- I am Nick Troutman.

- And I'm Emily Jackson, and this- - And I'm upside-down!

(couple laughing) (beeping) - I'm Nick Troutman!

- Sorry, I was looking at the wrong camera.

(crew laughing) - And this week on the Great Family Adventure, we're exploring, ugh!

I'm Nick Troutman.

- And I'm Emily Jackson.

- And this week on the Great Family Adventure, we're exploring the sights and the bike trails of Bentonville, Arkansas.

(upbeat rock music) - [Emily] It's a really rewarding feeling when we pull up into a new place and we're parking the trailer in a truck.

We don't know what we're gonna see or what we're gonna do yet, but we know that now the fun begins.

- [Nick] If it was up to me, we would live in the RV a hundred percent of the time.

It's like this freedom, this endless possibility of the ability to travel the world, really, and search for adventure.

Funding for Great Family Adventure is provided by Discover the World.

Collette offers small group explorations, tours, destinations and local experiences designed especially for small groups.

Explorations by Collette Guided travel since 1918 [Exciting music] In4Adventure.com inspiring, educating and encouraging outdoor adventure for 20 years, we've been fueling innovation on the water.

Our commitment is to improve the quality of life for people all around the world.

At ISLE We believe life on the water is a life better in balance and by these additional sponsors.

(calm guitar music) So we packed up the trailer, left home in Rock Island, and now we are on the road for the next several months and our first stop is here in Bentonville, Arkansas.

I've been here several times in the past, and this has been somewhere that I wanted to take my family since the first time I've been here.

- Hitting up new locations for me is always a little bit nerve-wracking.

I'm like, what are we gonna get into?

But the second we pulled up here in Bentonville, I mean the kids did exactly what I could only imagine and only hope that they would do, which is get out of the RV and run straight for the outdoors.

You know, we got here, we pulled up, you know, the home base was set up, and they went straight for the foam boat creek that was right behind the trailer.

Tucker Troutman!

(Emily laughing) (water splashing) - Not only do we have trails literally right out of our front step outta the RV, only 10 minutes drive and we can be downtown Bentonville.

We've got the square there, there's epic restaurants and old school original Walton's Museum and first store and everything's bike-accessible.

So as far as the first stop here on our adventure, I couldn't ask for a better place than Bentonville.

- We are here in Bentonville, and Nick went out biking with a friend.

So we're gonna go and enjoy the sunshine.

We're gonna go see how far this path here at the RV park goes.

I have no clue.

The kids have no clue.

So we're gonna go check it out.

It'll be fun.

(upbeat rock music) - We are here at the fire line at Kohler.

One of my favorite runs here.

Just really flowy, some epic berms and some sweet jumps.

So, let's go check it out.

- You know, it started back in 2006 when the first five miles of Slaughter Pin trail were built.

You know, the Walton Family Foundation invested in Bentonville and created a small trail system.

As the trail expanded from 5 miles to 12 to 20, to now where it connects into Bella Vista where there's over 140 miles.

This has really become a destination.

- Bentonville is dubbed the mountain biking capital of the world and it truly is.

I mean there's 140 miles that are accessible from downtown where you can just head straight out from the center square, grab something to eat, food, whatever, go straight onto the single track and you can do whatever you want.

There is trails for everyone.

- This is a new trail that we are just basically finishing up and it's called The Hard Way To The Cafe.

Down at the bottom of the trail is the Kohler Cafe.

So we're gonna bomb down this new trail and roll right into the cafe and get some lunch.

- Perfect, let's do it!

- All right.

(upbeat rock music) (gravel crunching) Kohler Cafe!

- This is awesome dude.

- No better way to go to dinner, huh?

- This is so rad!

(calm guitar music) - Hi!

- Hi.

How are you guys doing?

- How was it?

- It was super fun.

Epic day riding!

- Parker didn't like the apples.

Should we jump in your bike?

- I want to bike.

- You wanna go bike?

Let's go bike!

I think mommy's gonna go for a run and I'll take you guys biking.

Have fun.

Love you!

I'm gonna take the kids (kisses) to the pump track and I'll see you when you get back from your run.

- I'll try to keep you updated.

- Okay.

Have a good run!

- For me, getting outside is a lot like meditating.

