Petit Jean Mountain State Park

I spent my childhood as well as many of my adult years in the state of Arkansas. Due to some life changing events, I left there in 2002. I now live in the great North West, here in Oregon. It rains a lot during the fall, winter and the spring. It is really wet and yet we do not let it keep us from enjoying life. While I may enjoy living here in Oregon, where I can walk its sandy beaches I have very fond recollections of Arkansas. I can honestly say that Arkansas still runs deep within me, and probably always will. Growing up I developed a huge interest in Photography and Hiking which is a great combination. And like a lot of nature nuts, my favorite singers were John Denver, Michael Martin Murphy, and a few other folk artists. The same as many teen-age boys, I drove my Father crazy, with my semi-long hair, just below my collar. Now I have none to speak of, what's up with that? I even read a few of the books by Euell Gibbons. Once I became old enough to drive, I did a lot of camping on my own, not always by choice mind you, just the way things worked out. My favorite place to camp, hike and photograph was Petit Jean Mountain State Park.

Petit Jean Mountain is located near Morrilton Arkansas. It has an incredibly rich history. There is also a wonderful story for how this oasis of paradise got her name. Once you reach the top of the mountain, you will want to stop at Stouts Point. Located at the east end of the mountain, this is a great place to experience the true beauty of an Arkansas sunrise. It is here that you can find the sign which tells the story for her name. From this point you can also see the Arkansas River valley below.

On a clear day you can watch the eagles soar through blue skies. See the river barges as they make their way up the Arkansas River. The view from Stouts Point, is only one of her many treasures. You will find more of these treasures on Red Bluff Drive and all around her ridges

The Cedar Creek Trail  is another one of my favorite places. This is not a real hard trail, fairly easy and offers a lot to see. Other trails include the Cedar Falls Trail. This trail is a little harder, and well worth taking.  There is also the Canyon Trail . This is part of the Boy Scout trail.  Petit Jean Mountain State park has many trails, for those who have the aspiration and fortitude to take the journey Nevertheless if Hiking is not your image of fun or in the event you are unable to, because of health concerns. Do not lose heart. You can still enjoy her magnificence by visiting the many overlooks throughout the park. Red bluff drive is a must; last time I was there it was a very well maintained gravel road. I remember right there at the intersection, there is a little dairy bar. They were only open about nine months out of the year. I can tell you, they served some really good burgers, milk shakes and orange floats. I have been told by park officials that it is out of business though, hopefully someone will reopen it.

 After a long day of hiking and sightseeing, there is nothing like sitting back and enjoying a nice camp fire. Roasting hotdogs, making S'mores or just gazing at the stars, on more than one occasion I was invited, by my neighbor to join them around their campfire. I have met some of the nicest and most musically talented people while camping at Petit Jean State Park.

  If I tell you everything about her, you would have no reason to make the journey, to see her.  I talk about this place as though it was a person, a lady. Indeed I do, once you make the trip you will too. I made several trips to see her and photograph her. It did not seem to matter what time of the year it was she always gave me some great photographs, and a lot of good memories. Every time, that I was there I would hike down to Cedar Falls. Something about that place that would bring about calmness, it was a place to forget about the world an all of its problems.  Just when I thought, I had seen everything she had to offer. I would discover something new about her. She was always there for me, when I just needed to get away from things.

 Petit Jean has seen her fair share of marriage proposals, weddings, and Honey-mooning couples.

Petit Jean has so many things to offer, to so many people. I have not been there in a few years. I cannot imagine that too many things have changed. The park service is very diligent in preserving the park and keeping it as natural as possible. Although I understand that there has been some major renovations made to Mather Lodge at Petit Jean Mountain State park. This park has camping available for RVs as well as tent camping, boating, fishing. If you live in Arkansas and have not visited Petit Jean you are cheating yourself of a wonderful experience. If you are on the road just passing through the state you need to visit Petit Jean  and create some memories of your own, you will be so glad that you did.

