Showing posts with label Ozarks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ozarks. Show all posts

Monday, August 13, 2012

Ozark Backroads: To Fayetteville on Highways 21 and 74

Heading north on Highway 21.

The Ozarks are short on diagonal roads.  Most highways through the hills run north to south; a smaller number run east to west; but none run northeast to southwest, meaning that those of us going from Central Arkansas to Fayetteville face a wide choice of routes.  The right angle made by the interstate is, of course, the fastest and I am glad to have it, but, when you make a drive once a month, you want a little variety, especially on a pretty summer day when you don’t have to be in a big hurry

Coming back from my folks’ to Fayetteville on Friday, I opted for a new variant of the scenic route, leaving I-40 at Clarksville to take Highway 21 through the Ozark National Forest to Kingston, where I picked up Highway 74 to Fayetteville.  It’s one of those routes with signs that say “Crooked and steep next 20 miles,” so it’s not for those in a hurry or watching their gas gauge too closely, but it is well worth it.  I’ll let the photos speak for themselves.

Highway 21 north of Clarksville.

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Ozark Signs

Marion County Courthouse, Yellville.
I am in the middle of making some visits around the state before the semester starts. When I make it back to Fayetteville, my route will have taken me all the way around the perimeter of the Arkansas half of the Ozark Plateau.  It occurred to me that the entries of the last few days have been far more faith and culture than Ozarks, so I thought I would pull out some of the better sign photos from the drive so far.