We had such a great time at Hagerman NWR the day before yesterday that we elected to go again today. We had an early breakfast and jumped into the truck for the drive. This time, we stayed exclusively on back roads; not one had a dotted line down the center and most didn’t have paving. It was great.
While the weather at the Refuge was overcast a couple days ago, it was clear skies but windy today. We retraced our steps down all the passable roads and were again rewarded with amazing glimpses of the abundant wildlife there. We identified a couple more birds and took photos but great distances and near-total ignorance about birds will keep us working to identify the new guys. There seem to be plenty of terns, plovers, killdeer, vultures, cormorants, great blue herons, American pelicans, snow geese, coots and egrets; mallards and northern shoveler ducks are ubiquitous. We also scared up a variety of songbirds that were lurking in the dry spots of the enormous marshy area. All the turtles we saw were very bashful, bailing off their floating logs and into the water as soon as we got close enough to really see them. Smart little guys.
Hagerman National Wildlife Refuge is a great place to spend a few hours watching the gorgeous birds. Although there are trails at the Refuge, almost everything can be seen from a car on the auto loop. It is a superb location for bird watching.
On the way back to our RV spot on Lake Texoma, we spotted an anomaly – a Texan that had a truck parked in his yard that was taller than his house. This is indeed an interesting part of the world.
We shot a few pix that can be seen by clicking here

We started out our day noting that our local squirrel has figured out a way to foil the steel hook and bird feeder roof such that he was able to get at the bird seed although he had to do it upside-down. He is the first squirrel to achieve this feat although skunks and raccoons have been able to tip the steel hook over and break into the yummy contents.
After making sure the birds would have some dining opportunities, we jumped into the truck and decided to take a spin into Oklahoma, just across Lake Texoma from our RV spot in Texas. We were initially going to Lake Murray State Park but that got sort of sidetracked and we went to a place called the Country Kitchen in Kingston, OK.
My quest to find the best chicken fried steak was shortened today when I got my breakfast here. Jake’s in Bend, Oregon, and Dean’s in Clackamas, Oregon, were my favorites for this pedestrian treat until meeting their match in this little backwater town. Peggy had a western omelette and said it was tasty. $24 out the door- it was great.
From Kingston we wandered north for about 25 miles until turning off on some secondary highways around Tishomingo National Wildlife Refuge, a 16,000 acre parcel of mostly wetlands south of the town of Tishomingo. The refuge is accessed by driving down dirt roads into little slices of the refuge shoreline where it surrounds Cumberland Pool. The Pool is a Army Corps of Engineers creation to trap sediment before the Red River reaches Lake Texoma to the south.
As we were circumnavigating the Pool, we found a sign pointing to a road to the Chickasaw White House. We had no idea what that might be so we turned off and followed a dirt road for a couple miles until we spotted a magnificent confection of residential design and construction. Back here in the boondocks, some character named Douglas Hancock Johnston built a beautiful white house with separate guest bedroom. He must have told the carpenters doing the fancy woodwork that money was not important but a gorgeous house was. The results were very nice.
We also made a stop by Fort Washita which, of course, was closed today so we took a few pix through the gate and skedaddled. We continued on, trying to find a loop road through Tishomingo but we were repeatedly foiled. Instead, we continued down the dirt roads into the little glimpses of the refuge before turning around and backtracking and continuing on our way. We finally made it to refuge headquarters where there were pieces of equipment and ranger-looking guys but no visitor center.
However, on one of our little dusty forays in through the swamp to the edge of the Pool, we ran into a retired biologist who lives and fishes in the area. He was a font of local wildlife info although he kept creeping up on Peggy until she bent over sideways to escape. He may have just been a little deaf because he was certainly too old to get frisky, especially with a gorilla sitting in the adjacent seat.
We exited the refuge into the town of Tishomingo. There is a Chickasaw National Capitol Building, something we know nothing about. There is a bronze statue of Tishomingo, a truly great Chickasaw leader, out front. Tishomingo died taking a U.S. Army sponsored stroll on the Trail of Tears.
There are some pix we took along the way and you can see ’em by clicking here

