Photo Log 2: Biking East OK County

Today’s journey takes us to Harrah (pronounced hair’-uh), but also the spot in Choctaw where the river has already eaten a house and is now threatening a major thoroughfare. The original story of the house, with pictures, is here from 2013. It’s a poignant story of the Buford folks who lost their old family farmhouse. During the immediate aftermath, their poor dog Bo was stuck out there alone for a while. On one of my rides, I passed by and out of sheer boredom and loneliness he chased me, sneaking out from behind the trash carts. I stopped and we talked for awhile, which left him in a brighter mood. I’ve included here a satellite view after the structures were removed, but prior to more cent flooding. And here you can find a recent aerial shot of the same site now completely gone as the river cuts near the road.

(Side note: The southern border of Oklahoma County is SE 89th, just a few miles south of here. Draper Lake is mostly south of that line, resting in Cleveland County. The northern border of OK County is more like 20 miles north, so I’m not likely to ride there without more careful planning. I’m hoping I can get some shots of a ride to Luther up on old Hwy 66 later this summer. The eastern edge of the county is just about eight miles east of here and I also have a trip planned to Watkins Reservoir out south of McLoud in Pottawatomie County.)

The route from my house runs east on SE 29th, but I usually diverge onto SE 29th Place to avoid the high traffic on the main SE 29th itself. SE 29th Place follows the old railroad bed that used to run out to Shawnee, but was dismantled when I was a teenager. We finally get to Indian Meridian (historical reference), one of the quietest and flattest routes running north. I stayed with this all the way to NE 36th, then turned right to Triple-X. That’s where the local government placed the barrier to block traffic from the danger area. They really do not want you going that way. Since the bank is now just a few feet from the edge of the road, you can’t blame them.

The scene from the bridge on Triple-X shows where huge cottonwoods fell into the river and were carried downstream to sandbars. Notice the power pole on the right almost undercut.
There aren’t that many bridges across the North Canadian River in these parts, so cutting off the use of this one is significant inconvenience for the locals. The next nearest route is at least two-miles in any direction. From the Triple-X bridge just a short way north we turn right onto NE 50th. This takes us over the end of a ridge line that juts out into the North Canadian Valley.

The valley is mostly flat and used for agriculture. There are some roads crossing it, as noted, but very few in the valley itself. However, evil lurks even here. Don’t get me wrong; I suffer no hypocrisy about using electricity. The Horseshoe Lake Plant is natural gas fired, very clean and efficient. But Oklahoma Gas and Electric (OG&E) is one of the largest monopoly utilities in the state. They are always trying to deny consumers direct access to natural gas, because they don’t want to compete for it. In this part of the country, natural gas is by far the cheapest and most reliable source of heat. I can’t begin to outline what sort of nasty criminal gang runs OG&E. They aren’t the richest, but they are easily one of the slimiest outfits in Oklahoma. Do I have to mention unspeakable cruelty to rate-payers? The state utilities commission wouldn’t dare push them very hard.

We turn south off NE 50th onto Harrah Road. There’s a really fine road running to and around Horseshoe Lake, but it’s restricted access. Still, the gated entrance at NE 36th and Harrah Road offers a great picnic stop with gigantic sycamore and cottonwood trees. I’ve seen river bottom cottonwoods as much as 20′ (6m) in diameter and solid through the middle.

The North Canadian wanders all over this end of the county. Where Harrah Road merges briefly with US Hwy 62 it crosses the river again. Locals have been thrilled as the last couple of years the heavy rains have cause the river to shift around and exposes vast sandbars for off-road sports.

The primary reason the town of Harrah exists is because of the granary and the railroad running alongside the North Canadian River. The town is out on the far eastern edge of the exploding mini-mansion developments. They have a decent but bug-infested park with a fitness path of sorts, and even a bike path running between the high school and one of the grade schools. Where US Hwy 62 turns west, I usually head left into the Baptist church parking lot, then work my way over a block west and two blocks south to the high school sports field. The bike path runs a snaking route south from there through the woods and alongside a graveyard before it hits NE 10th.

On the path I ran into a couple of mulberry trees. They are about the middle of their fruiting season right now. Most Okies no longer know about them, too suspicious to eat them, so it’s not hard to get a sample. They are mostly sweet with a very subtle flavor. Just a few and you really can’t taste much more than the sweetness. Turn right on NE 10th and we immediately pass the grade school. At Dobbs Road I usually turn south. Right there on the west side of the road is a huge patch of mostly late-crop blackberries. However, there are plenty of early-crop, as well. Here we see both kinds growing together — the one in fruit with the other still blooming. You’ll find both kinds all along Dobbs Road for at least the next two miles south.

There I typically turn right on SE 15th. Yes, we are back into the hilly terrain. This picture looks west from Nixon Avenue (halfway between Luther and Peebly Roads).

From there I run back to Indian Meridian to go home.