What happened at those Shidler Water Falls?

  I stopped by the water falls and shared them with my son Preston.  They were running and I just wonder why folks don't come to Shidler to camp and visit such a great place. 

I bet everyone has some memory of going to the water falls or to the old park for a summer party.  I remember wading all around the falls with friends from class just passing time.  And then there were annual picnics like the Shidler Methodist Church which always included Grainola and Foraker.  I remember picking cat-tales along the creek and then breaking them open to let the wind carry the tightly packed inside everywhere.  Boy does it make a mess.  Now that I think about that park it is where I remember meeting Mike Benton who was a freshman (I think) at the time and he was extremely strong. 

And does anyone remember the acorns from the oak trees there?  I think they are still the largest acorns from any oak trees.  The cotton woods were and still are about 100 feet tall and I remember loving to watch the cotton, although most folks complain about it today stopping up their air conditioner units.  I still love those huge trees and the cotton wood leaves shimmering in the sun as the wind blew.  They remind me of the aspen trees in Colorado but bigger by far.  Everything is bigger in Oklahoma and the Osage, not really, but you know we should have a lot of pride in the Osage. 

I still remember the hot dogs and hamburgers cooking on the grill on the south end of the park while a lot of us explored and most of the time the men would play horse shoes.  Many times we would go fishing and catch perch and some small bass in the creek.

How many times did we go out there on the weekend after ball games just to hang out?  Visiting with friends and sometimes we just went there to see who we would catch parking?  Now for those of you who don't know what that is:  go ask your dad or mom.

  Now I don't know much about who takes care of the park now-a-days but what I think would be really great is if there could be some cabins built down there and it become a camp ground for groups to come and enjoy or it could just be a destination for summer vacationers.  There really is a lot to see and explore and besides if they come on Saturday they can eat the best steak in America at Amanda's.  I still find it hard to believe it is sooooooo gooooood!

Well what did we learn from the Osage?

•  you don't have to go to Yellowstone to see some of the prettiest places in America
• you don't have to go to Lowery's in Chicago to get the best steak - I dare you to go to Amanda's
• the friendliest and nicest people live in the Osage
• share the Shidler area with your friends just like Facebook

Thanks for your time,

gary@thepioneerman.com