every stage of dulcimer making, thus you’ll find evidence of careful quality construction.

The dulcet tones and harmonious drones of the Appalachian dulcimer have been an important part of American music for over three hundred years. It is classified as a diatonically fretted “zither” – a “zither” being an instrument with strings stretched across a box from end to end and having no neck as do guitars and violins. Autoharps and hammered dulcimers are also zithers. 

This year our visit coincides with the annual "Off the Beaten Path Studio Tour." This year’s studio tours were on September 13, 14 & 15, the same days we were in Mt View! You could visit the private working studios of local talented artists located “off the beaten path” within a 30 mile radius of the Historic Stone County Courthouse Square. This is the 23rd year of this free self-guided driving tour through the scenic Ozark Mountains which showcases the many talented artists in this region. You can step inside the private studios of painters, potters, weavers, jewelers, hat makers and more to see up-close and personal how and where art is created. Select one of a kind creations directly from the artists to take home and treasure.

They could visit the Ozark Folk Center. Which is located at the Ozark Folk Center State Park. This facility is dedicated to perpetuating the music, crafts, and culture of the Ozarks. The park offers visitors an opportunity to watch artisans work, to stroll through the Heritage Herb Garden, and to hear live Southern Mountain music. In the Craft Village at Ozark Folk Center, more than 20 working artisans demonstrate, create, and sell handmade items Handcrafted items like flame-painted copper jewelry, leather purses and goods, baskets, brooms, stained glass, ironwork, pottery, knives, weavings, quilts, wood carvings, spun yarn, soap, candles, and more are made onsite. 

Music is at the heart of this park. Fiddle, banjo, guitar, mandolin, dulcimer, and autoharp are just some of the instruments that combine to produce that enduring Ozark Mountain sound. While you're in the Craft Village, check out live music on the Blacksmith Stage throughout the day. You don't want to miss the talented local musicians that perform in this intimate setting. The Heritage Herb Garden is where old-time pass-along plants, medicinal herbs, native plants, and edible herbs are grown. The Garden functions as a living classroom for workshops and programs.

While in Mountain View, if history is your passion, be sure to check out the Stone County Museum. Volunteers host the museum on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday from 1-4 PM. Stone County Museum is housed in the historic Mountain View school building built in 1928. The building was placed on the Arkansas Register of Historic Places in 2004. Settlers to our area came down the river, by wagon, and by horseback. Many suffered greatly on the long, bumpy trail to what is now Stone County. Displays in the museum include items these settlers used to set up house including the all-important rocking chair, oil lamps, quilts, and iron cookware. The City Barbershop was a popular spot for locals. Howard Engle operated the shop for years. The museum is home to his barber chair and sink along with a shoeshine stand. This display is new to the museum and will feature many photos and photo displays of Mountain View. Current photo displays include “The Stone County Court House Through the Years” and “Homes and Hotels of Mountain View.” There is a model of the Stone County Academy which was erected in 1895. It is built to scale using wood from the original building. The Academy was a combined free and tuition school, and at one time had more than one hundred students which were boarding in Mountain View and attending the Academy. In addition to the three R’s, student learned Latin, Greek, philosophy, and physics. 

Every Friday and Saturday night you can enjoy the music on the square. 

It's literally in front of the Stone County Courthouse. 

Tonight is Rewind Band - they are playing hits from the 60's, 70's, 80's and 90's. The rain held off long enough for a good portion of our caravanners to enjoy the music and the mild night!

Tim even captured a beautiful picture of the moon!

72° at 6 am on Sunday the 15th. It was perfect weather for my 259th walk of 2024. As I talked to God, I was reminded that there are no such things as coincidence. My Amazon music shuffle played 'Breaking Boundaries' and 'People Like Us' back to back. Both are anthems to my journey of change. “The only journey is the one within.” – Rainer Maria Rilke

I started my walk early, so I had ample time to get ready for our trip to Blanchard Springs Caverns with the group. Blanchard Springs Caverns is located in the Ozark–St. Francis National Forest

It is one of the most spectacular and carefully developed caves found anywhere. You enter a "living" cave where glistening formations like stalactites, stalagmites, columns, and flowstones are still changing.  These crystalline formations are the result of minerals deposited by dripping water.  Blanchard Springs Caverns has a constant year-round temperature of 58°F and nearly 100% relative humidity.

Blanchard Springs Caverns is a three-level cave system, two of which are open for guided tours.  Actually, the 2nd tour is currently closed, as the bats are beginning to hibernate there. We took the Dripstone Trail Tour. This trail travels through two huge rooms filled with an incredible variety and number of crystalline formations – sparkling flowstone, towering columns, curtains, and delicate soda straws. We strolled through the large, beautifully lighted rooms with handrails and paved trails for comfortable walking.

After the cave tour, we stopped at Blanchard Springs. There is a wide stone trail path where you can walk into the woods and see where Blanchard Springs spills out of the cave. A short flight of steps leads down to the water. Blanchard Spring then forms Blanchard Creek, which goes on to fill Mirror Lake, which then flows into North Sylamore Creek.

Then we headed off to Mirror Lake. The lake is accessible by boardwalk and stairs. The water is a beautiful deep turquoise due to mineral deposits from the nearby springs and caves.  The lake is stocked with rainbow trout and is a picturesque place to spend an afternoon fishing in the Ozarks.

One hundred fifty feet from the lake is the site of an old grist mill originally built by John Blanchard. Blanchard came from Kentucky after the Civil War in search of peace and solitude, and he no doubt found it in the secluded canyon of Blanchard Springs. His mill was replaced by Steve Mitchell’s mill in 1900, which operated until 1928. The Civilian Conservation Corp planned to restore the mill to operating condition, but World War II put an end to their plans. The walls have been stabilized to slow the deterioration.

We had a bit of down time before our travel log review and our departure for dinner at Anglers. So, a few games were played in the rally hall!

The dinner at Anglers never disappoints. The group basically had a large room to ourselves!

The service is outstanding and the portions are huge! Did I mention our guests could enjoy an alcoholic beverage if they so desired. 

Anglers is considered a private club, and even though it is located in Stone County, a dry county, they can sell and serve alcohol.

A few of us ventured down to the square to see a little bit of pickin' in the park at Washington Square Park. Not much activity... I am sad that many on this trip did not get to experience the pure music that comes from the everyday average people pickin' in the park.

Stay tuned for more #TwoLaneAdventures