Day THREE South | Are you brave enough to drink from the Bromide Spring?

 Sunset on the beach | Buckhorn Camp Area

Today we woke up from our first night along the river, in the Platt Historic District (sunset picture).  Many of us had a hard time getting moving after sleeping in tents on gravel. To start the day off, Gary handed out our new plants list, previous test, and gave a few announcements.  From here we all piled up in the vans and took off for Bromide Pavilion.    

12th Street Fountain 

                             

Once we arrived, we were informed we were going on a plant walk to learn the vegetation of the cross timbers. I, Kyle B, found the soap berry tree interesting because of the story Gary told about it from a past savanna trip in which he was fooled by some students who spit into a fountain and threw some soap berries into it to make it look like they were foaming up. Andrew also enjoyed the soap berry trees, but found the red mulberry tree appealing because the leaves look like mittens due to how the lobes form.   After the plant walk we were rewarded with an extended lunch break at the Bromide Shelter.  Many of the students started to explore, worked on a drawing, or napped.

 Prickly Pear Cactus (Opuntia species)

      After lunch we stayed in the vicinity of the Bromide Shelter and worked on a plan view and section cut composition.  While we were measuring the shelter area, Andrew noticed that corners of the shelter and platform it was set on flared out and reminded him of natural rock formations.  The different color of the stone used to create the shelter and platform intrigued me, Kyle, because it switched from a yellowish-brown to a brownish-gray. If I was told the colors, I would assume they wouldn’t have worked so well together, but after seeing it in person the contrast really worked.  Both Andrew and I are in agreement with each other that the Civilian Conservation Corps did a great job building the shelter.  There was a spring near the Bromide Shelter that was sulphuric, and they tapped into it and the locals would come to get the water.  Native Americans believed the water had medicinal qualities to it, so the locals would be given prescriptions to drink it.  

Kyle's plants drawings from the plant walk

Kyle B and Andrew