You know, you're supposed to solely be focused on one thing, and when we get outside, just being outside in nature, you know when people are struggling, the kids are struggling.

There's just something about stepping outside and soaking up that sunshine that just gets everyone back on the same page.

(calm guitar music) - One of the cool things about Bentonville's Trail Systems is there really is something for everybody, which is ideal for us with the whole family set up.

And something that was perfect for us was all the different pump tracks.

This is something perfect for Parker and Tucker because they can get out on their own bikes, they can kind of ride these rollers, feel like they're hitting jumps and having all sorts of fun.

And it's really cool as well because we can go to these different locations and hit up like, different trails for them as well.

And yeah, it's just super fun.

So I don't know, there's really something for everybody with the trails here.

(playful guitar music) - What we're gonna do today is going to a bike park filming a big video.

So.

Oh, there it is!

- [Nick] So yeah, there's this really cool trail that is right downtown and it is just filled with all this rad art.

Art along the trail and it ends right at Crystal Bridges Museum.

- It's actually a pretty long trail that's filled with art along the way.

Animals, signage, you know, different things made outta wood, steel, just really unique art along this nature trail.

You know, it's free to go there and enjoy.

It's easily accessible and it was kind of fun just to have that controlled environment where the kids got to experience, you know, just art out in nature.

(bikes creaking) - [Nick] Keep goin, Em!

(metal banging) - There was this awesome, like, spider sculpture, the fact that it ended at the Crystal Bridges Museum and the incredible architecture there.

It's just a really cool location and something that I was stoked to show the whole family.

- Do you like orange chicken?

- [Nick] Hmm.

- Pizza?

- Tucker, watch out for people, okay?

- Right here, babe.

Stop.

- Ice cream first.

- You want ice cream first?

Let's do, if we're gonna do both, let's do pizza first.

Because ice cream's kinda like a dessert.

Well, let's go check it out.

- As far as Bentonville goes, I didn't know about Bentonville outside of it as being a biking town.

You know, Nick had only been here previously to go mountain biking, so to bring the kids here with that being the only thing I knew about it, didn't really set it up for the amazing family town that it really is.

Just about anything that you would want to do with your family, or to just get outside, Bentonville has it all.

(upbeat rock music) - Hey everybody, welcome to the Scott Family Amazeum.

I'm here in Bentonville, Arkansas.

It's a great day to come out and play at the Amazeum.

We have wonderful exhibits in science and the arts that are all hands on and interactive.

- [Nick] Yeah, pretty much once we walked through the doors of the Amazeum, it was like just almost a full-on frenzy where we were running from one spot to the next, checking out different exhibits.

- [Emily] The kids were definitely like kids in a candy store, you know, bright colors everywhere.

The second we opened those doors, even before we got in, they were jacked!

I mean the place is just fully loaded to engage every aspect of a child's mind.

I mean, the sensory aspect of the whole place is really designed to get adults and children out of their own box.

And I really appreciate places like that because it really does, even let Nick and I be kids again.

- Yeah, my inner child definitely came out 'cause I was having as much fun as the kids were as well!

(children laughing and screaming) Well, that was cool!

- We are a hands-on interactive museum and that is our specialty.

We want people to come in and touch things, to play with things, to see if they can break things, to take things apart and put them back together.

And hopefully when they leave, they'll leave with a new sense of creativity, a new sense of curiosity, and become part of our creative community here in Northwest Arkansas.

(gentle chime music) - [Emily] A lot of times when we're traveling, places feel like home to us.

We have our home with us so when we visit these places you have that home atmosphere and aspect of it where you feel really comfortable.

And so with that it's really nice to be able to get one place and then really experience it but know that you have the comfort of your home.

- Checking out all these different adventures is pretty normal for us.

And the kids, they adapt to it pretty easily and pretty well because for them, it's a big part of, you know, their entire lifestyle so far.

'Cause they've spent half their life on the road.

And I don't know, it's just this cool, you know, dynamic of, part of the time at home, most of the time on the road and traveling around new spots.

- Thankful for my marshmallow!

- [Nick] Your marshmallow?

- [Emily] You're having another one?

- [Nick] Your marshmallow?

Your mushmallow.

- [Emily] My mushmallow.

