It was another sunny day as we pulled away from Hidden Valley Outfitter in Lebanon, MO. Our next stop was Bentonville, AR. Bentonville is well-known as the birthplace and headquarters of Walmart. When I worked for Procter & Gamble, Walmart was one of my accounts, so, I was looking forward to a stop in Bentonville.
Since we didn’t plan to stay in Bentonville, we had to find an RV parking spot while we toured the Walmart Museum. We found a nearby Walmart (imagine that) and utilized the parking lot for the RV. We quickly unhitched the Jeep and drove to the town square. We entered the Walton History Museum through the 5 & 10. We watched a short video on Sam Walton’s life and business philosophies/practices. As we walked through the museum, we saw many exhibits; Sam Walton’s Ford pick-up truck, his office, family history, and the history of Walmart through the decades. The museum tour was free and we both received a Walmart 100th anniversary pin! We ended our tour at The Spark Cafe, a retro Soda Fountain and ice cream store, serving Yarnell’s ice cream. Yarnell’s was the very first ice cream Sam ever sold, so, the tradition has been kept alive at The Spark Café.
After our short stop in Bentonville, we continued on the road towards Oklahoma. We stopped in Roland to get fuel at a Casino gas station. Many casinos allow overnight RV parking so we planned to check and see if we could use the parking lot. A security guard conveniently stopped by and told us there was a full hook up RV park on the other side of the Casino. The best part… it was FREE! We pulled around the Casino, found the RV Park. It was empty when we arrived, but, two other campers soon arrived. Only three RV’s for the night!
Tomorrow – Texas!