Today we had a clear schedule other than a short trip to the post office. After stopping in the nearby tiny burg of Sadler for postal purposes, we jumped on the back roads and headed toward Hagerman National Wildlife Refuge about 20 miles away. We had no idea what was there since we have never been in this part of the world before.
We suspected we were approaching the Refuge when the paving changed from crummy asphalt to dirt and gravel. Fortunately, some government employee has properly graded the gravel roads and washboard sections and potholes are rare. It is fortunate the roads are well-tended because the scenery is spectacular and paying attention to the road surface is difficult.
We spotted many aquatic birds like ducks, geese and coots. We observed turtles lurking in the ponds. We spotted a new species for us – a greater yellowlegs which is a wading bird who gave us an impressive demonstration of “Beat it! Go away!” while posturing from a roadside puddle. There are many wading birds here. We spotted a bunch of great blue herons and white egrets.
Eagle-eyed Peggy directed me to a pull-out where she suspected bird activity and we found a very miserable-looking group of black vultures and one blue heron watching a bald eagle dining on something they could not have.The eagle was a monster, dwarfing the usually largest vultures and forcing them to wait while she dined and made periodic trips to the nearby water to drink.
Hagerman NWR is a great place to spend the day and I wouldn’t mind going back in the early morning during the feeding frenzy. We found our way back home without having to get on any roads with lines down the center but no sooner got close to the Barbarian Invader when Peggy suggested we continue on into nearby Oklahoma so we did. Not surprisingly, the other side of the Red River looks pretty similar to the Texas side but we will go there tomorrow to make sure.
The sunsets are terrific here.
There are some shots we took along the way you can see if you click here

Today was a travel day. We unhooked the connections to sewer, electricity and stinky water in the Shady Pines RV Park near Texarkana and hooked the Barbarian Invader to Charlotte. After just a few miles, we turned onto US-82 headed west. 82 is a pretty good road that passes through low hills and pastures. There are many nice spreads near the highway but we were blasting along at about 60 and did not stop to gaze at any of them. There seemed to be less roadside litter, too.
A couple hundred miles later, we turned north on US-377 for about 15 miles and then into a Thousand Trails facility called Lake Texoma. It is near Gordonville, TX, just across the Red River from Oklahoma. The campground is huge with lots of camping spots but, fortunately for us, few of them are occupied. There are lots of seasonals (folks who put their RV in a camping space for the year) here but their expensive vehicles are empty now. Peggy took a stroll and thought there were about 6 other parties here. It is very quiet. We will explore tomorrow.

Peggy felt compelled to drive into Texarkana (about 4 miles) to see a building. I eagerly hopped in beside her and down US-67 we went. Along the way, we passed by a car joint called Rusty Boltz Automotive and they appear to make unique cars there. We spotted one with an enormous 4-wheel drive system on the bottom and a compact sedan on top. Short fellows would be unable to reach the door handle.
In town, we soon found the Ace of Clubs House Museum which is the building Peggy originally had in her sights. It is a big impressive thing of indeterminate albeit strange design. Not two blocks away is the imposing Hotel Grim which looks it in every way. There are some very nice houses near the Grim but it looks like the ‘hood is getting a bit run down because many structures are vacant and near collapse. It is too bad. Some look like they were grand places back in the day.
We quickly chickened out and drove back to our RV park. Right after arriving we decided to check out the route out of here because we are departing tomorrow. We tried the shortcut on Google maps but right after we turned onto the one-lane road we noticed the potholes and low overhanging limbs so we will be using the Garmin’s map tomorrow. On the drive, we found a Texas State Historical Marker that, as far as we can tell, had the text composed by a person incapable of making sense. See pix.
Today’s pix are a bit strange but you can look at them anyway by clicking here

