Springhill Park

Our first trip of 2025 was to Springhill Park Campground with John and Lynda. Springhill is a Corp of Engineers park located at the James W. Trimble Lock and Dam on the Arkansas River near Barling Arkansas. The park has two separate camping areas with some campsites lining the river below the dam, while others sit between John Paul Hammerschmidt Lake and Massard Creek upstream of the dam. We stayed on the upstream side in site A10 from April 8th, through 11th, 2025. We found the park to be a little noisy due to operations at the lock and dam, and air craft flying in and out of the Fort Smith regional Airport and the national Guard base. Fort Smith Regional Airport (FSM) in Arkansas is home to the Arkansas Air National Guard's 188th Wing, located at Ebbing Air National Guard Base. The 188th Wing operates on a portion of the airport's property and shares runways with the civilian airport. The base is also the site of a new Foreign Military Sales (FMS) Program Pilot Training Center, focused on F-16 and F-35 training for allied nations. Additionally the 188th Wing operates the MQ-9 Reaper remotely piloted aircraft (drones). One evening we believe we witnessed two MQ-9 Reaper flights pass through under cover of night.

Site A10

Massard Creek Behind Our Camp Site

F-16 Training from Ebbing Air National Guard Base

Donna All Dolled Up and Ready for Adventure

One afternoon we ventured into Fort Smith to visit the newly constructed US Marshall Museum. It was a beautiful modern building filed with exhibits showcasing the history of the US Marshall service.

Museum Entry

Mangled Steel from World Trade Center Terror Attack

Statue to Early Horseback US Marshalls

Desperados in the Lockup

John Wayne's Parade Saddle

US Marshall Simulated Tryout Test

US Marshall Van

On one of our drives we pasted the worlds largest Budweiser cans in Lavaca at the intersection of highways 22 & 96.