Oklahoma

A collection of 25 posts

Travel Guide

10 US Riding Destinations with Bizarre Names

Some riding destinations in North America have evocative, awe-inspiring names, like the Blue Ridge Parkway or the Sea to Sky Highway. The names for some other places are… Less so. Many locations in the U.S. have decidedly mind-boggling names. But that makes them worth taking your bike to—if

Destinations

Visit Oklahoma's First State Capital—Guthrie

On the morning of April 22, 1889, Guthrie, OK, was still just a dusty prairie stop known as Deer Creek on the AT&SF Railroad in the Unassigned Lands of Indian Territory. By the same evening, it had become a tent city with approximately 10,000 residents. The new residents

News

How to Find the Aliens Among Us on Two Wheels

Sometimes you want a grander objective for a motorcycle tour than simply enjoying the open road and curves. If you’re after a truly otherworldly experience, why not hit the asphalt to look for proof of alien life? After all, the Congress recently got the most compelling testimony to date

Travel Guide

10 Towns for Viewing the 2024 Solar Eclipse

A rare marvel of nature is approaching in 2024. The sun will disappear behind the moon in a total solar eclipse on April 8. You surely don’t want to miss seeing this performance of cosmic ballet—after all, the next total solar eclipse in the U.S. won’t

May/Jun '23

Classic Roads: Talimena National Scenic Byway

The Talimena National Scenic Byway is a 50-odd-mile route connecting Mena, AR, and Talihina, OK. It twists and turns along Rich Mountain in Arkansas, climbing from 1,100 feet in Mena to almost 2,700 feet at the summit before plunging into Oklahoma through the Winding Stair Mountains. There is

Roundtrip Tour Premium Content

Following The Cherokee Trail of Tears

Missionary Daniel Butrick kept a journal of his travels with the Cherokee People as they were force marched to Indian Territory during the winter of 1838-39. It is one of the saddest episodes in American history, with the depths of despair grippingly described by him in this entry: “… the government

Mar/Apr '21 Premium Content

The Green Country Oklahoma Adventure Tour (GOAT)

Ahead, the old stagecoach road is rough and rocky. I jump off the motorcycle, camera in hand, to capture Bill as he begins the climb. Remounting, we both stand on the pegs to allow the bike to move beneath us. With no handlebar to grasp, it’s a position that

Sep/Oct '20

City Escape: Tahlequah, Oklahoma

The rugged landscape in northeastern Oklahoma offers tree-canopied lanes of twisty asphalt alongside clear mountain streams—perfect for flowing rides sprinkled with diverse restaurants and historical sites dating to the days of Indian Territory. Moderate temperatures and bright foliage make fall the best time to ride this loop, but the

Jul/Aug '20 Premium Content

Oklahoma: The “Reel” Wild West

“Let’s go take a look,” said Bill, a familiar gleam in his eye. I sighed, knowing nothing would deter him. As we made the turn for Hwy 80, which snakes along the eastern edge of Fort Gibson Lake deep in the Cherokee Nation, a road sign announced, “High water,

Jan/Feb '20

City Escape: Tulsa, Oklahoma

> Historic US Route 66, an ancient old-growth forest, a world-class museum, and some quirky attractions give this day loop an eclectic appeal. Ride west across Keystone Lake and south on a twisty backroad along the Cimarron River, intersecting Route 66 in Warwick and then enjoying small-town appeal and sights of

May/Jun '17 Premium Content

Missouri, Arkansas, and Oklahoma: Riding the Cherokee Trail of Tears Part III

We pick up the Cherokee removal journey in central Missouri: “We travelled about 12 miles to a settlement called Port Royal (believed to be Waynesville by researchers), on the banks of a beautiful stream, named Rubedoo. Here we had a delightful place, on the bank of the river, convenient to

Jul/Aug '16 Premium Content

Oklahoma and Texas: The Comanche Trail

A single dust plume trails behind us like an earthbound jet stream. Narrow leaving the rear tire, it eventually fills our mirrors as I glance back at Susan, riding pillion on our BMW R 1200 GS Adventure. We’ve covered hundreds of miles of dirt here in this vast emptiness,

