By: Lori Cox ~ 05.03.01
Mt.
Magazine is located in Northwest Arkansas. Mt. Magazine is not tall enough to be
a mountain technically.
Saturdays
are sleep in days. We have decided to stop being lazy, and since there are four
of us we can encourage--or tease--each other up a mountain--or monoliff (s) in
this case.
Mt. Magazine at this time is still undergoing some changes. A new lodge is being
built and its temporary visitors station is located in a storage building. We
finally find our starting point to go to Signal Hill--the highest point in
Arkansas. On this Saturday (April 28, 2001) there were gnats. We noticed that
first off. I noticed several beautiful pieces on fauna. All blooms were some
shade of purple. We saw butterflies too. We got to the top and signed in on the
clipboard. We saw Bill Clinton's signature, though we all doubt its authentic.
On the way back we sort of got lost but found another trail.
Moss...something...I forgot. We found the highway and walked the rest of the way
on it to the car. Mt. Nebo was a bit more exciting and I have that tale below.
Members
of Mt. Magazine Expedition
Ø
Lori Cox (photographer)
Ø
Bobby Dunn (navigator)
Ø
Chris Haley (supply carrier)
Ø
Bobby Johnson (driver)
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April
28, 2001
Mt.
Nebo Adventure
By: Lori Cox ~ 04.30.01
Mt.
Nebo is located in Northwest Arkansas. Mt. Nebo is not tall enough to be a
mountain technically.
Climbing to the highest point in Arkansas—Signal Hill on Mt. Magazine (not
technically a mountain either)—was not enough for us. We headed toward home to
look for another nature spot and decided to go up Mt. Nebo as it was on the way
home.
We took a trail that said “Level of Difficulty: Easy to Moderate” or
something to that effect so I thought “OK piece of cake.” We went off the
trail. First we went to see this odd looking stream. It forked and on one side ran clear and on another rusty and
brown. Instead of going the way we came—back to the trail—we decided to
climb up the small cliff. I was all
into it. Finally something
challenging. We got up the cliff and I was out of breath walking to keep up.
We came to another area where we could climb up. I looked up and was
told that there was a trail I could go to meet them. I decided I had enough
challenge and went the curved trail. This is when my legs started to give up but
I kept going. I was beginning to struggle to keep my legs moving as we were on a
narrow path right at the edge of a cliff and this was not a good time to
collapse. I was asked if I was ok.
I said, “My legs have gone numb.”
“You can make it,” I was told.
I barely made it to where they stood looking at a huge bolder and
decided to try to jump and get to the top. I sat and took a few pictures.
Someone said, “Let’s go.”
I said “Shh! Let them keep trying. Let’s me rest my legs more!”
Well no one made it up the rock so we moved on.
I was making my legs
move—actually I think about it now it seems downright physically impossible
that I COULD keep them moving. God is good! Something else got me. I was
beginning to hyperventilate so I sat on a nearby rock to rest and finally came
back to a point where I could keep going without feeling faint.
We went a little longer and we came to where we could see where we
parked the car. FAR down a steep slope. We went pretty far up and basically did
a 180. It was too far to go back the way we came so it was either go straight
down or finish a 360 circle.
I decided to go down with someone else, as I know my hardest thing is
uphill so I figured I needed to go down. A little way down we realized it was a
little harder. First not much to grip a foot on so we anchored our feet on dead
plant stubs. It ended up some of these dead plants had thorns.
By this time the sun and heat were really getting to me and I was
getting nauseated and I leaned on a rock a moment to control my stomach and then
continued to follow on down the thorny chosen path. Well lo and behold I took a
glance and the other 2 had already made it to the car but then I went back to
concentrating on going on my way. With that and the sound of my heart beating in
my ears and the sharp stinging of the thorns I wasn’t paying much attn to
anything else but getting to the car. The nice wonderful car with air
conditioning where I could sit on a nice cushioned seat.
We got the ditch before the
road and I decided I would slide it since it was only dirt and didn’t care
much about getting the seats of my shorts dirty. I was just ready for the
adventure to be over. I somehow got to the road where the others were and wiped
the dirt off and here comes the car. I love that car.
That is my Informal Report on Mt. Nebo. Questions are
welcome, as I know I didn’t cover it all…just how I handled it physically,
which by the way it needs to be noted I am in horrible shape, and the others
were quite able to do it and then some. The other three in the group would
probably have more as well.
