On October 20 we left Nashville and headed towards Missouri, through the Ozark Mountains and through our first Cotton field and then in to the City of Branson.
Branson is located 40 miles south of Springfield and nestled in the heart of the Ozark Mountains. From what we saw on our trip across the State, southwest Missouri is home of some of the most picturesque and breathtaking natural views we have seen so far in the US.
Branson is affectionately called the crown jewel of Missouri with its bright lights, live entertainment and scenic views. Branson is also known as the "Live Music Show Capital of the World," in that it has more than 50 live performance theaters, three pristine lakes, 12 championship golf courses, an international award-winning theme park, and a Historic Downtown district.
With over 50 live shows and performances scheduled throughout the day, we decided to take in only a couple of shows, as the variety of talent made for some hard choices. One night we went to the Mickey Gilley Theater and saw the Rankin Brothers and the Rankin-ettes.
This multi-variety show speaks to all groups and generations. The Rankin Brothers are known as singer-impressionists. Along with their considerable vocal and musical talents, they had a lot of brotherly comedy and a stage presence that we really enjoyed. They sang songs from rock, to gospel, to country. One of the brothers was particularly good at impersonations and took on the persona of John Denver, Sonny Bono and Elvis when he sang their songs. Their show certainly ranks as one of the best we have seen.
The next night we went to the Dick Clark’s American Bandstand Theater and watched “Legends in Concert”.
This show, known as the pioneer of live celebrity tribute artists shows, had a great line up with artists showing as Bette Midler, Johnny Mathis, Aretha Franklin, Alan Jackson and the Blues Brothers. This show travels constantly between Myrtle Beach, Branson, Las Vegas and Atlantic City. What was quite interesting, was a large video screen showing the actual artist singing the same song as the impersonator was on stage. It is quite amazing how one person can sing so like another.
We also had a chance to drive around the Ozarks and took lots of pictures of the scenery.
On October 25, we headed south into Arkansas and stopped at the Millwood Landing Golf and RV Resort in Ashdown, just a little north of Texarkana. The golf course was very dry, rough and showed the effects of the long drought of the South. Millwood Lake is a renowned fishing lake, with much of its more than 29,000 acres being flooded timber that provides exceptional cover for its wide variety of fish. Ashdown was created in 1867 and is around 2.5 hours from Little Rock. Nearby is President Clinton’s birthplace, Hope Arkansas.
On October 27, we will be leaving and on our way to the Lone Star State and Dallas.
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