Question:
Hi, People of T/net
I would like to ask, has anyone been to this part
of Oklahoma. While traveling last summer I was
in OK for the first time since the late 70-s.
I was with my wife and she just loved the place
and we want to return for a visit. Supposedly
the movie True Grit was filmed in the WSM's.
We would like any info on the area, such as camp grounds etc, also any comments of good or bad.
Thank You in advance
EsterJ
EsterJ

Answer:
I've never been there, but this is an article about 2 dead bodies that were found there recently.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Man arrested in slayings
2003-07-19
By Sheila Stogsdill
The Oklahoman
POTEAU - A Wister man accused of shooting to death a Texas couple camped at the Ouachita National Forest was arrested Friday, authorities said.
Edward Leon Fields was arrested on two counts of murder and is being held at the LeFlore County jail on no bond, Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation spokeswoman Jessica Brown said.
Charles Glen Chick, 47, and his wife, Shirley, 50, were apparently camping at the campground in the Winding Stair Mountains in the Ouachita National Forest south of Poteau. A hiker found them July 11.
Both victims were shot multiple times in the head with a small-caliber gun, authorities said, and dental records were needed to identify them.
No evidence suggested the bodies were moved, Brown said. The Chicks' camping gear was not packed when they were found, and their van was still at the campsite.
The Winding Stair campground is heavily forested and used primarily for tent camping. Brown said an acquaintance of Fields saw the media reports of the murder and called authorities.
Fields, who Brown said is in his late 30s, was living out of his pickup. He was arrested without incident around 4 p.m. at his job site in Poteau, Brown said.
Federal charges will be filed because the killing was on federal land, Brown said. Fields is expected to be transported by U.S. Marshals to a federal facility on Monday where charges will be filed.
A weapon was found in Fields' truck. Brown said authorities are running ballistic tests on the weapon.
Brown declined to identify the weapon or give a motive for the shooting but said Fields did not know the victims.
"They were just at the wrong place at the wrong time," Brown said.
The Winding Stair Mountain National Recreation Area includes 26,445 acres along the Talimena Drive, part of the overall 1.5 million acres of the Ouachita National Forest in southeastern Oklahoma and western Arkansas.
Archives: More information on this topic from The Oklahoman.
Subscribe to The Oklahoman.