HOT SPRINGS—If BBQ or Hot Air Balloons are your thing, be sure to keep September 19-21 open. During these days, Hot Springs will serve as base-camp to a festival celebrating both. The event, deemed Smoke On the Water and The Legends Balloon Rally, combines two events — barbecuing and hot air ballooning — into a versatile weekend.

The festival will be held at the Hot Springs Municipal Airport…[more]

Colt Pioneer Days will be held in Colt on Sept. 5-6. The festival is held at the historic William Stone House and features live music, arts and crafts, food and a variety of historic displays. For more information, phone 870-633-7588.

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Join amateur ("ham") radio operators from the four-state area to swap equipment and information related to this important method of emergency communication during Hamfest Sept.…[more]

Located at 302 N. Main St., the first floor of the Hotel Seville has re-opened and includes the new John Paul’s Restaurant & Gathering Place, the restored hotel lobby and the hotel’s formal dining room.

Restoration of the first floor included a 100 percent demolition of the area previously referred to as The Seville Club. It was replaced with a remarkable historic preservation effort that included the reclamation…[more]

Little Rock, Ark—The Clinton Presidential Library in Little Rock has something going on constantly. You could visit every month and see or do something new every time. Mark your calendar now for these events.

If you haven’t already done so, be sure and pick up “A Passport to Clinton Places in Arkansas: A Billgrimage.” This recent publication features information on all the Clinton-related sites in the state. Towns…[more]

“People walked in rhythm and talked in this singsong talk; when I’d go down by the river in Helena, the river seemed to be in rhythm, and I thought, no wonder the music comes from here, the rhythm is already there.” Robbie Robertson, The Band

HELENA, ARK.—Located on the Mighty Mississippi River, historic Helena, Ark. has a long-standing history with the river. Native Americans made their homes nearby…[more]

Life is about choices. You come to a fork in the road and you must decide. Do I go left or right? In deciding which way to go it helps to have a little information. Well, here’s a story about a choice I had to make once. I hope one day it’ll help you make the right turn.

Thirty years before I made my right turn I was…[more]

FORT SMITH, AR—The new Chaffee Crossing museum district, consisting of three places of exhibitions, will open at 10 a.m. on Friday, Aug. 22 in Fort Smith. The morning ceremony will take place at Building 803, the locale where Pvt. Elvis Presley got his first military haircut.

Located on the former Ft. Chaffee Army base property, the Fort Chaffee Barbershop Museum contains a replica barbershop restored with items authentic…[more]

Mammoth Spring State Park may be best known for the largest natural spring in the state, but each August, it’s known for old soldiers. Each August, the park serves as host for a long-running event that draws visitors from near and far – the annual Old Soldiers’ Reunion. This year’s event, scheduled for Aug. 11-16, will feature a special dedication of Cannon Plaza, the new home of the Civil War…[more]

EUREKA SPRINGS—The most widely used jet trainer in the world, the T-33—nicknamed the T-bird—is now on display at the Aviation Cadet Museum in Eureka Springs.

This latest addition to the museum was received in mid-June from a museum in Elkhart, Indiana. It is actually on loan from the Naval Flight Museum in Pensacola, Fla.[more]

If high gas prices have you looking for a great vacation close to home, consider bringing your family to Mountain View. A long-time favorite of visitors throughout the region, the town offers a variety of things to do: hiking and biking epic trails, listening to toe-tapping music at one of many musical and variety shows, shopping their eclectic stores or just enjoying the splendor of nature.[more]