As fall break quickly approaches, some students have started to realize that it is less like fall break and more like fall long weekend. With only one day more than any other weekend, the question remains: Is it worth it to leave Searcy city limits for such a quick trip? Luckily, staying nearby for fall break is nothing to be ashamed about since there is actually a lot to do right here in central Arkansas.
\nJunior Carter Shields recommended taking a day trip to Petit Jean State Park in Morrilton, Arkansas. Petit Jean offers camping, hiking, rock-climbing and other outdoor opportunities. Shields said fall is the best time to visit Petit Jean because it is prettiest when the leaves are changing. He specifically recommended two hiking trails: Cedar Falls and the Stout\u2019s Point overlook. He said one is an easy downhill hike that takes you directly to a waterfall and the other takes you to an outlook over central Arkansas.
\n\u201cI suggest doing [the Cedar Falls trail] around sunset,\u201d Shields said. \u201cIt takes you up to this outlook where you could just see the sunset that just goes for miles, and you can see the horizon. It\u2019s just beautiful.\u201d
\nIf hiking doesn\u2019t sound appealing, junior and Arkansas native Chantel Ceaser recommended taking a day trip to Bentonville to experience Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.
\n\u201cThere are art pieces where you get to be a part of the art,\u201d Ceaser said.\u201cIt\u2019s just like oh, I get to be a part of something bigger than myself.\u201d
\nCeaser also said the 3 1\/2 hour drive to Bentonville might seem daunting to some students, but there is so much to do to make it worth while, like visiting the Walmart museum or the highly rated restaurant Tusk & Trotter.
\nSenior Laura Doyle said going to Peebles Farm Pumpkin Patch and Corn Maze is a great way to celebrate the beginning of fall. For any adventurous soul, Doyle recommended going at night, when Peebles features their haunted corn maze. But for someone uninterested in being chased by an actor with a chainsaw prop, she recommends going during the day time for family-friendly fall fun.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s just like my fall aesthetic in general,\u201d Doyle said. \u201cThere\u2019s a sunflower patch, which is incredible. There are pumpkin patches and a petting zoo. They also have like bonfire pits, horse carriage rides and hayrides.\u201d
\nSearcy\u2019s surrounding area is home to many other fun and easy day trips. Hiking Sugarloaf Mountain, exploring Eureka Springs, going to the Wild Wilderness Drive Through Safari in Gentry or even just spending the day in Little Rock\u2019s River Market, there are more than enough things to do right around here during your fall break.
\n\u201cGo explore Arkansas,\u201d Ceaser said. \u201cThere\u2019s so much in Arkansas. It\u2019s beautiful. She has character. She has grace.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
As fall break quickly approaches, some students have started to realize that it is less like fall break and more like fall long weekend. With only one day more than…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15119,"featured_media":13630,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[136],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13650","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lifestyle"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thelink.harding.edu\/the-bison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13650","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thelink.harding.edu\/the-bison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thelink.harding.edu\/the-bison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelink.harding.edu\/the-bison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15119"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelink.harding.edu\/the-bison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13650"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thelink.harding.edu\/the-bison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13650\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13651,"href":"https:\/\/thelink.harding.edu\/the-bison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13650\/revisions\/13651"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelink.harding.edu\/the-bison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13630"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thelink.harding.edu\/the-bison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13650"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelink.harding.edu\/the-bison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13650"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelink.harding.edu\/the-bison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13650"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}