Sep/Oct '15 Premium Content

The Oklahoma Adventure Trail: Mission Impossible

“We’re taking the bypass,” a wise James Pratt belts out from aboard his faded yellow Suzuki DR-Z400. “I’m out of gas and there is no way these guys will get those pigs through the woods in this muck.” The “woods” we are about to enter are a segment

Classic Roads Premium Content

Route 66 East: America’s Main Street

More than any other stretch of pavement, Route 66 imprinted the open road into the American psyche and helped shape the cultural fabric of the nation as the automobile came of age. The historic route can trace its origins back to 1857 when the Army Corps of Engineers began work

May/Jun '15 Premium Content

Trans-America Trail, Tennessee to Southern Colorado: Banjos, Tears, & Corn Nubbins

I have arrived in Tellico Plains, TN, and the official starting point of the Trans-America Trail (TAT). It took thousands of miles just to get here, but as I prepare to make my first turn onto the trail, I feel a weight and a reality of what I am about

May/Jun '15

City Escape: Oklahoma City

> This mixed terrain ride takes you by The Round Barn, through an old ghost town, and returns via Route 66, where a restored WPA-era armory and the Seaba Station Motorcycle Museum make history of your rowdy scramble down Oklahoma's backroads. Spring and fall are the best riding seasons in Oklahoma.

Jul/Aug '13 Premium Content

Arkansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma: Chasing Dragons

It’s a long ride from my home in Oklahoma to Deals Gap, the twisty, 11-mile section of Highway 129 bordering Tennessee and North Carolina also known as the “Tail of the Dragon.” But rumor has it that eastern Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Missouri are infested with elusive serpents just waiting

Sep/Oct '12 Premium Content

Reader Ride - Oklahoma: Ghost Hollow Road

Steam rises from the blacktop like smoke signals as we approach the bridge girders over Skeleton Creek. I slow the big BMW R 1200 GS and keep Susan’s bright yellow F 650 in my mirrors as we duck under a canopy of trees. Our early morning ride brings us

Mar/Apr '12 Premium Content

Arkansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma

Arkansas’s 19th-century western border bumped up against what was then Indian Territory. Although the Native American tribes enforced their own laws, the territory had become a haven for outlaws seeking refuge from American justice. The borderlands between Arkansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma have a colorful history and some of the

May/Jun '09 Premium Content

North Central Oklahoma

In Choctaw, Oklahoma means 'land of the red people'. The recorded history of the region began when Spanish explorer Coronado traveled through in 1541, searching for Eldorado, the "Lost City of Gold." The Indian Removal Act of 1830 forcibly, and cruelly, relocated many southern Native American tribes to Indian Territory.

Jul/Aug '08 Premium Content

Southwest Oklahoma

Karen and I can hardly wait to begin this tour on our Honda ST 1300. The land to cross is part of the vast Great Plains that stretch from North Dakota through Texas. And because we have lived on the east coast for years, many of the stops planned along

Nov/Dec '07 Premium Content

Along the Trans-America Trail

Year to year, under normal conditions, most riders don't contemplate getting very much riding in on the trails in Colorado and Utah after September. But for my Canadian friend Jeff Sherren and me that couldn't be helped, and it was already October by the time we started rolling toward the

Sep/Oct '07 Premium Content

Along the Trans-America Trail

When we landed this assignment, I couldn't have told you why taking a trip across America on the "worst" possible roads sounded so appealing. Maybe it's because off-road riding doesn't even exist back home, in densely populated Germany. Or perhaps it's because we've learned on other trips that we more

Jul/Aug '03 Premium Content

Eastern Oklahoma

There is an odd sensation creeping through me in eastern Oklahoma as we ride. It's not very subtle, either. The Kiamichi Mountains look different, like a space created specifically for man and his gods to commune. They appear old but alive, as if they murmur ancient secrets to the people

Roundtrip Tour Premium Content

Riding Along Route 66

You may know how it is. You're sitting through a long, cold winter evening beside the fireplace and dreaming about tours while the bike hibernates in the garage. Years ago I was in this situation. The fire crackled and Pink Floyd played in my headphones while I read an article