I saw the hazy red sun rise north of town, the same hazy red I saw all week in Indiana. I thought the haze was from the humidity, but I learned on NPR the red is from the smoke from all the wildfires out West! Indiana had been warning its residents that this haze brings with it toxic air particulants that can cause pulmonary issues.
I parked in town at a coffee shop right across from the brewpub I had visited six years ago. I needed to recharge my phone and Chromebook.
I found a nearby trail via Alltrails.com, the Craigshead Lake Loop. It was only six miles south of town and 2.4 miles around the lake. There are also paved trails for cyclists, dirt trails for hikers through the forest, but I just wanted a quick morning walk with the dogs near water. This turned out to be a great idea for the dogs.
The Craigshead Forest Park was created in 1937. It's free to enter, which is impressive since it has flush toilets, drinking water fountains, playgrounds, a campground, bike trails, hiking trails and at least seven pavilions. There's even a dog beach and a dog jumping pier that the pups enjoyed. How cool is that?! I enjoyed watching the dogs swim around the shallow water. This was their bliss after hours in a hot car despite the AC being on high. I would have stayed longer at this park for their benefit, but needed to move westward after yesterday's poor mileage. I will keep this park in mind for future visits.
My next destination was North Little Rock. Clouds were getting dark and I hit a short, but intense, downpour as I entered the city. I needed to recharge my phone and Chromebook again before taking a walk along the famed riverwalk. I was now 1286 miles from home; I could easily be home in three days. The worst part, the drive between Fort Smith, AR and Amarillo, TX, is still ahead of me.
I parked at a brewpub off North Broadway in North Little Rock, Diamond Bear Brewing Company. This turned out to be a winner, with gentle concoctions of summer lagers. Service was excellent, with my server always finishing her statements with "yes, Ma'am!" My meal was a hummus sandwich which was well presented.
I wanted to walk part of the 13-mile riverwalk but couldn't find a safe and designated parking lot. Some streets were closed because of road work. I finally settled for off-street parking near a construction zone and walked a former railroad bridge (now a pedestrian bridge) to the William J Clinton presidential library. There was part of the riverwalk, but a warning signed alarmed users that the sidewalk was closed along the river going west I could feel the heat, which reflected off the pavement. If I was hot, surely the dogs were.
I only walked a mile, then found the Carry Miller Island with sand and trees and seclusion. This island is right below the presidential library but seems to get little use. Just what I needed to let the dogs run offleash and dip in the river before walking back to the car and then trying another brewery, the Flyway Brewing.
All the beers at Flyway Brewing have bird names. Arkansas is along a major migratory route. A colorful mural showing migrating birds is on one side of the building. I tried the Bluebird blueberry wheat and Honeybird blonde. I sipped slowly and stayed until just before closing, but then decided to get more mileage and drove to Russellville, a town off I-44 75 miles NW of North Little Rock.
The trailhead to Mount Nebo State park is just outside of town another 15 miles. This will be my hike in the morning.
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