Cottages in Mountain View

Toe-tapping folk music fills the air in this Ozark Mountains gem, where musicians gather on courthouse square benches for impromptu jam sessions. The Ozark Folk Center State Park preserves traditional crafts and tunes in a living history setting that feels refreshingly unstaged. Blanchard Springs Caverns offers underground adventures through limestone formations that look like they've been carved by artistic giants. Cool off in the crystal-clear White River where trout fishing approaches religion for locals. The surrounding Ozark National Forest provides hiking trails through landscapes that seem lifted from a more innocent America. Come evening, local theaters offer performances where musicians play not because they're paid to, but because their souls simply wouldn't have it any other way.