Oklahoma - Day -3 - getting there

Durant/Choctaw Casino KOA, Durant
Wednesday, 29 July 2020

I heard on the morning news in Burkburnett about an older guy who was skydiving for the first time.  He was so excited about the experience that he didn't notice when his prosthetic leg fell off.  I think it was social media that united him and the leg that a farmer found in his soybean field.  You can't make this stuff up.

I also heard about a business in a nearby small town that had a chain across the steps in front of the entrance.  A sign on the chain said:

Emus have been banned from this establishment due to bad behavior.  Please let yourselves in through emu barrier and then refasten - please! 

I'm really sorry to say I missed hearing the story that went with that sign.

today's route

Burkburnett is very nearly on the TX/OK border (i.e. the Red River), and I found some historical markers a half mile down the road from the campground.  Like those I saw yesterday, these too were on the left side, but I'm glad I took the time to pull over and see what they were about.

T. Roosevelt named the town - who knew?

the reason Texas & Oklahoma have
never really gotten along?

awkwardly worded marker of the Red River
boundary of the Republic of Texas by the
Daughters of the Republic of Texas

the storied Chisholm Trail

I have no idea what that piece of machinery is (above left).  There wasn't any sign other than those you see here.

Oklahoma - my 25th state

I'm including the following map to show the locations of tribal lands in Oklahoma because of the recent decision by the US Supreme Court.  On July 9th, the Court upheld the 1866 promise the US government made to the Native tribes to induce them to take the trip known as the Trail of Tears.  That promise was a reservation of this land to the tribes in perpetuity.

The ruling transfers legal control of the land from the State of Oklahoma back to the Creek Nation (center right of map), who were the plaintiffs.  Tulsa, OK's 2nd largest city, lies in that reservation.  That result was bad enough for the State, but similar treaties were established at about the same time with the Chickasaw, Choctaw, Cherokee and Seminole Nations.  The Court specifically said those Nations would have to file their own lawsuits before the Court would decide the legal status of their disputed lands.  But taken together, these lands cover much of the eastern half of the state.

The same map, though colored differently, is titled
Tribal Jurisdictions in Oklahoma; I found it on the website
of the OK Dept. of Transportation.

The 4 dissenting justices objected in part because of what they believed would be a resulting chaos, in the court system alone.  But the Nations said they have as much at stake as the State does in maintaining order and working together.  It'll be interesting to see how that gets settled out.

One thing that will presumably remain unchanged for the moment is the number of Native-owned casinos in OK.  I traveled first on I-35 and found at exit 5 the Comanche Casino.  Signs told me at exit 37 I'd find the Apache Casino, but I got off at exit 5.  This was labeled as the "last free exit," reminding me that OK is jam-packed with toll roads.  What I didn't know but learned on a road sign, is that the turnpike has a maximum height of 13' 6", which isn't a problem for me, but also a maximum width of 8' 6" which is indeed a problem.  My RV is rated as being 8' wide, but the way my side mirrors stick out I'm pretty sure my overall width while driving is more than 8' 6".  I've never been a fan of toll roads anyway, but if these dimensions hold around the state, then I won't be traveling on any of them.  Detours will cost me time and miles but save me the tolls and wrestling with my conscience.

The rest of the drive today was pretty much due east, and almost the whole way I was subjected to some seriously strong crosswinds.  US-70, which I took all the way to Durant, was a 2-lane, no shoulder, no divider highway for about half the distance, so the crosswinds made it really hard to stay in my lane.  I saw others having the same problem.  The lane was wide enough (which it isn't always) but the road was winding and with the wind and no shoulder, there was no margin for error.

Meanwhile heavy rain had started about 6:30 this morning, which had made walking the dogs more of a challenge and was now making driving more challenging as well.

I saw lots of cows.  A herd of cows was waiting impatiently at a gate in the heavy rain, apparently wanting to be let through to the barn.  Several herds on other fields, though, including some calves, seemed undisturbed by the weather.  I saw one cow alone in its field staring across 2 fences and the roadway at the herd of cows in the opposite field.  I wondered why it had been given solitary confinement.

Rolling hills in this area and not a lot of traffic.

