Law and Order and Chaos of War

5/15/2011

 We were up about 7:00am and had breakfast in our cave-on-wheels in the Sallisaw/Fort Smith KOA in Sallisaw, Ok.  Breakfast consisted of vegi-omlet ala teridyctal with bronto-sauage and pancakes.   It’s tough to have to do the “hunter-gatherer” meals all of the time, but Betty and Wilma seem to be up for it most of the time.

Once again we headed east on I-40 to Fort Smith, AR.   We took in the Fort Smith National Historic Site.  The passport books were properly stamped and duly processed at the VC.    We didn’t realize that Fort Smith figured so prominently in the history of federal Indian policy.  We were all aware of Judge Isaac Parker’s Court, but didn’t totally understand the huge area that was under the court’s jurisdiction.  The court house and prison were very interesting and quite an eye opener. 

Fort Smith Courthouse

Barney and Fred in custody

Judge Parker's Courtroom

We headed north on I-540 and paused in Rogers, Ak, having discovered a random Taco Bell.  We dined on tacos and burritos then continued our trek northward.

We turned east on Rt. 62 to the Pea Ridge National Military Park.  It was a little difficult to locate on the map, however there are enough road signs that we got there without any problems. 

Pea Ridge is the site of a Union victory that helped to determine the status of the territory west of the Mississippi River.  Confederate hopes of occupying Missouri were dashed.  This year commemorates the 150^th anniversary of the Civil War in the Ozarks.  The VC at Pea Ridge has an excellent video of the battle and there is a driving tour.  The displays in the VC are well done and very informative.  Naturally all of the passport books were stamped.

Barney and Betty at Pea Ridge

From Pea Ridge we headed for Springfield, Mo.   We were a little too late to stop at the Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield, so we continued east on Rt. 60.  After a fuel stop in Seymour, Mo, we continued on   to visit one of the Rubble branch of the Bedrock Bunch.  The rolling caves are currently parked but will probably be taking day trips for the next few weeks.

Look for more in the next week or so.