Westward Ho - A cross country travel log

[urple2 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close urple2]

After Graceland, we headed to Fairfield Bay in Arkansas. We arrived around 8 pm after getting lost a few times. This place is really in the sticks. It's really in the middle of nowhere. We really like it, though. Our timeshare unit is a 2 bedroom townhouse style condo in the fairways section.

I'm heading their july 07. Thought it would be a nice break from Universal Studios,etc.

Enjoy your trip !

____

Bill

[BocaBum99 Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close BocaBum99]

Fairfield Bay is HUGE

I thought Orange Lake Country Club was huge. Fairfield Bay makes Orange Lake look like a parking lot. It doesn't have as many units or golf courses, but whatever it lacks in those areas, it makes up in shear acreage.

Today, I got in the car to check out the resort. 35 miles and 2 hours later, I gave up trying to see it all and came back to my unit for lunch. I have a bunch of pictures that I'll post when I get to high speed internet access.

This resort has 2 golf courses, Mountain Ranch and Indian Hills Golf Course and is set in a very mountainous part of Arkansas near the Ozark Foothills about 75 miles north of Little Rock. A few times, I had to put the car into low and very low gear to make it up and down the mountain roads. I would NOT want to drive here when it's icy.

In addition, it has its own post office, chamber of commerce, 2 gas stations, a shopping mall, a couple park areas with mini-golf, a Lion's Club, Pizza Hut, several restaurants, horse riding stables and a bunch of other amenities. This is like summer camp for adults.

If you are up for it, there is a full function Marina that seemed about 10 miles away, but still in Fairfield Bay. The coolest part of that marina was the feeding area for the carp. You can feed them directly from the dock.

I really like it here. We are just relaxing today since we've been driving so much. Tomorrow, it's off to Ridgedale to check out the famous Big Cedar Wilderness Club. And, it's only about 100+ miles away. I can't wait to see what they show me in the show me state.

[mshatty Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close mshatty]

Boca,

Your posts are great and thanks for sharing them with us. However, I was a little worried about you and Arkansas:

"Checking out Graceland tomorrow and then onto Fairfield Bay for a couple of nights. What's in Arkansas other than a bunch of chickens. Well, I guess we'll soon find out."

I've only been to Arkansas a few times in my life but I too have found it quite beautiful in the mountains there. I look forward to going to adult summer camp up there are Fairfield Bay in the next year or so.

Thanks again for all of your pictures and descriptions. It makes working this summer a little more bearable being able to take a vicarious vacation through you and your family and much more affordable.

Continue to be safe and careful.

[BocaBum99 Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close BocaBum99]

Boca,

Your posts are great and thanks for sharing them with us. However, I was a little worried about you and Arkansas:

"Checking out Graceland tomorrow and then onto Fairfield Bay for a couple of nights. What's in Arkansas other than a bunch of chickens. Well, I guess we'll soon find out."

I've only been to Arkansas a few times in my life but I too have found it quite beautiful in the mountains there. I look forward to going to adult summer camp up there are Fairfield Bay in the next year or so.

Thanks again for all of your pictures and descriptions. It makes working this summer a little more bearable being able to take a vicarious vacation through you and your family and much more affordable.

Continue to be safe and careful.

Sorry, I meant no offense to Arkansas. I was just making a (bad) joke on Ross Perot's words when he was running for President in the early 90's against Bill Clinton and claiming that chickens was the only industry in Arkansas. We all know that Walmart is as well. The funny thing about that is that when I listen to many of the people talk here, they have a very similar accent to Ross Perot. And, I think Texarkana is right on the Arkansas border with Texas. This place is cool and I'd come back any time to visit.

[mshatty Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close mshatty]

Boca,

Actually, the Texas Arkansas border runs right through the middle of Texarkana. Although it seems to me that the city on the Texas side is a little larger than on the Arkansas side.

I was not in anyway offended by your prior post. In fact, when I read it, I thought that your reference to chickens was based on Ross Perot's quote. Sometimes, I actually get the jokes!

