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The wife and I are planing a ride to eastern Oklahoma from central Louisiana. We have 4 days to spend there. Any suggestions on some nice mountain roads to ride as we have never been to Oklahoma thanks!
As mentioned, Talimena Drive from Talihina, OK to Mena, AR is a great ride. Start off with breakfast at the Hateful Hussy Diner in Talihina then ride the scenic drive to Mena for lunch at Chopping Block Steakhouse. We usually return to Talihina on US59 to make it a loop. It's a nice relaxing ride with lots of scenic overlooks, a couple of state parks, and the Kerr Nature Center with some hiking trails.
OK10 between Tahlequah, OK and Kansas, OK is a nice scenic ride along the Illinois River. It's not necessarily mountainous but it has a nice combination of great scenery, fun curves, and open farmland. Kansas, OK is home to the Harvest House restaurant for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
From Kansas, OK you can take ALT US412 (old 412) west toward Tulsa until it joins back up to US412. Old 412 is a nice curvy & hilly ride but once you're back on US412 it's 4-lane highway back to Tulsa.
Adam Sanoval's K-River Campground is in Moyers, OK. We haven't been there yet but it's on our list to visit.
Just over the state line into Arkansas opens up a whole load of great rides in northwest and western Arkansas.
As mentioned, Talimena Drive from Talihina, OK to Mena, AR is a great ride. Start off with breakfast at the Hateful Hussy Diner in Talihina then ride the scenic drive to Mena for lunch at Chopping Block Steakhouse. We usually return to Talihina on US59 to make it a loop. It's a nice relaxing ride with lots of scenic overlooks, a couple of state parks, and the Kerr Nature Center with some hiking trails.
OK10 between Tahlequah, OK and Kansas, OK is a nice scenic ride along the Illinois River. It's not necessarily mountainous but it has a nice combination of great scenery, fun curves, and open farmland. Kansas, OK is home to the Harvest House restaurant for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
From Kansas, OK you can take ALT US412 (old 412) west toward Tulsa until it joins back up to US412. Old 412 is a nice curvy & hilly ride but once you're back on US412 it's 4-lane highway back to Tulsa.
Adam Sanoval's K-River Campground is in Moyers, OK. We haven't been there yet but it's on our list to visit.
Just over the state line into Arkansas opens up a whole load of great rides in northwest and western Arkansas.
I'm hoping to ride this area someday. I did a few days with Adam's Great American Convoy and would like to visit one of his campgrounds.
Chuck's Classic Cycles has a cool collection of motorcycles if it's open when you are there, you can Google it and find out. Have some Easy Rider show winning bikes and several that Vietnam Veterans left and didn't make it back to ride again. K-River campground is close and they can tell you good roads and places to go in the area.
Great news, I’ll be riding to eufaula this summer to visit family, then on to Mount Vernon to visit my best friend and I hate St Louis, so this southern route will be new to me. Thanks.
I do not know the area that you want to ride in Oklahoma or your time frame, but there will be a total solar eclipse that you might want to see on April 8, 2024. The area is in southeast Oklahoma. Broken Bow is one town that will experience the total eclipse.
I have also included a picture of the total solar eclipse that we were fortunate to experience in Alliance, Nebraska in 2017. Picture was taken at high noon.
Talimena area is cool for a day... then go north. We meet up in Poteau, Ok usually in the fall to go across the "mountain" into Mena, Ar then back around to Poteau, but the slow people in cars suck on the mountain because it's the leaves changing color in the fall that brings them out. There are hills here, some might qualify as mountains, by definition, but they are really big hills I ride in NE Oklahoma about every weekend and over into NW Arkansas, and there's tons of nice scenic riding. As said before HWY 10 along the river is nice. Also going east out of Salina, Ok on Kenwood Road (if memory serves me, there's only one stop light in Salina, go east) about 30 miles to HWY 10, then go left to Jay, Ok then down to Spavinaw, Ok and back to Salina its all nice, then go over to Locust Grove, Ok then up to Kansas, Ok and pick up 10 again and the run river road to Tahlequah, Ok.... and there's a ton more like this. Be good if you knew some locals riders while you were here, because they all have a half dozen, or more, 3-4 hour rides they have found from Greenleaf Lake to Tenkiller Lake to Grand Lake to Eucha Lake to Oologah Lake all with pretty decent roads. Seems like most of mine are loosely related to the roads linking the lakes together up in this corner of the state... then there's Arkansas an hour away.
Eastern Oklahoma
I ride in NE Oklahoma about every weekend and over into NW Arkansas, and there's tons of nice scenic riding. As said before HWY 10 along the river is nice. Also going east out of Salina, Ok on Kenwood Road (if memory serves me, there's only one stop light in Salina, go east) about 30 miles to HWY 10, then go left to Jay, Ok then down to Spavinaw, Ok and back to Salina its all nice, then go over to Locust Grove, Ok then up to Kansas, Ok and pick up 10 again and the run river road to Tahlequah, Ok.... and there's a ton more like this. Be good if you knew some locals riders while you were here, because they all have a half dozen, or more, 3-4 hour rides they have found from Greenleaf Lake to Tenkiller Lake to Grand Lake to Eucha Lake to Oologah Lake all with pretty decent roads. Seems like most of mine are loosely related to the roads linking the lakes together up in this corner of the state... then there's Arkansas an hour away.