Roman Nose State Park
One Of Oklahoma'S Seven Original State Parks; Cheyenne Winter Camp Of Henry Roman Nose · Watonga, Oklahoma
One of Oklahoma's seven original state parks, opened in the 1930s in a gypsum canyon north of Watonga that was the winter camp of the Cheyenne chief Henry Roman Nose. Spring water runs year-round from the canyon walls, which is why the Cheyenne wintered here and why the Civilian Conservation Corps built around the springs: a swimming pool fed by spring water, stone bridges and trails that climb to the canyon rim above Lake Boecher and Lake Watonga. The park has a 22-room lodge, cabins, teepee rentals, campgrounds, an 18-hole canyon-rim golf course, horse stables and trails through juniper and gypsum outcrops. A sinkhole and leak in the Boecher Lake dam is draining the lake: water activities on Boecher Lake and Lake Watonga are suspended until further notice, the dam and the Two Lakes Campground trailhead are closed, and the south-west trail section along Boecher Lake is shut, so trails are reachable only from the lodge. Watonga's Cheese Festival in October and the park's own events fill the canyon in autumn, and the mesa tops give long views over the Canadian River country.
3236 State Highway 8A, Watonga, Oklahoma, 73772, United States
Park open year-round and the lodge office is staffed 24 hours. The CCC swimming pool runs Memorial Day to Labor Day only, so it is shut for the rest of the year. Water activities on Boecher Lake and Lake Watonga are suspended until further notice because of a dam sinkhole, with the dam, the Two Lakes trailhead and the south-west trail closed (check travelok.com/state-parks/updates or call 405-295-2770).
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