Spring break 2021 (part 7)

Another place very near our camp was this 'swinging bridge'.

Spring break 2021 (part 6)

Although the campgrounds were closed, Blanchard Springs day use area was open on the first day we visited, but was closed after that; I don't know why.

Spring break 2021 (part 5)

Mirror Lake at Blanchard Spring.

Spring break 2021 (part 4)

One of the main attractions for us in this area is Blanchard Springs. We really wanted to camp here, but they were still closed because of the pandemic. We also couldn't go into the caverns, but the hiking trails were open.

Spring break 2021 (part 3)

We went to a drive-in movie, to see, 'Raya and the Last Dragon', on Sunday.

Spring break 2021 (part 2)

We camped at Sylamore Creek Camp, 5 miles north of Mountain View, Arkansas.

Click here for a review of the shower, and ensuite.

Spring break 2021 (part 1)

Greers Ferry Lake

Greers Ferry Lake dam

Little Red River

Valentine snow.

This is what we woke to on Monday after Valentine's Day. The temperature is below freezing, and will stay that way for most of the week. Schools are closed, travel is limited, and there are power outages expected across the United States, as there is a higher demand for power so people can stay warm. The lowest temperature for us will be just below zero degrees Fahrenheit, or minus eighteen degrees Celsius. There has been about three and a half inches, or nine centimeters of snow so far, with a prediction of about the same amount for midweek. Although this is not the coldest temperature, nor the most amount of snow for this part of the United States, it is not very common.

Not so primitive camping.

Our campsite.

Our camp setup.

Since I had a couple of days off, and the weather was going to be nice, at least as nice as it can be for late January in south Arkansas, we made last minute arrangements to go camping about 25 minutes away.

This is a primitive campsite through the Arkansas Forestry Commission. All we had to do is select a spot from their map, and then call them and tell them how many nights we wanted to stay. It was that easy, and without paying.

Of course we carried everything we needed. It was only for one night, but since we haven't been camping in a month, it was nice to get out of the house.

We found some trash around the campsite, so we gathered it up, and took it away with us when we left. My motto is to leave a campsite cleaner than we found it.

Near the camp was a spot where hunters had setup to clean deer. I think this isn't legal to do here, so I have reported it.

We also found a couple of deer carcasses, a skull, and a hoof.

After we setup camp, explored around our campsite, and cleaned up the trash, we went hiking at the northern end of White Oak Lake, where White Oak Creek continues on it's way after passing through the dam.

We went back to camp and got ready for dinner and a movie by the campfire.

Someone had left a doll head, and we had some fun with it.

Campfire.

The doll head enjoyed the movie, but not the fire so much.

Campfire after dark.

All-in-all, one of our best camping trips. Too bad it was only for one night. We will definitely come back here again.

2021 New Year's Day.

Four generations: My mother, younger daughter, older daughter, her son, my step-father, and me.

 

Last camping trip for 2020.

Our last camping trip in 2020 was after Christmas and before New Years. We went to Millwood Lake, and stayed at another U.S. Army Corps of Engineers campground, called Beard's Bluff Park.

This was a small campground, but one of the best we have been to, and very well maintained.

We only stayed two of the three nights we had planned, because of bad weather moving in for the last day, but we had a wonderful, relaxing time.

So far, each camping trip has had something that kept it from being perfect. Sometimes our spot isn't very level for our tent. One campground had freight trains passing near the campgrounds, even at night. The weather can also be a factor. This trip, we drove over an hour to reach our campground, and when we started to put up the tent, realized we forgot to bring the tent poles. We had to return home to get them, and by the time we got back to the campground, it was already dark, and had to put up the tent using our car headlights to see.

Each trip had been special and memorable for different reasons. But what made them fun, was doing these camping trips together with my younger daughter. We love to go hiking together, see new places, be out in nature, ride our bikes, sit around the campfire, talk, relax, and enjoy each other's company.

January and February are the coldest months in Arkansas, so we will spend those months at home, and will return to camping during school Spring Break, at the end of March.

Christmas Prayer

Yahweh, Great and Mighty Father in Heaven, Provider, Lord and Master of all, hear my prayer.

I give thanks to you for bringing to us light and hope through Your Son, Jesus Christ.

It is only by Your mercy, His Love, and our faith that we can approach You.

May we continue to recognize You in our lives, and listen to Your guidance.

May we be good servants to You, and good witnesses of Your Love.

I pray now for the world, the world You created, and the people, Your children.

In this last year, we have suffered greatly. Sin of all forms have plagued us.

I pray that You will show us Your Mercy, and deliver us from all that tries to prevent us from seeing You and Your Love.

I pray that Your Will be done, and that it will strengthen us, unite us, and draw us nearer to You.

I pray for our nation Lord. We have been torn apart, selfish, and foolish.

Help us to see the errors of our ways. And I pray for forgiveness for our many sins.

Lord God Almighty, I also pray for my family, and our friends. Continue to be with us as we struggle in this world. Lift us up when we fall. Strengthen us when we are weak. Carry us when we think we can no longer continue. Remind us of Your Love for us. Help us to see Your Presence in our lives.

Father, I pray now for my mother. Thank you so very much for providing me with such a kind, caring, and wise mother. She has always been a good example of Your Love, even when sometimes I didn’t deserve it. Just as You always love us.

Yahweh, I also pray for Gil. When I fell, he picked me up. When I wandered, he showed me the way. When I was in error, he corrected me. When I did not know, he taught me. He has been an example of Your Love, by being Your servant.

