TUESDAY AND ALL IS WELL

Hi everybody... thought I would try to get another posting up on the blog.  Lots has happened but nothing extremely important.  Unless, it is the opening back up of the campgrounds.  Speaking of campgrounds... I found this copperhead snake after a heavy rain when I went for a walk near the chestnut trees.  I did not do a catch and release because he is venomous. Doesn't belong near people and specially where they are putting their hands down to gather nuts. If he would have been somewhere in the woods then I would have let him go.  But there is no way I was going to try to catch him and take him off to the woods. I'm not that brave, lol...

 

After the rains the finches, sparrows, bluebirds, and indigo come down from the trees in a quick swoop to grab any bug that moves.  They are fun to watch... 

 

This is a flock of loons that were swimming on the opposite side of the lake so the photo isn't that great. I thought at first they were weird acting ducks... maybe doing a water ballet...

 

 

 When the rains slacked off we decided to get away from cabin fever. So we went over to Mt. Ida and visited our old favorite rock shop... Fiddler's Ridge. Seems that the old mine that we knew was no longer producing and they had moved to Fisher Mountain. They then sold out of the mining of crystals. All they have now is the shop. Still have a nice selection of rocks and things but we didn't see the crystals like we did when we first visited in 1989. But they still had some of the items that we loved... Like this crystal eagle ...

 

And the rock knives... They are handmade locally. The blue glass one really stood out...

 

When we first visited them they told the story about someone finding this sabertooth skull in a nearby cave. How much truth to the story I have no idea.  But it makes for an interesting conversation. Be it real or not...

 

 

 They have a nice place inside and out...

 

 

Lots of rocks, minerals, glass, and naturally crystals from their old mines...

 

The yard area had some nice slabs of group crystals from the first mine.

 

 

This next photo is of a big gold rock. The mica was so thick it looked like it had been gold plated. Very pretty and flashy in the sunlight...

 

 

 While out in this area we spotted this group of crystals with several double terminators so we purchased it...

This internet connections has gone from bad to worse.  So rather than fight with it I am going to fix my bed and then get in it... two o'clock in the morning is a bit late for me.  Tomorrow is another day...

 

 

So.... come on and....

 

 

KEEP ON DANCING

TUESDAY AT HWY 27 CAMPGROUNDS

 

Here it is Tuesday and it has rained all night and is still raining this morning. Sure makes me wonder because yesterday Phil decided to wash the trailer. Which he did from top to bottom...

 

A couple of days ago I took my bike and went looking for firewood. I found where someone had cut up fallen trees and left a lot of firewood.  While walking around and picking it up I spotted this crystal close to a tree. It was just lying there on top of the ground. Not too far from where it was there is a vein of quartz but I didn't find any more crystals. I would expect there would be a few tiny pieces. There are several mines all around us... Coleman's, Fiddler's, Wagner's, just to name a few of old mines. We have noticed a lot of new mines around Mt. Ida. Also, it seems that everyone and his neighbor have crystals for sale. We enjoy finding them and passing them on to others, such as this one...

  

 Guess that was my lucky day because I just happened to have my camera in hand when this osprey decided to go fishing. I watch him drop from the sky and hit the water. Then I started shooting him in action. This is him going in for the kill...

 

And here he is trying to become airborne again...

 

We have lift off... If you look at his feet you can see the fish he caught. I was amazed at how deep into the water he actually went and the size of the fish he came back up with. Normally, this takes place so fast that the eye does not catch the whole of the events. So, I'm happy that the camera shows what I wouldn't normally get to see.

 

The next day I took a few photos and I think the one of the flock of huge birds flying over is one of the highlights.

 

They circled several times before finally coming to land on the far shore across the lake...

 

 

The next morning I captured a pretty good shot of them before they continued their journey to the Gulf of Mexico winter grounds.

 

The Great White American Pelican...

 

 

 Before the rains hit we rode over to the old fishing village to have a better look at the original village. Parking our bikes under the old oak we walked around to see what we could find. The village is across from the swim beach in our campground. That is the white area you see on the other side. The shed is the fish cleaning station which is still in use today...

