Yearly Archives: 2011

This week I am back in the beautiful Enchanted Circle region of New Mexico which has been a source of inspiration for my writing and has played an important in the development of Footprints in the Dew.  Merry Christmas to you all!

Welcome back. Mine Shaft, Powder Keg and Bad Medicine, there’s only one place in the world where you’ll come in contact with these bad boy ski runs and that’s coming down from the top of the 10,350 foot mountain range called Red River.  The history of this old mining town starts with the gold rush but nowadays its tourists that bring in the gold and with plenty of snow this year the local merchants should be hitting the mother lode.

Here are a few facts about a town that has a year round population of 600 but plays host to thousands of visitors each year: There are 41 lodging establishments, 16 restaurants and 25 annual special events including “Mardi Gras in the Mountains”, “Rivers & Brews Blues Fest”, and the “Harder than Hell” mountain bike race. It is also the only ski area I know of where elk, deer and yes sometimes bear walk right down the main street.  When there is heavy snow this is often the only pass open through the mountains.  Another great thing about the town is once you get there you don’t need your car because the ski lift sits right in the center of town surrounded by shops and eateries. Red River is 168 miles from Albuquerque, 260 miles from Denver, 285 miles from Amarillo and 612 miles from Bartlesville.

Once again Loretta and I will be adding a touch of mystery to our trip when we spend time with a ghost who was recently spotted roaming the halls of the historic St. James Hotel in Cimarron, New Mexico. When I passed through here a few months ago some paranormal investigators had bugged the place from top to bottom, making me afraid to even take a shower. Apparently things have been getting weirder there as they have recorded some more distinct but ghostly images.

I’ll be here and at the Angel Fire Resort for Christmas and I’ll be sending in a report on the snow conditions, the number of visitors and the beauty of this area called the Enchanted Circle next week.  Since our first visit several years ago Angel Fire Resort has been steadily growing and improving both their trails and their ski season activities. They have added a new C-4 Black diamond trail and have opened a Nordic Center for cross country skiing and snowshoeing. Snowboarders will find more than a dozen freestyle features including reconfigured jumps and transitions. In addition I understand that they will have a torchlight parade and fireworks on both Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve which should be beautiful. They are also offering special lodging and skiing packages and will be serving gourmet Christmas and New Year’s dinners in the Elements Restaurant at the Lodge.

But first I’ll be stopping at a place that former Oklahoma Governor Frank Keating and his wife call “God’s Country.”  The beautiful forests and alpine meadows that are filled with wildlife made Keating declare that “the UUBar is more like a state than a ranch.”  The UUBar lies next to the Philmont Scout Ranch and also shares a border with one of Ted Turner’s ranches. All three ranches are managed with an eye to conservation of wildlife habitat and the wildlife corridors between the three ranches. Good stewardship of their resources and the goal of protecting these spectacular places for future generations are the guiding principles for these owners and land managers. Along the way I expect to see plenty of elk and pronghorn antelope along with many other creatures that call this area home.

The Enchanted Circle also includes Taos, New Mexico where Easy Rider was filmed and where actor Dennis Hopper who recently died is buried. Off the road a piece between Red River and Taos is San Luis where the mutilated cows have been showing up and I know it would be interesting to spend more time there if time allows. The Continental Divide is to the west, the Carson National Forest is north, the Turkey Mountains are east and so my friends for the next two weeks you are in the Sangre de Christo mountain range where the average snow fall is 188 inches.  Till then I’ll see ya down the road….

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The flow of a river is sometimes wide and slow moving and other times narrow and moving violently. This project is much like a river and so for now I hope you will enjoy a few Christmas stories from my weekly column.

        Down The Road with the Original Buffalo Dale

Welcome back. With the holidays officially here this week found me at a number of grazing areas, commonly known as Christmas parties.

First up on December 1^st was the Chamber of Commerce’s monthly members gathering which was held at the Johnstone Apartments which we locals know as the Hotel Phillips.  When the Hilton Garden Inn was completed last year, this elegant hotel was converted into a 55+ living complex and they are now renting out apartments.

During a tour of the building I saw some very nice (and affordable) multi-room apartments with full kitchens, computer hook-ups, good sized baths and everything else you might need for easy living. The newly re-opened Grille 66 also caught my eye and I discovered that it is open to the general public as well as to residents of the apartments. If the excellent chicken wings they served at the reception and the over the top friendly staff are typical of the restaurant I can’t wait to try it!

This was hard to beat but after the Business after Hours Dr. Everett Piper and his lovely wife Marci were hosting the annual Christmas party at Oklahoma Wesleyan University which also included a feast prepared by their outstanding food service company.  If you didn’t already know, the college also has a great cafeteria that is also open to the public. The food is wonderful and very affordable, and the cafeteria has a great setting right in the middle of the campus.

