As you read in the title today we are talking about Eureka Springs. It is an incredible town tucked into the mountains of north-west Arkansas. With a majority of our reading located in the Tulsa area we hope after reading this you might plan your own trip to this cozy little town.
When we started dating, I was a part time personal trainer and just started trying to find my way in digital marketing. Tierney was studying for her final tests to be a registered nurse and we were both on a tight budget. We wanted to get away for a weekend and Tierney had visited Eureka Springs with her family when she was younger. After doing a little research we figured out this was a little trip we’d be able to pull off. Our first step was picking out where to stay. We decided on the Bridgeford House Bed and Breakfast. A little victorian hotel on the Historic Loop in Eureka Springs. Our room had a private entrance, fireplace and a beautiful four poster bed. From our small porch we could see herds of deer in the morning as we drank our coffee and ate the delicious breakfast they served at the Bridgeford.
Eureka Springs would be considered a small town, but there is a lot to do. There are great restaurants, beautiful hikes and even haunted places to tour if that’s what you’re up for. We didn’t waste a minute, trying to experience as much of this historic town as we could. When we arrived in Eureka it was a cold November day, we dropped off our bags, bundled up and headed down to the shopping district. Although there are many incredible business’s in the area we only bought three things that day. Hot apple cider from a little refreshment shop, a delicious candy apple from Ellen‘s Patisserie, and a new collar for our one dog at the time from Blackies Backyard.
Our second day started off with breakfast at Oscars Cafe, a place we had read was amazing. We both ordered cappuccinos, that were on par with the ones Tierney had in Italy. The food was even better than the reviews we read and the service was great. If you go here you absolutely have to get bacon as a side.
The rest of our second day was spent driving around to the different unique places in and around Eureka Springs. It was a freezing 24 degrees so it seemed like the perfect plan to us. We started by going and seeing the Christ of the Ozarks. A concrete statue of Christ towering 67 feet into the air. This statue is an amazing place both for the religious experience as well as the views you can take in from where it stands on the mountain.
Next stop on our tour was the Thorncrown Chapel, which is hard to put into words. The church is built out of small wood framework that holds hundreds of panels of glass together. You enter the chapel after a short walk down a rock pathway through the woods. Sitting in a pew you take in the incredible architecture and wilderness surrounding you. It was easily one of the most incredible buildings we have ever been in.
We ended the driving day tour with dinner at Ermilio’s Italian Home Cooking. Ermilio’s is a small restaurant on the historic loop of Eureka Springs. They serve handmade pastas and Italian classic cuisine that will make you think you are in Italy. We finished our dinner with a slice of chocolate pie. It tasted amazing, but was much smaller than we expected. Three bites later we headed back to out bed and breakfast to sleep for our next day in Eureka Springs.
Our final full day in Eureka Springs was going to be spent hiking through the beautiful fall foliage. We chose two hikes for the day, both found on the AllTrails app. The first was a quick out and back up a hillside. The trail had beautiful views of the forest on your right side. When you reach the end of the trail there is a stone bench to relax before heading back down. This is a easy and simple hike that allows you to get emerged in nature. Here, just a few hours drive from Tulsa you can be swept away by the beauty of this earth.
Our next hike was a little bit more challenging. The Lake Leatherwood Loop, is a four and a half mile loop. The trail takes you around the Leatherwood Lake with beautiful views of the lake and stretches of being surrounded by beautiful wooded areas. At the halfway mark you exit the woods onto the dam that created the lake. The old cement structure is breath taking by itself, but as you walk across it you can view the entire lake. After you have had your fill of the views from the dam you head back out the other side of the lake. Every piece of this hike is amazing.
After our several miles of hiking, we headed to the famous Crescent Hotel and Spa. The Crescent Hotel is widely known as one of the most haunted hotels in the United States. This historic building was built in 1886 as hotel for the rich and powerful. However, after not being able to keep high rollers coming in it fell on hard times. From 1908 to 1934 the hotel was a woman‘s college as well as a traditional junior college. In 1937 the Crescent was bought by a radio personality and inventor, Norman Baker, that wanted to attempt to practice medicine. He ended up in Arkansas after being pushed out of Iowa for practicing medicine without a license. After purchasing the Crescent he invited patients claiming to have a cure for cancer, his treatment however was mostly having patients drink the local spring water. In 1940 Baker was arrested for mail fraud and his make shift hospital closed. From then until 1997 little happened with the business of the hotel. In 1997 it was bought and restored to its current glory. Now known as the “Symbol of Hospitality“ the hotel has a full spa, luxury rooms and a rooftop pizzeria. The later being the reason we ended up at the Crescent Hotel after our day of hiking. We enjoying a cocktail and pizza on the rooftop with beautiful views of the Ozarks night sky. Before heading back to our room however we had to take a look around. We did not encounter any ghosts, but we loved our time spent in the Crescent Hotel.
Our trip to Eureka Springs, Arkansas had come to an end, but it had made a lasting impression on us. We didn’t need to spend hundreds of dollars and travel hours away to find inspiring places in the world. This historic place just a couple hours from where we grew up is filled with beauty. Anywhere can be made incredible by the company you keep and the appreciation you have for life. So, never stop appreciating all you have and all that the Earth has to offer.
P.S. We will still be posting weekly, but not on any kind of schedule. These things and places I write about inspire and drive my life. I wouldn’t be doing them justice by trying to force something out that I haven’t had time to properly conceive. So on that note I hope one of these posts finds you well and inspires you to change something up. Whether that’s your date night spot to eat, the vacation you take this year, or maybe just reading these to give you a small smile each week. Thank you for reading.