Enjoying fall colors in the fog
This past Monday (Oct. 19), Linda and I, together with our good friend Bill Mitchell, took a drive eastward to check out the fall scenery. We had originally planned to go the previous Friday but I ended up spending the day with my grandsons Titus and Landon. Since Linda and Bill and I are retired, it was nothing to reschedule our outing for Monday.
Our first stop was Susan’s Restaurant in Springdale, where we enjoyed an excellent breakfast. Linda ordered a sausage biscuit, while I had two eggs over medium with crispy hash browns, sausage and biscuit and gravy. Bill had two scrambled eggs, ham and hash browns with rye toast. The fresh-brewed coffee really hit the spot. Susan’s is one of our favorite breakfast destinations.
It was cool and rainy with patches of fog as we headed toward Huntsville. The weather didn’t really bother us though as the main reason we go anywhere is to spend time together and fellowship, which means, of course, trading stories which we have most likely told or heard before. My policy is to wait until Bill tells a story he’s already told me before I do a repeat on one of mine. I don’t have a policy for beyond that, for when Bill tells a story we’ve heard several times already, but I need one. I don’t know if Bill has a policy for me or not, but he probably needs one, too.
One of my favorite stories and one I tell often has to do with a character out of Cormac McCarthy’s novel, “No Country For Old Men,” where the sheriff and his deputy come on a scene of devastation after a drug deal gone bad. With dead bodies strewn all over the ground and vehicles shot full of holes, the deputy turns to the sheriff and says something like, “Sheriff, this sure is a mess!” And the sheriff in a dry tone says, “Well if it ain’t a mess, it’ll do until a real mess comes along.” That right there is one of my all-time favorite quotes.
I told that story at the breakfast table and, right in the middle, it dawned on me that Linda and Bill had probably heard that story several times already. But they were kind, laughing heartily and seeming to enjoy it once again. And that, I believe, is one of the signs of true friendship.
It rained on us off-and-on all the way to Huntsville but now and then a beautiful tree would come floating along out of the fog and rain and we would all gaze in awe at the combination of colors and shape that fashioned that particular tree. Then too, sometimes we would see an entire hillside of color that really stood out to us. This was especially true when we crossed the White River on 412. The hills above the river were simply gorgeous. We saw several boatloads of fishermen on the water and envied them, of course.
At the Huntsville exit, we headed north on Highway 23 with the thought of touring around Eureka Springs. The drive up was lovely or as lovely as could be seen as we passed through patches of fog on the hilltops. I mentioned something about going for a ride on a foggy day. Bill said he preferred to think it got foggy on the day we decided to go for a drive. Did I mention that Bill is more of an optimist than I am? Well, there you go.
As we came into Eureka, the rain picked up a bit so that it was a steady sprinkle. Linda wanted to stop at a quilt store for some fabric, so we pulled into the O’Reilly Auto Parts store parking lot across the street from the quilt store. That’s because the quilt store parking is terrible and right on a curve, which makes it hard to pull back out onto the highway. I don’t know if it is just me or not, but there seems to always be a steady stream of cars in Eureka that magically space themselves out so you rarely get a good chance to pull out.
Linda finally came back to the truck after spending a good while in the fabric store. She was anxious to show us the material she had picked up. I asked her who the new quilt was for, but she didn’t know yet. She said she just liked the material. What I saw was a combination of some lavenders and yellows. They did look really nice.
We drove around the narrow streets of Eureka for a while. There were many people walking on the sidewalks and all the parking lots were full. Luckily for us, we didn’t come to browse the stores. There were many beautiful trees to draw our attention and a number of interesting homes and yards to see. We drove up by The Crescent Hotel where Linda and I have stayed a couple of times. We love it there. The historic old hotel is situated on the highest point in that county, the name of which eludes me. Wait, let me stop and look that up. Turns out it is in Carroll County. Well, there you go.
Afterward, we drove out to Beaver Lake Dam and toured some of the campsites. We may go back sometime to fish. It turned out to be a beautiful day and we all saw some areas we had never seen before. We then drove across the dam and down to the White River below. This area was so scenic and so peaceful we were thrilled to see it. The water flowed in a soft, quiet fashion.
At one point, Bill and I stood out on the bank of the river and watched while a couple of guys launched their canoe. They paddled around some but didn’t go far as they were waiting for a friend. Another fisherman came drifting backward downstream in a fishing kayak. He scared up a great blue heron which Bill and I had been watching on the far side. The bird didn’t go far before settling on the bank again. We could hear another heron croaking farther upstream. The water was so clear you could see logs extending a good way down into the water. The entire scene was so peaceful and quiet it made us both wish we were drifting downstream, too, with poles in our hands.
Bill and I reluctantly headed back to the truck. After checking out a few more campsites and possible fishing holes, we decided it was time to head home. All of us were thankful we hadn’t let a little fog and rain stop us from enjoying the beauties of nature found in the great Ozark outdoors.