Southwest 2021:
Day 21 - Hot Springs

	Monday, March 8, 2021: We were on our way by 7:00 AM. On our way out, we passed the ultra-super-deluxe campsites that come with their own backyard.
	When the light-rail stations are decorated with oil rigs, you know you're in Texas.
	There's Six Flags Over Texas - the only Six Flags location where the name makes sense. Every time we pass it, we quiz ourselves on what all six of the flags are that have flown over Texas. By now, we can usually name them all.
	This little decoration on a freeway structure represents Tom Landry's hat.
	Don't mess with Texas!
	The Dallas skyline had changed a bit since Debbie lived here, especially with the addition of those bridge arches, ...
	... but Fountain Place (the diamond-topped building) and Reunion Tower (the golf ball building) were still there.
	There's the Texas Star on the grounds of the Texas State Fair.
	We crossed huge Lake Ray Hubbard.
	Here's a Buc-ee's, which cousin Leonora strongly recommends we visit someday. Today was not that day though.
	It was our second trip to Texarkana in two months. This time, we noticed the blue Texas decorations on the highway overpasses on the Texas side of the city.
	We got a picture of the water tower ...
	... and the Welcome to Arkansas sign.
	On the Arkansas side of town, there were red Arkansas decorations on the highway overpasses.
	As we neared Hot Springs, we were hungry and in search of a regional fast food chain. Flying Burger and Seafood fit the bill nicely.
	Debbie got grilled shrimp and Tom got a shrimp po' boy, plus all the deep fried sides we could eat.
	We were on the Civil War Trail, an Arkansas Heritage Trail.
	The road wound through the hills leading to Hot Springs.
	Our first stop was Garvan Woodland Gardens.
	It's a large park and would be a great place to spend a day, ...
	... but our time was limited, so we headed straight for ...
	... the Bob and Sunny Evans Treehouse.
	One family was inside and another family was waiting, so we stayed put where we were told to stand, ...
	... and patiently waited our turn.
	This is such a cool structure.
	Here's the view from the second level looking out the large end (which you'll see in a minute), ...
	... and looking out the small end.
	the interior featured metal sculptures such as branches and leaves.
	Outside, we admired the little base below it with sparkling inlays depicting trees.
	Here's a view of the large front. It's just gorgeous.
	Definitely worth the drive out of our way to see it.
	We passed under this little bridge ...
	... on our way out of the park, which was an exercise in avoiding occasional groups of unmasked visitors.
	There were daffodils ...
	... and hyacinths in bloom throughout the park.
	One of the pavilions was being cleared between two weddings, because of course you'd go ahead with a wedding during a pandemic.
	We passed a pretty peacock on our way out of the gardens.
	Twenty minutes later, we were in downtown Hot Springs, Arkansas. The 100th anniversary of Hot Springs National Park had occurred just four days earlier.
	We parked in the visitor center parking lot in a spot designated for RVs. Fortunately, the lot was nearly empty so we didn't feel too bad about taking up a big rig spot. Tom went in to ask where we pay for visiting the national park (you don't, it's free) and also where the national park is (it starts right across the street).
	Right in the parking lot is a free fountain dispensing Hot Springs water, so Tom filled an empty water bottle. To our complete surprise, the water coming out was hot. Sure, it seems obvious now because it is right there in the name Hot Springs, but we never claimed to be bright.
	Next, we dropped all of our Netflix DVDs in the mail.
	It may be a national park, but Hot Springs is also a tourist town. Thus, it has Duck Tours.
	Then we crossed the street to see what we could see.
	We added another National Forest to our collection.
	We were now officially in Hot Springs National Park.
	This is the National Park Service Administration Office. Workers were working on the exterior during our visit.
	Bathhouse Row consists of eight bathhouse buildings constructed between 1892 and 1923.
	This area was designated as a National Historic Landmark District in 1987.
	Here are the bathhouses. First up is the Lamar Bathhouse, which contains the Bathhouse Row Emporium where we would spend a little money on our way back.
	Each bathhouse had an informational sign outside, which included the history of the bathhouse and a vintage photograph or two.
	Here is the Buckstaff Bathhouse, ...
	... the Ozark Bathhouse, ...
	... the Quapaw Bathhouse, ...
	... and the Fordyce Bathhouse, ...
	... with its name in stained glass in the front.
	According to its sign, there is more amazing stained glass inside, but the building is closed during the pandemic. However, a ranger was stationed out front and a National Parks passport stamp was set up on a table outside for the kids.
	There was an open area between bathhouses that featured two columns with lots of writing on them about this person and that period, blah blah blah.
	The Maurice Bathhouse was next.
	Toward the back of Bathhouse Row was a pair of springs.
	This little one is named Dripping Springs.
	The one next to it is named Tunnel Springs.
	Here's a look inside.
	Here's the Hale Bathhouse, ...
	... which is now a boutique hotel.
	... and Superior Bathhouse. Some of the bathhouses are available for leasing through the National Park Service. The leases help pay for the maintenance of the historic structures.
	There's a large open area at the end of Bathhouse Row called Arlington Lawn. It faces ...
	... Arlington Hotel.
	It has a Historic Baseball Trail sign in front of it that describes its history of hosting famous baseball players.
	We both liked the look of this cool old building across the street.
	Well, that was pleasant. Time to head back.
	Here are two cool buildings across the street, ...
	... and another.
	The Historic Baseball Trail sign tells us that these buildings were frequented by mobsters in the early 20th century.
	Here's Bathhouse Row. It's impossible to photograph the entire set of buildings, but here's our best effort.
	We bought a glass jar in the Bathhouse Row Emporium so we went to the water fountain to fill it for our basement bar. This time, we were fully prepared for the water to be hot because we are quick learners.
	We were heading out of town shortly before 3:00 PM. We later realized that we should have walked back via the Grand Promenade, which is on the hill right behind the bathhouses, but we were really looking forward to being in camp, so we didn't go back to see it.
	We passed Magic Springs, an amusement park, on our six-minute drive to ...
	... Hot Springs KOA Holiday.
	We had to climb a few steep hills to get to the office and our campground, ...
	... but it was worth it for a great back-in campsite with no one blocking our view to the west, ...
	... and a nice view to the north.
	It was a warm enough day to open the sliding door and put out the awning. We also used the reflecting side of our Weathertech cab window covers instead of black for a change.
	We enjoyed a couple of Crystal Light cocktails using the last of the tiny alcohol bottles we had brought with us. We had long ago run out of tiny pineapple juice cans to mix in our cocktails, so this was straight up Crystal Light fruit punch.
	Squirrel!
	What a great sunset view.
	After a dinner of leftover kolaches, we watched the infamous Meghan and Harry interview on our TV via Debbie's phone through Apple TV. It was nice being right next to a powerful cell tower.
	Here's what hummingbird cake looks like up close. We had never tried it before and we are definitely fans now. Day 22 >