BoyNhisDog wrote:Arkansas is a pretty wonderous outdoor state though. I like Arizona better as I have been here for 28 years but if you have never been to the Ouachita mountains or the Ozarks you are missing some very incredible country. I have canoed the Buffalo National River and other awesome rivers in Arkansas where white water runs through gorges lined with high bluffs and huge boulders stand in the froth. The sea of forests go as far as the eye can see. The thousands of streams and lakes are full of fish. It is a magic place.
I'd say the Governer there and his crew need to get out more.

We have something from every other state here and a whole lot more that none of the other states do have. Trouble is, the work is getting out.

I too have enjoyed the great outdoors in Arkansas... Twice I've camped and canoed Jack Fork in the Ozarks, and it's pretty nice.
I grew up in Kentucky, and while I wasn't nearly old enough to worry about dry counties and such, yes, it is a rather backwards place, at least in the rural areas (i.e. anyplace but Louisville and Lexington). Smalltown politics, educational priorities straight out of the movie "Varsity Blues", and yes, the Baptists. They who (there at least) insist the Methodists will burn in hell... Why? I'm not sure. I'd suggest it's because of a different name on the sign in front of those churches, but then I do question their literacy in the first place.
I guess I shouldn't dog on it too bad. In all fairness, it was a great place to grow up. We locked our doors most of the time, but we never had to. Everybody knows everything that's going on, and that can have its problems, but it keeps you safe too.
Honestly, the rate of growth here in AZ, the extreme heat in the valley, and the general lack of friendliness I encounter while out & about rather bother me. I'm starting to consider looking northward in the state for a place to hang my hat, and if not there, probably another state. But Arkansas? Pfft... No.
As far as which is more scenic? Well, Arkansas is a fun place for the outdoors stuff, but it doesn't have anything on what I've seen of AZ, and I've just barely started to explore this state. (Just saw the Sedona/Oak Creek area last month... It was pretty breathtaking.) I've seen one place back east that is hard to beat; that is Garden of the Gods in Illinois. It's absolutely gorgeous.
Oh, BTW, if anyone ever passes through Arkansas, keep a lookout for a Super 8 or a Motel 6 in Conway, right off I-40. My snagged hit the balcony railing with the moving truck on the way out here in '98, and I've since been curious if they hammered it out or left it mangled.
