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Weekend Arkansas Trip

AllByteNoBark

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Location
Victoria
First Name
John
Finally made it happen. Took off about 1:00 p.m. on the 29th and headed to Arkansas to meet a friend from Iowa to ride for a few days. We work with each other almost daily but it had been way to long since we had got together and rode. I rode up to Rusk and stayed in a cabin at the KOA that is on the Texas Tour for the night. There were some nice areas on the way to Rusk.

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And some BIG trees.

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And some not as interesting sections, but you have to pay that price to get there.

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Home for the night.

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Got up and left fairly early on Thursday morning and stopped at a few more tour stops that were close by. Then proceeded to our rental near Jasper, AR. Ended up with a total of 760 miles for the trip up.

Got to the house we rented about 15 minutes after my buddy which was very nice with a nice deck on the back with a view.

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We decided to run into Jasper and hit the Low Gap Cafe's new location for dinner. It was good and the pie was great! Yes, I know, seafood in Arkansas? From past experience theirs was always good and it did not disappoint.

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Friday we got up to rain, a lot of rain. It rained all day so we sat around on the deck watching the rain and catching up as it had been several years since we had been face-to-face even though we work together almost daily. It was good. Evening sunset brought signs of a better day tomorrow.

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The following morning, Saturday the rain had pretty much left the area and once the fog lifted we had a gorgeous day to ride. We ran a loop that ended up being a bit over 350 miles. The roads were as good as I remembered. There was hardly any traffic which surprised me, I think the bikers had been scared of by the possibility of rain.

Foggy morning but cleared up pretty quick. Here the sun has mostly burnt through. Time to go. The BMW said we rode 375 miles today and the Harley reported 390 miles. :shrug:

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We going or what?

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Had to stop here as it is a tradition for us.

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Lots of tortoises out, we counted 15 on our ride. This one had been blown upside down. I figured he was dead but saw his feet moving on the way by so went back and tipped him right side up.

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The first time we rode the area we ended up stopping near this super dinky town to look at a map. That was back before GPS was a thing. The rides from there on were known as the Snowball Run. So of course we need to visit Snowball every time we ride the area.

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Stopped to stretch our legs and get a drink in this little park. Not even sure where it was, but the shade was nice.

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My buddy had stopped at Carolyn’s RazorBack Ribs in Yellville on a previous trip when I was not along and thought we should eat there. Had the sampler platter which was excellent. I for sure did not leave hungry. Not sure what they call those fries but they we excellent. They had several fry choices and I told the girl waiting on us to just bring me the ones that were best.

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On Sunday we got up and again waited for the fog to clear a bit before taking off. Rode up toward the Eureka Springs area and went across the Golden Gate Bridge. My bike showed we ended up with around 350 miles for the day on Sunday.

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Did not take a lot of photos, just rode. Stopped here for a drink. Everything is very green in the area.

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We hit another little scenic pullout later. As we were leaving there were 10 or 12 side-by-side pulling in which I did not get a photo of. The views were awesome.

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We thought it was humorous when we saw this right were we had parked. We didn't write it on there but it does kind of fit.

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Another nice little pullout later in the afternoon. I really liked the stone wall guard rail, not sure it would stop much but it was interesting. There was several miles of it.

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Lot's of good corners and roads. Tried to capture this corner but not sure I did it justice. This particular road was rougher than most of them we rode. A lot had what appeared to be fresh blacktop.

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Got back and stopped at Jasper Pizza for dinner. Really friendly people and good pizza.

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Sadly all good thing must come to an end, had to head home on Monday morning. I think he is wondering "are ever going to get gone." Took me 12.5 hours to get home wit ha total of around 700 miles for the day.

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Scenic shot on the way out.

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Going to miss these signs when I get home.




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My friend took the below bird shots around the house we rented. Lots of interesting birds there.

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If you have never ridden in Arkansas, you need to go. I'm looking forward to the next trip there. I really love the low traffic and wide variety of options.

That's all. :pirate:
 
Looks like fun.
I went to central Arkansas last year (rode out of Russellville for 4 days) and was amazed at how pretty it was there, as well as the sheer number of nice roads there were to ride on.
Even the "bad" roads were pretty fun.
 
Looks like fun.
I went to central Arkansas last year (rode out of Russellville for 4 days) and was amazed at how pretty it was there, as well as the sheer number of nice roads there were to ride on.
Even the "bad" roads were pretty fun.

Yes, the bad roads there make our roads look really bad. The hill country has some good roads but there are just so many miles of roads up there and all fun.

Our day 1 route. One jog down and back for gas. Another little jog may or may not be because the person leading missed a turn.

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Day 2 route. Had one section where a bridge was flooded and we ended up taking a major highway for a bit. More traffic there but still good roads.

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We stayed at this place. Nice new house and clean. The drive might be a bit interesting for some people as it is gravel and being new, not packed in well yet. An uphill when you turn in. Neither of us had any issues at all. Nice flat area to park.


Edit: I should mention, those bunk beds are pretty short. Someone tall would not fit well
 
Looks like fun.
I went to central Arkansas last year (rode out of Russellville for 4 days) and was amazed at how pretty it was there, as well as the sheer number of nice roads there were to ride on.
Even the "bad" roads were pretty fun.
You and your AR trip are why I ended up with the RT! :rider:
 
Jasper is a great spot to base for paved and unpaved riding!! I am hoping to get up there in the fall and take my daughter, Sarah, with me. She's never been there on her own bike, only on the back of my GS. She hasn't been at her job long enough to have time off yet, but hopefully, by September or October, she'll be able to take a few days or a week off.
 
Looks like fun. I didn't think it was possible to visit that area of Arkansas on a motorcycle and not visit Oark. You, however, have proved me incorrect. Looks like a great time despite having an entire day rained out.
 
Always enjoy NW Arkansas and even southern "Misery". Several great friends live in Busch and in Jasper. Ready to leave Texas for that area as I type. White River is 55 degrees in front of my friends place...too cold to swim but perfect for sitting next to it on an afternoon with some friends and refreshment. Great report!
 
Looks like fun. I didn't think it was possible to visit that area of Arkansas on a motorcycle and not visit Oark. You, however, have proved me incorrect. Looks like a great time despite having an entire day rained out.
Difficult, but not impossible. I was charged with planning the routes and stuck to roads I like and a couple from Butler I had not ridden before. Also routed by a few places we rode the first time he came down to the area. Will probably hit Oark next trip which hopefully is not to far in the future. Maybe this fall.
 
Arkansas is a hidden gem, I am always blown away by it's beauty and variety when we visit. That pizza looks awesome and got me thinking, I've had some really awesome pizza throughout the state which is surprising. Thanks for sharing, the pics are great.
 
BTW, I grew up in Victoria and my folks still live there. It's nice to see someone in that town with a motorcycle that isn't a HD or naked sport bike haha.
 
Plenty of great rides, rallys, etc. throughout the year in AR to justify going up there. We try to make it annually, such a hidden gem of a state.
 
I need a guide to see this stuff in AR sometime!
If you are in Arkansas and above I40 you are more than likely on a good motorcycle road, at least in the western half of the state. If you ever want to go for a long weekend let me know. I could probably be convinced to go as long as the wife doesn't have something planned for me. ;-)
 
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