Chickasaw NRA was featured on the NPS website as Getaway of the Week (Week 11: August 31 – September 6) shortly after my visit. Maybe they’re fans of this blog. The text is below, which offers additional tidbits about the park.

Chickasaw National Recreation Area
Oklahoma

At Chickasaw National Recreation Area the power of place is evident: cool creeks flowing over travertine terraces; the silhouette of a great blue heron perched on the shore of the Lake of the Arbuckles; families reuniting in historic campgrounds; locals filling jugs with mineral water; and the idyllic escape so many discover here.

Lying midway between Oklahoma City and Dallas in part of the country that many stereotype as rather unspectacular subprairie scenery, Chickasaw is a conveniently located contrast. Situated just east of Interstate 35 as it transects south-central Oklahoma at the juncture of the southern Osage Plains and the ancient, worn remnants of the Arbuckle Mountains, Chickasaw entertains more than one million visitors each year.

Water defines the park. For over a century, people have come here to enjoy the refreshing, tranquil beauty of this simple wooded valley and its many springs and streams. The reputed healing power of its mineral waters prompted the park’s creation in 1902 as the Sulphur Springs Reservation. The United States Government purchased the land for the new park from the Chickasaw and Choctaw Nations at $20 per acre; making it the first and only national park established at an Indian Tribe’s request. In 1906, the reservation became the nation’s seventh national park, Platt National Park.

Visitors flocked to the new park, and many made annual visits a family tradition. In 1908 over 100,000 visitors were counted at Bromide Spring. To conserve the spring water, only one gallon of water per person per day was allowed without a physician’s prescription.

Between 1933 and 1940, Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) members rebuilt Platt National Park. Rustic buildings, swimming holes, and picnic areas, remain today as a testament to their work. Since then, millions have enjoyed the landscape left behind by the CCC by swimming at Little Niagara, camping at the Cold Springs Campground, or tasting the water at Pavilion Springs.

After 70 years as the smallest national park, Platt National Park was combined with the Arbuckle Recreation Area to create Chickasaw National Recreation Area. The name of the park honors the vision of the Chickasaw Nation. In many respects the modern park is really two parks in one – the Platt Historic District and the Lake of the Arbuckles.

The Lake of the Arbuckles, built in the mid-1960s, offers fun on the water. It’s one of the best fishing lakes in Oklahoma for catfish, perch, bass, and crappie. The Buckhorn and Point campgrounds offer traditional and utility camping sites. Nearby boat ramps provide easy access to the water’s edge, and in areas surrounding the lake some hunting is allowed. In the autumn, the creek-side trails of the Platt Historic District offer an outstanding opportunity to slow down, and exchange the breathtaking vistas and dramatic phenomena of larger national parks, and in their stead delight in quiet, pleasant vignettes of nature’s ageless ways. Come visit — click www.nps.gov/chic/, or call (580) 622-7234.

I mentioned once before that I would totally like to take a snowmobile tour of Yellowstone.

However, to operate a snowmobile in Yellowstone, on Federal public land, you are supposed to be licensed, from what I remember reading. Talking to some people who have gone up to West Yellowstone for snowmobiling, it sounds like you can…oops, wander on to park land because it’s not well marked if you really want to.

I’m not into that. Anyhow, now that I’m back in Virginia, I’m not sure how I would get a license in Virginia that would qualify to operate a snowmobile (probably via an ATV safety course), so maybe it’d be best to find an alternative for visiting Yellowstone in the winter. There’s a nice set of vacation packages offered by Xanterra Parks & Resorts that just sound like fun. Check these out (winter 2009 prices):

Nordic Heaven at Old Faithful Snow Lodge: includes snowcoach transportation, at least 2 nights lodging, breakfast each day of stay per person, 1 welcome gift per person, 1 ski rental per person per day, unlimited ski drops per person and 1 snow card (discount card) per person which is good for additional 10% discounts on certain gift shop items, additional meals (except designated special events) and any equipment rental. Starts at $339.00 per person double occupancy, $489.00 single occupancy.

