Overview
Kiamichi Country (pronounced: kī'ə-mĭsh'ē) is a region in southeast Oklahoma south of the Arkansas River. This is the hill and pine woods region of Oklahoma and is also known as Little Dixie. It is named after the Kiamichi River. This is a very rural area with mountains, lakes, pine woods and is very sparsely populated, except in the northern areas of the region and western area. There are also some larger towns in the southern region.
5 sights
Updated from Wikivoyage on 1 October 2026 · Something wrong or missing? Improve it on Wikivoyage
Best things about Choctaw Country
Ouachita National Forest
Heavener Runestone State Park
This is a real mystery. On the side of Poteau Mountain near Heavener is a state park with a beautiful view of the countryside and in the park on a vertical stone there is engraved Viking runes from the 11th century. The …
Cedar Lake National Recreation Center
Robert S. Kerr Museum & Kerr Conference Center
Peter Conser Historic House
Plan your trip
Getting there
- From you: to see whether to drive or fly, and how long it takes.
- FSM Fort Smith Regional Airport, Fort Smith — 68 mi away. Directions
- TXK Texarkana Regional Airport (Webb Field), Texarkana — 93 mi away. Directions
- TUL Tulsa International Airport, Tulsa — 127 mi away (major hub). Directions
Sample 3-day trip
- Day 1: Talihina — Talimena Drive.
- Day 2: Poteau — Cavanal Hill, Robert S. Kerr Conference Center & Museum, Poteau Frontier Rodeo.
- Day 3: Broken Bow — Beavers Bend State Park, Beavers Bend Nature Center/Park Forest Heritage Center, Beaver's Bend Mining Company.
Built from the best-covered destinations in this region; open each for its own day plan.
Photos
Places in Choctaw Country
Talihina
City / town · 16 listings
Poteau
City / town · 14 listings
Broken Bow
City / town · 9 listings
Idabel
City / town · 4 listings
McAlester
City / town · 4 listings
Heavener
City / town · 2 listings
Pocola
City / town · 2 listings
Wister
City / town · 2 listings
Antlers
City / town · 1 listings
Hugo
City / town · 1 listings
Muse
City / town · 1 listings
Spiro
City / town · 1 listings
Bokoshe
City / town
Wilburton
City / town
Understand
This area and the people are quite different from the rest of Oklahoma. This is a very rural area with the largest towns and cities being just a few thousand people. In the central-west area, the towns are a few hundred at most and generally under 100 in population. You will find a very mountainous area here with pine forests such as the Ouachita National forest. Ouachita is the Indian word Washita with French spelling and means "good hunting grounds". It is a very good region for deer hunting and is a very popular destination during deer season. During your visit do not miss the scenic Talimena Drive, which is mostly in Oklahoma but terminates in Mena, Arkansas. The area was explored extensively by the French and several of the names in the area are mistaken for American Indian names, but in reality are French.
Cities
- Antlers
- Bokoshe
- Broken Bow Broken Bow Lake and Beavers Bend Resort Park areas.
- Heavener Near Rune Stone State Park. See rune stones believed to be left by Vikings in the 11th century.
- Hugo County seat of Choctaw County.
- Idabel County seat of McCurtain County and located in the foothills of the Ouachita Mountains.
- McAlester Oklahoma State Penitentiary is located here.
- Muse
- Pocola
- Poteau Home of the "World's Highest Hill" and the county seat for Le Flore County.
- Spiro See the Spiro Mounds Archaeological Park nearby.
- Talihina Gateway to Talimena Drive.
- Wilburton Robbers Cave State Park and Eastern Oklahoma State College.
- Wister
Other destinations
Get around
Just about the only way to get around in this area is driving.
See
See Ouachita National Forest
- Robbers Cave State Park near Wilburton.
- Rune Stone State Park near Heavener.
- Broken Bow Lake a beautiful lake in the far southeast.
See Heavener Runestone State Park
This is a real mystery. On the side of Poteau Mountain near Heavener is a state park with a beautiful view of the countryside and in the park on a vertical stone there is engraved Viking runes from the 11th century. The mysterious hieroglyphics have been decrypted to be the date "November 11, 1012". This is a day-use park with picnic tables, outdoor grills, playground, gift shop, hiking, nature trail and exploring.
See Cedar Lake National Recreation Center
See Robert S. Kerr Museum & Kerr Conference Center
See Peter Conser Historic House
Go next
- Ozarks - If you like Kiamichi Country, you will also like the Ozarks.
- North to Tulsa and the Green Country
Nearby
Mena
City / town · 9 listings · 44 mi away
Eufaula
City / town · 2 listings · 64 mi away
Atoka
City / town · 65 mi away
Greenwood
City / town · 65 mi away
Paris
City / town · 9 listings · 66 mi away
Sallisaw
City / town · 21 listings · 67 mi away
Fort Smith
City / town · 35 listings · 69 mi away
Checotah
City / town · 3 listings · 73 mi away
My experience
Write about your trip here. Notes save automatically in this browser as you type; back them up from My journal.