Best day to see a fall

 Waterfalls! The road to Kyle's landing suggests 4x4 only.  Phil was nervous. James was nervous. I said let's go for it! 

After a very steep road and river crossing we arrived at Twin Falls.   

After a heavy rain Twin Falls becomes Triple Falls! The mist and wind surrounding the falls made us feel like crazy weather channel reporters facing mother nature!  It was absolutely worth the steep brake killing road.

Buffalo National River Float

Water makes us happy.  We rented a raft rather than trying to fit 4 people and gear in a canoe.  Rafts are slow and hard to paddle.  But we still had a lot of fun.  T loved the raft because he could move around without tipping it! We could hit a rapid at most any angle and not tip!  

The clear water makes it possible to see rocks and fish on the bottom.  I was easily distracted by the bluffs and just watching the current flow.  T just didn't want to paddle.  He wanted to sit on the boat side and act like a puppy dog.  James was the captain and he did his best to keep us all in line :)

 A gravel bar made a perfect lunch stop. We laid back and people watched.  Watching other boat is always a good time. The water was very cold. But we couldn't pass up the chance to float our bodies down the river.  James is becoming quite the mountain man.  He is not cutting his beard until our trip is over!  This photo of James says it all.

The clifflines are outstanding! Buffalo National River is our 1st national river for a reason.  Please come visit. While you are there checkout the historical garden at the Visitor's Center.  As a service project for Jr Rangers, we helped spread mulch.  It was nice to have time in a garden. 

Arkansas National Parks

Arkansas Post National Memorial- So many people have fought over Arkansas, note the variety of flags.  E gashed his leg and couldn't walk for a few days.  He was happy to use a wheelchair!

Our next stop was Central High School in Little Rock.  This is where I realized I have a problem pushing the kids to do Jr Ranger stuff.  It was a hard book with a lot of history.  They understand the emotions in the pictures and audio but the court cases and the hate and/or indifference was confusing to them.  Heck, it's confusing to me.  Hopefully what they learned here will be remembered as they learn more history.  

Gulf Islands National Park

Gulf Islands National Park is white sand beach and forts. Team Mobley loves both of those things!

It rained most of our stay.  The road was in danger of flooding. We didn't get to lay on the beach.  However, we did get to explore 2 forts, play in the rain, and poke at dead jellyfish.  It was totally fun!







The boys found a path less traveled and so, of course, we traveled it.  It led to the sound side of the barrier island.  T said "the trail felt like a portal to another beautiful world."  It did.









This was the morning after the big storm.  We counted 15 dead cannonball jellyfish on the beach.  The ocean side was incredibly windy still so we forgo a walk on the ocean side.

 I love to eat out. I love food and seafood.  I am attempting to pass the love of  food but not the love of eating out to my kids.  However,  I am already unsuccessful.  We arrived at Sneaky Pete's just before the dinner rush. Honestly, I just wanted a good seafood market. I  would have cooked it myself.  But I couldn't find one on the island so I thought let's go in, order some seafood appetizers, and go to camp and have rice and beans for dinner.  James doesn't like seafood so he wanted something different. Ezra found good food on the kid's menu. Terje liked the atmosphere, they had a playground.  I will always eat out if given the option.  So we ate at Sneaky Pete's! The great ratings on Urbanspoon were accurate.  Great service, awesome food, and not totally outrageous prices for a tourist town.  They were also helpful in avoiding gluten.

The oysters were mild and succulent.  James and T tried only a bite.  E tried a whole oyster!  He says one a day is his limit.









This was also the first time the boys tried Tabasco.
 So many firsts on this trip! It brings me great joy to see my children expand their horizons.  Even if they don't like the oyster, now they know.

These forts were built by slaves. The NPS hasn't been able to track down who built these amazing forts.  The slave masters received payment but didn't list who they sent to work.  When I saw the craftsman ship and skill it took to build the arches I was in awe. We took a moment of silence to honor the men.  Geronimo was also held captive here.  The only battle these forts saw was against each other as Union and Confederate troops tried to control the area.

The tunnels were just tall enough for the boys
 to walk through standing up.

If need be, the fort could be set ablaze by lighting the gunpowder that was stored in these (there were 3) tunnels.  That way the enemy couldn't use the weapons or the fort.  There is so much history in each fort, on each island, in each city that we visit.  There have been lives lived and lost in these spaces.  I can only imagine what life here was like and then be thankful for the 72 square feet we currently call home.