- [Nick] Parker, I think this one's gonna be perfect to go- Oh, gosh!

(blows) So kids are asleep, and Emily and I just trying to get some stuff done this morning, making coffee.

Yeah, life in the RV.

(gentle guitar music) For us as a family, hiking is just another way to get outside and explore the outdoors with the kids.

- In general, when we're doing these adventures and getting outside, I think it's really important to have a distraction piece.

So it's not just about the hike, it's also about going, you know, bringing a foam boat or bringing a snack along the way.

You know, what other elements to this hike can you make them excited about?

- So yeah, we went to Tanyard Creek and it was this really cool, just, river with some waterfalls on it.

But we were able to find this like little offshoot and this cool brook that came through with perfect little rapids for the kids to just explore, check out.

We were able to like, you know, take our shoes off, walk into the water and it was crystal clear water, perfect spot for us to go hike and explore.

- Wait, it's Shelly one and Shelly two?

Okay.

I was definitely really surprised when we were hiking yesterday at Tanyard Creek, and no real expectations.

It has Creek in the name so I thought we might see some water.

But this was a gorgeous full-on brook with cascading waterfalls, you know, beautiful lighting.

It was just a really nice surprise.

- What are you guys talking about over here?

- Mommy's trying not to pee her pants and get back to the bathroom and Tucker's going "shh!"

- [Nick] Are you trying to make it sound like- - The ocean!

- [Nick] Like pee sounds?

(upbeat rock music) - [Emily] Hi!

- [Doorman] Hey, how are you doing today?

- [Emily] Good!

- [Nick] Climb Bentonville was another really cool stop here because we got to go inside and just check out this amazing indoor climbing gym and the kids were stoked 'cause they just get to climb all over.

There was all sorts of cool stuff.

There was one area that had all these buildings that you could kind of climb up and the kids thought they were being like Spider-Man and Spider-Girl, and it was just this really rad location that we all got to have a lot of fun together.

Emily and myself got to climb, you know, the hardest routes that we wanted to do, right alongside Tucker and Parker climbing some easier stuff.

- The climbing gym was a pleasant surprise, you know, you think climbing gym, okay, we're gonna have fun, we're gonna go climbing.

I'm scared of heights.

Every time someone says climbing, I'm like, I'm doing it for the kids, I'm doing it for Nick, but I'll go, I'll have fun, I have to smile so my kids do it too.

- Daddy!

- While we were at Climb Bentonville, it was really obvious to see the kids' different personality traits kind of shine out on their own.

Tucker obviously being bigger and stronger was able to climb higher, though this calculated risk kind of side of him kicks in where he is like, oh, I'm only gonna climb halfway because I know that I can test the self-belay system or something like that from halfway down.

Whereas Parker would climb halfway up and then she would say, "Dad, I'm really nervous, but I'm gonna keep going."

And it just kind of just showed that, I don't know, the different personality traits and it was cool to see it.

- [Emily] The self-belaying was awesome, you know, I really appreciated not feeling like I had my kids' life in my hand, you know, I could not belay them to save my life, but you know, I really enjoyed the climbing.

I'm, like I said, I'm not a climber at all and I'm terrified of it, but just to go there and experience it with the kids and see them really, you know, get more comfortable, go a little higher, get a little braver and just a short window, you know, it was really fun.

(upbeat rock music) That was so scary!

We had an awesome lunch at Cafe Louise on the Fade-in Field airstrip.

It was really cool, because we were literally on an airstrip enjoying some world class food.

The kids had an awesome kids entree.

Their menu turned into a paper airplane, you know, well thought-out things that was just really fun and just really fun to sit there, enjoy really good food and also watch the planes come in and out.

That was really unique.

- Old school airplanes, these are real ones!

- Parker, look!

I think it's really important to unlearn.

You know, when you're raised in one place, you kind of think that it's a very specific way to do things.

You know, your parents teach you, you know, what's right and what's wrong and that there's a certain way to live.

And so by traveling and doing these adventures and exposing them to different places, I feel like we're giving them the opportunity to develop their own way of living.

And to me that's how I want my kids to look back and be like, you know, I was raised to find my own path.

And I think being on an adventure really helps us to do that.

