Shearin's RV Park
2953 U.S. 61 N
Blytheville, AR 72315
Phone: 870-763-4858
Visited 10/7-10/8/2014

We have wanted to make a stop in Arkansas because neither Niki nor I had ever visited Arkansas before. I-55 is taking us through it so what better time?
By the way, so far, I-55 has been the best stretch of Interstate we have been on. Smooth sailing down from St Louis to date.

This is the Mississippi Delta and agriculture is huge in this area. We had not known that cotton was a big crop this far North, in addition to corn and soybeans; we also saw cotton fields on our way through Southern Missouri. Our campground is just across the highway from large fields of cotton. That’s the kind of white we like to see on the ground - not that other white stuff that blankets the North each Winter.

Admittedly there isn’t a whole lot to see and do in Blytheville but in talking with people we think they kind of like it just the way it is. They were proud to tell us about the historic Greyhound Bus Depot they restored downtown. We did stop by to visit it but found it closed. From the outside they appear to have done a beautiful job with it though.

They also closed off a section downtown to make a shopping area but it still needs a little work as does the new bypass. The long trains, which are plentiful, pass right through the center of Town so they decided to build a bypass over it. Perhaps it will be completed when we next visit.

As you may have noted we do like to dine out every chance we get to get a feel for the local flavor of a community from the food, the service, and the people we meet. We try to find the local “Mom & Pop” places that locals can recommend to us. It wasn’t so easy here. We ended up having dinner at the local Perkins the first afternoon. The food was typical franchise fare. Not the best nor the worst. Actually the worst came our second afternoon when we decided to give “Pizza Inn Blytheville” located at 1035 E. Main Street a try. It advertised a pizza buffet. We are fans of the “CiCi’s” pizza places we find in Florida and were expecting similar food. Wrong! The pizzas were dried out and tasteless. The greens were wilted on the salad bar. The pasta sauce was watery and  without flavor. Now we will cut any restaurant some slack if it’s one or 2 items that are “off” but in this case the only items we could say we liked were the soft drinks and the salad dressings. There were some items on the salad bar that we simply couldn’t identify. We opted for dessert at a Baskin-Robbins on our way back to the RV Park and that was also a mistake and another story for our reviews page when we have time to post it.

The best part of this stopover was the scenery. We could see the cotton fields from inside our rig and lo and behold this was the day it was time for picking the cotton. I have edited a small video of the men, their equipment, and how they actually do it. Neither Niki nor I are from cotton country so we found the operation quite interesting and educational to watch. I just can’t imagine how many people and man-hours it would have taken to pick this field back in the day.

We are finally getting back South! Last night was the first night we had the AC on all night instead of the furnace. The outside temp was pushing 80*+ today. I  phoned our next stop for tomorrow down in Mississippi and they expect to be in the 90's for the weekend. We'll take it!

Our neighbors last night were from Abilene, Texas and were on their way early this morning headed for "good trout fishing" up North of here.

Tomorrow we head for Grenada, Mississippi and Frog Hollow Campground for 2 nights and then we have Saturday and Sunday nights in Hammond, Louisiana. We plan to take a day trip into New Orleans on Sunday for some café au lait and beignets at Cafe Du Monde (if the Saints aren't playing a home game!)

Shearin’s RV Park information:
$35/night. 52 Campsites, 19 large pull-through sites, 30/50 AMP service, free WiFi, 70' RV length limit, open year-round, bathhouse, no cable but numerous local TV stations.

Directions: Take AR Exit 63 from I-55 and turn South on US-61. Campground will be on the right.

Website:  http://www.arkansas.com/attractions/detail.aspx?id=94374&r=Delta&city=Blytheville

Reviews: http://www.rvparkreviews.com/view_campground_review_details.php?cgid=7056®ion=Arkansas&city=Blytheville&park=Shearin-s-RV-Park

Things to do in Blytheville, Arkansas:
The Ritz Theatre, 306 W Main Street, Blytheville, AR
Historic Greyhound Bus Depot, 109 North 5th Street, Blytheville, AR 72315