Some Parts Of Oklahoma Don’t Look Like Oklahoma At All

I've always thought Oklahoma gets a bad rap when it comes to scenery.

We have a reputation for flat land, wheat fields, red dirt, and a whole lot of prairie. The Great Plains and all of that, which is fair enough in the tiny little northwest corner of the state where the Great Plains end... But every now and then you can take a drive somewhere in this state and start wondering if you accidentally crossed a state line.

Granted, when people who aren't from here ask me to describe Oklahoma, I usually tell them about Tallgrass Prairie just north of Pawhuska. It's untamed prairie that's never been touched by a tractor or crops. Unchanged for thousands of years, and still roaming with thousands of buffalo. Even for the long-time Oklahoman, it's a wild place to experience.

Chickasaw National Recreation Area Looks Like Somewhere Else

Get into the camping and visitor area around Sulphur, you've got these huge trees, rocky little hills, and clear blue water flowing through the woods. There are places along Travertine Creek where it looks less like Oklahoma and more like somebody took a piece of Yellowstone and dropped it in southern Oklahoma.

The Kiamichi Mountains take on a different look too.

I've heard people compare that part of the state to the Smoky Mountains and, at least once, the Pacific Northwest. I think it all depends on what the weather is like when you go, but the trees are thick and green, you can see the Smokies when the clouds are hanging really low.

As you get out west, it's a total change of scenery.

The Gloss Mountains don't look anything like the picturesque idea of Oklahoma. Those mesas and wide-open spaces could make you think you somehow ended up in New Mexico. It gets even crazier as you wander down into SWOK in places like the Sandy Sanders Wildlife Management Area. Nobody would guess this is in Oklahoma.

Papa N.Craig Kelso

Black Mesa up in the panhandle is another prime example. It's our high spot across the state, up on the Caprock, and just about as not-Oklahoma as it gets. Looks more like Colorado than anything else in the state. Since the border is shared up in that area, it's a fair comparison.

The Wichita Mountains Change The Picture Again

Just outside of Lawton, the Wichita Mountains are another great example.

As you roll down the highway, the gentle rolling hills seemingly grow these pale gray monoliths on the horizon. The closer you get, the taller they look as they come into view. Driving through the refuge, especially for the first time, is awesome. And the more you explore, the better it gets.

While I've never been, people talk a lot about Natural Falls up in northeastern Oklahoma. The pictures of that massive waterfall in a heavily wooded valley are pretty stellar. Same goes for the Talimena Scenic Byway. I think it looks a lot like Central Arkansas, but people argue. The colors during fall are amazing, especially if you're from Western Oklahoma, where there are less trees, and of those, they typically just turn brown this time of year.

It's not just the natural side of Oklahoma either. There are a handful of city blocks in Downtown OKC that look like every other massive city out there. Manhattan, Chicago, etc. I'm sure Tulsa probably has a downtown similar too.

It all adds up to Oklahoma being this wonderfully underestimated state. People think flat, empty prairies and tornadoes, but there's so much more. We're among the most ecologically diverse places in the entire world.

It's just so weird that you can start your day on the flat prairies of the Great Plains, wander through the sagebrush, skip through the mountains, and end up in the alligator bayous in the southeast corner of the state.

Oklahoma doesn't always look like Oklahoma, you just have to get off the highway long enough to notice.