Great Plains Country, Oklahoma
In southwestern Oklahoma the golden shortgrass prairie extends for mile after undulating mile, mirroring the sky in its vastness. Less than a century and a half ago, the Southern Plains were the domain of the Kiowa and Comanche, who hunted buffalo on horses bridled with Spanish silver and traded with the Wichitas, farmers who lived in grass houses. To the Kiowa, the earth was sacred, and the Wichitas believed their ancestors lived on in the 650-million-year-old granite boulders of the Wichita Mountains. Travelers exploring the region today may encounter moments of similar reverence -- watching the sun set from atop Mount Scott in the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge, for instance, or watching an eagle soar in winter. A rowdier spirit lives endures in the area, too: Teddy Roosevelt created the wildlife refuge after he traveled to Oklahoma Territory to hunt wolves. Bison now graze on the 60,000-acre preserve, along with longhorn cattle, antelope and elk -- rugged mountain biking, hiking, camping and backpacking are permitted in some areas.
Explore Great Plains Country
Old Plantation Restaurant
Medicine Park, unique with its eccentric cobble buildings, was originally founded on July 4th, 1908 by Oklahoma Senator Elmer Thomas. Medicine Park was Oklahoma's first planned tourism resort located in the Wichita Mountains that drew state legislators, journalists and gangsters. Listed on the <
Medicine Park, OK Historic BuildingsCentennial Park on the Square
Visitors will enjoy relaxing by the fountain in Centennial Park on the Square adjacent to the picturesque Courthouse.
Cordell, OK RecreationApache Municipal Building
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Apache, OK Historic BuildingsPioneer Heritage Townsite Museum
The Tillman County Historical Museum was founded to preserve artifacts and
Frederick, OK MuseumsWichita Mountains NWR - Camping
The Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge offers a variety of camping opportunities.
- Doris Campground is a modern camping facility with individual and group sites.
- Fawn Creek Campground Lawton, OK Camping
Altus Air Force Base
Altus Army Air Field began training pilots to fly twin-engine aircraft in 1943. At the end of World War II, the Army stopped using the field and it was closed in 1945. The Air Force activated Altus Air Force Base in 1953. A Tactical Air Command troop carrier wing operated from Altus for 10
Altus, OK Military BasesLake Frederick
Frederick offers plenty of opportunities to enjoy nature and the great outdoors. Lake Frederick, only a few miles away, offers sites for motor homes, RVs, and tents. Visitors won'
Frederick, OK RecreationIndian City, U.S.A.
- CLOSED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE - The only authentic restoration of American dwellings and way of life in America, Indian City, U.S.A. is on the site of the massacre of the Tonkawa Indians by a band of Shawnees and other mercenaries during the Civil War.
Anadarko, OK Museums