Miracles never cease!

Little Rock is really on top of things when it comes to the Arkansas River Trail, a 17 mile recreation trail on both sides of the Arkansas River.  This day we parked in NLR and rode over to the Clinton Bridge. The Clinton bridge is an old railroad bridge, built in 1899 for the Rock Island Line,  that opened to the public for pedestrians and bicycles in 2011.

At the far end of the bridge is the Clinton Presidential Library.

This is the oval office from Bill Clinton's presidency.

When Clinton announced that he was building his presidential library in this dilapidated area of Little Rock, which contained old warehouses and plenty of vagrants,  it helped to revitalize the downtown area.

Miracles never cease! Leon not only entered the library for the first time but tried out Clinton's chair in the cabinet room!

We explored the River Market area downtown and stopped in for some mideastern fare for lunch. We spotted a Game and Fish Museum we did not know was downtown and had a brief tour. After strolling in the park we took the bridge elevator up to ride back across the river on the Junction Bridge, another railroad bridge which was opened to the public in 2008.

What a glorious time we had with our bikes in Little Rock. We will do it again!

Big Dam Bridge

We have at last made it to Little Rock with the bicycles to enjoy the long awaited ride on the Big Dam Bridge - the bridge to health and fitness! We rode through Two Rivers Park and crossed the Two Rivers Bridge so names for the area where the Arkansas and Maumelle Rivers meet. This newly constructed bridge provides access to the Maumelle campground and on out to Pinnacle State Park.

The Big Dam Bridge crosses the Arkansas River and connects approximately 15 miles of scenic riverside trails in North Little Rock and Little Rock.  

After 14 years in the building process the bridge opened in 2006. A favorite is the 100 miles cycling tour held each year. We felt fortunate to ride ten miles but what a pleasant ride it was alongside the banks of the Arkansas River, all level except the access to the bridges!

The bridge is only for pedestrian and bicycle traffic and spans the Murray Lock and Dam. 

In the Two Rivers Park there is a community garden which I found intriguing. Lots of little spaces all fenced with their own gates and decorations. Several people were working their gardens but it appeared that these farmers spent more time sitting than hoeing.