God the Father, I give thanks and praise to You for my children. They have been a blessing that has sustained me. I have tried to do my best to raise them and care for them as You do us. I have learned so much being a father to my children about what I should be like as one of Your children. I pray that You will always be with them, in good and bad.

Merciful and Mighty Lord, I also pray for my grandson. He is as innocent as Your Son, Jesus was when He was born into this world. Just as Jesus had You watching over Him, I pray that You will watch over my grandson, and see to his needs according to Your will.

Finally Yahweh, I pray for myself, that You will forgive me, protect me, and guide me. Give me the knowledge and opportunity to be the kind of child that makes You happy. I return Your Love.

Amen. 

Springhill Park

Our next to last camping trip for the year was to Springhill Park, next to Massard Creek, along the Arkansas River, near Fort Smith, Arkansas.

It rained all day the second day. And, our tent did have some leaks around the back door. I think an improvement for the tent would be to have another awning on the back of the tent, because with the awning up, the front didn't leak.

It was also very cold, below freezing each night. We were comfortable with the heater on low. But when we went to bed, we turned off the heater and stayed inside our sleeping bags, and were toasty warm all night long.

The only other problem we had was when we broke camp and started packing, we found that there had been some condensation between our sleeping bags and air mattresses. So, we had to open these up for them to air out when we got home.

It didn't snow, although we were looking forward to it.

This park has some of the best cycling trails we've experienced, and we enjoyed cycling while there.

Daisy State Park at Lake Greeson

We had another camping trip, this time to Daisy State Park at Lake Greeson. It was raining all Sunday morning before we left, but stopped in the afternoon. We arrived about two hours before sunset. After setting up camp, we did our usual campfire and then prepared dinner, and enjoyed a movie. The next day, we explored the camp, and went for a hike. Because it was supposed to be raining all day on Wednesday, we decided to leave a day early. It was 21 Fahrenheit (-6 Celsius) when we woke up Tuesday morning. We had left our heater on low all night, so not to freeze our drinking water in the tent. It was still just above freezing in the tent. I turned the heat to high so we could get dressed and prepare breakfast. After breakfast, we went for another hike, and took a picnic lunch with us to enjoy. We found a picnic table setup on the banks of the lake. We ate lunch, and then played a game I brought along, and finally, explored a little bit, before returning to camp and packed up to go home. Even cutting our trip short by a day, it was still nice.

As we were exploring the camp, we saw this squirrel warming itself near a yurt.

Camping lifestyle.

 Back before Covid, I had planned a nearly three week road trip to travel through a dozen states, to visit an eclectic assortment of historical and nature hotspots in the United States. But those plans were cancelled because of Covid, and for now, I am just camping every other weekend in Arkansas.

I do want to share with you a link to a couple that also enjoys camping, and they have camped in many wonderful places in Arkansas, as well as around the United States.

They have great tips on camping, cooking while camping, and they are advocates of preserving nature and keeping nature clean. You can click on their logo above to go to their YouTube channel. Some of their videos include drone footage that really shows off the beauty of Arkansas. And you can also visit their website here.

This is something I had considered doing, but they already do such a great job, that I could never do. Enjoy.

White Oak Lake State Park camping trip.

We stayed in the 'tents only' section of White Oak Lake State Park. For $15 / night, they provide a picnic table, barbecue grill, lamp post, fire pit, water, parking, and a 12 x 12 raised and level tent pad.

Since our tent is 10 x 14, it wouldn't fit on the pad, so we found a nearly level area next to our designated spot to pitch our tent at the trail head of three popular trails.

You can read about our hiking experience here.

There was lots of wildlife to observe, such as Whooping and Sandhill Cranes, squirrels, and ducks.

This is NOT a spider, although it looks like it, and they can be found everywhere in the southern states, especially in areas around pine trees. We call them, 'Daddy-long-legs'.

This is commonly called a, 'stick bug'.

Little Grand Canyon excursion.

 This is an overflow area from the lower half of White Oak Lake, called 'Little Grand Canyon'.

We took a short detour from our camping trip to visit this spot.

Hiking at White Oak Lake.

On our most recently camping trip, we went to White Oak Lake State Park, which is only about 25 minutes from where we live. This is a wonderful and beautiful area, well known for it's fishing and hunting.

One of the most popular activities at the campground is to go hiking. They have three trails to choose from. We took the shortest trail, 'Beech Ridge'.

We saw some incredible fall foliage and views. And the weather was perfect, starting a little cool in the morning, but quickly warming by noon.

Bike ride.

It was a very nice day in Camden, so I took my bike out for a ride. Perfect temperature, especially for the second week of November, and the beginning of autumn. We have a lovely trail very near my home for riding, walking, or jogging. It used to be for trains, but after the line was unused for a long time, they took up the tracks, and put down asphalt.

This area is a field behind our house, next to a church. You can see the three crosses representing Jesus Christ crucifixion.

Such beautiful fall colors.

Halloween camping at Iron Mountain, Degray Lake

 It was perfect autumn weather for camping at Iron Mountain, Degray Lake.

Our campsite was right next to the bath house.

This is our kitchen with Coleman stove, and dining area.

Destiny's bed.

My bed, electric cooler, laptop and projector for movies, and my CPAP machine.

We have electricity at this site, but sometimes we camp off-grid, so we use a big battery to provide all our power. Right now it can last about five days. But, starting next spring, we will be camping a week at a time, and I will need to get some solar panels to recharge the battery.

We put up the movie screen to watch movies.

All our suitcases and extra gear is stored in the corner, at the foot of my bed.

I turn on the heater on cold mornings.