Our local travel club, “The Modern Wagoneers,” visited the Checotah KOA for our April campout. Checotah, a little-known Lake Eufaula community until 2005, is the home of “American Idol” winner, Carrie Underwood.
Carrie and Kellie Pickler are my two favorite American Idol celebrities, and I expected to find Carrie cruising the local Sonic or crooning to a crowd on Main Street. Such was not the case, however; and as a group of retired RVers must often do, we made for our own entertainment.
Our arrival at the Checotah KOA was met with clear skies and mild temperatures. But that didn’t last long as an unseasonal late April cold front moved in bringing cloudy skies and cold temperatures.
Several couples arrived early on Wednesday, so Susan offered to cook up a spaghetti dinner for lunch. Our Heartland 5th wheel has four slides that expand the overall width to about 12-feet, which provides abundant room for entertaining a small group. 
We opted to drive into Eufaula for dinner at “JM’s Restaurant.” They serve good home-cooked meals and it’s one of our favorites in the area.
The main event for the weekend turned out to be great food, fellowship, and a shopping outing for the women. We attempted to tour “The Katy Depot,” but it was closed for renovation.
The Katy Depot and the town of Checotah share common early beginnings. In 1882 and in honor of the Chief of the Creek Nation, Samuel Checote, the M-K-T Railroad called the local railhead “Checote Switch.” Chief Checote, who also served with distinction as a lieutenant colonel in the Civil War, was born in Alabama in 1819 and died 1882. He was educated in Methodist missionary academies and licensed to preach in 1852. According to the Checotah Landmark Preservation Society, a mapmaker’s error changed the spelling of the town’s name to “Checotah.”
Jonathan Bonanno and Bob Samples prepare ten racks of ribs for smoking . . . .
The smoked rib and pot-lock dinner was followed by lively games including 9-Hole Golf, Chicken Foot, and Bunco!
A “pioneer woman” with her two dogs was camped behind us for the night . . . .
And, they were large dogs! Must have been a very tight fit.
Below, our new LED lights lit up the campground . . . .
We’ll be staying local next trip as we camp and tour Oklahoma City sites with “Southern Oklahoma Sams” (SOS)!
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