A Trip to SW Oklahoma: Part 3--The Best of The Rest

For Parts 1 and 2, please scroll down......

 

Tuesday turned into our second long drive in a row.  The trip had been planned to have light driving days mixed in there, but we still ended up with two fairly long ones.  Even so, by 4:30 pm we had driven to the top of the highest mountain in the Wichitas in southwest Oklahoma.

 

The morning was a cloudy one, and again it was very warm.  The temp would hit 91 F today, and the next day was to be similar.  After that, a cold front would sweep through, so that when the more strenuous hiking began further west, we should have perfect weather.  About an hour west of Springfield is Joplin, MO.  Just off the last exit before Oklahoma is reached is a great area to pull off.  There is hiking, Missouri's highest waterfall, and a nature centre we have yet to visit.  Today as we passed the centre, two school buses were parked outside.  That was enough to keep us away.   I had brought a UV water bottle system with me, to be used mostly on the long climb to Jicarita Peak.  Not wanting to carry a lot of water uphill, the bottle would be used along the way at springs and small lakes to keep me going.  There is a spring not far from the nature centre near Joplin, and we visited today so I could use the bottle and drink some clean water.  We filled up, then soon returned to the highway, heading west.

The water comes out of the rocks in wet years.  This year it was coming out of the bottom of the rock, on the far right side of the little pool.  It then flows out of the area, over a little waterfall, and into the nearby river.

 

The water flowed out from beneath the rock inside the fence in the back right corner.

 

I was able to fill my UV bottle at the little waterfall.  I had fresh drinking water for the next day. 

 

Once in Oklahoma, the main choice for drivers is the toll highway.  It cost us $10 and two brief stops to pay to get from Missouri to the Lawton, OK area, where we would be hiking beginning late this afternoon.  We gobbled mile after mile, stopping in Tulsa at Whole Foods for lunch and to pick up a few more supplies.  Coffee somewhere else along the way, and then Deb suddenly spotted a real live mountain in the almost foggy distance.  It was big enough to be impressive, too!  Huzzah!  The flatlanders had arrived somewhere that wasn't flat!

Mt. Scott is just within the boundary of the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Preserve, and a paved road leads to the top.  We drove up at a leisurely pace, parking at the top.  It was really windy, but the sky was clearing up.  The mountain was filled with giant boulders and smaller ones.  We were officially at 2464', just over 1,000' above the Great Plains beneath us.  The area is saturated with man made lakes, mostly constructed by building dams in the 1930s by the CCC.  Reaching a mountain top is always an exhilarating experience.  We stayed up a while, then headed back down, in search of our first hike.  Unbeknownst to us, that would be our highest elevation of the journey, and the upcoming very short hike would be the only one to be completed.  Five weeks of intense training about to become irrelevant.  Life is certainly an adventure.  Since this is the only mountain we attained, I hereby post a lot of photos from it.

 

View east towards giant Lake Lawtonka.

 

View southeast towards the village of Medicine Park, on the right.  We would enjoy a vegan dinner down there soon.  It was humid and hazy.

 

Southeast end of Lake Lawtonka, again towards Medicine Park.  Telephoto shot.

 View south towards Lake Elmer Thomas.

 

Zoom shot of Lake Elmer Thomas, showing a small boat.

 

Looking southwest from Mt. Scott.

 

Looking west into the very rocky Wichita Mountains. 

 

The one hike we completed was very short, about 0.4 miles each way, to a stone lookout tower (now closed to the public) overlooking a small lake, built in the 1930s by the CCC with left over stone from building a dam.  This was it, folks.  Our one hike in the mountains.

 

Deb did just fine on this trail, not even wearing her trail shoes or using her walking pole.  Jed Johnson Tower looms ahead.

Looking across Jed Johnson Lake from the tower area.  Mt. Scott in the background.

 

There is some fine walking to do in the area.  Someday, maybe.

 

Deb does some boulder sitting at Jed Johnson Tower.

 

This was once a lookout tower for visitors.

 

Perhaps my best shot of the trip, looking towards Mt. Scott from our hike.

 

Next day we were up early; 6:30 am to be exact.  It was very warm and humid already, with major storms on the way.  We had plans to hike till about noon, then make a run for Amarillo, which would enable us to miss the incoming weather.  It was a great plan.  The visitor centre for the park opened at 9 am, so we waited around about ten minutes for it to open.  I bought a tee shirt, a small guidebook, and a small foldout guide to local flora and fauna.  If the hiking got too difficult, the plan was for Deb to stay in one area and look around, while I hiked.  

