Cup Tree and Shoe Fence

 The Great American Campground and Dive Bar is our base camp.  We visited Whiskey Dicks the first night.  The second night, we went into the tourist area.  Today, we are riding to Big Dicks.  Once we arrived, we saw the bar is next to the water.  Very few land parking spots.  There were more spots for boat traffic off the water.  Neat area.  Unfortunately for us, Big Dicks was closed this day.  That is okay.  We already had some intel about a Cup Tree and a Shoe Fence.  Off we go looking for the Cup Tree.    

We heard a couple of stories about the origin of the Cup Tree.  Someone said there used to be a water spring nearby, and people were welcome to use a cup and get a drink of water.  I heard that two women were fighting over some cups and saucers.  One woman started throwing the dishes at the other.  After the fight was over, the woman who lived in the house began nailing the cups to the tree.  I heard she would often visit Big Dicks until her passing a few years before.  I heard the first cup was hung 30 years ago.  I am just reciting what I heard during the trip.

Not far from the Cup Tree is the Shoe Fence.  We found it.  The story I heard about the shoe fence was that if kids needed new shoes, they could get a pair from the fence.  I also heard that the shoes represent hunters that were poaching out of season.  The only thing that remains of the poachers were their shoes hung on the fence. 

The Cup Tree and the Shoe Fence are both unusual sites to experience.  I hope you enjoy the pictures. 

YouTube Shorts @Bill.Lanham

Cup Tree  https://youtube.com/shorts/ASv7L0lw_QQ?si=HyiTP2P_507XDJOJ

Shoe Fence https://youtube.com/shorts/5R-izsPPb5Y?si=GjkcvHvvRXPdM-1c

The Great American Campground and Dive Bar! Part 2 of 2

 

Part 2 of 2 Whiskey Dicks!

Brad and I checked into the Great American Campground.  We decided to walk to the closest bar.  The Dive Bar was closed that night.

Whiskey Dick’s is a neat little bar.  The locals mainly frequent the bar.  It felt like tourists were a rare sight, but everyone we encountered was friendly to us.  Oh, there was a self-serve ICE CREAM machine adjacent to the bar.  You can have your drink and treat yourself to an ice cream cone.  I wanted an ice cream cone but wasn’t sure how it would go with my beer!  I eyeballed that ice cream machine each time I visited the bar.  

  Four hours had quickly passed as Brad and I sat at Whiskey Dicks.  We were considering the walk down the dark country road to the campground.  Just then the door opened and our campground hosts walked through the door!   She came to check up on us to make sure we made it back to the campground safely.  She brought the owners with her!  We were soon introduced to Joel and Jill, the owners of The Great American Campground and Dive Bar.  We ended up sharing stories for a couple more hours.  Joel gave us a ride back to the campground in his truck. To our surprise, Dee, our camp host (campground manager), had built a fire outside the Dive Bar.  The five of us enjoyed the campfire for a few hours, exchanging stories and visions of the campground.  Brad and I were delighted at the hospitality we experienced. 

  The next morning, Brad and I did a map study of the area and recalled the directions Joel had given us for a scenic ride.  We fired up the motorcycles and were off exploring.  Upon our return, our camp host contacted us and offered to show us around the lake area.  So we ended up in this red jeep receiving a windshield tour of the area.  We stopped at a bar that had a waterfront.  Many establishments catered to boat traffic.  They have docks complete with fueling services for boaters.  We realized drinks and food were more than double the prices we were paying at the Great American Camp Ground and Dive Bar and Whiskey Dicks.  Brad and I decided the other establishments were neat to know about.  We’ll continue to look for the local experience.