I got a ticket to the Motorcycle Grand Prix (MotoGP) races at the Circuit of the Americas (COTA) track near Austin, Texas, and had a three day drive to get there.  As I was passing through Arkansas I was really impressed with the beauty of the countryside.  I’ve never known much about the state, but it’s covered with forests and green rolling hills that are just gorgeous!  I stopped one night near Little Rock, and in the morning visited the Toltec Mounds Archeological State Park.  As the name implies, this is an active archeological site investigating artificial mounds originally thought to have been created by the Toltec people of Mexico — as I’ll explain, this isn’t actually the case.

The mounds are surrounded by farmers’ fields, and are first visible as you leave the park visitor center.

There are a couple of walking paths that meander through the park, and let you walk among the mounds.  As you get closer they appear even more… mound-like…

From the signs I learned a bit about the probable purpose of the mounds.  At this site they appear to be mainly ceremonial, and perhaps for burial as well.

This is Mound C, which is most likely a burial mound, and is a smaller mound than the other mounds.  Less mound-y.  Please stay off mounds.

This place was significant to the Plum Bayou people who built it, but it seems that most of them didn’t live here.

In addition to the mounds, there are still traces of the earthwork walls that once surrounded the site.  Many artifacts have also been found here, and a sample of them are kept at the visitor center for viewing.

After winding through the mounds, the trail also skirts the creatively named Mound Pond, an oxbow lake cut off from the Arkansas River.

The trees growing along the edge and in the water really caught my attention by their strange and rather primeval appearance.  The only reference that I’ve been able to find claims that they’re cypress trees, but I don’t know if that’s correct or not.

Some of the trees closer to the shore had these strange spikey growths around them.  They were bizarre, but I have no explanation as to what they are or how they’re formed.

On a landing over the lake I found this old dugout canoe on display, which the sign said was carved and used by the Plum Bayou people.

Since nothing seemed to prohibit it, I got in and sat down.  It’s not the most comfortable of crafts, and I’d hesitate to take it in rough water, but wow… I wonder who the person was who carved this, how long it was in use, and what stories it could tell?

The rest of the trail looped through what is thought to have been a sports field, and past another mound, on its way back to the visitor center.  However, at this point I was overtaken by a young school group that made my peaceful walk a little bit… less peaceful.  McKenzie in particular had a strange aversion to keeping her shoes on, and was reprimanded several times for unruly behavior.  It was threatening rain as well so, all things considered, it seemed a good time to end my visit to the Toltec Mounds.

Perhaps one of the strangest things about this park is its name, since it seems to have been based on, at best, a mistake or, at worst, some condescending bigotry.

So that’s a bit insulting… “we don’t think you’re civilized enough to pile up dirt.”  Oddly, in spite of knowing for over 100 years that the Toltecs did not build this place, the name has never been changed to Plum Bayou State Park.  Still, although small, it’s a lovely peaceful place to spend a morning and contemplate the passing of time.  At least, until McKenzie gets there…