Known as the “Natural State,” Arkansas is steeped in breathtaking beauty, and some of that is on display in the greater Cave Springs area 20 miles north of Fayetteville.
The small town of Cave Springs, Arkansas offers plenty of activities and a great RV park. But its proximity to Bentonville is even more appealing to RVers crisscrossing the country. Bentonville is where you’ll find the Walmart headquarters as well as the Walmart Museum. These and many more area attractions are a short drive from Cave Springs where you can also find the Creeks Golf and RV Resort.
The picturesque Creeks Golf and RV Resort in the fall. Photo from website
Creeks Golf and RV Resort
Offering nearly 100 sites, the Creeks is laid out on 200 acres in the beautiful Osage Valley. The resort features 70-foot-long by 15-foot-wide paved sites and full hookups. Amenities include 30/50 amp electrical, city sewer and water, cable TV, free Wi-Fi, showers, laundry facilities, a clubhouse, and lots of additional niceties, like the accompanying golf course.
Named after the two creeks that flow through the property, the Creeks Golf Course offers a challenging 18-hole layout. The par 71 track measures 6,009 yards from the tips and features elevated greens and tees. Water comes into play on almost every hole, but the reward is the beautiful views! With its location in northwest Arkansas, the Creeks Golf Course is easily accessible from neighboring states, including Oklahoma, Kansas, and Missouri.
The Cave Springs area also is popular during mid-June when the annual Walmart NW Arkansas Championship comes to town. The LPGA event is held annually at Pinnacle Country Club in nearby Rogers. Showcasing the best in women’s professional golf, the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship has been a popular event since it began in 2007. The 2020 version of the tournaments will take place June 15-21.
The Walmart Museum
The Walmart Museum offers a great overview of “how it all began” for company founder Sam Walton. The museum recounts the company’s humble beginnings and shows how the uncompromising beliefs of its founder laid the foundation for this profitable and popular company known worldwide. The museum opened in 1990 and is free to all visitors. Some of the highlights will no doubt feel like a walk down memory lane.
When Sam Walton opened his version of a 5 & 10 store on the Bentonville town square in 1950, he had no idea he’d planted the seeds for what would become the global leader in retail. The five and dime store concept—selling many items for five cents or ten cents—was created in 1908 by Frank Woolworth, and obviously refined by Sam Walton.
Walmart museum. Photo by Martin Lewison (Flickr Creative Commons)
Walmart Museum by Martin Lewison is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0
To capture and share those humble beginnings is the main focus of the Walmart Museum. This family-friendly experience features that original Walton’s 5 & 10 storefront where the company established its roots.
The Walmart Museum offers an interactive exhibit gallery that chronicles Walmart’s history. Don’t miss the Spark Café Soda Fountain that’s reminiscent of a small-town ice cream soda fountain, complete with soda jerks and 50’s-era music and videos.
Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art
There is another museum in the area that is truly a must-visit: Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. Encompassing 120 acres, this incredible museum opened in 2011 and averages 500,000 visitors annually!
The museum features both permanent collections and temporary exhibitions, a museum store, a restaurant and coffee bar, a Frank Lloyd Wright house, a library, and more. The museum takes its name from the blending of two elements, including the unique bridge construction in the building design, and from Crystal Spring. This gently flowing water source meanders through the wooded areas on the museum grounds, eventually feeding into the museum ponds.
Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. Photo via Wikipedia Creative Commons
Michael Barera, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Though general admission to the museum’s permanent exhibits is free, there is a charge to experience the various visiting exhibits. In addition to the fabulous collection of American art, dating back to the Colonial period in the museum, the well-manicured grounds are worth a visit.
Numerous outdoor activities—like a visit to the state’s largest live-music amphitheater in Rogers—checking out various dining options, and other attractions can be discovered by visiting Explore NW Arkansas. You can also learn more about The Creeks Golf & RV Resort on CampgroundReviews.com.
Rick Stedman is an avid golfer, RVer, and writer who lives in Olympia, Washington. Rick writes a weekly golf blog, The 19th Hole, for RV LIFE. You can reach him at rstedman@gmail.com.
Rick Stedman is an avid golfer, RVer, and writer who lives in Olympia, Washington. Rick writes a golf column, “The RV Golfer,” which is published every month in rvlife.com. He can be reached at rstedman@gmail.com.
that 1979 Ford F150 or F250 were the last good trucks that Ford built. I have owned several from 1967 to 1979 and wished I kept them all. But my wife talked me into buying her a Studebaker Hawk, which I did & she restored it. She also restored a 1963 Studebaker Champ pickup for me. I missed owning a Ford but the last one I owned was a 1976 F250 with a one ton rear end, that truck could carry a lot of weight.
We now travel by RV all over the USA some nights staying in a Walmart parking lot but that seems to be ending for some reason or other so well have to find somewhere else to Boondock for a night as we have found that campgrounds are gett way to expensive to stay in them, were good for a 5 star costing no more than $35 a night that is all we can afford. So we Boondock when ever we can.