Guitar Walk and Beatles Park

 September 1964 was an exciting time in Walnut Ridge, Arkansas. The Beatles were coming to town! They were on their way to a ranch in Missouri for a few days of rest and relaxation but needed an airport large enough to land their plane and switch to a smaller one. It was supposed to be a secret. When the news got out several hundred people gathered at the airport to get a glimpse of the Beatles on their return trip. And that's all they got. The four men hurried past them and boarded their plane without even a backwards glance. That didn't stop the town from playing up the event. In 2011 they held the first Beatles at the Ridge Festival and now it's a yearly festival. That same year they unveiled Beatles Park and in 2012 the Guitar Walk was built. 

Guitar Walk is a tribute to singers who performed rockabilly music along Highway 67. There are eleven interpretive plaques and most of them have push buttons to listen to songs. The music is pretty cool and the buttons all work! :) 

 

Beatles Park is just block north on Abbey Road. Beatles Park has metal cutout silhouettes of the Beatles. There are more cutouts along the sidewalk and murals on the opposite side of the street. 

 Guitar Walk is accessible. It's possible to get close to the cutouts in Beatles Park by going down a slightly steep ramp but there isn't a ramp to the platform. Walking/rolling between the sites is doable but there isn't a sidewalk to the crosswalk on Front Street. Traffic is fairly light so it's possible to make a dash for it and go up West Elm Street. The curb cuts are in bad condition or nonexistent however it's fine to roll along the street because the traffic is light. 

Our RV fit in the Guitar Walk lot by backing up over the grass. The lot is small with one entrance/exit so visitors towing or with large RVs may wish to park in the large lot on the opposite side of Front Street. There's a large parking lot at Beatles Park for anyone who doesn't want to walk between the two sites. Beatles Park  36.06872, -90.95747   Guitar Walk  36.06731, -90.95705