Where have all the trees gone

Everywhere you look there are new homes being built some of which, are much bigger than most people need. Just look at the new neighborhoods that are popping up all around us. The homes in these neighborhoods are not small; they are big enough to be small hotels. These homes have as much as five thousand square feet, four bathrooms, six bedrooms, restaurant size kitchens, libraries, studies, theatres, craft rooms, wine cellars, game rooms, fitness rooms, and a play room for the kids.   They are indeed exceedingly nice homes. I will admit  that if I were able to afford this luxury I would probably have one myself. However, our environment can no longer sustain Americans’ desire to have more space using lumber as the primary building material.
Most Americans do not need that much space to live. The families that live in these large oversized homes are average sized families.  . If we are going to have big houses then maybe we should consider communal living where our off-spring never leave, the nest. When sons or daughters get married, they and their new spouse live in the house and share in the expenses and the house work. Move the parents in letting them look after the children. As the old get older and become more dependent on others, they are cared for by family members who share the load. This would be better than tucking them away in some poorly run, money sucking nursing home.
  Another reason Americans feel the need to have more living space is that we spend a lot of time and money trying to keep up with the Jones’s, it has to be bigger and better than the homes of their neighbor, co-worker, brother, sister and friends. Many people feel that they possess the need to have a big house either because of their social, economic or, professional status. This desire that Americans have  for these bigger homes has seriously affected our natural resources. In reality, we don’t need a special room to read in or kitchens the size of the state of Montana to cook.  As for reading, go out,side, sit on the porch and get some fresh air while it lasts. If it is raining or too cold, do your reading in the living room. A meatloaf is not going to taste any better out of the Montana sized kitchen than it does out of the average size kitchen.

I often wonder if we even stop to think about how many trees were killed just so we can live in the lap of opulence Our forests don’t stand a chance against the increasing demand for new and larger homes. It takes ten thousand board feet to build the average fifteen hundred square foot home. This equates to twenty four trees; which are seventeen inches in diameter and thirty-five feet tall. At an average growth rate of about one foot per year, thirty five foot tree is thirty five years old or older when its life is snuffed out by the logger’s mighty sword the chain saw. Twenty four trees may not sound like a lot, but that is forty eight hundred trees to build a neighborhood of two hundred homes. Our forest can’t keep up just so we can live in these oversized houses. So what happens when these thirty five year old trees are harvested to the point of depletion? We start harvesting the younger trees which mean one thing. Smaller trees; so we now we harvest more trees, because we still need ten thousand board feet to build an average size home.

I can remember when I was a young boy, and my father showed me pictures of the logging operations from the early days, when he used to work as a logger.  The trees were so big around and so long that a log truck could only carry eight or nine logs to load.  This was only sixty or seventy years ago. Now present day logging trucks carry as many as twenty or more logs, and the trucks are not any bigger than they were back then. If you walk through the forest today, you will be hard pressed to find a tree that is over sixty years old. And finding a hundred year old tree would be like finding a pot of gold. At the rate that we are going, should it continue, I won’t be surprised if we run out of trees to harvest by the year two thousand sixty-five.  That is only fifty one years from now.
If we are going to continue building these large homes, the size of small hotels then we seriously need to get our heads out of the sand. People need to consider using alternate building materials in the construction of new homes. Not just in the big homes but in all homes. I am not advocating that we cut out all wood products in the construction of homes, which would be close to impossible. However, we can dramatically reduce the amount of wood that goes into the construction of a new home.

There are other options in the construction of houses that would decrease the amount of wood being used by up to seventy percent. Instead of using wood for wall studs and roofs, steel could be used in place of wood. Steel is stronger and will stand up to high winds better than wood. Steal will not burn as quickly. It will not mildew like wood. And it is not susceptible to termite damage, or earthquakes. Since none of the interior walls is load bearing walls, remodeling is much easier and much more economical. Steel has been used to construct commercial buildings for more than forty five years. These are only a few of the many advantages of using steel construction for new homes. If the houses in New Orleans had been built using this technology, it would have saved home owners thousands of dollars on the renovations. We could also build more homes using concrete slabs and brick walls If families that are looking to buy their first home bought an older home that needed a little renovating instead of buying a custom built home, that would be one less new home which would help conserve our natural resources.

Now some would argue that the use of lumber is better for the environment in regards to the carbon footprint and green gases. I suppose that there might be truth to that, considering that steel, bricks, tile and a variety of the alternatives products are manufactured, rather than grown. However when we clear a hundred acres of land to put up a new neighborhood, that is land that cannot be used for replenishing trees for future homes. At the current rate that trees are being cut down for lumber production by 2065 we might not be around to worry about green gasses and carbon footprints. Do to the fact that trees absorb carbon monoxide and produce oxygen.

Americans have to do something about this problem; it is not going to get better. Given the number of trees being harvested to construct new homes, we are depleting our resources faster than they can be replaced. If Americans are determined to live in these oversized homes, then Americans have to invent, invest, and develop more earth friendly building products for home construction. It is time for Americans to remove their heads from the sand and take a realistic and conservative approach to the construction of new homes.  A few years ago there was a musical group that put out a song called “Where Have All The Flowers Gone” If this keeps up, in two thousand sixty-five, or sooner. Americans will be singing “Where Have All the Trees Gone.”