Mt. Vernon, Illinois to Hope, Arkansas

We left Mt. Vernon shortly before 8 AM CST and headed south on I-57 towards Little Rock, Arkansas.

After an hour or so we left Illinois and crossed the Mississippi into Missouri.  The temperature had warmed up to 36 F.

The weather began to brighten a bit as we continued south past Boomland - yep, it's a big fireworks showroom (near Charleston, MO).

Just before 11 AM CST, we exited Missouri and entered Arkansas.  Around noon, we stopped for lunch in Sheltonville - a place so small that Google maps couldn't find it.

Had the best grilled chopped ham sandwich we ever shared.

We were making such good time due to the snowless weather and dry roads, that we decided to get out of the car in Little Rock and do some sightseeing.  Here are the photos:

Arkansas River

The bridge is for pedestrians and bicyclists and connects communities on either side of the river.

View from the bridge

Atop the dam

Heading off the bridge

We left Little Rock at around 3:30 PM CST taking I-30 W toward Hot Springs. The high temperature for the day, 55 F!  To celebrate, we stopped and put the Prius through "The Works" at a car wash to get rid of the dirt and salt that had accumulated during the past few weeks.

Southern pines

We decided to wrap up our day of driving by stopping for the night close to wherever we would be by around 5 PM CST.  That happened to be Hope, Arkansas.  Sound familiar - the sign should jog your memory.

We checked into the Holiday Inn Express here in Hope and walked next door for some satisfying Mexican food.

Tomorrow we're back on the road again. Destination: Seabrook, Texas.