Sunset From The Junction Bridge

So the other day I saw on Twitter that the International Space Station was going to fly over Little Rock in a few hours. So I tried to think of an ideal spot to see it, and headed out to try to get a few pictures. Based on the directions on the tweet, I decided to head out to the Junction Bridge. It seemed like the ISS would appear in the horizon above the downtown skyline and then travel across the sky.

I managed to get there early enough to catch a nice little sunset, and got a few pictures while I waited for the ISS to appear.



And then I waited, and waited. The time the ISS was scheduled to fly over passed, and I never saw it. Maybe it was still too bright in the sky to see it, or I was looking in the wrong direction. But alas, I missed it. But since I was there, I got a few more pictures of downtown Little Rock from the bridge...



And one more...

Two Rivers Park Sunset

One of the best place in Little Rock to catch the sunset is at the Two Rivers Park Bridge. So the other night I headed out there in the evening, and was lucky enough to catch this sunset:



It had been a rainy day, which must have kept a lot of people away from the bridge. I only saw two other people out there, which is rare since this is such a popular spot. And since there wasn't anyone else around, I didn't feel bad putting the tripod in the middle of the bridge to take a few pictures.

Broadway

There was a little article recently about an effort to raise money to add decorative lights to the new Broadway Bridge in downtown Little Rock. Currently, there are lights on the Clinton Park Bridge, the Junction Bridge and the Main Street Bridge. Maybe in the future the Broadway Bridge, the Baring Cross rail bridge and the new I-30 Bridge (whenever it is completed) will be illuminated. You would think that the state could add lights to the new I-30 bridge, since they are spending about a billion dollars on it (and also they could actually make it look nice, but that's another story). Anyways, here's a quick shot of the Broadway Bridge during the day, taken with the infrared camera:

Back To The Delta

I was able to make another little trip out to the Delta, in what turned out to be great conditions. It was rainy and cool outside, a rare treat in the summer in Arkansas. It is always nice to be able to take pictures and not end up sweating, or having the camera lens fog up every time you get out of the car because of the humidity.

The first stop was Scott, which has a plethora of old buildings that are just waiting to be photographed. This is the old train station, which was moved and is now part of a museum (the Scott Plantation Settlement).





Further down the road is Keo. The population of Keo is only 230 people, but it also has a great selection of neat old buildings.





Driving south from Keo there are these silos, surrounded by soybean fields.



And this old abandoned church, where most of the back roof has unfortunately collapsed.  





And then I headed down this little road, which dissected an oxbow lake that was filled with tupelo and cypress trees.







The waters of the lake were covered with a layer of green stuff, which is not algae but a small aquatic plant called duckweed.



From there I headed east once more, driving through the tiny community of Coy (population 96). There were a few neat old buildings here as well, including this old cotton gin. It looks like it's still being used for storage, despite it looking like it isn't in the best condition.



And just across the street (or dirt road, the be more accurate) was this view looking towards another old building. It was surrounded by a field of cotton. It's actually a little rare to see cotton growing around here now, since most of the fields have been turned over to soybeans and rice.





The main purpose of this drive out to the Delta was to try to find an old cotton gin in the small community of Hamilton. A few weeks ago, I drove out here to try to find it but had no luck - I didn't remember the exact location and drove around for a bit but never saw it. Turns out that I was just a mile or two short of where I needed to be. So although I had to wait for it, I made another trip to Hamilton. I finally got there, and got a few pictures. I'm happy to post them now, so I'm not throwing away my shot.





And just down the road I saw this, which I hoped might answer the age old question. But apparently the chicken crossed the road to get away from the weird photographer trying to take a picture.... 

There was a whole flock of chickens, and they seemed to be living inside this old building.



I hurried to get home after this, but made one last stop to get a shot of this road running through more flat fields in the Delta...

Hot Springs

Hot Springs is one of the most unique cities in the state. It's the only city within a National Park, which just happens to also technically be the oldest National Park in the US. The history of the city is interesting, with its gambling and mobsters and tourists. It makes you wonder what Hot Springs would be like if it was allowed to legalize gambling in order to compete with Las Vegas in the 1960s.

Hot Springs National Park is small and partly urban, so it doesn't get as much love from people who travel to all of the National Parks. I've seen it included many times on lists of the worst National Parks, I guess because people visiting expected to see something like Yellowstone or the Grand Canyon. But Hot Springs definitely has its charms. 

