The Beauty Around Us

VROC Reunion Rally 2015: Getting There – Dyersburg TN to Eureka Springs AR

By Linda G. on September 15, 2015

[Please note that this blog post is backdated to September 15; the post was published on October 2.]

 

Today is Day 5 of our 13-day vacation.  We are traveling to Eureka Springs, AR to attend the annual Vulcan Riders and Owners Club (VROC) Reunion rally.  We have met up with 13 VROC friends in the past two days.  We now have riders from Pennsylvania, Indiana, North Carolina, South Carolina and Kentucky.  All 15 of us (8 motorcycles, one car and one truck) are riding together to the VROC Reunion Rally.

We awakened earlier than planned this morning. Bob set the alarm for 6:00 am. We awakened at 5:00 am. I asked Bob what time it was. Bob’s response was that the alarm would be going off so he turned it off. At least this is what I heard him say. Bob said he told me it was 5:00 am. Thinking it was 6:00 am, I got up and took a shower and got dressed. I noticed then that it was not yet 5:30 am! It is going to be a long day.

We departed the hotel at 9:00 am and fueled up at a nearby gas station.

Preparing to leave Hampton Inn Dyersburg

There are 15 of us in the group today: eight motorcycles, my car and pulling up the rear is Toby in a truck pulling a trailer. We took I-155 out of Dyersburg, TN and crossed over the Mississippi River into Missouri.

This is the bridge that crosses over the Mississippi River.

In Missouri we saw a couple yellow crop dusters flying low over yellow fields, with a bright blue sky as a backdrop. This was a cool thing to see, in addition to being picturesque. I wish I had been able to take a picture. We followed U.S. Routes 412, 412/62 and 62 most of the way to Eureka Springs.

Riding through Impoden, Arkansas

 

Riding through Hardy, Arkansas

Of all the towns that we rode through on the way to Eureka Springs, Hardy was a town that I most wanted to stop in and check out.  Bob and I did stop in Hardy on our way back home from Eureka Springs!

We stopped every 100 miles or so en route Eureka Springs. We ate lunch in Ash Flat, Arkansas — our last stop before arriving in Eureka Springs.  Bob and I had a picnic lunch of chicken salad with crackers, cookies and a Snickers candy bar.

I think Bill and Jim A. are happy that we are nearing our final destination!

We arrived at Motel 62 in Eureka Springs, Arkansas around 4:30 pm.  As I approached the hotel I saw smoke and could smell burning rubber. I learned that Butch locked his tires, when he braked hard in front of the hotel (the hotel came up on him sooner than expected). Thankfully no one was injured. Pulling into the hotel parking lot, we were greeted by many of our VROC family members.

To the best of my recollection, this is the route that we followed today.

We drove 296 miles today.

Bob and I checked into room 119, our home for the next 5 nights.  Our room is located on the first floor in the back of the motel. There is a steep driveway to the back of the hotel. I parked my car there.  Our hotel room is a bit on the shabby side, compared with the other hotels that we stayed in on our way to Eureka Springs. The ironing board is missing; the refrigerator door is missing the bar that keeps the beverages from falling off; one lamp is missing a switch knob so the lamp cannot be turned on/off without borrowing a switch knob from another lamp; and the coffee maker is missing. The air conditioner works, though, as do the TV and refrigerator. We have two queen beds, both of which are comfortable. I can borrow an ironing board, if needed. We brought a tea kettle with us, along with coffee and tea makings. Being in the back of the motel has its advantages.  Owing to lots of shade trees, the temperature is at least 10 degrees cooler than in the front.  Also, it is much quieter in the back than in the front of the hotel.

As of this evening, when we pulled into Motel 62, I have 1,322 miles on the trip odometer.