Me and a friend of mine have been going hiking together Friday mornings for a few months. Mainly on Turkey Mountain but we have branched out to the Mooser Creek Greenway and Oxley Nature Center. Early this month we decided to tackle the Falls Creek Trail at the Keystone Ancient Forest about 20 miles or so northwest of Tulsa. I have hiked some of the trails there and late last year participated in a trail cleanup day there but have never hiked the Falls Trail which is supposed to be very difficult.
So we got to the visitor center and was perusing the map when one the volunteers came out and we talked about the trail. He said parts of it were really difficult and rough but doable. On the map above the Visitor Center is at the upper right hand corner where the yellow and red trail come together. The Falls Trail is the orange trail that loops off of the red trail. The Falls Trail map is kind of scraggly. My experience is that trails that look scraggly on a map are pretty rough on foot.
So we walked down to the trailhead for the Falls Trail and ran into this warning sign. The guy at the visitor center said that they have quite a few rescue calls from the Falls Trail but that is mainly in the summer. He said people head in without water and not properly prepared and run into trouble.
The first mile or so was just winding through the woods but soon enough we encountered rocks and erosion and unstable footing. Onward we went, slowly. My hiking buddy moved way ahead of me as I was tip toeing through the rocks.
Here is a little overhang we encountered. I took a photo of this, and then I guess that I forgot about because I hit my head on it as I was going slowly watching my feet. It knocked me back and I lost my balance and fell on my back. No harm though, I wasn’t going fast so I didn’t even have a headache. I had a big bruise on my back. So I picked myself up and kept on going.
We went along a couple of ravines with some cool rock formations across the way.
My phone camera doesn’t give a good sense of the depth. There was probably about a 30 foot or so sheer drop off from the trail.
There was some water pooled up at the bottom of the ravine. I think the Falls are sporadic depending on recent rainfall.
This is the main falls. As you can see it is pretty dry. There is a pretty good dropoff on the other direction.
Past the Falls the trail was a lot easier. We took the clockwise direction on the trail. Turns out a friend of mine used to lead hikes at Keystone. He told me that most people take the clounterclockwise route to access the falls and then return the same way rather than complete the loop encountering the rough and rocky trails on the clockwise direction.
So we had a lot of fun and enjoyed a scenic and challenging trail. So we’ll have to figure out where to go next.
The Keystone Ancient Forest is owned by the Nature Conservancy and administered by the Sand Springs, Oklahoma Parks and Recreation Department. Check their web site before you go because access, although free, is only open for certain hours per day. It’s a popular place on nice weekend days and their parking lot can fill up so plan accordingly. They have other easier trails to hike if you want to do something not quite as challenging as the Falls Trail. They even have an ADA compliant trail designed for wheelchair access and they have a couple of all-terrain track chairs to ensure access for everyone regardless of mobility issues.
I am linking with Skywatch Friday.
…rough, but doable doesn’t sound great!
Looks like that trail will be good exercise and good fresh air. The same thing happens here literally all the time with people who aren’t prepared with the right things they need in an environment like this.
An adventurous path. I admired the pictures and know that I could never walk here.
It’s interesting to read that careless people there also make rescue operations necessary. Here, we hear time and again about tourists who go into the Alps wearing sandals.
Great photos but that trail is beyond me
Well done!! This does look like quite a challenging hike. I’ve learned to heed trail ratings carefully. They usually don’t sugarcoat them! Never heard of using location numbers for 911 calls. That sounds like a good system.
Late fall last year the organization that I am with that has trail maintenance days had one at Keystone Ancient Forest. I led a bunch of university students on one of the easier trails for lopping limbs. Another board member took another group of students on the Falls Trail and they didn’t have enough water and got out with help. We didn’t have to call 911 but we were concerned nonetheless. None of them took water.
a lovely clear blue sky for your hike
Amazing trails, Great series of photos.
Greetings.
Another great collection.
We have trails like that in the Virginia mountains, but I don’t hike those anymore. Well, I don’t hike at all anymore because I might not make it back. When I was a teenager, I hiked “Old Rag Mountain” and it was difficult even then.
Nice trails.
Hello,
Kudos for hiking this trail, it looks very rough to me. I would want an easier trail.
Great photos of the trails and forest. Take care, enjoy your day and happy weekend.
Nice hike! Glad your fall wasn’t too bad. The terrain looks like those in TN.
So cool you have a permanent hike buddy. Nice trail and looks like you had the whole place on your own.
You must have wished you’d talked to your guide friend first — that rocky part of the hike looked as difficult as it sounded ! But how nice to get outside to “play” in the time of year when so many are stuck indoors. (And here I am in Florida and sitting on my computer, oops). Thank you for hosting SWF — I am glad to be back blogging at a new address after some serious technical difficulties. Sallie
This is a trail I’ll have to pass on. I think even when I was younger it would have been, perhaps, too challenging. Sigh, it makes me think of hikes I did take when I was younger. Now I sit back and read the adventures of others, more daring than I am.