If I had to pick one word for this week it would be “learning.”
We did a lot of that this week. I did a lot of that this week.
Last you heard from me, we’d just pulled into Horseshoe Canyon Ranch in Jasper, Arkansas. Finding that haven was a miracle in itself! And that was only the beginning of the week!
Are you up for another run-down? Cool.
Monday: Hiking day! My favorite! Today’s hike took us winding down a canyon wall into Hemmed-In Hollow. This hike was no joke! From the trailhead down to the destination we descended more than 1000 feet. There were a few stretches of stairs made of rock slabs, but the majority was just the raw earth held in place by tree roots, smaller rocks, and decaying branches. Not the easiest terrain to traverse even on level ground. And at that incline? Yowza. But it was well worth it. When we made it to the bottom of the canyon, there was a short scrambled upstream in the dried-up creek bed to find the hollow. As we hoisted ourselves over that last boulder, our jaws dropped. The enormity of the cliff face in front of us was almost unbelievable. I couldn’t get the entirety of its height in a single picture. It was one of those dizzying-to-loot-at-the-top kinds of sights. While eating our trail lunch (just tuna this time. No Ramen), I had the enriching opportunity to talk with another pair of hikers. I didn’t learn their names, but their story is surely worth sharing. After the obligatory “how are you? Where are you from? What brings you here?” introductions, I asked these fellow adventurers what they consider to be their favorite hike ever. The husband didn’t even have to ponder. “Oh, well I know what mine is, but she might not agree. My favorite hike ever was climbing Mount Kilimanjaro.” His wife suffered severely from altitude sickness on the trek and was unable to finish, but he had completed his goal and clearly still felt the power of achieving such a feat. Their other favorite hike, which they were able to complete together, was visiting the ancient city of Machu Picchu. Their forty years together have been filled with experiencing new cultures, seeing new places, and finding themselves, and each other, in a lifetime of stepping outside their comfort zones. I don’t know about you, but I’d love to look back on my life someday and have such a colorful tapestry of adventure to admire.
After gleaning some travel tips and saying goodbye to my new friends, it was time to place another stitch in my own adventure tapestry. Guess what we did. We climbed. (I bet you saw that coming.) Oh yes, we climbed up those canyon walls, one shelf to the next, to the next. For most of our time in the hollow, we were all alone. That was pretty perfect since it allowed us to throw rocks down to the hollow floor. Go ahead and guess how long it took the rocks to make it to the ground. Four seconds! One-one-thousand, two-one-thousand, three-one-thousand, four-one-thousand. That long! That’s how high we climbed! I’m not sure I’ve ever felt more alive! Since we were up so high, we were able to bramble-whack our way into the two neighboring hollows. Go ahead and guess what we found. A waterfall. In the second hollow over, we discovered a lush mossy oasis with a steady shower of icy streams falling from a couple of stories above. Magic. Pure magic. Slightly less magical was hiking back out of the hollow. In the end, combining the descent, the climbing, and the ascent back to the trailhead, Isaac and I tackled over 14,000 feet of elevation change. Yes, fourteen THOUSAND. It was a good, good day!
Tuesday: Today, we took it slow. The ranch was quiet. The sun was shining. The coffee was perfect. After we’d had our fill of quiet (which doesn’t take long for me) it was time to explore the ranch! Horseshoe Canyon Ranch is nestled into, as the name implies, a horseshoe-shaped canyon. Staring on the far end of one canyon wall, Ike and I hiked and climbed our way around the perimeter of the property. The ranch is best-known as a rock-climbing destination and the terrain is no joke! Although our traversing didn’t add up to quite as many feet of elevation change as Monday’s hike, it was still a heck of a challenge since our legs were tired and the scrambling was a bit riskier. We were amazed at the drastic variety of vegetation and rock formations within those canyon walls. I think I’ll admire that stitch in my adventure tapestry for a while. After three hours of exploration, it was time for dinner. As we dragged our butts back into the campground, we noticed a new rig parked near ours. A new friend? A new friend indeed! After introductions and a tour around his homemade adventure-mobile, we invited our new pal to enjoy the evening’s campfire with us. And enjoy it we did! We met Mason at 4 pm, built a fire with him at 9 pm, and said goodnight at 1 am. Every minute of those hours was filled with rich conversation. We learned about Mason’s career, adventures, passions, family, struggles, and triumphs. We shared stories of our own victories and grief and challenges and celebrations. We talked about Jesus, politics, fitness, and everything in between. That evening might be my favorite stitch in my adventure tapestry. It was a reminder that adventure doesn’t just happen on the trail. It happens where intentionality meets an open heart with a desire to be awed.
Wednesday: What was meant to be a travel day turned into another major hike day. That’s right, three days in a row! We made one tiny mistake this time: We assumed that a four-mile hike would be a quick in-and-out excursion. After saying our reluctant goodbyes to Horseshoe Canyon Ranch, we hit the trail headed toward Eye of the Needle, two miles up Indian Creek Trail in the Buffalo National River Wilderness before consuming our breakfast and coffee. Whoops. While this trail was beyond beautiful and the waterfalls along the way, and at the destination, were like soul salve, the getting there was the hardest work I’ve done in a long time. We lost the trail, we blazed our own trail, we cautiously shuffled over slimy rocks and edged our way across high ledges. This was by far the most technical hike I’ve ever tackled. But, we made it and it was well worth it. If you have the time, energy, and guts to get there, Eye of the Needle Falls will leave you speechless. Do you want to guess how we rewarded ourselves after that hike? Burgers. And coffee. You know, the classic combo! Thanks, Ozark Café, for restoring our sanity and blood sugar levels. Next up, Ozark, Arkansas!
