November 26, 2019
The Bison Trail is one of several within the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge, not far from Lawton, Oklahoma.
When Bison numbers in North America were at their lowest level (being very near eventual extinction), this location in Oklahoma was one of the places that the repopulation began. A herd remains to this day.
Oklahoma
Perhaps "mountain" isn't the right word, but when you see these enormous piles of granite rock rising out of the flat prairies of Oklahoma, that's the only word that comes to mind.
I'll be walking the Bison Trail, which is a loop of about six miles.
November isn't the best time to see green things, but it is cool, and the trails are easier to walk when they're not covered with growth.
Perhaps a few weeks earlier, these dropped leaves would have been quite colorful. The trail is pretty easy to follow, and where it might not otherwise be, there are markers.
One liter of water attached to my belt is plenty for a walk this short.
The trail doesn't have much elevation change, but I suppose you could scramble to the top of one of these rocky hills if that's what you wanted.
This area is called the "forty foot hole."
This dam was built in the 1920s. I suppose as long as nobody thinks to build anything below it, there won't be a problem when it eventually lets go.
The trail runs beyond those trees, but not as far as the rocky hills.
Mostly, the Wichita Mountains are pink granite, but not entirely.
A last look at a small part of the Wichita Mountains.
People don't think of Oklahoma as having geology like this; I've been here several times and have never seen more than just a few people.