Keep having fun!

[ctandrinokc Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close ctandrinokc]

Jim- Missouri is my neck of the woods, I'm sure you'll like it! Make sure you go and see at least one of the Branson shows - you won't regret it. The whole family would enjoy it. Drive Safe!
Chris

[BocaBum99 Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close BocaBum99]

Fairfield Bay to Bluegreen Wilderness Club at Big Cedar

I was so anxious to tell you about Big Cedar that I forgot to mention our trip from Fairfield Bay to Big Cedar.

On the way, we decided to take a side trip to the Blachard Springs Caverns which was about 54 miles from Fairfield Bay. This is a hidden gem that I recommend anyone in the area go to see.

There are really pristine caverns there with well preserved natural beauty.

Here are some excerpts from my wife's email to friends about it:

Oh..my...G*d.... This is one of the most beautiful places I've ever been to.

Driving from through the trees and over creeks and rivers in the Ozark mountains was great. We stopped over to see the Blanchard Spring Caverns. Blanchard Springs Cavern
It's one of the most beautiful underground caverns with a wonderful variety of stalactite and stalagmite forms, columns of incredible height (65 feet tall), curtains, flow rocks, pools, and 200 year old piles of bat guano! "Scientists" believe it's 50 - 70 million years in the making. The formations are so soft and fragile. There is a column that is 18 feet tall, maybe 9 inches in diameter that reach from floor to ceiling. An earthquake struck the area, but it didn't break. They explained that since we were over 200 feet below the surface, the effect was not felt. (Any help with this one?)

The water eventually runs through and out of the cave at Blanchard Springs. We ended our trip by driving to the springs.....

[BocaBum99 Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close BocaBum99]

Bluegreen Wilderness Club at Big Cedar......

After our detour to Blanchard Springs Cavern, we headed to Big Cedar. The drive was fairly slow due to the windy and hilly roads. So, we arrived in the early evening only to arrive to a site we didn't fully expect. Big Cedar is so impressive that it deserves a thread of its own. Simply the BEST

[BocaBum99 Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close BocaBum99]

Last night, we went to Branson to check out the area and catch a show.

We asked a bunch of people what to see and we decided on Dolly Parton's Dixie Stampede. I had passed by the Dixie Stampede over 100 times in Orlando, but never went. Given the recommendations, we got the tickets and went.

The drive through Branson was incredibly difficult. There is only a 2 lane highway with one lane in both directions on route 76.

I drove the entire strip and I must say, I was not impressed. I expected something like Las Vegas or Orlando. It really didn't meet my expectations. I did see for the first time "welcome centers" aka timeshare body snatching locations advertising that they wanted II and RCI members to come in. I guess that means anyone who owns a timeshare. I think I expected something more like what I saw in Pigeon Forge or Gatlinburg here in Branson. I am hoping that someone can chime in here and explain the appeal. I only got to see route 76, so I could be missing some really cool stuff.

I decided to check out The Falls Village, which is the Bluegreen resort in Branson. And again, I wasn't impressed. I wonder if it's because I am staying at Big Cedar. Am I now Jaded? Spoiled? I have prided myself in being a value oriented person who tries not to be seduced by Brands.

The Fairfield Branson is right next to the Falls Village.

And, I saw WorldMark Branson, on Falls Creek Road, but I didn't stop to see it. I would have, but I would have been late for the show.

The Dixie Stampede was an interesting show. Not something that I would do often, but I am glad I did it ONCE. As soon as you get your tickets and get in, they take your picture and send you to the shop. Then, you go to a pre-show (which we missed) that serves NON-Alcoholic drinks and you get seated around a rodeo ring. They serve you food and you eat it without forks and knives. We had soup, chicken, sausage, corn, potato, corn bread and an apple turnover. The drink selection was Pepsi, coffee and ice tea.

The show consisted of a bunch of horse, buffalo, ostrich races, tricks and spectacles along with some comedy, singing and dancing and audience participation.

It really reminded me a lot of the local fairs I had growing up. Good wholesome fun.

