We love quirky attractions, and this one certainly qualifies. Melissa and I took a motorcycle ride to Eureka Springs, hoping for a better result than our last one. It started with a wonderful traffic-free blast up Route 23. Before rolling into town, we stopped to check out Quigley’s Castle, known as “the Ozarks’ strangest dwelling.” Sounds right up our alley.
Elise Quigley was a nature lover, as well as what we would call a “rock hound” today. She wanted “a home where I felt I was living in the world instead of in a box.” She designed a home with an interior living space, and then four feet of space between it and the outside walls where plants and even trees could grow between the first and second floors. The family was ready to build, except that glass was in short supply during World War II, and the design called for 28 large windows. Tired of waiting, Elise and her children waited until her husband, Albert, went to work one day in June 1943, moved into the chicken house, and tore down the old house before he got home, which would force them to begin work on the new house. The outer walls are made entirely of rocks that Elise collected herself, combined with concrete for structural integrity. They covered the windows temporarily, then added glass to them after the war once it was available again.
It’s one thing to read this story on a website. It was quite another to be told this story by Elise Quigley’s great-granddaughter. One thing I loved about some of the quirky attractions on Route 66 was that some people who had been connected to them since the beginning or their descendants were still there. Conversations with them gave me an even more personal connection to the history of the place, and that was also the case here.
For the most part, the inside is what you’d expect from a house built in the 1940s. But here, too, Elise worked her magic. One corner of the house is dedicated to an aquarium she made herself, with seashells and other aquatic relics embedded into the walls. Some interior walls were decorated like this, too. One bedroom had pictures of cars sealed in with the rocks and other relics. I can’t help imagining this was just like the posters of 1980s sports cars I had on my bedroom wall as a kid.
The yard around the house was at least as impressive as the house itself. Elise created sculptures, planters, an outhouse, and even a sitting area in the backyard, the same way she created the house’s exterior walls. Her attention to detail was amazing, with larger flat rocks jutting out of stone walls in just the right place to support flower pots where she wanted them. The tall poles with empty glass bottles hanging on them reminded me of Elmer’s Bottle Tree Ranch in California, which I visited on my Route 66 trip.
We were also mesmerized by this insect that we first thought was a hummingbird. It has a similar size, shape, and behavior, but the antennae on its head identify it as something else.
After that, we took a short ride to downtown Eureka Springs. Spring Fling was a madhouse, and we couldn’t even find a parking space for the bike on Memorial Day Weekend. But an ordinary weekend, while busy, was not the insanity we’ve experienced there before. In fact, we fit into a street parking space next to a Harley trike that still had half an hour of time left on the parking meter!
We took the opportunity to walk around a bit and check out some of the shops. Melissa picked up a couple of things she wanted. We also popped into GameMakers, a geeky gaming store we’d wanted to check out during our previous visit but couldn’t. It’s a fun little place with especially nerdy, knowledgeable staff.
Another way I knew this was a good place was because it had an entire shelf dedicated to various editions of The Red Dragon Inn. I’m friends with two of the three creators of this game from live-action role-playing games I played in a past life.
They also had a section of fun and nerdy stickers. Some of the stickers on my motorcycle trunk faded away in the sun, and I’d already decided it was time to replace some. I started with this because I am solidly part of the “Oregon Trail Generation.”
We had some time, so we decided to take a different route home than Route 23. Instead, we took US 62 to Berryville and hopped on Route 21 south to Kingston. Melissa motioned a request to stop there as we approached a gas station, so I did. We got some cold sweet tea, which really hit the spot on a hot day. Then we tried the ice cream nachos at the ice cream shop next door before continuing on, picking up Route 74 west back toward home. I am pleased to report that unlike last time, we had no flat tires or any other mechanical trouble along the way.
It felt good to get out on an adventure instead of sitting still, even if it was just for an afternoon. I’ve been spending too much time in one place because money’s been a little tight lately, a situation that has now turned around for me so we can enjoy ourselves a little more.
Smokey Da Van 