There and Back Again

In 2014 one of my closest friends Evan moved from North Dakota down to Texas, then within a year he had met a wonderful woman and they were planning to get married. When Evan called me and told me he was getting married, I knew I needed to start planning my trip from Minnesota down to Texas. After looking at gas prices and plane tickets I decided it would be less expensive and wiser to drive down there.

In late January after work I left Minnesota heading south for Texas. I planned for two days of driving, and had set a route through some beautiful areas of the country. Late that night I stopped at a rest stop south of Mason City Iowa. The next day I continued south, heading out of snow covered lands and below freezing temperatures.

In Missouri I made my first stop along the way. Needing to get out of my truck after many long hours of driving, I saw sign for a civil war historical sight. In what seemed like the middle of nowhere I came to the Battle of Island Mound. The site was just a large field with some oak trees and a hill, but after reading the sign I came to learn this was a battle field from the civil war. Enjoying the weather and watching a group of three eagles fly I was ready to get back on the road.

Coming into Arkansas I went through the town of Bella Vista. Nestled down in a valley with a beautiful river running through the middle, this city was a amazing, I had wished I had time to stop and enjoy some of the scenery. As I continued on I noticed that the landscape had really changed from back home. Where we had rolling hills and basalt rock formations, in Arkansas they had large mountains with Sandstone and Limestone formations that get carved and shaped by the wind and the rain. Not far south of Fayetteville I came to my stop for the night, Devil’s Den State Park.

Devil’s Den State Park is nestled down in a valley between some awesome mountains of the Ozark National Forest. I had to drive down eight switchbacks to get to the park office. The State Park was a place of wonder and beauty with the mountains all around you, and deep caves you could look down inside. After setting up camp I set out hiking with my camera in hand. When I was twelve years old my family had taken a vacation tow Florida, and on our way back home we stopped to visit some family friends who lived in Arkansas, on our way to their place I remember seeing the small lakes and rivers and how blue they looked, not getting back for over twelve years I started to wonder if it was just my imagination about their blue waters, but on this trip was overjoyed to see that it was true; the river that ran through this State Park was the most amazing turquoise color. I asked the park staff why their water was this beautiful color and learned that it comes from suspended minerals in the water which they get from the Limestone. I also learned about these very odd looking trees, that I had thought were losing their bark, which the Park Ranger said were Sycamore trees.

 I hiked along the Devil’s Den Trail and was able to see the entrance to the Devils Den. Years ago you were able to go down inside the cave and hike its full 550 foot length, but now they have it closed to protect their bat population from White Nose disease that is killing many of the bat populations around the country. After my relaxing hike I headed back to camp, where on the way I met a group of young guys who had been mountain biking in the park. After talking with them I had wished I had brought my bike with, but I wonder if it was a good thing that I didn’t since I was travelling alone. That night I fell asleep to the sound of rushing water crashing against the class one rapids right behind my site.

The next day I got up early and continued my journey south. Heading out of Arkansas I entered the State of Oklahoma. In this state I stopped at the Heavener Runestone State Park, and what a blessing this was. The Heavener Runestone is a giant rock in a gorge that had runes carved in it. Though the runes have a lot of controversy they are believed to be from Vikings from well before Columbus’ time. There are many of these runestones around the county, one of which is in Alexandria Minnesota and was found to be authentic. I stayed and talked with the Park host about the runestone, learning about the other four stones they have found at this location, and about what the stones say. The Heavener Runestone has been interpreted to say Magic Valleye, which could come from the sound the water makes that pours down into the gorge that this stone is located in.

As I left the Heavener Runestone State Park I entered the Ouachita National Forest, which was a place I was excited to get and see. Going up into the Winding Stair Mountains I got to see some great views. As I travelled along the mountains I ran into some bad weather and was soon driving through a blizzard. It was very interesting though that when the road went down out of the mountains for a short time the snow would turn to rain, but then as I went back up it would be snow again. Though the snow made things difficult for travel, it also made for a reminder of back home and the beauty of winter. The Winding Stair Mountains is a place I would like to come back and see in the summer when everything is full of leaves and a deep emerald in color.

After two full days of driving I had finally reached my destinations of Waxahachie Texas. Staying with my friend Evan for four days I got to meet many of his friends and family down there. Evans friends that were also groomsmen in the wedding were such a blessing to meet, each one of them had a great testimony and calling from God. I got to see why God had called him down there and for me it was truly a recharge to meet other men and women of faith who really lived it out day to day. One thing I found interesting though was their level of tolerance for the cold. During the days of the wedding rehearsal and the wedding we had warm temperatures of fifties and up to sixty; coming from the below zero temps of Minnesota I was loving these temperatures, but I noticed many of bridesmaids were shivering cold. I felt bad for them, and they tried to tell me they had thin or weak blood, but truly it’s just what they are use to.

After the wedding I headed back north. On Monday after the wedding I decided to drive the sixteen hours straight through for home, taking I35 I set my cruise control and drove through the majority of the great plains. Even on my way home I saw some beautiful country. In Kansas I went through an area where it was just miles upon miles of open range, with the only bridges being those for cattle to go over the freeway.

Finally reaching home I was greeted by warm temperatures of forty degrees, and some snow still on the ground. Travelling through five States and seeing different cultures and landscapes I got to witness some of God’s creative ability, but I also learned how much I truly love Minnesota the land of ten thousand lakes.