 

We drove to our first hike of the day, beginning at a dam on Quanah Parker Lake.  We had to do some serious stairs to get across the dam, where the trail began.  We set out, walking slowly.  Hiking boots and shoes were on, and we each had a pole.  I walked a little bit ahead, scouting for the best route for Deb.  All to no avail.

 

Early morning shot of Mt. Scott, with a cloud hat.

 

Bison and long horn cattle roam the plains within the park.  This big fella was heading towards the road, so we moved on past him.

 

 We had to cross this dam to reach our trail.

 

The last photo, taken just a minute or two before things crashed to a halt. 

 

The trail was a mix of fine sand and rock, sometimes both together.  It was at a slight incline that Deb fell.  I was only a second away from her, but could not do anything.  I turned to see her on the ground.  At this point I knew that the hiking trip was done.  Even if she wasn't hurt, there would be no more hiking on this journey.  But she was hurt.  At first she couldn't breathe, having the wind knocked out of her by her fall.  Her foot had slipped on a sandy rock, and she landed hard on her left side, the same side as her cast.  At first I thought she had hurt her already broken wrist.  But after her breath came back she was wracked with pain (a level 10 out of 10, I am told).  Worse yet was that we could not get her back on her feet.  She was in too much pain.

 

It took several minutes and many attempts, but we finally got her back upright.  There was no one else around at this time of day.  And, as we were soon to find out, there was no cell service back here.  Blocked by the mountains.  So we were on our own.  By the description of her pain, it sounded as if several ribs were cracked or broken, and were perhaps pressing on her lung.  It was a very slow walk back to the car, which we could see in the distance.  Then there were two flights of stairs to descend, and two to ascend.  Once back at the car, the next problem was getting her into the seat.  Everything hurt, from moving to breathing.  Back to Lawton.  First an urgent care clinic, but we were sent on to the local hospital from there.  X-rays, a pain pill, and a diagnosis.  Nothing broken, but she had bruised her lung quite badly.  They also fixed up a nasty scrape on her left elbow.  No one asked for any money.  Two prescriptions were given, both filled at the hospital pharmacy.  Cost was $11.

 

It was after 3 pm when she was discharged.  She seemed comfortable enough in the car, so we decided to start the long drive home.  The storms hit almost as we left, and followed us for two days.  Continuous lightning, the heaviest rain I have ever seen (for hours on end).  It was dark during daytime, and we drove on into the real darkness.  I followed the lights of a transport just ahead, averaging about 75 mph in the rain.  It was a crazy drive.  We pulled off in Oklahoma City for 30 minutes, due to accidents and flooding.  Back on the road, find another maniac truck driver to follow, and go until we couldn't sit any longer.  Two nights motel (Joplin, then Lafayette), then home.  We arrived 47 hours after leaving the hospital. 

It took two weeks, but Deb's pain has finally decreased enough for her to do most normal things again without wincing.  It should be all healed in another 2-4 weeks.  Her cast will come off about then, too.  We made it home with two bags of coffee and some beer.  But we left a good deal of unfinished business behind us.  Namely:

1) Explore the Wichita Mountains more deeply.

2) Visit Amarillo and explore Palo Duro Canyon.

3) Visit Carlsbad, NM, and hike the Texas highpoint (me, anyway) in Guadalupe National Park.

4) Hike another segment of the Crest Trail of the Manzano Mountains in NM.

5) Visit Albuquerque.

6) Hike Jicarita Peak in NM, one of the real big ones (me anyway)

7) Enjoy a leisurely drive home over several days, visiting Dodge City, KS; Lawrence, KS; Columbia, MO; and Indianapolis.  Collect local craft beer and coffee along the way.

Will the unfinished business listed above ever get done?  Stay tuned to my blogs to find out.

 

Update:  As of August 30th 2024 the trip is back on for October.  Intense training begins Sept. 6th.

Mapman Mike

 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 
 

A Trip to SW Oklahoma: Part 2, The Ale Trail

For Part 1, please scroll down.....

