Arkansas the “Natural State” is located in the south central area of the United States and is bordered by Missouri to the north, Louisiana to the south, Oklahoma and Texas to the west and Mississippi and Tennessee to the East. Arkansas was originally purchased from France in 1803 as part of the Louisiana purchase and turned into its own territory in 1819. On June 15, 1836 Arkansas became recognized as the 25th state of the USA.
One of the most beautiful areas in Arkansas is the “Arkansas River Valley Tri-Peaks Region”, this area is located in the central north western part of the state. The valley part of the name comes from it being enclosed by Mt. Nebo, and the Ouachita (pronounced Washita) and Ozark mountain ranges, and the Tri-peak comes from three of its most beautiful scenic mountainous areas: Mt. Nebo, Mt. Magazine, and Petit Jean Mountain. There are other peaks in the region, that are also nice to hike and admire, but these are the most popular in the area, and anyone from there will be able to point you in the direction of any of them that you would want to see.
The Arkansas River Valley Tri-Peak Region (ARV- from here on) encompasses 6 counties. These counties are Johnson, Logan, Pope, Yell, Conway and Perry. Each of these counties gives something unique and special to the beauty of the ARV.
On the east side of the ARV is Conway County. This is the home of the Petit Jean Mountain range. It was Arkansas first state park and provides beautiful overviews of basically the entire ARV, its beautiful natural lakes and streams and the Arkansas River. On top of Petit Jean Mountain you will find the Museum of Automobiles which houses a collection of 50 beautifully restored classic vehicles. The museum keeps rotating different cars in and out so multiple visits never prove boring. At different points throughout the year it also plays host to car shows. During these shows hundreds upon hundreds of mint vintage vehicles come from all across the United States to show off their beauty. These car shows are usually free to the general public and provide a great outing for family and friends. Also located more towards the center of Conway County in the town of Morrilton there is a fully functional and restored Rialto Theatre, that hosts plays, music shows and other forms of live entertainment.
Directly West of Conway County you will find Pope County. Here you will find Picklecity, USA (Atkins, Arkansas). It is called Picklecity due to the fact that it is home of one of the most popular pickle brands in the entire United States. Each May, Atkins hosts a picklefest which provides visitors with a variety of ways to cook and eat with pickles, arts and crafts shops and home cooked meals for all. Just north of Atkins you will find the town of Pottsville. Pottsville is the smallest town in terms of population in the county, yet is home to some of the most popular sites. One of these sites is the Potts' Inn. Potts Inn was built in 1850, and served as a stagecoach mail station. It has been basically kept in mint condition over the years and still looks brand new even today. (For detailed information about Potts Inn see: http://www.arvtripeaks.com/potts.htm). The second historical site in this town is the Crow Mountain Petroglyph, which dates back to the year 1000. The petroglyphs are from prehistoric times and Native Americans. The biggest city in this county, Russellville became noted for its Jimmy Lile Knives. These knives were the hand made knives that were used in both Rambo and Rambo 2 films. His knives are still being made today even after his death, but only by craftsmen that he personally trained and each and every knife produced is personally inspected by his wife before being sold.
Just west of Pope County is Johnson County. Johnson County is partial home of the Ozark National Forest. Here you will find beautiful recreational areas, camping sites, hiking trails, mountain climbing, canoe streams and many other activities for the nature lover inside you. Toward the northern part of this county in Altus, you will find the Arkansas Wineries. These wineries were settled in the early 1800's by Swiss and German immigrants, and have been maintained throughout this time still producing wines today. The winery hosts Daily tours in which they offer free tasting samples of their wines.
South of Johnson County is Logan County. Logan County is home to Mt. Magazine which is the highest point in Arkansas. Mt. Magazine offers many beautiful overlooks of the ARV, and hosts the International Butterfly Festival in June. The major city in Logan County is Paris. Named after Paris France, it has over 25 listings on the National Historic Register for the United States. One of the more notable sites are the Old Paris Jail, which is where the last legal hanging in Arkansas took place in the early 1900's. Probably the most famous site in this county is the Subiaco Abbey and Academy which was founded in 1878 by the Benedictine monks. Tours are available of the St. Benedict Abbey Church and grounds at your own leisure or upon request guided tours can be made available.
South of Logan county you will find Yell County. Yell County hosts two of the United States most immaculate national forests, the Ozark National Forest in the northern portion of the County, and the Ouachita National Forest in the southern part of the county. Yell county also houses three state parks including Mt. Nebo, Petit Jean and Lake Dardnelle state parks, and a prize winning 500 plus year old White Oak tree located in Council Oak Park. Also located in Yell County is one of the nations most notable wild life refuges, Holla Bend National Wildlife Refuge. This refuge is great for viewing different types of wildlife and has been known to be a home for the American National Bird the Bald Eagle during the winter months. For more information about the types of wildlife that can be found on this refuge you can visit: http://gorp.away.com/gorp/resource/us_nwr/ar_holla.htm .
To the East of Yell County and South of Conway County is Perry County. Most of Perry County is taken up by the Ouachita National Forest, and is home to the Heifer Ranch Conference and Retreat Center for the Heifer Project International. This retreat center gives the realities of life in all parts of the world, and offers guided tours, meals and an international gift shop.
As I grew up in this area, I took a lot of it for granted since I was able to see it everyday. Now that I have moved on in my life and been literally around the world and a lot of what the world has to offer in scenery and hospitality, I look back and realize that there is nothing that beats the sites and friendliness found in the ARV. With national forests, state parks and historical sites and landmarks found in every direction you look, nothing beats it. Although the whole area takes up 6 full counties and can not be totally appreciated in just a week or two of vacation, you will not regret taking your time to intake all the great sites that you do observe while you are there. With plenty of camping facilities located in each of the counties, and hotels/motels all located within driving distance of each you will never be left without a place to lay you head after a enjoyable day of site seeing. The drawbacks to this area is that since it is a majority of forests and historical sites, it does not have a great population which means that it is lacking on public transportation. In most of these counties you will be lucky to find a total of two taxi services, and they are very expensive considering the distances that you will be traveling to see each area. Your best bet would be to hire/rent a car from the airport since they will usually offer specials or unlimited mileage for the duration of your stay.
For more information or a free brochure you can visit: http://www.arvtripeaks.com/contact_us and they will mail a brochure directly to you.
If there is anything else that you would like to know about the ARV please leave me a note and I will do my best to inform you or update this review.
*********************UPDATE**********************
As I was reading over this again, I just wanted to emphasize something. The area here is a typical U.S. Southern type place. This means that you will run into probably the most friendly people that you have ever met. Most of them will go out of your way to assist you with things, and will say hi to you just to brighten your day. It is not a big party area, as in clubbing. This is a great place for sight-seeing and relaxing. It is a break from the everyday city, work life that most of us need. Prices in this part of the state are normally a little bit cheaper than what you would find in the more populated areas also.
Thank you for taking the time to read. Cheers Dave
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