Fort Gibson, Oklahoma

In 1824, Fort Gibson was established to help resolve the conflict between the Osages and Western Cherokees in the area, and to protect white settlers.  Then the Indian Removal Act of 1830 marked the beginning of the forced removal of the Five Civilized Tribes to the then Oklahoma Indian Territory.  Fort Gibson had a central role in carrying out this policy.  Thousands of Creek, Cherokee, and Seminole stopped at Fort Gibson on the last leg of the journey to their new lands.  This was the terminal end of the Cherokee's "Trail of Tears."

The fort was in use by the army from 1824 until 1890.

This is part of the officer's area.

The stockade was two stories tall in some areas.

After 1890, the fort was abandoned and literally disappeared.  In the 1930's, the WPA reconstructed the present fort.  Just a couple of years ago, archeologists did some digs in the area, and found that the reconstructed fort is almost exactly where the original Fort Gibson was located.  This fort was a very important part of the history of our nation and of Oklahoma.

I had hoped to also visit what I thought was a nearby Civil War battlefield, but after talking to the gentleman in the visitor's center, I found out that it was at least 30 miles away.  I needed to get back to the rig and take Emma out, so I'll have to do that on a future trip to the area.  It was a Civil War battle that blacks, whites, and Indians took part in.  Too bad.

As I was returning to my car, I noticed hundreds of birds circling overhead.

After circling for several minutes, they all landed alongside a large puddle of water.  But they weren't there for a drink.  These cliff swallows were gathering small balls of mud in their beaks.  They use it to construct an enclosed jug shaped mud nest on rocks or buildings.  They never closed their wings.  They'd all land with their wings held high, grab some mud...

and all take flight together.  Cliff swallows nest in colonies, so this puddle with the wet mud next to it was a great find for them.

Tomorrow, I'll be continuing my journey north and plan to end up just south of Kansas City.  It has been a very enjoyable stay for me at Blue Bill Point COE campground.  I wish I could stay longer.

Thanks for stopping by....talk to you later,  Judy

Revamping the itinerary, again

My plans for today were to visit the historic Fort Gibson, and the Honey Springs Battlefield.  I'm sure glad I checked the Internet this morning to get directions.  Guess what?  Neither place is open on Mondays.  Rats!  Oh well, guess I'll have to stay at this beautiful campground another day.  :)  I can manage that.  It will put me a day behind in my travels to Minnesota though.  Normally that wouldn't be a problem, but my daughter and one granddaughter are flying up from Chicago on Saturday to visit Andy, his family, and me on Saturday, and I'm supposed to pick them up at the Rochester airport.  I don't know what time they're scheduled to arrive, but I may not be pulling in to Andy's house until Saturday.  I'm sure we'll work something out. Perhaps Andy or their father could pick them up.

One of the strange things about this campground is that I get very good air card reception, but little to no cell phone reception.  Both devices are from Sprint, so I don't quite understand that.  I wonder if it has something to do with my new laptop?  Since I got it, my air card seems to work much better, but I have a new phone as well.  Hmmm, any ideas out there?  Tonight's post won't be as late as they have been lately because I'm actually typing away outside and am not tied to the Wilson antenna and amplifier.  The new laptop has a four hour battery life, so this is an experiment for me.  Since I like to stay outside with Emma until dusk, wouldn't it be great if I could just post outside?  We'll see what happens.

Only a couple of pictures tonight, as I spent most of the day taking Emma on walks and reading a new book.  It's a rough life out here!  :-)

Many little birds were fluttering about over my head this afternoon.  Among them was a male yellow warbler.  They glean insects off of the leaves and bark of the trees.  Several blue-gray gnatcatchers were about also, but getting a picture of them is like getting a picture of the wind.  They don't hold still for a moment.

This is not a spectacular photo, but it sure depicts how these little warblers bend and twist and keep their wings going in order to pluck a little lunch out of the trees.  :)

I hope the fine weather continues tomorrow so I can show you some of the historic sites in this area.  Oh, a flock of cedar waxwings just flew into the tree above my head.  Spring migration is certainly exciting for a bird watcher.  I'm really liking this posting outside!

Thanks for stopping by....talk to you later,  Judy

Blue Bill Point

It was an interesting journey today to get to the Army Corps of Engineers' Blue Bill Point campground on Fort Gibson Lake in  Northeast Oklahoma.  I traveled on US 69 the whole way.  It's a four lane highway that goes through quite a few towns along the way which is certainly more interesting than driving an Interstate.  But, I have one thing to say about Oklahoma roads....when they're good, they're good, but when they're bad, they're horrible!  After today's drive, I fully expected to find just about every screw loose in the rig.  Dang!  About 30% of the time I was tightly gripping the steering wheel trying to avoid all those lumps and bumps. 

Anyway, I eventually bounced my way into the Blue Bill Point campground, and was thrilled with what I found.  Compared to last night, this is heaven.

It's a big long site with electric and water.  You can see how far away the nearest campers are.  I could also stay here three nights for less than what I paid for last night.  :)

This is the view of the lake that I have from the picnic table.  I really do like the Army Corps of Engineer parks.

Although it was overcast for my drive (which I don't dislike), the afternoon was just gorgeous.  I especially enjoyed the fact that it was a Sunday afternoon, and most people left.  I've gotten used to the quiet and peacefulness of  National Wildlife Refuges. 

Lest you think that I have forgotten the birds, I've included a few pics that I took while I sat out on my patio this afternoon.  :)

A pair of scissor-tailed flycatchers made good use of the electrical wires to scan the skies for flying insects.

I had a good time watching two male orchard orioles battling for the attention of one female in the big trees on my site. 

There were also numerous Baltimore orioles singing their hearts out all over the campground.  There were also warblers and vireos flitting about, but they were too fast for me to catch them with the camera.

and of course, there was a pair of Canada geese that made their way through the grounds after most of the campers had left.  I'll be staying here two nights.  I may snoop around  Wagoner, OK, tomorrow to see if there's anything interesting.

Thanks for stopping by....talk to you later,  Judy