When you live in a trailer, it's the best real estate you can buy because when the weather changes, you're going to where the weather's better, you know, it's warmer, the kayaking is still good, where the runoff is, where the climbing is, where the biking is.

I think that's really a unique aspect of having a home on wheels, is that wherever we go, that there is that comfort of the kids having a home base, no matter what adventures we're on.

- What more do you need?

The morning setup here with the trailer and the campsite is pretty awesome because you can kind of get up whenever and everybody kind of has their own setup.

After the kids are awake, it's usually straight to breakfast, whether that's inside the trailer or outside.

We're right into doing homeschool and kind of teaching the kids and then straight to adventures, whether we're going hiking, biking, kayaking, whatever, whatever's after that.

So the morning's definitely kind of, there's a bit of a routine of kind of like, get up, do a little bit of work, have some breakfast, go on an adventure.

(birds chirping) - We are heading to the river and Tucker's getting his reading in in the back, which is awesome.

And Parker's doing her online schooling and I'm getting some work done on the passenger seat and Nick's doing all the driving, but he's not complaining.

In Bentonville, we were able to go climbing, hiking, biking, see art, visit museums and experience great food.

But at the end of the day, we are a kayaking family.

There's a Whitewater Park, you know, only an hour away from Bentonville called "Salome Springs."

And it had recently experienced a big flood, so we weren't sure if there was gonna be anything for us to paddle there.

- [Nick] Clearly it affected this area as there is flooding affects everywhere, so I don't know if the park's gonna be open or not, but we might just go check out what the river looks like and see if it's still something that we might be able to do with the kids or not.

- [Emily] We pulled up and sure enough, there was the most perfect wave for the kids to get on the boats, get in their own boats and just experience whitewater kayaking in a really safe, controlled environment.

- [Nick] There was just this really gentle wave that was really shallow and it was an ideal spot for Emily and I to walk out with the kids, kind of hold their Sterns and like have the kids feeling of surfing the wave, but in a controlled environment where we're with them, where they're not gonna flip or anything like that.

- It was the icing on top, the cherry.

It was just the ending to a perfect adventure.

(Emily cheering) (water rushing) (Emily shouting) Why did you make me do this?!

Okay, move this way.

You know my feet are pointing when I kick.

Here, gimme your hand!

(kids giggling) When we finished kayaking with the kids the other day, I turned around and both of them were just face down in the thickest, nastiest mud ever.

When you live in an RV, showers are hard to come by, laundry's even harder.

So it's definitely one of those moments where you're like, okay, this is Parenthood, game on, you know?

- And there's Parker literally making "Mud angels," quote, unquote, as she calls them, and I was like, what are you doing?

It was this full parent moment of like, oh my gosh, we're about to jump into the truck, we're ending the day, and my child just found this giant mud hole and is now covered head to toe in mud.

So I had to kind of laugh at myself and at Parker because that's one of the moments that we're gonna remember for years to come.

- [Emily] Nick's talked about Bentonville, Arkansas a few times before visiting here, mountain biking with his friends, but never in a million years did I imagine that this would be such an amazing family-friendly location.

The running's been fantastic, the museums here, the Amazeum the kids recognizing, you know, where Walmart came from.

I mean there's just so many different parts to this location.

Like, it just has so many things to offer no matter what sport you're into.

If you just like spending time outside, Bentonville has it all.

- In our travels, we get to see a lot of really cool rad locations and it's hard to know when it's time to pack up and go to the next place when there's still so much left to explore.

- Often we're deciding where to go next based off water levels.

So we came here not really with the anticipation of kayaking, but kayaking was great and the water levels are changing, but the water levels are also changing in other places as well.

And there are certain windows that we wanna hit.

So that's generally how we decide when we wanna pack up and hit the road.

(upbeat rock music) Funding for Great Family Adventure is provided by Discover the World.

Collette offers small group explorations, tours, destinations and local experiences designed especially for small groups.

Explorations by Collette Guided travel since 1918 [Exciting music] In4Adventure.com inspiring, educating and encouraging outdoor adventure for 20 years, we've been fueling innovation on the water.

Our commitment is to improve the quality of life for people all around the world.

At ISLE We believe life on the water is a life better in balance and by these additional sponsors.