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Eureka Springs, AR: A Destination for Motorcyclists

Not that there's anything wrong with Tulsa, OK, there ain't. After spending eight nights in the city that bills itself as "A New Kind of Energy", we just needed something else to light our fire.

US 412 heading east of Tulsa is a toll road. In fact, all major routes heading in and out of Tulsa are toll roads. I guess they call them "turnpikes". It seems like if you want tap into that "new kind of energy", they'll get you coming AND going.

So, we learned that we could take US 412 Alt, which roughly parallels the turnpike but takes you into more pretty scenery, even though at a slower 55mph, and bypass the tolls. But even at the slower speeds, it was well worth the free thoroughfare, because we found sweeping curves and beautiful pastures laden with a mixture of wild flowers and a variety of bovine and equine satiating their hunger in the afternoon sun.

And the weather was awesome! Temperatures remained in the mid-80s, though the air was humid, as long as we kept moving it felt great to ride with our leather jackets strapped to the back of our bikes.

To say goodbye to Tulsa, OK, in this marvelous way, could be no more splendid nor touched any more gracefully than Mother Nature would allow.

Dickey's Barbecue Pit, in Siloam Springs, AR, just over the OK/AR stateline, turned out to be a real find. Sash and I must have passed up numerous chains, from McDonalds to Arby's to Hardee's to Denny's, all trying their hardest to make us pull in. Even as we had doubts that we could find anything unique in such a city, we kept pressing on until we found something truly local. And Dickie's didn't disappoint.

And then we discovered that Dickey's is just another national chain.

Though even as I felt deflated, I still couldn't argue that the pulled pork and beef brisket was awesome, even if it's just corporate chow.

Several folks in the Tulsa area recommended we ride to Eureka Springs, AR, saying that the riding was great and the destination was awesome. So taking the advice, that's where we pointed our handlebars.

And it didn't disappoint. The riding was indeed awesome. Taking roads like highways 45, 12, and 23 through the foothills north of the famed Boston Mountains, we found wide green pastures, thick old growth trees, sweeping curves, and little traffic (on a Tuesday), almost as if we had found the place where motorcyclists go when they die.

Eureka Springs, turns out, is a haven for tourists, and full of great little bars full of cozy ambience and friendly folks.

Sash and I wound up at Squid & Whale Pub, along Central Ave, where we found a couple of obscure microbrews on tap, as well as Taco Tuesday, and then were entertained by Blues/Country artist Grace Askew, who had been a contestant on the show "The Voice". Sash bought a couple of her CDs, and chatted with her after the show.

It seemed like we had found a cool new spark to get that fire lit once again.

In our first night in Eureka Springs, we had such a great time, we opted to stay another night.