Toad Suck State Park

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

RUSSELLVILLE, AR – The names of some places we pass on the highway are too quirky to ignore. Hence the title of today’s entry, which is an honest-to-goodness attraction in the state of Arkansas! It reminded me of one in Pennsylvania that was called Hungry Mother State Park. Where do they get these names?

Shortly after we left the RV park this morning, we turned in to the Arkansas welcome centre for maps and information. I asked the attendant why the last syllable of her state is pronounced “ah” when it reads “as”, and she said that in the 1890s the state passed a bill establishing the correct pronunciation, and that’s what it has been ever since.

We had a perfectly beautiful day for traveling today, with clear skies and bright sunshine. We hit a high of about 58, so it was really quite pleasant. Signs of spring are everywhere – more and more emerald green fields spread out on either side of the highway, and we caught glimpses of flowering fruit trees and even wild daffodils as we drove.

Today we saw more evidence of wildlife than any other so far. Unfortunately, a lot of it was squished on the side of the highway, including a deer, a racoon, and a coyote. I saw a couple of slender white cranes wading through some roadside ponds, and we saw a couple of hawks close up as well. At our campground this evening we could hear cardinals trilling away nearby. For us, March has definitely come in like a lamb.

We passed through Little Rock this morning, and I read in one of the pamphlets we picked up about the Little Rock Nine – the nine African-American teenagers who, in 1957, tested the notion of equal rights for all by trying to attend an all-white high school in that city. They were turned away at first by the Arkansas National Guard, but some days later, on orders of President Eisenhower, were escorted by the US Army to class. It sparked news stories everywhere. Val says he remembers that event very well, but I can’t say I do; I was under 10 years of age when it happened. Now there is a civil rights museum across the street from Little Rock Central High School, which has also been declared a National Historic Site, and 2,400 students still attend the fully-integrated school.

We stopped for lunch and fuel at a truck stop just off the highway. It was a bustling place, and in the parking area there were dozens of tractor-trailers parked, still running, while their drivers paused for food, a shower, or just a break from their trek on the Interstate. There were literally hundreds of the huge trucks on the road, heading in both directions. I tried to look through the cab windows of oncoming tractor-trailers to see if any of them had companions in the passenger seats, but I didn’t see any. It must be a lonely life, but some drivers must prefer it that way.

Once we were settled at our RV park, we headed to the local Walmart for food and supplies. It was rather fitting for us to choose that particular store, as the chain had its beginnings in this state when Sam and Helen Walton opened their variety store in 1945 in Bentonville, AR. The first Walmart was launched in Rogers, AR, in July of 1962. If we were headed for the northwest corner of this state, we could visit the Walmart Visitors’ Center that provides a full account of this American retailing success story.