Guided Snowmo-Deal at Old Faithful Snow Lodge: includes at least 2 nights lodging, breakfast each day of stay per person, 1 welcome gift per person, 1 snow card per person discount card) per person which is good for additional 10% discounts on certain gift shop items, additional meals (except designated special events), any equipment rental and one guided snowmobile tour to either the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone or Mammoth (snowmobile clothing included in the package). Starts at $389.00 per person double occupancy, $639.00 single occupancy with snowcoach transportation to Snow Lodge.

There are equivalent packages for Mammoth Lodge, and winter packages that split time between the two. It could be really neat. I really need to find someone to do this with.

For the muffin stamp afficionado, the Albright Visitor Center in Mammoth is open year-round, and the Old Faithful Visitor Center has winter hours, too. My guess is that a snowcoach day tour is likely to only give you the opportunity for the Old Faithful stamp unless you do a more elaborate package tour.

Here I thought there’d be other years. Should have done it when I had the chance. Some day I’ll go back, though.

Great Big Sea is a Canadian band from Newfoundland that gives traditional folk songs, drinking songs, and sea shanties a modern rock treatment, in addition to doing original songs. Always an entertaining, high energy concert.

The Filene Center about 90 minutes before showtime.

Playing the Filene Center at Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts has become almost a summertime tradition. They say they’ve performed there either as guest or headliner since 1996.

Great Big Sea in concert

The Ranger Station is just off to the left, outside of the main gate. It is open before the show and remains open throughout the concert. The passport stamp is located just inside, next to the guest book.

We had lawn seating and endured three heavy downpours. I feel like I definitely earned this stamp, and it was worth it.

The new visitor center is a real beauty. The museum is great and well done. I thought the short film was nicely executed, too. It didn’t focus on the battle so much as it gave the battle context for the visitor.

The cyclorama auditorium is visible above the trees. The black-eyed susans were in full force.

We went from there to the Pennsylvania Monument. We quickly found the panel next to the clearly visible 62nd Infantry. The pattern of names matched the image in Gail’s old picture.

Returning to the Pennsylvania Memorial 68 years later to find the name she was pointing at.

No McAfee.

Mom seemed to agree that the image of the plaque in the photo matched well with the plaque we were standing in front of. So, who was Gail’s father holding her up to point at? “It looks like you’re pointing right here on the plaque, but there’s no McAfee. Just a guy named Hurlbert.”

“That’s my mother’s maiden name, but my great-grandfather was McAfee,” but there was no Pvt. William McAfee in the 61st Pennsylvania.

Mom and I looked at each other. We had a hunch that she was pointing at her maternal great-grandfather’s name in the photo, but she couldn’t now grasp that she had been pointing to a different ancestor on that day 68 years ago.  She had mentioned that her mother’s side had also fought in the Civil War, so that’s the conclusion that Mom and I drew.

Still, that left the question of William McAfee. So, I started examining the other plaques.

We discover a William McAfee on the Knap's Battery plaque

Lo and behold! Knap’s Battery of Pennsylvania Lt. Artillery had a Pvt. William McAfee. Later on, we possibly found his brother in the 29th Penna. Infantry.

Knap's Battery Monument on Culp's Hill

Furthermore, what made it interesting, was that Knap’s Battery was eventually on Culp’s Hill, where it was responsible for dueling with the Confederate Artillery on Benner’s Hill. That just happens to be the place where our ancestor, Bowling Mitchell, was during the battle (the subject of our previous trip to Gettysburg, in fact), serving as a private with the Amherst Artillery.

Benner Hill as viewed from the tower on Culp's Hill. Knaps' Battery was firing on Confederate batteries located here (you can just make out the black cannon marking their position). The Amherst Artillery was just across the road in that small square clearing.

How’s that for history coming alive? All-in-all, I thought it was a fun and rewarding day.