I passed a sign that said "Leaving Kiowa-Comanche-Apache Reservation" and another one that said "Entering Chickasaw Reservation."

This section of the highway had been dedicated to Rep. Bill Bradley, which sounded very familiar to me but the one I'm thinking of was a US Senator from New Jersey.  This Rep. Bill Bradley was from Waurika (located just before I changed Native reservations) and was noted for the longest continuous legislative service in state history (30 years).  The 1992 article in the Oklahoman that I read had a curious phrase: "He is survived by his wife Margaret, of the home; by children ... ."  I've never seen that phrase "of the home" before.

I passed the town of Ringling, pop. 975, founded 1914 (per their sign).  It was established by John Ringling, of Ringling Bros. Circus fame, who built a railroad with a partner and created this town at the western end of the track.  Oil had been discovered nearby in 1913, and the partners hoped to capitalize on the boom.  They did, but the oil fields didn't last.  By 2001 the town's major employer was the public school system.

The land in this area looks mainly like cattle country.  I saw an enormous herd of horses - seemed like a couple hundred of them - but mostly what I saw were cows.  Some large fields were uncleared, but most had been cleared - some for crops but mainly they seemed to be for grazing.

There are some fervent Trump admirers along this road.

I passed the small community of Zaneis, about which I could find nothing online except that they have 308 students in their school system, 17 teachers, and about 30% proficiency in math and language arts (for the grade level per OK standards).  That 30% didn't seem to bother them, but it sounds terrible to me.  They say that ranks in the top 50% of OK schools.  Am I right in thinking this is a condemnation of the educational level in OK? 

Not far away is the city of Wilson, pop. 1,700, with its own Historical Museum and the OK Dept. of Corrections Training Academy.

Next came the Chickasaw Travel Stop and Black Gold Casino.  Glad I'm not at all interested in organized gambling because this is clearly the wrong place for me to come if I were.  Much like Louisiana, except far fewer billboards advertising the casinos.

I should have been taking a count of how many medical marijuana shops I've been passing - dispensaries, as some are called.  They've been all along this road, sometimes 2 on opposite corners of the same intersection.  A LOT of them - really.  So I finally looked it up and learned that, though Oklahomans voted to legalize the cultivation, distribution and use of medical marijuana, recreational use is still illegal.  But with the startling number of stores I've been seeing, I'm pretty skeptical about how valid the medical use is.

The state law says an adult (18+) can get a license with the OK of a board-certified doctor for any disease or disorder the doctor thinks would benefit from it (unlike most states that list specific illnesses that are authorized for it).  Minors need permission from 2 doctors and their parents.  Interesting law.  Oklahoma's used to be much more restrictive, pretty much limited to epilepsy and multiple sclerosis.  No longer.  Wonder how much the state is taxing this industry.

As I was driving into Lone Grove, a suburb of Ardmore, I first passed the tiny building for municipal offices and figured this was a tiny town.  Not only is it not tiny (pop. 5,081), but the local high school is big and fancy.  Interesting choice of priorities.

Ardmore (pop. 24,700) is home to: the Greater Southwest Historical Museum (exhibits from early Natives through 1800s settlers to today); the H20Life Church (based on John 4, where Jesus spoke to a woman at the well - "Whoever drinks of the water I will give him will never be thirsty again."); a doll museum (300 dolls on display with, apparently, no explanation of their origins, though apparently still of importance just to see them for doll admirers).

By this point the highway had become quite driveable, with 4 lanes, wide shoulders and a grass median.  Part way along I saw 2 signs: the sign on 1 side of the road said "Slower Traffic Keep Right - State Law" and the sign on the other side of the road said "Do Not Impede Left Lane - State Law."  I've never seen that wording.

The land along the road east of Ardmore was still rolling hills but now thick with trees.  Far fewer cleared fields.  I also saw quite a few RV parks and campgrounds along this stretch.

Even when the road narrowed back to 2 lanes, it had finally acquired wide shoulders, for which I was grateful.  There was also a stretch with several signs saying "65 mph Enforcement Zone - Zero Tolerance."  Fine by me but I wondered about the reason for the zero tolerance.