 

Cincinnati to Terre Haute is an easy afternoon's drive, even passing through the south end of Indianapolis.  It was a Sunday, and traffic wasn't too bad at all.  Leaving around 12:30 pm, we arrived about 3 pm.  We had to do some shopping for the hiking portion of our trip, so a giant Wal-Mart just east of Terre Haute was chosen.  It was coffee time, and there was a Starbucks right across the road.  Coffee first, then the ungodly job of some quick shopping.  Hiking lunches were needed (usually giant bags of popcorn, juice, Lara and Clif bars), and a few other things, like orange vests for hiking deep in hunting territory in the autumn.  We made short work of the chore, and soon checked into our motel.  We had purchased two frozen vegan dinners, so we heated them up, ate in our room, then headed out to the breweries.

 

Terre Haute has two breweries and a craft beer friendly pub called Moggers.  We began at a brewery new to both of us, called Afterburn.  It was beer only, though a food truck was parked outside.  Beers sampled were "Slash," a 5.7% hazy pale ale; "Joker," for Deb, a dry stout at 4.3%, "Turbo Joker," also at 4.3%, and "Midnight," an imperial stout at a hefty 9.5%.  No complaints, it seemed a good follow up pub to the Belgian place in Cincinnati for our two week long road trip.

 

 A. P. Yorick's 3rd cousin joined us for a pint at Afterburner.

Afterburner beer menu. 

 

Literally two blocks away was Terre Haute Brewing Co., Deb's first visit and my second.  This is an old place, where booze was distilled in underground tunnels during Prohibition.  The place was pretty quiet compared to Afterburn.  They use to have a fabulous guest beer list here, but that is now gone.  Eventually more customers drifted in, but it wasn't busy like my last visit in 2018.  Another flight of small pours helped my good mood even more.  Deb had a 4 oz pour of "10 Gallon Mexican Lager," which she declared was quite tasty.  I had Citragenesis, a hoppy wheat beer at 5%; "Wango Tango IPA," (I had ordered Mango Tango, but oh well); and "Rose Belgian Dark Strong Ale," at 10%.  That one tasted like an alcohol-soaked plum pudding, and was quite delicious.

 

Three photos from Terre Haute Brewing Co. 

 

It was time for a walk.  Terre Haute, IN has about 58,000 people.  It is the birthplace of Philip Jose Farmer, who left when he was still a baby.  The downtown boasts a wonderful old theatre.  The outside of it is amazing, and the lobby can be seen through the doors.  We have never been inside.  We walked around town until I felt that I could drive, then we went the short distance to Fairbanks Park, along the Wabash River, and walked some more.  It was a warm and still evening.  The area was in a bad drought.  It had only rained twice the entire summer, and everything was droopy.  The river was slow and sluggish.  There were hardly any cicadas, either.  We watched the sunset, then headed back to our motel to rest up for tomorrow's adventure.  We would cross the Mississippi and officially be in the West (well, the western part of the mid-west, at any rate).

 

Exterior of the historic theatre in downtown Terre Haute.  Next shot shows the lobby, behind those large windows.

 

Lobby of the theatre.  Photo courtesy https://www.travelindiana.com/5178/.  You could see this from the outside.

Steps to nowhere, Terre Haute.

 

A very dry sycamore tree, along the Wabash River near downtown.

 

 Sunset on the Wabash.  Fairbanks Park, Terre Haute.

 

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As soon as Terre Haute is in the rear view mirror, an hour of time is gained as one enters the Central Time Zone.  It's a great help westbound.  The only regular stop between Terre Haute and St. Louis is a gift store called Driftstone Pueblo.  It's always about time for a rest room anyway, and the shop is large and filled with Native art and artifacts and books.  I had already purchased a small stone token, the Hopewell Hand, something I could leave atop Jicarita Peak if I made it up there.  I found it at a booth at the Cincinnati outdoor market Saturday.  At Driftstone I broke down and bought the Rider/Waite Tarot Deck, and the book that accompanies it.  I had seen both here on our Arkansas trip visit in late March, and thought about buying it.  I finally did.  We also bought a small sage smudge stick, to be burned somewhere in NM.

We passed St. Louis without any trouble, and were soon zooming down vast hills in the Ozarks, and then up the other side.  The ride is like a giant roller coaster, and the scenery is non-stop for a long time.  Another stop in St. James at the winery and craft beer stores, then back on the highway all the way to Springfield.  We arrived at 3 pm local time, just in time for coffee!  Coffee Ethic is right downtown.  We parked for free not far away, leaving the car there until evening.  We did a lot of walking in Springfield.  But first, the coffee.  We purchased a bag of Kenyan beans and got a free coffee.  We chose a cold brew, sharing it, and also ordered some ridiculously good vegan carrot cake coconut balls.  The long drive was slowly washed away from our bodies as we relaxed for a long sit.  The Mississippi was a long way behind us, and tomorrow we would visit our first major hiking area.  When things go well for us, they go really well.  Our Springfield afternoon was definitely a trip highlight.