Because it is the oldest park, it was formed and managed in a way completely different than the parks that came later on. When the land around the hot springs was first protected by the federal government in 1832, the springs were already a popular tourist attraction. So the park was developed in ways to use the spring water to benefit the many tourists who were attracted to the springs for their supposed health benefits. If the springs were discovered later, perhaps the 47 hot springs would have been kept in more of a natural state and how they were displayed and managed would be different.

The city of Hot Springs was a massively popular tourist attraction. People from across the country travelled here to take the baths. And for a time, Hot Springs was also the first "Sin City," as gambling and prostitution was overlooked and allowed to flourish. The city was at its peak from the 1920s to the 1950s, but things began to decline in the 1960s. People began to stop seeking thermal waters for treatment, and the state began to crack down on the illegal gambling. Soon many of the luxurious bathhouses along Bathhouse Row closed, and sat empty for decades.

Recently the National Park Service renovated many of the old bathhouses and opened them up to new usage. It also seems like Hot Springs is emerging again. There is the fancy new casino added at Oaklawn Park. The old Medical Arts Building, which was once the tallest building in Arkansas, is being converted into a hotel. And the iconic Arlington Hotel is getting a much-needed facelift.

We made a quick visit to Hot Springs a few weeks back, and it's always a fun place to walk around and take pictures. I walked down Central Avenue after dark, trying to get a few pictures along Bathhouse Row. Here is a shot of the traffic along Central Avenue, near the Superior Bathhouse. The Superior was built in 1916 and is now home to the Superior Bathhouse Brewery. It is the only brewery located in a US National Park and the only brewery in the world that uses thermal spring water to make beer. I've tasted many of their offerings and they are all pretty good.



The fanciest and most ornate bathhouse in Hot Springs is the Fordyce, which opened in 1915. It now serves as a Visitor Center and museum.



Further down is the Ozark Bathhouse, which was built in 1922. It's now used as a Cultural Center that provides gallery space for art exhibits.



The Buckstaff Bathhouse opened in 1912 and is the only bathhouse to have never closed and has operated continuously for decades.



Walking back to the car, I passed by the Hale Bathhouse and stopped to get this shot looking down Central Avenue. The Hale was built in 1892 and is the oldest of the structures on Bathhouse Row. It is now used as a boutique hotel.



And one more shot, of traffic along the always busy Central Avenue. The taller building is the Dugan-Stuart Building, which was built in 1904. Originally it held medical offices, but was converted into a hotel. In the 1980s, the upper floors were left abandoned. On the far right is the Josephine Tussaud’s Wax Museum, which operates in the old Southern Club. The Southern Club was established in 1893 and soon became one of Hot Springs most popular casinos. It was Al Capone's favorite spot, where he had his own elevated poker table which provided a clear view of the entire room.



The next day I drove out to visit Garvan Gardens, which sits on the outskirts of Hot Springs along Lake Hamilton. The jewel of the gardens is the amazingly beautiful Anthony Chapel, which stands 57 feet tall is made of glass and wood.



I drove out there thinking that it would be hard to get inside, since it is a popular wedding venue. And sure enough there was a guard keeping people back while a lucky couple was tying the knot inside (the cost to rent the chapel for a wedding is about $3,000 to $4,500). Once the wedding party went off to celebrate elsewhere, I was able to get inside for a few pictures....





Next to the chapel is the Carillon, a 57-foot tall electric bell tower.



I drove back along Central Avenue to try to get a few more shots with the infrared camera. I parked by the old Army and Navy Hospital, which was built in 1933 and was the first general hospital in the nation that provided treatment to both Army and Navy patients. The hospital was at its peak after World War II, but was soon ran by the state who used it as a Rehabilitation Center. That center closed in 2019 and the building is currently vacant and unoccupied. Vandals have reportedly made their way inside, which is incredibly unfortunate. It's a shame that this huge landmark is empty, and hopefully it won't have the same fate of the Majestic Hotel (which was abandoned and then later burned). It is frustrating because the state of Arkansas is currently sitting on a billion dollar surplus. I would love to see some our state funds go to preserve our historic landmarks like this (but I know that won't ever happen, sadly).



And one last shot from Hot Springs, of the old Medical Arts Building. This is one of my favorite buildings in Hot Springs. It opened in 1929 and was the tallest building in the state. But by the 1990s, only the first floor was in use while the upper floors were abandoned. Luckily the building was recently purchased with plans to convert it into a hotel. I would love to stay there once it opens.