Strong EnCore® Adventures (Ep.1)
For a lovely 2-day vacation I enjoyed Hot Springs, Arkansas (7.5 hrs drive away from San Antonio), a quaint little historic city in the Ouachita mountains.
Yellow. It was everywhere…
“We find from experience that yellow excites a warm and agreeable impression… The eye is gladdened, the heart expanded and cheered, a glow seems at once to breathe toward us” - Johann Wolfgang Van Goethe
“I really just want to be warm yellow light that pours over everyone I love” - Conor Oberst
Fun Fact: Hot Springs is the oldest federal reserve in the United States, today preserved as Hot Springs National Park. (And you all know my love for the National Parks!)
We stayed in a VRBO, and the reason I love AirB&B or VRBO is because you are in a space that someone loves, and it’s obvious - there are games / notes / books etc. The energy is different, and even a fancy hotel room can never come close to the feeling of a well-kept homestay.
View from our VRBO
It’s important to stay at a cozy place so even if the weather is bad (which it was during our time there) you have a nice time!
Strong EnCore® approved (accessible, dog-friendly, and worth the effort!) activities in Hot Springs:
Visit Lake Catherine State Park. I saw the images, and thought they were photo-shopped. But the water really is that blue… and the hike really is that beautiful!
Falls Creek Falls
At Lake Catherine State Park we took the Falls Branch Trail, about 2 miles of well-marked easy hiking (but the last stretch was challenging especially when it’s wet). We took our time and made it there, and that pretty shade of blue was worth the effort!
2. Garvan Woodland Gardens - this beautiful sylvan retreat had the most friendly, knowledgeable staff and they were SO kind to the dogs (treats and loving words!) and us! The gardens are paved and would have made for a lovely walk, but with my mom and Soc’s injuries, we decided to pay a little extra for a guided tour on a golf-cart. They allowed the dogs, and our driver, Bob, was entertaining and shared many fun tid-bits about the gardens.
3. I’m not a big foodie, but these two locations stood out to me:
Bleu Monkey Grill for lunch - we stumbled on this location, which is connected to some hotel chain, but the great google ratings are accurate. The food was outstanding, and the service was exceptional (we sat at the bar!).
In the main street is the Superior Bathhouse Brewery. The salad was a little tired, but the sandwiches were delicious.
4. Hot Springs Grand Promenade - a paved walking trail with little surprises of hot springs openings, marked only by the steam rising from the water!
Final ratings for Hot Springs, Arkansas:
Accessibility - Excellent!
Dog-friendly - Excellent!
Hiking - Excellent!
Nature - Excellent!
*Healing waters - TBD (we are certainly going back once covid chaos goes down)
Other entertainment - minimal (there were great hikes and hotels… not much else, as far as we could see)
Yes, we are absolutely going back!!!
An important recommendation:
HIKING POLES!
Forget all your hang-ups that they are only for the elderly/injured. Hiking with poles is great because it gives you confidence and your posture if better (less pain at the end); you avoid falling or even minor injuries like twisting ankles etc., and most importantly you actually burn more calories!