 

 

Phil spotted this old cellar with the old holey aluminum boat. We saw a couple of these cellars over there. This one was near the old community kitchen. Just to the side there was a huge brick oven. There are also cabins on this part of the land. Just beyond this old area is the newer section of the village where people have their mobile homes and trailers. Also, there is the small store there. Although the places are pretty and well kept we enjoyed the discovery of the old village and getting a peek into the past more...

 

 

The country lane between the original fishing village and the campground is really starting to look pretty. Leaves are changing from green to yellow, orange, and reds... How pretty...

 

 

 This beautiful little red tree is very near where I found bear scat. While we were over in the village I asked if there were bear in this area. I was informed that just up the road near the Aqua Motel there was one reported on the roof of a lady's house a couple of weeks ago. There is only a mountain top between there and here. That information told me that I was right about the bear coming into the campground and eating chestnuts whole. But back to the tree... isn't it pretty?

 

 

Once again it is time to bring the blog to an end. I have been sitting here for hours because of the slow connection. But hey... at least I have a connection. I have tried to stay in good spirit rather than getting frustrated. But now I am ready to move around and dance...

 

 

So.... come on everybody.... Let's all...

 

KEEP ON DANCING...

 

 

 

THURSDAY AT THE LAKE

What a beautiful time of the year here in this area.  We have been here at this campground before and really enjoyed it. But it was nothing compared to this time of year. It is magnificent in it's beauty. There is wildlife in abundance, autumn color to the foliage, a hint of the winter to come, and the serenity of peace in the air. This time of year has always been special to me. Maybe it is because I was born in autumn. I really don't know.. but I know that I love the feel of autumn and that feel is intensified when I am surrounded with nature's abundance of beauty. As a child I remember the anticipation of the holiday's ahead... Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. Now, as an adult I look upon those same holidays differently but I still have that inner child that enjoys the feel of the season. I hope that you can still feel the season's gifts to your inner child and that you will take a deep breath of the renewing spirit that is in the air. Here the air can be seen as it forms fog clouds that lift up into the sky...the mist is in the air...

 

We spent a couple of days checking out the other parks here around the lake.  That was a lot of fun. Some of the parks were pretty and would work for us but a few were taken off our list. Coming back from the Buckley Park we spotted these wild turkey crossing the road. They were quite a way up the road so this photo is about at the end of my zoom lens possibilities. A little farther away and they would have been a blur crossing the road...

 

 

Even though the truck's hemi motor is loud Phil still managed to get a bit closer for me to get a better shot of them... Now, this is the way to shot wild turkeys.. no mess, no loss of life, and makes great eye candy lol...

 

 

This is a flock of whooping cranes that Phil spotted flying over our camp looking for a nice landing spot. By the time I saw them, ran into the house and grabbed the camera, they were on the other side headed up another arm of the lake. Not perfect but proof that they were here...

 

 

This osprey was so high up everyone thought it was a buzzard circling the sky.  Thus, there is a lot of noise (spots) in the sky and the blue is rather blotchy looking because of it. But it is an osprey looking for fish in the lake below...

 

 

This is an original grumpy ole man... He likes to land at the beach in front but doesn't like us there. As you can see from the photo he is looking back at me on the ledge...I'm not sure what he said but he wasn't happy about it ... for sure!

 

 

I almost cry when I remember this little turtle. He was headed straight toward the cliff and would have fallen onto the rocks below. So me in my wanting to rescue him from that fate, may have caused his death. I picked him up and move him to another area of the park thinking he was safe there. But later Phil informed me someone ran over him. He was coming back. It is so sad that his life was taken so needlessly...

 

 

Below is one of the areas that we chose not to stop at.  We were headed to the Lena Campgrounds and were informed that it was closed. The man that was informing us told us of his private campground. Very primitive but had water and electric at the sites. It need mowing badly, the sites were unleveled and looked unkept. But the real clincher to us not wanting to stay was the price and no lake water...

 

 

We are very spoiled with our lake front views...

 

 

Well, I started this blog when I first got up this morning and it is now ten past three in the afternoon. While waiting on photos to upload I have cleaned and vacuumed the house, baked a chicken with chestnut dressing, and ate. Time to call this blog done. So I am kicking back and resting awhile...

 

 

That's it for the day... so.....