Today we took a spin to the south from our RV park in Texarkana. Not too far from our spot is the northern edge of Wright Patman Lake. We started out by driving southwest along the western lakeshore. Stupidly, we do not have a DeLorme Gazetteer for Texas. Our normally cooperative Garmin was completely worthless without supplying it with mailing addresses and nobody gets mail where we drove today.
Fortunately, Peggy was navigating by using her Google Maps app on our phone. We drove many miles on one-lane and fewer on two-lane dirt roads during our circumnavigation of the northern half of the lake. The terrain along the roads is low rolling hills with some marshy areas. The vegetation is pine and hardwood forests mixed with beautiful pastures. Most of the species are deciduous so, from a distance, the hardwoods look like spooky stuff at this time of year. The pastures, on the other hand, are erupting in new grass and they are emerald. We didn’t see as much wildlife as we encountered down in Columbus a few weeks ago but we still spotted plenty of cardinals, American pelicans, cormorants, squirrels, hawks and a smattering of livestock. We also stopped in a few spots where the only sounds were wind through the trees and bird calls. It was great.
Along the way, we drove into many small Texas state parks located in various places on the lake’s shoreline. The parks were almost empty with only fisherpersons parking near the boat ramps. The roads into many of the parks are dirt and hauling our 34′ fifth wheel into these areas would be worrisome. When I was younger, I might have been game but being stuck at my age is annoying. I am perfectly happy here in Texarkana with my paved RV spot with full hookups and wi-fi. Maybe we’ll try some other Texas state parks for overnight stays on our way back to San Diego.
We took a few pix along the way and some can be seen by clicking here

We awoke this morning to a gorgeous day here in Texarkana, TX. We reconnected our trailer water system to the stinky, funny flavored city water for showers and then we stalled. By about noon, we decided to try a place called Texas Chuckwagon that was suggested by the park lady when we checked in.
The service was good and the food we ordered arrived in record time. As usual, I tried the chicken fried steak (it was great) with eggs and Peggy chose something called “chicken spaghetti.” This mystery food turned out to be short spaghetti noodle segments mixed with a bit of chicken particles and something suspected to be white cheese sauce. Peggy said it was like Campbell’s chicken noodle soup, minus most of the water. It was tasty enough; she just expected something more spaghetti-like, perhaps having onions, garlic or marinara sauce. The drinks were served in quart Mason jars and the sides with our meals were good. Prices were great – we got out for $20.
After the Chuckwagon, we decided to take a drive east through both Texarkanas (one in Texas and one in Arkansas) and across the Red River on I-30. The Red River here is not red. It is more the color of milk chocolate. We zoomed along for about half an hour until we got to Hope, AR. Bill Clinton, former president and unsuccessful first husbandperson, was born in Hope and we drove by his house. It is quite unimpressive.
It looks like the folks around this part of Texas / Arkansas are living a better life than the poor bastards down in Minden, LA. There also seems to be somewhat less roadside litter here but it appears there are still many motorists in the area that use the roads as dumps. It is tragic because the nature scenery beyond the ditches is beautiful; gorgeous forests and pastures laced with some creeks and swampy areas.
You can see a picture of Bill’s house and the brown Red River if you click here

The weather was still crummy but the rain that has entertained us for the last 4 days seemed to be over when we hooked the Barbarian Invader to Charlotte and pulled out of Cinnamon Creek RV Park in Minden, LA. We probably won’t be going to Cinnamon Creek again, for several reasons: There is little to do in NW Louisiana, we found no above-average restaurants nearby and the almost biblical noise from the two adjacent highways is relentless. Their wi-fi worked well, though.
We stayed on back roads as we wandered northwest, crossing back into Texas just west of Vivian and continued north toward Texarkana. The sun came out as we crossed the border from Louisiana back into Texas. We crossed the Red River for the first time today but since we are going to follow the Red all the way to Amarillo, I’m pretty sure it won’t be the last. Near Atlanta, TX, we entered a cloud of remarkable stench and wondered if we were close to a sewer treatment plant or a paper mill but saw neither. Much rotten egg smell pervaded the atmosphere. We then crossed the Sulphur River and began to suspect the water which has been recently stirred up by multiple thunderstorms passing through. After we got away from the river, the stink factor dropped substantially.
Twenty miles further north we pulled into Shady Pines RV Park in Texarkana. It is a small but attractive park with trees, concrete RV spots, wi-fi, an adjacent small pond and a good distance between our RV spot and the road which should make it about 60db quieter than Cinnamon Creek. I did hear a train whistle earlier but it was a long way off. However, the rotten egg small we first enjoyed down the road in Atlanta was evident here. When Peggy drew some of the local water for a drink, she quickly noticed that it was sorely lacking on the odorless and tasteless criteria so important for imbibing without grimacing. I guess we will stop by a grocery and pick up some bottled water because the stuff from the tap is nasty.
See if you can figure out which of the pictures was snapped in Louisiana. Click here

