Oklahoma and East Texas: May 16-22, 2011

BB, Henri and I had a great week.  I worked with the Oklahoma DOT folks and photographed heavy equipment for some curriculum UT Arlington is developing for them.  Pneumatic tire rollers in Anadarko, Dozers in Ada, and Front End Loaders in Antlers; it just doesn't get much better than that! (Maybe if I do good, they'll let me come back and photograph things in towns that start with the letter 'B' next time.)




Hand-Butterfly Sculpture

 Southern Oklahoma, east and west of I-35 is beautiful country and has obviously had much more rain that we have in central Texas.  I enjoyed seing the countryside as I passed through towns I had never been in before.  I found this fascinating sculpture in a nondescript business near Stafford, OK.  I wonder what the story is behind this nice piece of art?


Didn't Find the Devil, Either

  Unfortunately, I never made it to Tishomingo, but as a highway sign pointed out, on one of my daily photography trips, I came pretty close!  Maybe next time.



Chickasaw NRA



My Nose is Cold!

 While I was gallavanting around the beautiful state of Oklahoma during the day, BB and Henri stayed in Mingo II at the Chickasaw National Recreation Area, near Sulphur, OK.  The Chickasaw NRA was originally named the Platt National Forest, and is beautifully wooded land which surrounds the Lake of the Arbuckles.  During the day, BB and Henri would hike the park, Henri would take a swim in the lake, and by the time I got home in the afternoon, were enjoying the refreshingly cool weather.  Henri was usually in his normal position shown to the right. 



Ahhhhh...!

 So, after taking another hike, I usually joined Henri in nearly the same position.



BB at Chickasaw NRA

 On this trip, we stayed at the "Point" Campground on the Lake of the Arbuckles.  An outstanding campsite with ample room for both RV's and tent camping.  Many of the tent camping sites had the best views of the lake.  Here's BB at one of our favorite tent camping sites.

While we were in Sulphur, we had some time in the afternoons to see some of the sights in the local area.  Here are some photographs from southern Oklahoma spots.



Gene Autry Museum

 

BB and Henri on Bromide Hill near Sulphur

We went through Gene Autry, OK.  Really not too much to see in this little town anymore.  BB and I were thinking that the generation which loved Gene Autry is almost gone now.

There is a remarkable amount of elevation change within the Chickasaw National Recreation Area.  Here's a picture of BB holding on to Henri, standing in front of a sheer dropoff on what is known as "Bromide" hill.  Many of the streams in this area are flavored with, and contain concentrations of, the minerals and elements dissolved as the water percolated up through the rocks, hence the names "Sulphur; Bromide," etc.

We also drove into the Arbuckle Mountains and viewed Turner Falls. 

Turner Falls, near Davis OK



The City of Davis has the falls under it's jurisdiction, and it is a very popular spot for the locals and tourists alike as there is some great river sports available.  But, since they wouldn't let pets into the park, we thanked them kindly, turned around, and took these photos from the US77 overlook. 



Here's a photo of BB and Henri on the Turner Falls Overlook:

There is great hiking and swimming along Travertine Creek in the Chickasaw NRA.  Henri approved of this creek highly! We give The Point Campground a 4.0.



Travertine Creek

Garden at President Eisenhower's Buirthplace
"May Peace Prevail on Earth"

Rather than driving straight home from Oklahoma on Friday, Henri decided that perhaps we should try one more park before we went home.  BB and I thought that was a good suggestion, so we made reservations at a Corps of Engineers Park on Sam Rayburn, in the Lufkin - Huntington area.

On our way to the east Texas pineywoods, we stopped in Dennison to see the birthplace of General of the Army and 34th President Dwight David Eisenhower.  Although Ike did not spend much time in Dennison, the local community has lovingly restored and developed the home in which he was born in 1890 and the surrounding grounds, into a very nice testament to this legendary man. 

Tyler Rose Garden

 Our next stop was the legendary Tyler Rose Garden.  While most of the roses had already past their peak, this garden is still worth your time anytime you are in the Tyler area.  It's beautifully designed and maintained, is free to view, and is a great place to strech your legs on a trip.

While leaving Oklahoma, we made an early start to try to beat a severe line of thunderstorms moving from southwest to northeast.  We were able to skirt most of the bad weather on our trip out, but it caught up with us on Friday night when we were at Sam Rayburn.

Rainy Day at Sam Rayburn

This was our first rainy night in Mingo II.  I have grown up listening to rain on a tin roof and that's always been one of my favorite things.  However, Mingo II has some sort of polymerized rubber roof, so the rain had a distinctly synthetic sound.  Pleasant nonetheless.  Thank goodness for the good old sand in East Texas because even through it rained heavily, the ground soaked the water up in short order. 



Rainy Day in East Texas



 

Hanks Creek Park #35



This trip, we stayed at "Hanks Creek Park" near Huntington, TX.  Another very nice Corps of Engineers park with great views, hiking, boating and water sports.  As we always do, we hike through parks looking for just the "right" slot for the next time we come back.  Here's a photo of the "back yard view" of our current favorite site at Hanks Creek Park (#35):  We give Hanks Creek Park a 3.2.

So a very busy, enjoyable, productive week for BB, Henri and me!  I'm looking forward to getting some of my regular work done this week, (as I'm sure the boss is as well). 

This weekend, we'll leave for the big city of Camp Wood, Texas to visit with Aunt Reba and the family and friends over Memorial Day.  If you're near the Big Oak River Camp on Sunday after church, drop by, look for a trailer scene that looks straight out of "The Grapes of Wrath", and drop by for some Barbeque, beans, cole slaw and home-made ice cream! 

Till next time!