Bentonville, AR, the home of Walmart and where there is one on almost every corner. But there is much more to Bentonville than Walmart. The city is home to a museum which combines art and nature in so many ways. The setting alone is worth a visit but once inside we realized the museum depicts the growth of America through art and does it exceptionally well. Welcome to the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.

The museum was the reason Bentonville was on our trip plan. Our friend, Robert Tannen of New Orleans, has fifteen boulder sculptures along one of the nature trails. Each boulder is numbered and the combined work is called Grains of Sand. The exhibit encourages visitors to slow down and look at your surroundings enjoying the beauty of the area. The boulders come from a quarry in the Boston Mountains and resembles the native stone at Crystal Bridges.

Admission to the museum is free, funded by Walmart Corporation. There is a charge for some of the traveling exhibits.

No matter your interest in art, Crystal Bridges has something for everyone. The architecture alone is worth a tour – glass, wood, metal and water. The outside trails also are open to bicycles as well as walkers and runners.

Pack a picnic lunch and plan a day long stay. Relax and soak in the beauty of art and nature. When you’re traveling sometimes museums can be both interesting and too much of a good thing. The diversity of this museum keeps it interesting with as much outside as inside. Plan on taking a walk at this one and don’t pass it up.