The party was held in the renovated La Quinta building which is now used for office space, meetings and special events. This building is the original H.V. Foster mansion and from the moment I set foot in the building I felt his spirit.  In the 1930s successful oil man Foster built his estate, which he called La Quinta, on 52 acres at a cost of $500,000. Edward B. Delk was the architect for the project and he became quite famous in his own right designing many other well known buildings including Country Club Plaza, Philbrook, Villa Philamonte and the Philtower.

After Foster’s death, his daughter Marie lived here and then an organization called the American Boy Academy rented the home. In 1941 the American Military Academy moved in and then in 1948 the facility was closed. In 1950 Central Christian College, an arm of the Church of Christ, took over the building but they soon moved.

Colorado Bible College from Colorado Springs took over in 1959, reopening La Quinta as Central Pilgrim College and a year later they merged with a college in California becoming Bartlesville Wesleyan College. Several years ago the college was renamed once more as Oklahoma Wesleyan University in recognition of its growing statewide and national reputation.

By now I think you all understand why I had to check out this beautiful historical building and the tour didn’t let me down. La Quinta has been restored from the basement (where I understand there used to be some big poker games) to the second floor bedrooms. The ornate carved woodwork,  period rugs and paintings along with original photos from a bygone era have been loving restored and contribute to a sense of authenticity so strong that I had to turn around twice to make sure old H.V. wasn’t standing there waving goodbye as I left. (source: Washington County A Centennial History.)

The Bartlesville library has a lot more information about La Quinta and the Foster family so if you’re interested, check ‘em out. As for me I wrapped this week’s festivities at the Members-only shin-dig at the Frank Phillips Home. As always the house is beautifully decorated, based on family photos taken when the Phillips still lived here. I get the same feeling here as at La Quinta when I walk up the stairs to the front door, half-expecting Frank and Jane to be there welcoming everyone inside. History is still alive here asmany of the members knew the famous oil man and his wife personally. We can not thank this group enough for their donation of not only time and money but the heart and soul they pour into maintaining the home so beautifully for visitors. The festive atmosphere, great food and drink and the camaraderie among the guests made me happy to support them. The home will be open through the holidays so don’t miss the chance to stop by and see the beautiful decorations.

And speaking of support: December is the official month for giving and yesterday I was incarcerated as part of the annual Muscular Dystrophy fundraiser. There are many worthy organizations in the community that need both time and money and there is no more generous place that I know of in America.

Till next week I’ll see ya down the road….

This week I do not have any tangible news about the Australian film crew except that they did come to town and are still interested in the project. I will be giving you updates as soon as I learn more. In the meantime I will continue to post my weekly articles. I am getting ready to do some more traveling so I hope you’ll stay tuned.

   Down The Road with the Original Buffalo Dale

Welcome back. Last week I mentioned the three day celebration held in Claremore to recognize what would have been Will Rogers’ 132^nd birthday. Will was born on November 4, 1879 and on November 5^th the birthday of another one of my idols rolled that I just couldn’t pass up writing about so this column is dedicated to him.

Leonard Franklin Slye was born on November 5, 1911 and would have turned 100 this year. Born and raised in Ohio, he worked alongside his dad as boy, doing farm work at first and then graduating to factory work and working as a shoemaker for the United States shoe factory in Cincinnati in 1920.

Looking for better work the family moved to California following the American dream but instead they ended up picking peaches for a nickel a load. The move did allow young Leonard to pursue his love of music and he joined his cousin Stanley Slye in his first musical group “The Slye Brothers.”  Leonard had learned to yodel in Ohio which was unusual in California and after The Slye Brothers band broke up in 1933; he brought that talent to several other western bands. The Rocky Mountaineers, International Cowboys, O-Bar-O Cowboys all led up to the formation of the Pioneer Trio in late 1933. When KFWB Radio host Harry Hall mistakenly called the group “The Sons of the Pioneers” history was made.

The group was instantly popular and in 1935 they records a song written by Bob Nolan entitled Tumbling Tumbleweeds for a Republic Pictures soundtrack. The film starred Gene Autry and before long the Sons of the Pioneers were on the fast track in Hollywood.  Leonard also began doing bit parts in Gene’s films and changed his name to Dick Weston. Then during production of Under Western Stars Autry suddenly dropped out and the directors were in a panic to find a new singing cowboy.

Leonard got the job and he gave himself a new stage name, taking the name of a man he admired who had just been killed in a plane crash in Alaska.  It would only be a few years until Republic Pictures and the rest of the world would know Leonard as the “King of the Cowboys.”

By now I think you all know I’m talking about Roy Rogers and yes he would have been 100 years old on November 5^th. When he met Dale Evans, his third and last wife, he was already quite famous. They married at the Flying L Ranch in Oklahoma in 1947 after Roy’s second wife Arline died giving birth to their son.

The Roy Rogers show on NBC starred both Roy and Dale and ran from 1951 to 1957. This is where Trigger “the smartest horse in the movies”. Bullet, Roy’s German shepherd, Buttermilk Dale’s horse and all the other characters came to be famous.

I’ve interviewed Roy’s son Dusty several times in Branson and he told me his dad spent close to thirty years working with Trigger every day. He also told me his dad had two other Triggers, one for stunts and one for traveling as the original Trigger aged.