Thursday: What we meant to be a rest day turned out to be a learning day. Here’s the story: As we drove through the southern foothills of the Ozark Mountains on Wednesday, we heard an odd sound coming from our camper. It sounded like a rattle in the hitch, so we kept going. Maybe we shouldn’t have, maybe it was a good call. We’ll never know. Since we arrived after dark at our campsite on Wednesday, there was no time to check things out. After a leisurely morning and a warm breakfast, we finally did some investigating. Isaac discovered that the dust cap had come of the wheel bearing housing on one of the camper tires. Oh, shoot. With very little knowledge or know-how, we came to the conclusion that we needed to replace the wheel bearings because too much grease had been lost too many miles ago. OH, SHOOT. My anxiety was screaming all the unhelpful things at me. I didn’t know how to do this, Ike didn’t know how to do this. Luckily, YouTube did. We studied up, made a Walmart supply run, and began. I was stressed. I was pretty sure we were going to break the camper for good. I did not keep my cool. You know who did keep cool? God. Today was a day of seeing, in the most remarkable clarity, how much He cares about our smallest prayers. Every tiny desperate panicked prayer I prayed that day was answered. We learned what we could, found help when we needed it, ate some Oreos, and replaced those wheel bearings! (Shout-out to the guy at Napa Auto Parts who saved the day in a big way. Thanks, guy!) God is good all the time, even when our first response is bonkers and our second response is trust. Today did not go at all how I would have chosen, but I think the stitch that was added to my adventure tapestry will be the foundation for many more heart-changing threads.
Friday: A driving day! Today we headed out from Ozark straight to Hot Springs, Arkansas. Since most of the natural baths are closed, we had just one stop to make: Anthony Chapel. Wow. If you’re in the Hot Springs National Park area, do yourself a favor and go feast your eyes on the Garvan Woodland Gardens. We didn’t pay to walk the curated garden trails, but if the free portions of the park are any indication, the admission price is likely worth the sights. Anthony Chapel is an architectural and artistic masterpiece. Awe-inspiring. Wow. Just stepping inside lowered my blood pressure significantly, I think. (And it wasn’t even raised!) There was such a sense of solace. I’m not sure how else to describe it. Reverence, maybe? Quiet? You should visit. Then we were back on the road again! Five hours later, we found ourselves pulling into Battlefield Kampground in Vicksburg, Mississippi. It had been a long haul, so we set up the camper and called it a night.
Saturday: Saturdays are for sleeping in, so we slept in. It’s a good thing we did because the afternoon was about as full as we could make it with learning! Vicksburg Mississippi is best known for the major Union military campaign that resulted in a month-and-a-half long siege and intense fighting during the third year of the Civil War. The Vicksburg National Military Park is home to the best-marked battlefield in the US. A 16-mile driving tour took us past countless monuments, plaques detailing the movements of Union and Confederate soldiers, intact trenches dug in 1863, and near-vertical walls remaining from the forts that once stood. The topography of the park makes it so easy to imagine what those weeks might have been like. It was sobering and fascinatingly informative! The park is also home to the USS Cairo Museum. The Cairo was an Ironclad, built in 1862 for use by the Union Navy. She saw only one battle where she was sunk by mines in the Mississippi. I got to walk inside what was salvaged of her bulk after 100 years under the muddy waters. My history-loving heart was so happy!
Sunday: Another driving day, but this time with the sweetest reward! We got an extra early start this morning since we could hardly wait to reach our destination. When we reached New Orleans, Louisana our sweet cousin greeted us with the warmest hugs and most beautiful smile. It was such a treasure to spend time with her, see her city, and sleep in a real house! (It occurred to me just as we arrive that we hadn’t been inside a house in almost two weeks!) We took a stroll through City Park and the nearby sculpture gardens, gobbled down some traditional New Orleans beignets, and played Bananagrams until our brains tapped out. Family time simply can’t be beat!
So there’s what week two looked like. Lots of learning. New skills, new friends, new places, new facts. With all of the new that I’ve learned this week, the most monumental info has actually been a reminder of something I already knew: God sees. And He hears. Remember that anxiety I told you about last week? I’ve been very intentionally working on inviting Him into the moments of overwhelm and frustration. Each time we’ve needed a new place to camp, I’ve surrendered it to God. Each new challenge that arises has been tackled with Him. When I start to feel that perfectionism rising up to take the joy out of these glorious moments, I’m learning to pause and hand the reigns back over to the One who already had it under control anyways. Those small actions of surrender have changed everything. God is cool like that.
I’ll finish with this question for you: What do you want your adventure tapestry to look like ten years down the road? Thirty years down the road? Sixty years down the road? It’s never too late to try out a new stitch or begin weaving a new tapestry all together.
Until next time!