GAGE, OKLAHOMA

Another cold night and now the wind is blowing about 20mph. We cross the Black Kettle National Grassland, some 63 thousand acres of reclaimed native grassland. We breakfast in Arnett and head north toward Gage, my home town. With only about 250 people it's not very big but it's where I spent my summers growing up. We first go to Gage Beach where an artesian well supplies a swimming pool and a small lake. That's where I learned to water ski. For the second time (2006) we are unable to find a geocache here. We cruise around town seeing what has and hasn't changed.
We continue north toward the Mitchell family farms. They haven't changed much at all since nobody has lived here since 1957. That's when they took my grandfather and put him in a "retirement home" in town. This is as far north as we intend to go so we now head southwest toward warmer climates. We have supper in Shattuck and stay at an improvised RV park so we can use the electricity for heat tonight. That perpetual Oklahoma wind is going to be cold again tonight.

Gage's artesian lake.

Water tower in town.

Looking down main street in Gage.

Tribute to Tom Peer (Mitch's cousin).

Grain elevator just outside of town.

Private grain elevator.

Grandpa Mitchell's "retirement home" in town.

Tom and Gloria Peer's house (Mitch's cousin and wife)

George and Agnes Peer's house (Mitch's uncle and aunt).

The home place (Mitchell Farm)

Windmill on the home place (Mitchell Farm).

Our little house on the prarie.

Where the Mitchell house once stood.

What remains of the outhouse.

Poudre in what was once the milk house.

Peg and Poudre at the milk house

Shattuck Windmill Museum and Park.

Various restored windmills.

Bricks to honor those who farmed here (Kenneth Mitchell and family).

Sculpture of horned toad.