Today we decided to mix it up a bit, and take a small detour. “Let’s visit Metropolis, home of Superman,” I sug­gested. Everyone said “OK, why not?”

On day four, we left our cab­ins at Caddo River Ranch for the final time and headed to Hot Springs, Arkansas to see the his­toric bath houses and beau­ti­ful moun­tains and forests that sur­round the his­toric town.

Using the occa­sion of a fam­ily reunion as an excuse, we decided to plan a fam­ily vaca­tion with cen­tral Arkansas’ dia­mond and quartz mines as our focus. Our trip would include a stay at some rus­tic cab­ins along the Caddo River and a trip to his­toric Hot Springs, Arkansas.

In honor of the 75th anniver­sary of the Blue Ridge Parkway, Virginia’s small towns and com­mu­ni­ties along “America’s Favorite Drive,” are cel­e­brat­ing with spe­cial events and fes­ti­vals all sum­mer long.

The Blue Ridge Parkway is an iconic travel des­ti­na­tion, stretch­ing 469 miles from Shenandoah National Park in Virginia to the Great Smoky Mountains. Reconnect with loved ones and nature in this pris­tine part of Virginia where music fes­ti­vals, arts and crafts fairs, and food and wine events show­case the tra­di­tions and hos­pi­tal­ity of Virginia’s Blue Ridge region.

When Confederate General Sterling Price marched 12,000 troops into what became known as the Battle of Westport, he had no idea the ground he was cov­er­ing would some­day be among the most-visited parts of mod­ern day-Kansas City.

But those of us 156 years removed from the “Gettysburg of the West” can dou­bly enjoy retrac­ing the steps of those who fought in the October 1864 skir­mish by not only reliv­ing his­tory, but also by expe­ri­enc­ing some of Kansas City’s most pop­u­lar des­ti­na­tion neigh­bor­hoods along the Battle of Westport dri­ving tour.