The old truss bridge that carries Hwy 7 across the Buffalo National River at Pruitt, Arkansas. As I’ve learned from BridgeHunter.com, the old thing is getting kind of rickety and is scheduled to be replaced with a new one – but this old bridge will be given to the National Park Service to use as a pedestrian walkway.
Changing weather over Arkansas’s Lake Dardanelle – seen here from the Russellville side of Lake Dardanelle State Park. Color version below…
Yes kids, there really is a place called Toad Suck : The city voted number one on the “most embarrassing or unfortunate US Town or Place Names” poll by findmypast.com.
What does “Toad Suck” mean anyway? Well, the answer is quite simple… Long ago, steamboats traveled the Arkansas River when the water was at the right depth. When it wasn’t, the captains and their crew tied up to wait where the Toad Suck Lock and Dam now spans the river. While they waited, they refreshed themselves at the local tavern there, to the dismay of the folks living nearby, who said: “They suck on the bottle ’til they swell up like toads.” Hence, the name Toad Suck. The tavern is long gone, but the legend and fun live on at Toad Suck Daze.
The above info comes from the Wikipedia article about Toad Suck – but it’s a great place to just sit and watch the Arkansas River go by. And if you’d like a snack while you sit, the Toad Suck One Stop is nearby! Another photo below…)
