October 14, 2023 Day 7 Bolivar Missouri to Harrison Arkansas 126 miles
Today is much cooler with high gray clouds. Still a wind but perhaps not as strong. The ground doesn’t show signs of any rain overnight.
Since Missouri is the cave state we have decided to visit a couple of them today. They are very close to the route we have chosen so all looks good. The first cave is called the Fantastic Cavern. It is about 20 miles from our hotel. We only traveled a few miles on the expressway before turning onto farm roads. These really go up and down while going left and right. They are two lane roads with no shoulders. We are in the Ozark Mountains but they seem more like foothills to us. Most of this is small ranches and hobby farms. We did pass one stable where someone was getting ready to barrel race or to pole bend. The houses are a mixture of big new ones and old small ones. Sure glad I don’t have to drive these in the winter when they might be slick. We eventually came to the parking lot for Fantastic Cavern. This is definitely a big business. Everything is handicap accessible. The sidewalks are wide with heavy duty rails. We got to the visitors center where a large gift shop and seating area greeted us. The next tour will start in about 20 minutes. Right on time a young lady escorted us down a ramp and into the waiting trailer. This tour is done from a small trailer with seats along each side. It is pulled by an open air vehicle. The trailer probably holds about 20 people. We never got out of the trailer until the end back at the Visitor’s Center. We did stop at different locations for an explanation and to take photos. This is a very large cave but not as colorful as some. It was created by a stream that ran through it. Water still runs through the bottom and drips from the top. Only a few creatures live here. A few bats, a salamander and a few crayfish. Because there is no natural light in the cave the salamander and the crayfish are blind. If you lived in the cave for a short time you would become blind too. The cave was found before the electric light bulb so the first explorers (12 young women) used candlelight. Somehow they managed to write their names and the date on the wall. When the cave was first opened for tours candles had to be used. Then Edison invented the light bulb. These were installed in the cave and people camped outside waiting to take a tour so they could see the light bulbs. Two sink holes are located in the cave. They fill with water in the spring during the run off. The cave was found by a dog running after an animal. The farmer eventually entered the cave by crawling in order to get his dog. We saw the opening on the way out. That was a very small opening. The tour lasted about one hour.
We drove through Springfield to Smallin Civil War Cave. This is a family owned and operated business. Everything is on a much smaller scale except the entrance to the cave. They claim this cave has the largest opening in the United States. The entrance is 55 feet tall and 100 feet wide. It has a stream running through it which is nearly dry now but will be rushing again in the spring. This cave has been used by various Indian tribes and armies during the Civil War. It has been bought and sold numerous times. Once it was owned by a church which used it as a church camp. The accessible portion of the cave is smaller than Fantastic Caverns. Supposedly it goes for another 2-3 miles beyond where we stopped. We did see one of the little crayfish. It was entirely white. A carving on one of the formations was made by the Osage Indians and marks where the sun hits on December 21 every year.
We left the cave and drove the short distance to Ozark Missouri where we had a fast food late lunch. Afterwards we did supper shopping at the nearby Walmart.
We are definitely in hill country. More trees and less farming. We drove to Harrison Arkansas all on roller coaster back roads. The scenery is beautiful however. We kept the window curtains down on the woodie all day and discussed installing the manifold heater. We wore sweatshirts all day and Connie added a blanket over her legs. The ride home in November will be interesting.
Spoffords Travel 