I passed Landgraf Farms, family owned and operated since 1965 near Madill, OK.  Their sign says they're open in November and December, I guess because the pecans their trees produce don't do it year round.  The very definition of a seasonal business.

I passed a small flock of goats, one of which was a billy goat - the first one I've seen in a long time.  Couldn't help but think of the story The Three Billy Goats Gruff that we had when I was a kid, because this guy had a good set of horns on him.

We stopped in Madill (pronounced mah-DILL) (pop. about 4,000) at a group of buildings housing the Madill Fitness Center, the Madill Historical and Genealogical Society, the Museum of Southern Oklahoma, the Madill Library, and the Senior Center.  They had a decent-sized parking lot where I thought we wouldn't bother anyone while we ate lunch and went for a walk.

It was a very hot day and the humidity was extremely high, thanks to the morning's rain, so walking outdoors was a bit of a chore for all of us.

Also in the parking lot was a bus that had an Alaska license plate, so I stopped to talk to the owner.  He lived in the bus and was originally from this area, but had been living in Kodiak for years.  He said he'd been ready to go back up to Alaska when the virus hit and he'd been marking time in this area.  He said he figured the Canadians would let him through Canada because he was an essential worker (I didn't ask what work), but he was afraid they wouldn't let him come back south again and he didn't want to get stuck in Alaska.

I understood the feeling.  I loved living there, as he said he did, but once I had moved down to Washington state, I was reminded of Thomas Wolfe's You Can't Go Home Again.  The main character escaped from pre-war Germany and said he was out, like a root-bound plant.  I've never forgotten that simile.  Apparently he also said (not in that book) that a liberal is a conservative who has been arrested.  He had a way with words.

Just outside Madill I passed the Baptist Home for Girls, which advertises a residential home in a cottage-like setting for up to 8 girls with a husband and wife as houseparents.  In Kingston, just a few miles down the road, I passed the Chickasaw Children's Village, another residential facility also with up to 8 children housed in a cottage-style setting with houseparents, where the children attend Kingston public schools.  Seems odd to have 2 such facilities in a small area of the state like this.  Makes me wonder why.

I passed the Texoma Casino, and then Lake Texoma itself, one of the US lakes that straddles the state boundaries.  I knew it was on my route today but for some reason I completely missed the fact that when I crossed the lake I'd be doing so on a bridge.  And suddenly, there I was, on a bridge that I looked old (it was built in 1948) and long (4,943' long) and narrow (24' wide, total).  You know, that length isn't a lot shorter than a mile, and with no divider, no shoulder, not even a pedestrian walkway, I had no margin for error.  Of course there were wind gusts.  I really should start paying more attention to the map before I drive.

Just on the other side of the bridge, while I was still recovering from that mildly harrowing experience, some idiot driving a pickup decided to turn left right in front of me.  That wouldn't have been so bad, but he made his turn in such a leisurely fashion that I actually had to brake to keep from hitting him.  I said a few ugly things about him for scaring me like that.

Then I came to a sign saying I was entering the Chocktaw Nation, which is where I am now.

As I came into Durant (pop. about 18,000), I saw a sign that at first I didn't understand: Keep Your Green on this Side of the Red.  Then I noticed the picture of a fist holding dollar bills ("green") and then the bottom of the sign that said "Shop Local" and realized "the Red" meant the river.  Okay, it was hot, I'd been driving for hours, and I was tired.

I stopped at a local grocery store (where everyone wore masks), not having been able to find everything I wanted in the Burkburnett store, and then came down the road to the KOA.  I passed it, though, because down the same road is the Choctaw Nation Recycling Center.  Every single employee there wore masks, even before they got to the building.  I was really surprised.  They wouldn't accept glass, but they took everything else.

On the way back to the KOA I passed the Choctaw Nation School of Language dedicated, they say, to preserving and perpetuating their language and culture.  A worthy cause.

This KOA is quite large, beautifully landscaped, and offers complementary shuttle service 24 hours a day to the nearby Choctaw Casino.  I'm guessing most, maybe all, of the campers (RVs only, no tents) are here for the casino.  Which I figure means it may not matter whether they get crowded because maybe most of them will be not here, hanging outside with their dogs.