Arkansans are so helpful we’ll be happy to get your bearings if you’re new to the Natural State. But there are a few things you’re going to learn whether or not someone tells you. Below you’ll find 15 truths you’ll learn quickly when you move to Arkansas, without having to have a lesson.
- Weather alert days are fairly common during tornado season.
Flickr/NSSL NOAA Even if we do watch storms from our porches, that doesn’t mean we don’t know when we need to take cover. Tornadoes have wrought some serious devastation in the Natural State and we don’t forget easily.
- Floods are real, and they happen here sometimes.
Flickr/U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service This especially true for those moving from notoriously dry states. Arkansas has a lot of bodies of water, and the spring frequently brings high water.
- “Turn around, don’t drown.”
Flickr/MRHSFan Seriously, friends. Nobody wants to have to save your life because you’re in a hurry to get somewhere.
- You can’t really predict Arkansas weather any more than you can predict who will win the Arkansas lottery.
Flickr/UAcesComm This picture was taken on May 3, 2013. Because Arkansas’s seasons don’t make any sense.
- Southern food is the most comforting food on the planet.
Flickr/Lize Can you think of anything more comforting than mashed potatoes and gravy with a hearty helping of fried chicken? No? Me either.
- That the Razorbacks are serious business for a lot of Arkansans.
Flickr/Texas Tongs Seriously, there’s no greater Arkansas commandment than “thou shalt not defame the name of the most auspicious Hogs.”
- The outdoors are serious business for Arkansans too.
Flickr/Anna Most Arkansans do spend a lot of recreational time in the outdoors, but I mean this literally too. Arkansas’s tourism is largely based on our natural wonders.
- “The Natural State” is not a misnomer.
Flickr/Jonathan Ball Some of the most scenic spots in the U.S. are right here in Arkansas. It’s an apt nickname, and our scenic areas have earned the title.
- Arkansas history is more interesting than you ever knew.
Flickr/Kat Selvocki Where can you find plantations, Old West towns, the site of a Revolutionary War skirmish, the building in which one state senator stabbed another, and important sites for history of the Civil Rights Movement all in one state? Arkansas, of course.
- How to chat with strangers about how your mama is and whether or not it’s going to rain.
Flickr/Dave Thomas Arkansans are friendly. We will talk to you about anything, at any time. Just smile and nod if you’re confused.
- That even Arkansas’s largest cities are tiny compared to other places.
Flickr/Sean Davis The largest city in Arkansas is Little Rock. Little Rock’s population doesn’t quite reach 200,000. The second largest city, Fort Smith, only has a population of about 87,000. Compared to places out west or back east, these numbers are tiny.
- There really are a lot of Walmarts here.
Flickr/Jo Naylor Look, we’re their home base. They like it here.
- Arkansas’s regions are incredibly distinct.
Flickr/lucianvenutian
Flickr/Anna The upper Delta doesn’t look like the lower Delta, the Ouachitas aren’t like the Ozarks. Basically our regions look like landscapes from different planets.
- Dirt roads are beautiful.
Flickr/Matthew Peoples That’s right, dirt roads aren’t just from charming movies set in rural areas. They’re real and they’re perfectly lovely.
- Arkansas is definitely the best state.
Facebook/Jennifer Price Photography Everybody wears shoes and there’s natural beauty everywhere. It’s so much better than you imagined, isn’t it?
For the ten commandments of Arkansas, click here. To find a handy dandy list of dos and don’ts, look here.
Flickr/NSSL NOAA
Even if we do watch storms from our porches, that doesn’t mean we don’t know when we need to take cover. Tornadoes have wrought some serious devastation in the Natural State and we don’t forget easily.
Flickr/U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
This especially true for those moving from notoriously dry states. Arkansas has a lot of bodies of water, and the spring frequently brings high water.
Flickr/MRHSFan
Seriously, friends. Nobody wants to have to save your life because you’re in a hurry to get somewhere.
Flickr/UAcesComm
This picture was taken on May 3, 2013. Because Arkansas’s seasons don’t make any sense.
Flickr/Lize
Can you think of anything more comforting than mashed potatoes and gravy with a hearty helping of fried chicken? No? Me either.
Flickr/Texas Tongs
Seriously, there’s no greater Arkansas commandment than “thou shalt not defame the name of the most auspicious Hogs.”
Flickr/Anna
Most Arkansans do spend a lot of recreational time in the outdoors, but I mean this literally too. Arkansas’s tourism is largely based on our natural wonders.
Flickr/Jonathan Ball
Some of the most scenic spots in the U.S. are right here in Arkansas. It’s an apt nickname, and our scenic areas have earned the title.
Flickr/Kat Selvocki
Where can you find plantations, Old West towns, the site of a Revolutionary War skirmish, the building in which one state senator stabbed another, and important sites for history of the Civil Rights Movement all in one state? Arkansas, of course.
Flickr/Dave Thomas
Arkansans are friendly. We will talk to you about anything, at any time. Just smile and nod if you’re confused.
Flickr/Sean Davis
The largest city in Arkansas is Little Rock. Little Rock’s population doesn’t quite reach 200,000. The second largest city, Fort Smith, only has a population of about 87,000. Compared to places out west or back east, these numbers are tiny.
Flickr/Jo Naylor
Look, we’re their home base. They like it here.
Flickr/lucianvenutian
The upper Delta doesn’t look like the lower Delta, the Ouachitas aren’t like the Ozarks. Basically our regions look like landscapes from different planets.
Flickr/Matthew Peoples
That’s right, dirt roads aren’t just from charming movies set in rural areas. They’re real and they’re perfectly lovely.
Facebook/Jennifer Price Photography
Everybody wears shoes and there’s natural beauty everywhere. It’s so much better than you imagined, isn’t it?
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