Overview
Red Carpet Country is a region in northwestern Oklahoma and includes the panhandle counties of Beaver, Cimarron, and Texas, as well as other counties in Northwestern Oklahoma: Alfalfa, Blaine, Dewey, Ellis, Garfield, Grant, Harper, Kay, Kingfisher, Major, Noble, Woods and Woodward.
6 sights
Updated from Wikivoyage on 1 October 2026 · Something wrong or missing? Improve it on Wikivoyage
Best things about Red Carpet Country
Black Mesa State Park
The park got its name from the black lava rock that covered the area 30 million years ago. Hike the petrified forest trail and walk in fossil footprints of dinosaurs.
Great Salt Plains State Park
A salt plain and saltwater lake known as the Great Salt Plains Lake lie here in the bed of what was once an ancient sea, where visitors sometimes look for selenite crystals.
Gloss Mountains State Park
Land characterized by buttes and hilltops with a lot of selenite content.
Little Sahara State Park
A pocket of sand dunes.
Alabaster Caverns State Park
Only gypsum cave supposedly open to the public in the United States, and one of the largest in the world.
Sodhouse Museum
Plan your trip
Getting there
- From you: to see whether to drive or fly, and how long it takes.
- LBL Liberal Mid-America Regional Airport, Liberal — 89 mi away. Directions
- DDC Dodge City Regional Airport, Dodge City — 91 mi away. Directions
- OKC OKC Will Rogers World Airport, Oklahoma City — 131 mi away (major hub). Directions
Take the Oklahoma Highway 81 from Oklahoma City
Full “Get in” guide ↓Sample 3-day trip
- Day 1: Enid — Railroad Museum of Oklahoma, Cherokee Strip Regional Heritage Center, Humphrey Heritage Village.
- Day 2: Alva — Cherokee Strip Museum, NW State University Museum of Natural History, Alva.
- Day 3: Woodward — Fort Supply Historic Site, Boiling Springs State Park, Plains Indians & Pioneers.
Built from the best-covered destinations in this region; open each for its own day plan.
Places in Red Carpet Country
Enid
City / town · 11 listings
Alva
City / town · 7 listings
Woodward
City / town · 6 listings
Ponca City
City / town · 5 listings
Watonga
City / town · 5 listings
Beaver
City / town · 4 listings
Guymon
City / town · 4 listings
Blackwell
City / town · 3 listings
Perry
City / town · 3 listings
Texhoma
City / town · 2 listings
Kingfisher
City / town · 2 listings
Boise City
City / town · 1 listings
Buffalo
City / town
Map
Every listing with a location. Tap a pin for its Google Maps link.
Understand
This is essentially land that became the Cherokee Strip after being relinquished by the Cherokee, and the Oklahoma panhandle (historically known as the Cimarron Territory or even more colorful, "No Man's Land") further to the west. It was more or less a free for all by homesteaders, known as Sooners and Boomers, when it opened up to land grabs by the 1890s, just prior to Oklahoma statehood in 1907. Cattle drives along such historic paths as the Chisholm Trail then gave way to fenced homesteads and oil booms. In the 1930s, these parts came to be known as the Dust Bowl because of severe drought that compounded the problems of the Great Depression, as depicted in The Grapes Of Wrath.
Cities
- Alva
- Beaver
- Blackwell
- Boise City
- Buffalo
- Enid
- Guymon
- Kingfisher
- Perry
- Ponca City
- Texhoma
- Watonga
- Woodward
Get in
By car
Take the Oklahoma Highway 81 from Oklahoma City
Get around
By car
There are some major Oklahoma routes that traverse RCC like OK51.
See
Contrary to what it might seem like when Oklahoma comes to mind, Red Carpet Country is actually quite replete with historical and natural attractions. In particular, the topography and geography has a rather surprising amount of variation, so you can visit a prehistoric salt plain near Enid, sand dunes and caverns further west, artesian springs in Woodward, and the anticline of the Rocky Mountains at Black Mesa State Park in the very tip of the panhandle. This along with Chisholm Trail monuments and remnants of Army outposts meant to safeguard westward expansion against Native American reprisals make for an intriguing study of the American West.
See Sodhouse Museum
- Fort Supply Historic Site, near Woodward, is where the US Army had its base camp in the area during its expeditions against the tribes of the Cherokee Outlet
Do
- Black Mesa, the highest point in the state of Oklahoma at just short of 5000', is in Black Mesa State Park, and is accessible by an easy, scenic trail.
- The Cimarron Bypass of the Santa Fe Trail passes through this region. Trail ruts and artifacts are visible in a few places (e.g. near Boise City).
- Rent a dune buggy or explore the natural sand dunes at Little Sahara State Park or Beaver Dunes State Park.
- Tour the World's only Gypsum Cave that is open to the public at Alabaster Caverns State Park. See Osage native bison hunting grounds and more of a prehistoric ocean scene apart from Salt Plains State Park by visiting the Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge.
Nearby
My experience
Write about your trip here. Notes save automatically in this browser as you type; back them up from My journal.