Today was our last full day in Louisiana so we elected to do some back road exploring. Before really getting going, we drove into Minden to eat at a place called Moody’s Restaurant or Cafe or Place, depending on which sign you read. They have been serving food since either 1950 or 1951, again depending on where you get your info. It is located in sort of a spooky neighborhood and the exterior of the restaurant looks like it is collateral damage but the inside looks okay so we went in. My chicken fried steak wasn’t that great but the beans and the apple turnovers are tasty. Peggy had fried chicken and it was very yummy. It was very inexpensive and we got out for less than $30, including dessert.
After Moody’s, Peggy got behind the wheel and we took off driving south on US-371. It is a two-lane blacktop road running through a mostly swampy area. The state of Louisiana apparently does not have highway cleanup programs or the state’s citizens are particularly cavalier litterers because bottles, cans, styrofoam cups, cardboard boxes, wrappers and large metal objects were strewn liberally along the roads we traveled today.
About 20 miles south of I-20, we visited a Louisiana State Park called Lake Bistineau where we coughed up $2 to get in. Lake Bistineau, or at least the part we saw, is pretty shallow because there are countless cypress trees poking up through the lake. There is some kind of green duckweed on some of the lake which, unfortunately, contrasts with the litter, 55 gallon drums and unidentifiable objects distributed throughout. There really is a roadside crap problem in this part of the state.
We looped back north and made it back to the Cinnamon Creek RV Park, stopping for fuel along the way because we are departing tomorrow. We can’t say we really enjoy this part of the country. The swampy stuff and the gorgeous though flat country is interesting, there is nothing here that really gets us excited. This is a rural, low income part of the U.S. and lots of folks live a tough life here. We will move along tomorrow looking for something else.
We took a few pix. To see them, click here

We had an opportunity to get up very early this morning, both awakening at 0600. Fortunately, we don’t have pesky scheduling constraints anymore so we went back to bed until 9:00 AM. I really like this retirement stuff.
After our morning ablutions and some special coffee, we sat down for some research about whether Minden, LA, (where we are currently staying) actually does have a historic district or not. Our efforts to locate one yesterday was a failure although we can try to blame it on crummy information from Google maps. Peggy got on the internet and, contrary to Google, she established that Minden does have a nice brick-paved main drag and a flurry of really impressive old residential structures. We took off to see whether Google or Peggy was correct and it turns out Peggy wins!
There are indeed many extraordinary residential structures here and a large percentage of them are in good repair. Extensive gorgeous wood millwork and plain old gingerbread make for some unique, elegant and quite massive homes. Most of them are located along Broadway although a few can be spotted along the adjacent streets. They have signs in front of some of them indicating construction in the early 1900s. As residential architecture buffs, we were delighted with what we found. We don’t see many houses like these in California.
While dining last night, our waitress mentioned a city nearby and she pronounced it Nack-a-tesh. After charming her with puzzled looks, she told us she was referring to a city here in Louisiana which is spelled Natchitoches. Just over in Texas, they have a city called Nacogdoches which they pronounce nack-a-Doches. I am at a loss to explain the diverse accents of people living within 100 miles of each other. This country is terrific.
We got a few house pix and a photo of the downtown street which can be seen by clicking here