Texas 2023:
Day 23 - Crater of Diamonds State Park

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Texas 2023: [Day 1 - Tulsa] [Day 2 - Lawton] [Day 3-4 - Lubbock] [Day 5 - El Paso] [Day 6-7 - Davis Mountains SP] [Day 8 - Big Bend NP] [Day 9 - Seminole Canyon SP] [Day 10 - Falcon SP] [Day 11-14 - South Padre Island] [Day 15-16 - Goose Island SP] [Day 17 - Houston] [Day 18 - Stephen F. Austin SP] [Day 19-20 - McKinney Falls SP] [Day 21 - Arlington] [Day 22 - Cooper Lake SP] [Day 23 - Crater of Diamonds SP] [Day 24 - Nashville] [Day 25 - Heading Home]


	Sunday, February 12, 2023: After getting in after dark the night before, we were surprised to see how close we were to the lake when we got up. We walked the very short distance over mostly dry ground, ...
	... to get a close up of the beautiful lake.
	We took our time getting ready, and left camp around 10:30 AM. These two deer were nice enough to see us out of the park, ...
	... where this turkey vulture was doing its best to welcome anyone who was arriving.
	We made our way south to the town of Sulphur Springs, where they had an adorable courthouse surrounded by what looked like brand new brick pavement around the courthouse square.
	Check out this mural on the side of one of the buildings in town.
	There were two mirrored-glass restrooms on the square. Here's the first one, ...
	... and both are visible in this shot, one on each side of the photo.
	Here's the second one. Can you see us in the reflection?
	The design on the banners hanging from their lamp posts looked a little like Norwegian rosemaling.
	We stopped at Chicken Express on our way out of town to get lunch. More fast food chains need to have fried okra as a side.
	Maersk! Maersk! Check out all of the Maersk! It's almost too much.
	As we drove through eastern Texas, there were long stretches where flooding was visible on the area next to the highway. The storms that went through this area while we were further south must have brought a lot of rain.
	We stopped in Texarkana to get Dr. Pepper shakes at a Whataburger on State Line Road. These banners were on the Arkansas side of the road.
	Shortly after getting back on the highway, we were officially welcomed to Arkansas.
	We were quickly leaving Whataburger territory, so this was likely going to be our last Dr. Pepper shake of the trip. Sad, but probably for the best.
	It was no surprise that we were on the Purple Heart Trail. We can't recall a major highway that we've been on that isn't on the trail.
	We left I-30 and headed north on Arkansas 355, which is part of the Trail of Tears Heritage Trail.
	Just after 2 PM, we arrived at Crater of Diamonds State Park, our destination for this day.
	This state park is famous for allowing visitors to dig for their own diamonds and keep whatever they find.
	We headed to the visitor center to check in for our campsite. Check out the diamond emblem on the ground in front of the rusted iron mining thingy.
	There was a series of informational displays about the Huddleston family that originally owned the land that eventually became the state park. It said only two of their six daughters made it to adulthood. Yikes.
	There was another display about one of the diamonds that had been found here in 1990.
	In 1997, the rough 3 carat diamond was sent to a jeweler in New York who produced this 1.09 carat round cut diamond, which was certified by the American Gem Society to be perfect. The owner named it in honor of her great-great-grandfather. In 1998, the State of Arkansas solicited private donations and purchased the Strawn-Wagner diamond, as it was now known, and placed it here on display.
	Behind the visitor center is the field where they allow paying customers to hunt for their own diamonds. They're hard to see, but there were at least a dozen people down there digging away.
	The entire campground looked brand new. When we got to our site, we set up the tent right on the driveway. There was a gorgeous tent pad down the hill a little ways, but we prefer the pavement if there is enough room.
	We were hearing interesting bird sounds, so Tom got out his phone and identified them with the Merlin Bird ID app.
	It was a gorgeous day, so we left off the rainfly. It's nice to have a tent with a sunroof.
	We were surprised to find out that we could stream the Super Bowl live, so we connected to the campground's wi-fi, got out our tiny portable Bluetooth speaker, and streamed the game. While we were watching the game, Debbie got out one of the LEGO sets that she'd bought in Dallas, ...
	... and built an adorable piñata. The belly hinges open for all of the Dots inside to fall out. How cute is that?!
	We made spicy sausage pasta for dinner, and then had hot chocolate after the halftime show.
	After confirming that there was no rain in the forecast, we decided to sleep with the rainfly off, something we hadn't been able to do much on this trip. It was great to fall asleep looking at the stars shining through the trees, and our space heater kept us plenty warm through the night. Day 24 >