Life at a "Swell's" pace

May 11- After spending the evening in Fort Smith we decided to spend the night at Lake Fort Smith and get up early to ride the Arkansas & Missouri train excursion in Van Buren. Even though this was our first time staying at Lake Fort Smith, my brother and sister-in-law had been in several times before for the family Christmases. The cabin we stayed in was actually one stayed in by family the Christmas before. They are cute cabins and we had a great time!

Crossing over the Arkansas River.

Fort Smith borders along the state line with Oklahoma and for a brief moment we were in Oklahoma. It wasn't long enough to brag about, but it was fun for us to tell The Bean he was in two states in less than 30 seconds.

The sun setting in Arkansas.

With the Mr. and I working on plans for our tiny home, this cabin gave us a lot of ideas on how to utilize as much stuff into one space.

Our room's walls were covered in framed photos of the flowers and flowering bushes that grow around Lake Fort Smith.

Getting ready to leave.

We arrived in Van Buren and booked out ride. This view of downtown Van Buren has been the set of movies in the past. It's such a great view and Van Buren is the best place to shop for random and unique items.

The Bean was more than excited when the train was coming down the tracks. A little before these pictures were taken I saved a baby bird from the tracks. The bird seemed like he was hot and was trying to find a way to cool off. I placed him in the shade and I hope he made it.

The train was getting closer and The Bean kept saying, "I can't wait!"

We purchased tickets under the dome of the train so we could see out of the windows all the way around. With the Run Away Pumpkin Express train excursion that runs behind out house, they didn't have a dome option, but allowed you to walk back and forth between the cars. We did sit in the dome of the train when we took The Polar Express train excursion in Mount Hood, Oregon.

When the train pulled into the station all of the kids, including The Bean, had huge smiles on their face.

The Bean is a big train enthusiast and was telling me the specks of the engine and when it started. I love that he is so involved in something that makes him extremely happy, too.

The conductor loaded up the passengers and lead us to the dome train.

My brother and sister-in-law sat across from us and when the train was taken off it was rocking back and forth. It was a bit scary at first, but then it leveled out once we sped up.

They served us drinks and a lunch and I was thinking of Downton Abbey while I was eating mine. Lord Grantham always said, "I will eat something on the train."

The Bean was too excited to eat his lunch and I asked him if he was having fun and he said, "I'm having a blast, Mommy!"

The dinning car, on the left and a view of the tracks from the back deck of the train, on the right.

The train conductor pictured with The Bean was a great conductor. He switched hats with The Bean and told us about the train when it was operating as a transportation vessel for travelers going from place to place. He told The Bean how they loaded luggage and served meals aboard the vessel.

The train excursion in Van Buren is one that will go down in the books for our travels. The man on the right allowed The Bean to sit in the engine cab before the next excursion took off. They really went above and beyond letting my son be part of their operations that day.

After the train ride we toured around in Van Buren for a bit. The old buildings were really amazing to see up close. Growing up in Arkansas you see a lot, but it isn't until later you grow to appreciate them.

How great is that bank building?

The Van Buren courthouse.

If you're traveling through Arkansas and need a place to stay or a place to visit, check out Lake Fort Smith and Van Buren, Arkansas. While you're in Van Buren, take a ride on the Arkansas & Missouri train excursion. There's a lot to see in this one area, alone. Such a great place to spend a day.

Road Trip: Arkansas (Fort Smith and Trolley Museum)

Road Trip: Arkansas (Out and about in Little Rock)
Road Trip: Arkansas (Mother's Day and Vista Trail)
Road Trip: Arkansas (Birthday Surprise)

What happened this time last year?

May 10-We headed to Fort Smith and toured a few places before going to dinner. One of the places we toured was the Fort Smith Trolley Museum. The Bean was head over heels for the old trains inside and even more thrilled with the way they were restoring a lot of the trolleys. It was interesting to know that one of the trolleys being restored actually ran in Hot Springs, Arkansas and carried passengers all through the city. Here's a quick recap of our time in Fort Smith, Arkansas.

Before heading to For Smith we took a short break at Pickles Gap Village in Pickles Gap near Conway, Arkansas. The Village had a kiddie park and shops with locally made crafts and food.

After Pickles Gap we arrived in Fort Smith. The first place we toured was Miss Laura's Social Club.

This social club was owned by Laura Ziegler and operated as a brothel from 1903-1910.

A room of one of the girls.

How the house looked when it sat vacant. I was going to crop this photo down to where just the framed picture was in the shot, but the wallpaper was too wonderful not to share.

The house now has been made into a museum with many of the original items still inside the home on display. One of the items is a copy of the original doctor's form the girls had to get in order to be considered "clean" for the time period. Miss Laura ran a clean and well-kept house and required the girls to see a doctor once a year.

The town of Fort Smith got its name because it was once a fort. The original frontier fort was built in

1817 to prevent war between the Osage and Cherokee Indians.

Fort Smith is now a National Park and contains a lot of history on the grounds around the fort. It holds the original gallows (maintenance has been done through the years to preserve them).

Executions that took place at Fort Smith are listed on a plaque and also list the dates in which each one was carried out. The gallows were used as federal justice from 1873-1896, with the last one taking place in July of that year.

Judge Parker's courtroom where most of the men hung in the gallows were found guilty of their crimes. It is believed that he set 160 men to be hanged.

Fort Smith also held a jail inside the fort.

Not that jails nowadays are a comfort, but they are a lot better now than they were then. Cold, damp floors to sleep on, a shared fireplace and toilet area, and who knows what kind of sickness your floor/bunk-mates were carrying.

The Bean sitting inside one of the cells of the prison. The rooms were hardly big enough to turn around in.

On a positive "note," a white board was set up during Mother's Day weekend in the jail exhibit to allow visitors to write a short note about their mothers.

The Bean wrote: "Be Creative" in purple, but some of the others were comical, heart-warming, and even serious.

Outside of Fort Smith sits part of the Trail of Tears. The Trail of Tears was set up for Indians being removed from their lands and moved to Oklahoma land.

The Bean sitting on the line of Arkansas and Indian Territory as it were in 1834.

The Trail of Tears overlook at Fort Smith.

The walls of the barracks, cold house, and weapons storage of the fort still present on the grounds.

After touring Fort Smith we checked out the Fort Smith Trolley Museum.

The boys fell in love with the Frisco engine sitting in front of the trolley museum.

And we couldn't help but love the restoration of the old trolley from Hot Springs being restored.

The Bean is in his happy place.

After the Fort Smith Trolley Museum we ate dinner at Bricktown Brewery and boy were we in for a nice surprise...

Not only did they have some of the tastiest stone-baked pizza we've had, but they also had brewed beer made with Willamette Valley hops and Oregon blueberries.

The microbrew on the left is the Bluesberry made with Oregon blueberries, and the microbrew on the right is the beer made with the Willamette Valley hops. They were both really good!