When the Old Man, as Roy called his horse, died in 1965 at the age of 33, Dusty said his dad just couldn’t part with his friend so he had Trigger mounted. When Bullet and Buttermilk died they were mounted as well.

You may have read that Trigger and Bullet the Wonder Dog were recently sold to RFD-TV to be the centerpieces of the Happy Trails tour crisscrossing the country. In celebration of Roy’s 100^th birthday they will also appear on a float in the 2012 Tournament of Roses parade lead by 100 golden palominos and featuring Dusty and Dustin Rogers, singing Happy Trails. Roy was a parade rider for years and in 1977

He and Dale served as the Grand Marshals for the parade so this is a fitting honor for his birthday.

Roy made his last movie in 1976 but he continued to make guest appearances both in person and on the big screen until his death in 1998. Dale died three years later in 2001 and the pair are buried in Apple Valley side by side under a simple headstone.

Before closing this week I’d like to wish Will Roger’s grand niece Coke Myers who was born ninety- two years ago on November 12^th a big happy birthday too! Till next week I’ll see ya down the road…

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This week’s post highlights information from The Land Report’s annual listing of the top 100 Land Owners in the United States which I find fascinating and I hope it interests you as well.

 Down The Road with the Original Buffalo Dale

 Welcome back.  You may have heard that old expression about land that “they’re not making any more” and this week after a recent visit with Eric O’Keefe I found out about some people who have taken that saying to heart.

Eric is the founder and editor of “The Land Report”, a quarterly magazine that is read coast to coast.  Stories about land stewardship and nature make for good reading and the real estate ads for property around the country feature prices that will make you happy to be right where you are.  Once a year it also includes a listing of the top 100 land owners in the country.

The big news that Eric was telling me about will appear in this quarter’s issue which is that Ted Turner is no longer the largest land owner in America.  John Malone, a 70 year old Denver businessman and chairman of Liberty Media, topped Turner’s little over 2,000,000 acres with total holdings of 2,200,000 acres! Eric says that the two are good friends and that Ted not only inspired John to be a good steward of his land but has also encouraged many of the other owners on the top 100 list to be responsible land managers as well. As three Oklahomans are on this list, as well as several other names you might recognize, I thought I would mention some of the highlights.

Number 7 are the King Ranch heirs with 911,215 acres. Today in addition to ranching and other interests, they operate their School for Ranch Management and their graduates are in high demand.

Number 10 is Stan Kroenke with 740,000 acres. He is also the owner of NFL’s St. Louis Rams, the NBA’s Denver Nuggets, the NHL’s Colorado Rapids and many sports franchisees. Look for Stan to be moving up the list!

At number 17 and based in our area, is the Drummond family with 400,706 acres. 100 years ago brothers Cecil, Gentner and AA started something special when they founded a ranch that today is part of a family dynasty that includes multiple ranches in Oklahoma alone. Conservation is an important part of the family’s cattle and farming operations and they have also become known for their community service.

Former Reebok Chairman and CEO Paul Fireman is listed at number 37 with 247,000 acres which is Jimmy Stewart’s old ranch, the “Wine-Gamble” in Nevada.

David Murdock who is one of the principals in Dole Fruit Company, owns 98% of the Hawaiian island of Lanai as well as thousands of acres on Oahu and holdings in California earning him the number 40 spot with 238,138 acres.

The Hunt family, whose oil business was founded by H.L. Hunt in 1934, is listed at number 51 with 190,000 acres which brings me to another Oklahoman who calls Yukon home.

Last week Bob Funk was quoted in an interview with The Oklahoman as saying that his Express Employment Professionals offices are on track to bring in 2.1 billion dollars in revenue providing job placement services. That my friends is a lot of people put to work! His interest in sport franchisees in Oklahoma long with his philanthropic activities would keep a man half his age busy. As the owner of several ranches in Oklahoma and the famous UU Bar in New Mexico, number 55 with 175,000 acres is Robert A. Funk.

The Piedra Blanca Rancho where the famous Hearst castle is sited comes in at number 63 with 153,000 acres. The Hearst family has become known for their grass fed beef cattle that graze along the coastal prairie.

The Bass family is listed at number 65 with 150,000 acres that include the former Chapman Ranch north of Pawhuska.

Number 90 is the Robinson family with 103,000 acres encompassing the entire Hawaiian island of Niihau and holdings in Kauai.

Last at number 100 is another Oklahoman with 90,574 acres. Aubrey McClendon is the Chairman and CEO of Chesapeake Energy in Oklahoma and this is his first appearance on the list of America’s 100 largest land owners.

Three Oklahoma families among the 100 largest landowners in the whole country, how about that!

That wraps up the largest land owners report from me. Let me know if I left you out.

Till next week I’ll see ya down the road….

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P.S. After this article was published a member of the Drummond family contacted me, saying that The Land Report had made an error. Apparently all of the family’s holdings together come to about half of the 440,000 acres mentioned in the story.