Ruff Road Review
Black Mesa State Park is located in the northwestern panhandle of Oklahoma. We stayed a week here and enjoyed the peacefulness of this location. Also, Gary enjoyed some really good fishing along the creek that feeds Lake Carl Etling. There are a couple of little trails here with one that provides a birds eye view of the park and the lake.
Watch out for…
Beware of the prickly things, the varying cacti and plants that are in the area. This was our first encounter with prickly plants while walking our dogs so we were a little stressed they were going to end up with a nose full of needles. We managed to avoid that but we did have to remove prickly burrs from their paws on several occasions. Still, there are plenty of roads and trails to walk your dogs. Just watch their feet.
Wildlife
Additionally, this park is teeming with wildlife. Deer, turkeys, rabbits, and a variety of birds entertained our dogs starting very early in the morning with turkeys strutting right in front of Ruff Road. We even saw antelope on the road to the park! Of course, Gary would say the fishing was the best wildlife in the park. Make sure you know the fishing “rules” in Oklahoma. This is one state that he did spring for a fishing license.
Thinks to do: Here and Nearby
If you are the adventurous type, you can visit nearby Black Mesa Nature Preserve and hike to the top of the mesa. However, it isn’t that close at 15 miles away. We didn’t get to check it out in this visit. Maybe next time. However, I did kayak the small lake here and rode my bike on the sparsely traveled roads. It’s a beautiful setting.
You will be in the middle of nowhere!
Important: Make sure you have fuel and food before arriving at this park. You won’t find any nearby.
Also, be prepared for limited or non-existent phone service. We have Verizon and had no service. The ranger station does have wifi you can connect to and if you are lucky it will reach your site. It was hit or miss at our site, mostly miss. If we needed to text or check the weather, we would just go to the ranger station. It’s an easy walk from all of the sites.
Did we love it?
Overall, this campground is one of our favorites so far on our westward trek to Oregon. We kayaked, fished, hiked, and enjoyed watching sunrises, sunsets, night skies, and wildlife here. The campground fills up on the weekends so plan accordingly. Make a reservation ahead of time. Make your reservations at www.travelok.com.
However, during the week we had the campground to ourselves. We visited the park in April.
Online Resources
Check out our Ruff Road Review of Black Mesa State Park on You Tube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1E9kPiDx4qo&feature=youtu.be
You can view all of our campground and outings on our You Tube channel, Ruff Road RV Life. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHRpIFHJItKn3X_7DKY77Mw?view_as=subscriber
Who are we? Check out our About Us page on this website: https://ruffroadrvlife.com/about-us/
“We like looking at freedom!” See you on the road…