Shakedown trip reveals treasures

By Jim and Pam Andress: What a great feeling when all the planning and organizing finally comes to an end and it is time for action. This is what happened last week.

We went on our first adventure in our new RV and what a good time Pam and I had as we followed the white center line of the road southwest out of Oklahoma City headed for the Wichita Mountain National Wildlife Refuge just north of Fort Sill Army base in Lawton, Okla.

There is a huge amount of history in this area dating back to when the Spaniards explored the region up through the Indian Wars involving Custer, Geronimo and Quanah Parker. We didn't visit Fort Sill on this trip as we had explored the army base and its museums on past visits.

The reason for this shakedown trip was to see how our RV worked and if anything needed repair or replaced. I am happy to say everything worked pretty well. We did find some things wrong or in need of fixing but overall the entire five-day trip was a great success.

The Wichita Mountain-area is full of game from the majestic elk and whitetail deer to the land tortoise and the scary looking hairy spider, the tarantula. The refuge is near the small resort town of Medicine Park located on a small creek named Medicine Creek by the Indians because of the healing powers of the water.

Cobblestones from the creek were used in building almost all the early structures of the community making for an interesting walking tour along the planned paths of the neighborhood. A cobblestone is a small stone rounded by the flow of water in a river or creek bed and normally about 10 inches in diameter. The stones are sawed in half and held with mortar as siding on the buildings.

The creek was damned and formed what is called Bath Lake Park, which is landscaped with large trees, shrubs and a concrete walking trail with a foot bridge across the middle of the swimming area surrounded by the high rock cliffs of Medicine Creek.

In the 1930s the area was known as the "Jewel of the Southwest" and attracted vacationers and sunbathers from all over the United States. The pages of the town's colorful history are filled with the likes of Will Rogers, Wiley Post, Bob Willis, Al Capone, Bonnie and Clyde, Colonel Jack Abernathy, Roy Rogers and Dale Evans, Les Brown and many others.

Outlaws and horse thieves mixed with noted politicians and businessmen, families and socialites of the time. Over the years the community became run down and lost its popularity until about 2001 when a resurgence started and Medicine Park has come alive again with its unique cobblestone buildings and old time swimming hole for everyone's use. The Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge is more than 60,000 acres and a free range for buffalo, longhorn cattle, prairie dog towns, elk and whitetail deer, turkey and whatever else might be roaming these acres.

When entering the refuge the first thing we saw was a huge mountain called Mount Scott which has a scenic concrete drive to the top of the second highest mountain in the refuge and provides a wonderful panoramic few of the sanctuary. In the middle of the refuge is a campground called Camp Doris but I call it Camp Dora (my mother's name) which provides electricity and water and a dump station upon leaving the grounds.

The charge is only $16 a night. But the ranger saw my handicapped notice hanging from the mirror and advised we could sign up for something called a National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass-Access Pass card. We went to the Rangers Station and found to our delight that we qualified for this wonderful benefit.

This card is a lifetime pass for entry into all National Parks and Federally Managed Parks and a reduction of 50 percent on all camping fees.

If you have a disability that severely limits one or more life activities, then you qualify for this benefit. Go online and look up National Parks and follow the links, or go to the ranger station in a federal park and register. If you are planning a trip out west to a national park like the Grand Canyon, Bryce Canyon, etc., you might investigate this benefit and save the cost of the entry fee, currently $20 for the Grand Canyon per vehicle each entry. Obviously this could save a lot during a week's stay, plus 50 percent off camping fees.

Pam and I are really looking forward to becoming full-time travelers once again and we are excited about meeting our upcoming goals.

Until the next Hobo Highlights, keep on trekkin.'