Monday, August 24, 2015

Mammoth Spring State Park Part 2

Here is the last of my vacation travelogue...lol!  This a train station from the old days and no longer in use...too bad as I love trains.
I'd love to have one of these to ride the rails with....so cute and I love the "lookout"!
 I appreciate these informative signs explaining things and giving you more information on the history as you would never learn about these things otherwise. 
We made up stories about who or what might live in this big tree hole.....hobbits?  Fairies?  Leprechauns?  It has to be someone's home!
Amy, Sam and Grayson.....in front of the train depot.
Interesting and very detailed "corbels"?
They even had their own weather station!  I want one!
These were hibiscus in pink and white and they seemed to be growing wild.
Don't fall in!
You start at the Visitors Center and circle around the entire park and end up back where you started
We loved this little flower growing near the spring so I asked about it at the Visitor's Center when I got back and the lady got out an Arkansas Wild Flower book and said it is Jewel Weed.  It is supposed to be good for poison ivy and nettle stings if I remember correctly.  I would have liked to buy the book but it was pricey as it had tons of info and lots of color photos good for identifying plants.
Run for the hills...Sam and Grayson are loading up "The Big Gun"!
Plenty of water fowl all over the park too.............
This was an unusual bird I'd never seen before.  I should have enlarged it before posting.  Beautiful colors and a long beak. 
Well, vacation is over and it's back to work!  Tune in tomorrow for my book reviews....there's been some good books this month when I got a chance to read...lol!
I'm off to the great outdoors to work today as this week is cool temps and low dew points.
Happy Trails!
P.S.  I've decided to not list my "accomplishments" on the weekends as they really should be days off otherwise how am I ever going to get those projects done that I posted about yesterday? LOL!


12 comments:

  1. Nice outing! I always enjoy learning about the history of a place. Did a few historical walking tours on my own while in Colorado and Utah. I actually even read a couple of books. :) Happy Monday!

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    1. Happy Monday to you too...although it is Tuesday now that I am typing this so have a Happy Tuesday also.
      I never cared for history much when I was in school but now I am fascinated with it.

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  2. We once had a nice little train depot but when the city decided to do a downtown upgrade, they demolished it. It would have made a great museum for our town. Progress isn't always such a great thing, in my opinion. Love all the photos and so glad you got to spend time with family.
    Hugs,
    Sharon

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    1. I concur! I'm at an age now where I am choosing to go back to many "old ways".

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  3. I have always enjoyed visits at places like this. To my families chagrin I stopped at each and every sign and read every word. I love history. It looks like a wonderful day out.
    Blessings,
    Betsy

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    1. I read them too and I love going with my daughter because we always take our time. She's a teacher so she reads them to the kids.

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  4. Jewelweed is wonderful for taking the itch out of PI. I use it all the time. That looks like a way cool train depot...what fun you had! :)

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    1. I thought of you when I was there. I figured if you had been with us you could have identified every flower and bird for us! The lady said that the Jewel Weed prefers growing near water.

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  5. luv the wild growing Hibiscus... and that you all had a wonderful time...
    >^..^<

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    1. Thought of you yesterday as my new kitten is in the terrible two's right now and trashing everything and I found myself saying something to her and referring to myself as her "Cat Mom"...lol!
      Yes, I love hibiscus too and these were like bushes and taller than me.

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  6. Your ohana knows how to have fun. I love how our country has all of these national state parks to preserve land in its original state.

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    1. I agree with you Kepanie. I am so grateful to those who pushed for preservation and setting aside these parks. Even though I will not get to see most in my lifetime just knowing they are out there for future generations and others is a warm feeling.

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