Our favourite cafe in downtown Springfield. 

 

It was the warmest part of the day, currently about 87 F.  We had a 1.3 mile walk to the first pub.  We eventually got underway, trekking to a new place called Tie and Timber Brewing.  We stayed on the shady side of the street as much as possible.  We were warm and thirsty upon arrival.  There is nothing like arriving at a welcoming brewery or pub after a somewhat intense walk.

 

Some local scenery on our way to Tie and Timber.  

Our first flight of the day consisted of my first pumpkin ale of the season.  Jack Blast was 6.1%, with a nice mix of spices, pumpkin, and a suitably dark colour.  Next came a very fine Hefe, at 4.6%.  Deb had a Passion Grove Ale, at 5.5%.  I continued on with a decent Cherry Street Sour, at 5%.  Staying with the fruity theme, I finished off with a Peach Kolsch, at 5.5%.  We sat at the only booth with a "leg" lamp.  There used to be a friendly black pub cat, but the owner ended up adopting it and keeping it at home.

 

The end of a longish and very warm urban walk.

Today's offerings.

 

Our first flight of the day.

 

We had a sexy lamp at our booth.

 

It was a quiet and enjoyable visit to Tie and Timber in Springfield, MO.  It was the first of three ale stops today. 

 

By the time we headed out for brewery #2, the sun was lower and there was more shade on our return to the downtown area.  This was the 4th cloudless day in a row.  Nature would fill that void soon, unbeknownst to us.  Happy are the unknowing.  Hold Fast Brewery was almost a mile from Tie and Timber, housed in an old firehouse.  There is no air conditioning, but they have a lot of large doors that were opened today, with a giant fan in the back one blowing air gently through the pub.  Besides some great beer, we met Jengo, a friendly Australian sheep dog at the next table over.

 

Deb had a small pour of their basic brew, called Lazy Day Lager.  At 4.7%, she liked it and said it actually had a lot of flavour.  I enjoyed Lemon Meringue Lager, with lemon juice and marshmallows (4.6%), followed by a delicious Blood Orange one at 4.7%.  I finished up with Boondock Brown Ale, at 5.9%.  I was feeling no pain by now, though Deb still was.  She still looked as if she'd gone a round with Mohammad Ali, and had not done too well in the ring. 

 

Springfield's Shriner headquarters was passed on our way from Tie and Timber to our next brewery.

Springfield's 2nd brewery stopover for us, housed in an old firehouse.

Our flight of small pours.

Today's offerings.

This used to be a four bay fire hall.  Since there were never any fires in Springfield, they made it into a brewery (I think).  One large door at the back had a giant fan. 

 

 A return visit to Mothers was our third and final brewery sampling of the day, and, as things turned out, for the trip.  At least it was a good place to end things.  Although there were a few people sitting outside in the huge garden area, we were alone inside the pub.  Our flight consisted of New Prague, a dark lager for Deb at 4.8%; Mr. Pumpkin, my second such ale so far, an amber ale with pumpkin and spices at 5.2%; Way Hey, a 4.2% Hefe; and the cutely named Flip Cider at 5.5%.

 

A sign for the mother road in downtown Springfield.  Chicago to LA.

 

A big concert was happening that night downtown.

 

It was like coming home.

Our final flight of the journey.

 

It was a Monday, a day that most breweries in Detroit are closed.  So we did just fine.  But our little vegan restaurant was closed Monday and Tuesday.  Wah!  Deb even wore her Bosky's Vegan Grille tee shirt today.  It didn't help.  So we ended up at Springfield Brewery.  No more beer, but we split a decent veggie burger, and I left with a few cans of ale.

 
Dinner minus ale was at Springfield Brewing Company. 

 

It had been a long time since we had seen our car, but we found it in good condition and drove on to our motel.  We were both looking forward to seeing some (smaller) mountains tomorrow.  In that we would be successful.  As for hiking in them, well, that is a different story.  A tale of woe.  Stay tuned for Part 3.

