Summer was really something - not the spectacular, explosive blooms and storms of Spring, the the slow burn of an oven. Something I worried would break my delicate California constitution, but that I found more than a little wonderful.


 Hello again, dear readers!
 ...Although you may be just me and a few particularly loyal relatives, I'll address this to a crowd just in case :)
 Summer in Arkansas is really something else, as the heat ramps up to the low 100s, and humidity kicks well into the 90 percent range, I expected to melt like a popsickle being held in a toddler's hot little hand.
 But, shockingly, I thrived. I played soccer, I went hiking, I sweat - a LOT. And at the end of a few months, any time it was below 80 and 50 percent humidity, I suddenly found myself cold.



 The humid heat is almost like being constantly in a warm, comforting blanket. The air so thick that you can taste it, with none of the cold informality of a dry winter night. It's, well, nice. More than a few people from here have looked at me like I was insane for saying so, but I loved it.

 And now, we're into Fall. Fall, one of the most beautiful of the seasons, but also a little melancholy, because it's the time of shortening days and falling temperatures. The Arkansas rain storms I've come to know and love are back, but with them a deep, bone-rattling chill that's already had me crank up the heater and huddle for comfort.
 But, before it gets too bad, here's a selection of photos from Petit Jean ("Little John"), an amazing park up in Northwest Arkansas, and a great place to catch between seasons!



 This is - theoretically - the grave of the woman who the park is named after. The wife of one of the early French explorers in Arkansas, rather than be left at home, she dressed up as a boy and blended in with his crew under the name Little John when he left on the trip. Sadly, after arriving in Arkansas in winter, she became very sick and ultimately passed away - but she had some time with her husband in the end, and so he first named the area Petit Jean in her honor.




 Above is the view from a balcony overlooking the grave, on a particularly impressive day.



 It was still hot out, but you can see the colors just starting to change for Fall, and the humidity had dropped just a little bit.



 ...I mean, you've gotta selfie, right?



 We took one of the 4 - 5 mile loops in the park, and Zelda got her first off-leash hiking experience!



 Zelda handled it better than this little lady, who was an absolute peach, but kept running off on her poor, sweating owners.
 This is the natural rock bridge, very cool! It was listed on the map as near "Turtle Rocks." When we saw the map, we thought to ourselves "What's a turtle rock? Is it a rock covered in turtles? A turtle sculpture? How will we know when we see- "



 - Heh, oh. Yeah those are "Turtle" rocks all right!



 Jen didn't want to take the climb with Zelda, so I had to bring pictures of the "Turtles" back down. Cool spot :)



 All through this hike, there were beautiful trees, and super cool rock formations above, below, and beside the trail. There were tunnels, bridges, caves, walls, clifftops - all sorts of fun.
 That distance was Zelda's happy distance, she would stop that far ahead and look back to make sure we were there, but she liked to range a little ahead of us. But this was a cool moment, letting her roam and having her still stick with us without making us chase her down.



 The family! Woohoo!



 Halfway along this loop, there's a side-trail that was marked on the label as "The Grotto." We had to check it out! Where does this go?



 This picture really doesn't do it justice, those tiny dots at the far end are Jen and Zelda - right under what, in winter, is a waterfall into a small lake! We're definitely coming back next year to go swimming!



 This is the far side of the loop, just above the Grotto. Beautiful view that I barely caught in this picture.
 The next few are just shots of the trees and trail, so, enjoy!









 This place, the Petit Jean lodge, my god it's beautiful! I could have taken a million pictures up there. Or just stopped and stared for hours. If you're ever even a few states away from Arkansas, this place is worth the detour!



 This shot is just an architecture shot for my dad :) the woodwork here was jaw-dropping, and it overlooks the view from the last picture. Amazing place!



 And this is Fall, in all its glory. There's a grassy lawn under all that brown, you just can't see it. This lasted about two days before the cool, pre-winter wind came in and picked it all up, and promptly dropped the temperature into the 20s. Brrr!



 I got to spend my first afternoon raking leaves the other day, and it was easier, more satisfying, and yet far more frustrating than I'd imagined.



 But, it sure is pretty when the moment strikes :)
 I'll close with a few more shots of Fall colors-



 This was a cool moment, and a nice gradient of clouds and tree colors!



 And, of course, you can't close without a sunset from our back deck!

 Thank y'all for making it this far, it's been a wonderful - and busy - Summer and Fall, and I'm sorry I haven't been posting more of these. With Winter coming, I'll be breaking out the hot summer pictures to make myself feel better :)