[BocaBum99 Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close BocaBum99]

From Branson to Estes Park....

Yesterday, we drove about 400 miles and spent the night in Candlewood Suites in Salina, Kansas. This was a logical breaking point for what would have been a 900 mile journey.

It's nice little suites hotel. Food you can buy in a store. Mini-kitchen and HIGH SPEED INTERNET. You can now see the pictures I uploaded at Big Cedar.

I will be offline until we get to WorldMark Estes Park where we will spend 3 nights. I can't wait to get there. It will be a long 500 mile journey with the last 77 miles taking over 2 hours.

See you then.....

[mshatty Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close mshatty]

Boca,

Thanks for all of your sharing. I am really enjoying my virtual vacation with you and your family.

Be careful and safe on your journey to Estes Park.

[BocaBum99 Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close BocaBum99]

We were on the road to Estes Park early in the morning and made really great time on the I-70. We averaged about 85 miles per hour all the way to Colorado, so we arrived mid-afternoon. The drive was a little over 500 miles.

As an aside, before we headed up the mountain to this 7500 ft location, we stopped off at Del Taco for lunch. Growing up, it was my favorite fast food mexican. It was great to find one this far east. We just had to stop. It wasn't nearly as good as I remembered. But, it did bring back good memories.

This is a very gorgeous location. We checked into the WorldMark at Estes Park and we have a 3 bedroom unit right next to the river. Great location. I love opening up the windows and listening to the river and the birds. The weather was cloudy and rainy when we arrived. It went into the low 50's last night. It was 52 degrees when I woke up early this morning. It will be 81 as a high. It's really really great to finally be in a cool place given how blazing hot it has been everywhere this summer.

The resort itself it fairly small. And, after going to Big Cedar, the units seem pretty plain. Nothing wrong with them. Just more modest. And, the facades are pretty fake looking log cabin style siding.

My unit is on the lower level which appears to be the walk out basement converted into a timeshare. So, the ceilings are only about 7 feet high. The second floor units have much higher ceilings. But, no complaints from me.

There is a gas burning fireplace, bbq grills everywhere, very nice and roomy unit. We will be here for three days. Can't wait to see the Rocky Mountains.

As we have been driving across country. We kept discussing the best places to live. We've lived in Hawaii, Southern California, New Jersey and South Florida. We think that Colorado would be a great choice to own a home. All we really need is a place to keep our "stuff" since we can timeshare all over the world. So, it just needs to be relatively cheap, low property taxes and nice part of the year.

Big Cedar is an excellent place to vacation. Colorado seems to be an excellent place to live.

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

So we got it backwards, huh?

EP was on our list of places to live, along with Kauai and SW Florida. Our vet in KC had a place in the EP area.

All three of those locations have something in common. They are very expensive.

So here we are. Or, so we are here.

So, what route have you chosen leaving EP?

Big Cedar is an excellent place to vacation. Colorado seems to be an excellent place to live.

[BocaBum99 Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close BocaBum99]

So we got it backwards, huh?

EP was on our list of places to live, along with Kauai and SW Florida. Our vet in KC had a place in the EP area.

All three of those locations have something in common. They are very expensive.

So here we are. Or, so we are here.

So, what route have you chosen leaving EP?

Sorry, I should have qualified my statement. For a kid who grew up in Southern California, Colorado seems to be a great place to live.... When you grow up in SoCal, you only think that Hawaii and Florida will be similar to where you are from. Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico and Colorado always seem to be suitable as well. Of course, we were wrong about that. Just about anywhere in this great country of ours would be a great place to live. Heck, I lived in New Jersey for 14 years and we loved it.

Our next stop will be Wolf Creek, UT. So, we will be driving back down the mountain and back to the I-25 up to I-80 and over to the Salt Lake City area. I can't wait for that. I've never been there....

[mshatty Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close mshatty]

Boca,

I just love Colorado! In fact, I will be visiting in September. I am going on a 3 day horseback packing campout in the Buena Vista area. I can't wait!!

Those mountains are something to behold.