 

Mapman Mike

 

 

 
 

 
 

 

A Trip to SW Oklahoma: Part I Cincinnati Again

It was supposed to be a trip to the high country of New Mexico, with stages of increasing elevation along the way to help us prepare for the big time.  My ultimate goal was to be Jicarita Peak, one of the biggies in NM.  Besides the urban hiking we would do in the evenings along the way, we had plans to warm up in the Wichita Mountains in OK, and Palo Duro Canyon in Texas, south of Amarillo.  Next would come the Texas high point hike in Guadalupe National Park, and an even higher excursion into the Manzano Mtns of NM, and lastly, Jicarita.  The plans were wonderful.  However, we only made it to the Wichitas in OK, and even there we were robbed by misfortune, as Deb took a tumble on a trail, thus ending the hiking and the journey itself.  After her fall, it was essentially a homeward journey, once we were done with the hospital in Lawton.

It wasn't her first fall, either.  Four days before leaving, she fell down a flight of six stairs at home, bruising her face and entire body, as well as breaking her left wrist. This after five weeks of intensive training for hill climbing.

Now from the beginning.  The Cindependent Film Festival in Cincinnati, Ohio, resumed after several years of being shut due to Co-vid.  Deb had an animated film accepted there, and was offered two nights accommodation in a downtown hotel.  Hard to refuse.  So we changed the date of our departure to fit the festival, meaning we would be leaving almost a full week earlier than planned.  She got her cast on Thursday.  We left Friday morning, Sept. 29th, and were at the festival downtown Cincinnati around 2:30 pm.  We registered, Deb as a filmmaker and me as a generic "VIP", then attended a film block.  Later, we checked into our hotel, parking the car underground for the weekend.  Back to the festival for an evening film block, and then back to the hotel bar for an afterglow party.

Saturday afternoon at 1 pm was the film block in which Deb's animated film "A Fable For Four Voices," was screened.  Afterwards there was a Q & A with the audience, in which she participated.  We had been walking quite a bit, and we took off again for a while afterwards.  I managed to find A Taste of Belgium, a restaurant that has over 20 taps of Belgian and Belgian style ales.  I enjoyed a wonderful flight of four ales, and we each had a vegan cookie from their bakery.  This was my second visit, and I hope there are many more.

 The concourse of our hotel, an Art Deco skyscraper from 1931.  We had a complimentary room for two nights.  It is called the Hilton Netherland Plaza, and is a sight to behold.

 

Early morning view from our 12th floor room, looking towards a foggy Ohio River. 

 

Deb and three other directors host a Q & A after their films were shown.  Many directors were unable to attend the festival, but those who were there were invited on stage afterwards. 

Deb responds to questions about her film from the audience, as she holds one of the stars of the drama, a fox.

 

The VIP lounge at the festival.

View from the lounge to the vast park across the street.

 

Flight 201 from A Taste of Belgium in downtown Cincinnati.  There was also a 101, for beginners.

View from my bar stool as I enjoyed by Belgian beer flight. 

Cincinnati is in many ways an ideal city to visit.  Lots of impressive tall buildings, great street life with many restaurants, cafes, bars, and stores.  It's a fun city to walk in, whether along the river looking across to Kentucky, or in the middle of the city, or further north in what is called Over the Rhine.  We have visited many times, and never been disappointed.  It's art museums are justly renowned, also, though there was no time for them this trip.  We did manage another visit to the Ohio Bookstore, a used book paradise, where I went in search of a book by Daniel Fuchs.  I was alone on the third floor, lost in the "Fs".  No Fuchs, but there were enough interesting books on either side of where he should have been that I ended up buying a "F" book anyway.  The Days of the King by Bruno Frank is a fictional account of three episodes in the later life of Frederick the Great, with dozens of illustrations by Adolph von Menzel.  Quite a bargain at $4.50, and I will be reading it this month.  Deb browsed the more popular areas on the main floor, and left with Chopin's Piano: In Search of the Instrument That Transformed Music, by Paul Kildea.  Her book choice (which I will also be reading) was published in 2018, mine in 1927 (with an intro by Sinclair Lewis!).

 

And speaking of books, our welcome bag from the festival each contained an older film book.  Mine was Sophia Loren: A Biography by Warren G. Harris, from 1998.  Deb got Film Noir: An Encyclopedic Reference to the American Style, from 1979.  Cool stuff!

 

We attended the awards ceremony Sunday morning.  Deb did not win her category, but at least she lost to another very good animated film.  A few of the winners in other categories raised our eyebrows, and at least one person who should have won at least one award won nothing.  So goes it.

 

With the cultural portion of our journey at an end, we departed the city around noon Sunday and aimed west, hoping to get some hiking in during the next few weeks.  Little did we know.....

 

...to be continued