Members
of Mt. Nebo Expedition
Ø
Lori Cox (photographer)
Ø
Bobby Dunn (navigator)
Ø
Chris Haley (supply carrier)
Ø
Bobby Johnson (driver)
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May
05, 2001
Petite
Jean Mountain
By: Lori Cox ~ 05.07.01
Petite
Jean Mountain
is located in Arkansas. Petite Jean Mountain is not tall enough to be a
mountain technically.
It
didn't take as long to get there. The mountain is a little closer to
home--well my home anyway. The guys had to drive about 30-45 more miles to
pick me up on the way up north.
We
got to the gravesite.
Let me give you a little summary of the story (not
to be taken as exact):
Petite
Jean means Little John in French. However this person was not a male. She
was a female that followed her lover from France to America. He didnt
want her to go because he thought she couldn't handle it. So she disguised
herself as a man and was allowed to work on the boat. They came through the
ocean onto the river and came to what we now call Petite Jean Mountain. Apparently
he was right and she got very ill in America. He learned of her identity and
she knew she would not make it back to France so they buried her in the
mountain.
The
story on the platform at the gravesite says it better. Had I been emotional at
the time I would had probably cried. Of course she reminded me a lot of myself.
Almost despising the fact that she could not do certain things because she was
born a female. I told the guys I probably would have done the same thing and I
admired her spunk. Of course its sadly funny that the guy was right.
Of
course I had to laugh to see my guy friends suddenly turning into my mother and
telling me, "Be careful! Don't fall! Get away from that edge!" I was
also touched to realize they care so much for me.
We
sat in a little crevasse and talked a bit before getting in the car and driving
to the lodge. We got trail maps and wandered a while in there. Then we started
on the trail.
We
wanted to see the waterfall but when we got to the trail sign we saw the Bear
Cave Trail and figured we wanted to see those too. It was an easy trail so we
went. Of course we had to climb the rocks. That was very fun. Seeing where the
crevasses went and climbing through things and then seeing that there was an
easier way!
Then
we got on the trail to Cedar Falls. It was raining this day and we kept shaking
the little trees along the trail. So we weren't dry that day. We got to
the Falls and I climbed along the cliff. After getting behind the falls and
getting pictures, I talked to my friends who were already sitting on the rocks
by the water. It took awhile to communicate as I learned a waterfall is very
loud--especially standing underneath it. I loved to feel the mist. I also
learned I was a little late after them and they had already got soaked. I went
to sit with them and we rested a while skipping stones. I watched some brownie
scouts and saw that there was a trail all along but I had more fun coming across
the cliff. We kept moving a little over and finding more stones to skip so we
were about halfway back to the trail by the time we decided to make a conscious
movement out.
When
we got back to the sign we saw something called Blue Hole. We were wondering
what on earth that was and being the explorers we are we decided to find out. We
never found it. And we went pretty far. We decided to go to the highway and walk
back from there. Farther than we realized. By the time we got to the highway
every step hurt like nothing I ever knew. It felt I was going on pure will
power. It helped when Bobby said he was about out of that. So I wasn't alone. We
decided after awhile it would be a little easier to get back on the Bear Cave
Trail instead of the highway. We found an entrance and walked awhile and came
back to the road and came to an overlook. We saw the lodge--far away. We walked
the highway singing to forget that we just wanted to collapse right there and
then.
We
got back on a trail and finally made it to the lodge. Not much to remember on
that. Too busy pushing myself. One other thing. We had stopped to rest for a
while and I looked around. Everything was so green. I said, "It's so
pretty here."
It
is. I am becoming more and more proud of my home state. Our State Parks have a
logo. "Go Play In Your Own Backyard...See Arkansas first." Yes, I
still want to explore other places, but exploring my home state's
"mountains" are a great pleasure. They test you to your limits but the
rewards are amazing. Beautiful falls. Gentle streams. Monstrous rocks. God's
awesome handy work. You can see the seams in the rocks. Literally! There are
thin areas in the rocks that I am supposing are not as corrodible and leave a
thin thread of itself sticking out from the rest, leaving it looking like
someone welded it together.
We
finally got back to the lodge and I stumbled to the car and winced when i lifted
my leg to get in. We were all very worn out. It is Tuesday--about 3 days
later--and I think my muscles forgive me now.
Members
of Petite Jean Expedition
Ø
Lori Cox (photographer)
Ø
Bobby Dunn (driver)
Ø
Chris Haley (navigator)
