Traveling Square Dancers: Potato Creek State Park

Who We Are

We sold our home in June, 2007, and spent the next 7 1/2 years traveling full time in a Cross Roads Fifth Wheel. (We had been traveling during our summers for several years before going full time.) We loved the full-time lifestyle! Each summer we spent a month or two volunteering in State Parks, first in Indiana at McCormick's Creek State Park, near our family, then in later years as the grandchildren got older, at the Bluewater Lake State Park in New Mexico. We spent 6 months each winter at Cactus Gardens RV Resort in Yuma, AZ, where I worked mornings in the park office. The remaining months were spent on the road, seeing this great country of ours. Our favorite places are our National Parks. Anita loved photography and the freedom of digital photography, taking sometimes hundreds of photos in a day. We hiked as much as our legs will allow. We also really enjoyed square and round dancing as we travel across country, and meeting all the wonderful people who dance and/or travel.

But as in all things, there comes a time for change, and we decided it was time to create roots once more. In the fall of 2014, we purchased a home in Cactus Gardens, and in the spring of 2015, sold the 5th wheel. Anita also retired in the spring. We will continue to travel each summer, but for a shorter period of time. We hope to continue blogging about those trips, but it will obviously be on a more limited basis than in the past.

Please explore our past posts if you are interested in traveling this great country. You'll find an index in the left column. We hope you enjoy our blog, and appreciate all comments

Saturday, July 23, 2011

Potato Creek State Park

During a recent visit with son, Tom, we spent some time in nearby Potato Creek State Park. An unusual name for a state park, isn’t it? Native Americans once collected plants with potato-type roots on this area’s creek banks. The early settler’s English translation for the native name for the plant was “wild potato”, leading to the name Potato Creek.

Later, a man made reservoir was built on the creek, due primarily to the dreams of a man name Worster. Darcy Worster kept the dream of a park alive in the minds of state officials by sending them his hand-crafted insects periodically to “bug” them about creating a park. Finally, in 1969, they agreed, and the 6 square miles finally officially became an Indiana state park in 1977.