KEEP ON DANCING

 

 

 

 

 

LAKE OUACHITA, ARKANSAS

Wow... what a wild ride.  As we were preparing to leave Greer's Ferry Lake when the camp host came by and informed us the park was closing. Then we learned that all Government Parks and Campgrounds we closing due to the Government shutdown. Oh no... that shot our plans out of the sky. The only thing we could do was head down south to the Ouachita Lake and the Hwy 27 Fishing Village. Even though the park is just outside of the fishing village it was made by and is advertise as an Army Corps campground but it is privately own by the owner of the fishing village. The corps owns the land but it is run and maintained by the owner of the village due to his winning a lawsuit. So he had to lower his fees to match theirs and he has to honor the Senior Passport. This card is what we use to get the rates at half price. We came straight down to this park and were the first here but it has since started filling up. I don't know if it is local fishermen  or full time campers like ourselves. I tend to think most are local.

I have not been able to get on the internet because of poor reception... and I mean very poor...1 bar..no bar. But I was able to get a couple of emails out. We have no telephone reception... no how...no way. So please forgive the slowness of my writing the blog. Also, I cannot upload but a very few photos if any.

We are about twenty plus miles from Mt. Ida, and about twelve or so from Story, Arkansas.  Mt. Ida is known for their quartz crystals. It is where we have always come to get our crystals.  I absolutely love the energy here. It is so nurturing and healing for mind, body, and soul. But I am not sure I want to winter here because it gets cold... ice and snow country.  Guess that depends on what the government does.

I have been busy harvesting chestnuts and roasting them. There are three large trees that are loaded. The deer hit them at night and we hit them during the day. And there are still plenty on the ground... a bumper crop. They have to be dried before they can be stored. That is a chore but worth the work. Phil had his first taste of fresh chestnuts and he is hooked...lol. I really don't mind as he is helping with the collecting of them and putting them up.

This photo is the view that we have in front of us.  I took it the day we arrived...

This is the same area but I was standing just pass the bench in the above photo. It was taken the next morning...

 

Directly across the lake lives an American Bald Eagle. I just happened to have my camera in hand when he started harassing the herons. What you don't see in the photo are the two bluejays that were harassing him lol...

 

I love this photo of Phil fishing from the bank...

 

Except for the park needing  to be mowed the area is beautiful and serene. We are on the west side of the lake. On the east side is Hot Springs.  This is a large lake and my photos only show this tiny area...

 

 

And here is a photo of our campsite. We sit on a bluff with the lake a few feet below us...

 

Even though we feel chained to this area until there is a "change" in the government.... we are still dancing.... Hope that you are too...

 

KEEP ON DANCING

LAST DAY HERE AT GREER'S FERRY LAKE, AR.

Once again we start our packing so  we can move to the next campground. We are moving to the Kennedy Park just outside Heber Springs, Ar. It is on Collins Creek which flows into the lake. We decided against Dam Site Park which is directly on Greers Ferry Lake. That too, is a pretty park but the Kennedy Park is right beside the fish hatchery. Which means there are lots of big trout in the creek. This photo shows a few...

 

When we first arrived here two weeks ago I found this baby watermelon growing at the campsite next to us...

 

 

I watched it grow into a nice looking melon but then the mowers came and killed it.. I cut it open and found that it was just starting to turn pink. What a waste...

Phil took his boat out to get his trot lines in. I was standing out in the water when I glance up to see this boat coming straight at him...

 

I am happy to say that the boat slowed down and turned slightly to miss him and he came back safely to shore...

 

 Poor little SuYang thinks she has to get into the water every time I do. She swam out to where I was standing then turned and went back to shore. This is her standing waiting on me to come back to land. She is getting to where she loves the  water so I will have to watch that she stays out of it come this winter...

 

 

We had a storm blow in and it rained some. Supposed to be more rain all this week...

The yellow has given way to golds, browns, and reds and the trees are so beautiful to behold...

 

I took this next photo when I was standing in the water taking the photo of Phil and his boat...

 

There are some trees that have just begun their color change within the park. They did not start their display as soon as those close to our area did. I find that interesting...

 

 I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw this tree stump covered in fungus mushrooms... they formed a heart!... What a rare sight to see!...

 

Phil is really becoming a Grill Master and I am getting spoiled lol.

So, as this day ends we close everything down and we get ready to travel the highway tomorrow. The weather report says it could be stormy tomorrow but...

 

NO MATTER HOW WILD THE RIDE

 

 REMEMBER WE JUST...