 |
| Rose Dale Farm B&B |
After a long ride from Clarksville Tennessee and through the
bootheel of Missouri we arrive in Piggott Arkansas. Piggott a town of 3000 people has a Motel and
a Bed and Breakfast. We stayed at the
B&B Rose Dale
Farms on the edge of town. The owners of the house used to take
Hemingway hunting and fishing when he was in town. Pointed out to us were the water rings on the
furniture where they drank bourbon afterwards.
 |
| Strawberries Bq |
After getting settled into the house we got a recommendation
on a place to eat. Strawberries a barbeque place
across the state line in Holcomb Missouri.
It was about 8 miles away so we
jump on the bikes and we were there in no time.
The Barbeque was good but not
best I ever had. Rating number 3 on the
rib meter, probably the 3rd best pork ribs that I ever had. So pretty darn good!
There was a threat of rain was in the air so we went
straight back to the house we had rented.
We slept well even as waves of summer thunderstorms came through the
area. Cleaning the water off the bikes
in the morning was no joy but we had to get to the Pfeiffer house when it opened at 9AM
 |
| Hemingway's Barn Studio |
My main goal riding here was to see the Ernest Hemingway sites. Pauline Pfeiffer, Ernest wife of 12 years family
home is located here. After his marriage
to Pauline, he considered the Pfeiffer’s his primary extended family; calling Pauline’s
Mom Mother Pfeiffer. A barn studio is
located here where he written Farewell to Arms.
Although the story about Hemingway was interesting enough;
it is the relatively unknown Pfeiffer Story that outshines it. I think everyone has heard of Pfeiffer Pharmaceuticals. You know that candy coating on Bubble gum
and most pills? Answer that question and
you can get an idea on how rich the Pfeiffer’s were. After they
acquired all this wealth Pauline’s Father decided to move the family from St.
Louis to Piggott, back to a farm, a life he knew as a child.
Even though it was a 67,000 acre farm run by 127 tenant families. In comparison the Farm was a form of
retirement from the Pharmaceutical business.  |
| Pfeiffer House |
It was a great tour of the House and the barn. We being the only people on the tour got the
royal treatment and the tour stretch to 2 hours. I started looking at my watch because I knew
we would be fighting the weather all the way south to Helena Arkansas. It rain a couple of times during the tour.
Once the tour was over and we got on our way it was past
11am. We had some time to make up so we
decided to ride to south on Arkansas Highway 1 about 30 miles then eat in Paragould
Arkansas. We stopped at a Mexican Restaurant
there, like the suburban decay that blights most cities in America, Paragould
and then Jonesboro is no different, for about 30 minute’s there was mile after
mile of gas stations, restaurants and hotels.
Once in the country, the ride was though miles of farm fields
and along Crowley’s Ridge. A geographical
oddity on the delta plain, Crowley’s Ridge runs through eastern Arkansas from
North to south. It cuts the Mississippi
Delta farm country in half, starting in Missouri and ending in Helena Arkansas. Although we endured two waves of heaving thunderstorms
we were able to wait them out in a hotel lobby. Parked under the lobby covered entrance we
decided to get a cup of coffee at the hotel restaurant next store.
Once the rain past we made the remaining part
of the trip to the Best Western in Helena for the evening in a flash getting to
Helena around 5pm. Once there we got a recommendation
for dinner we ate in West Helena at The Bistro for steak and chicken. Well it’s back to the Hotel to get some rest,
it’s a big day tomorrow; 250 miles to Muscle Shoals, the Helen Keller sites and
Fame Studios.
No comments:
Post a Comment