Wichita Mountain Picnic Ride

October 1, 2017
Sunday
Texas

Wow! It was cool enough for a picnic ride so we rolled out north this morning. Oklahoma was the destination. We planned to ride Mount Scott and wander around the Wildlife Refuge and just generally goof off a day.

We made this ride earlier in the year with Dad but did not travel up Mount Scott on that ride (it was early, breakfast was waiting at Ann's and the gates were not open yet). This area was a favorite Sunday drive for the Folks when I was a child. They hung out in the mountains as teens and newlyweds. Nearby Medicine Park was a bustling little city with a huge lodge where family reunions were held. There was an amusement park and skating rink among other things. There are many side attractions  to visit in the wildlife refuge like the Holy City which is the site of an Easter service each year. We will explore all that another day.

Mount Scott is a prominent mountain just to the northwest of Lawton, Oklahoma rising to a height of 2,464 feet. It is located in the Wichita Mountains near Fort Sill Military Reservation and lies in the Wichita Mountains National Wildlife Refuge. The road to the top is three miles and it is paved and well-maintained. The peak was named in honor of General Winfield Scott (1786-1866). Old 'fuss and feathers" is ranked as one of the best commanders of his time. In the 1830s, Scott was placed in charge of removing Cherokees to the Indian Territory (Oklahoma) among other duties.

We rode by Meers and Anns (both excellent places [actually, little dives] to eat) but we found a picnic spot at the base of the mountain and munched on grocery store deli sandwiches, chips and snacks before rolling west out of the refuge for a quick visit with friends Nancy and Don who live in Mountain Park OK.

We rolled in late in the day, happy to have logged a couple hundred miles on a great Sunday afternoon. Word is our friends Ann and Larry from Bowie were riding the Wichita Mountains today but we missed them all the way around. Too bad but we'll hook up soon and do it again together.

We agreed riding Mount Scott was fun. We also agreed if we rode up and down it about twenty times it would be almost like a foothills ride in Colorado. Ha!

Today's Wichita Mountain Ride = 248.9 s'miles

Slide show of today's ride with music. Enjoy!