Travels with Betsy Fort Supply OK to the Ozarks

May 16. We left this lovely Fort Supply Army Corps of Engineers reservoir (agency also known as ACE or COE) for northeastern OK, traveling to avoid the big city of Tulsa, but wanting to see something of the Will Rogers area. Much more green rolling land, Black and Red Angus cattle, brick and sandstone buildings (few of wood), four lane divided highways with no one on them. Less irrigation now that we are out of the Panhandle, lots more water, ponds, rivers, lakes. Gene saw a roadrunner, and the road kill in these here parts includes armadillo, besides the usual skunk, 'possum, and racketycoons. Several towns seem to have large shopping centers, overgrown strip malls, WalMarts, grocery and other chain stores that are fairly new, just outside a semi-moribund downtown. Bentonville, Arkansas, isn't far away. Pawnee has no such mall, but a viable downtown with courthouse square and a large health facility on the edge of town. The birthplace of Chester Gould (remember Dick Tracy?), it is in the Pawnee Nation.

Took the Will Rogers highway to Claremore, home of Will Rogers...if you don't know who Will is, ask your parents or grandparents. Headed for the Oologah reservoir, another ACE project, only to find the first campground virtually underwater. 23 straight days of rain have really soaked this part of the world. They are hoping for six straight days of sunshine now. The Blue Creek camp was high and dry, with lots of fishermen (walleye, crapie, trout), party boat or two, plenty of open space and lovely huge oak, elm and pecan trees. (We had tried for a campground billed as "Camp with the Stars" which is enough to make you gag, but it had a casino, a race track, a restaurant, a laundry and wifi...the last three appealed, so off we went. BUT, when we got there we found ourselves in the midst of lots of horse trailers, a muddy field, a dinky building under the track, and lots of beer drinkers celebrating the last race. So much for Will Rogers Downs.)

May 17. The laundry was appealing because we are all dirty. Found a car wash/dog wash combination in Grove OK, where Betsy and Lucy got clean. Ate a late breakfast at Donna's Country Kitchen next to a gas station, served by Donna herself, somewhere on one of the blue highways where we spend most of our miles now. We were partly on old Route 66, which turned into a different number from time to time, but was the real deal, not a frontage road, but ran right through the middle of small towns. We crossed into SW Missouri and went S on SR 43 into Arkansas. Lots and lots of long low metal sheds with feeders and fans for vents, I would guess for poultry. Must look up Simmons, which was a big plant nearby. Some of the farms with poultry were labeled "Disease Control Area". Later on we saw several signs for Tysons, which probably also helps explain why there are so many Spanish speaking people in the area. And boy are there a lot of Christian billboards, churches, announcements, radio stations. REPENT! met us at more than one turn in the road.

Eureka Springs AR is billed as a Victorian town, but unlike Nevada City it's storefronts are mainly iron, with grillework balconies, and made of sandstone. Dating from the late 19th C, it does a great job of pulling in the tourists, providing several parking lots where we could even park Betsy, and lots of benches to sit on, plus a sort-of town square. Built on steep hills, they have done a good job of crowd control, and given tourists a chance to exercise by climbing steps and steep streets. NO COFFEE SHOPS! We were aghast! But a stand for funnel cakes, which seem to be a street food staple.

The Ozarks are technically a plateau and not mountains, about 1000' to 1200' elevation with their peaks being about 2500'. Very green and pretty with tall deciduous and coniferous trees, many bushes, and wildflowers. Mountain View was a rest stop last night, near the center for Ozark arts and crafts, which, unfortunately for me, doesn't operate this time of year until Wednesday, and here it is Monday. But after we checked in last night we went down to the square where groups of amateur musicians were pickin' and playin' some might fine bluegrass. Today, the 18th, we will spend more time in this music and crafts town, then meander down the road to Little Rock.