Here’s Our Best & Worst Things From Oklahoma

Shae and I recently left Oklahoma having spent about 3.5 weeks in the 8th state on our 5 year, 50 state road trip.

We’d originally planned on spending closer to 4.5 weeks there, but we’d extended our time in Illinois by about a week, so that limited our time in the Sooner state.

That’s a bit of a shame as Oklahoma ended up being a more interesting state than we’d expected and there was quite a lot of stuff we missed out on.

Here’s a look back at some of our favorite – and not so favorite – things from our time in Oklahoma.

Favorite Accommodation We Stayed At

Stephen – We only stayed in four hotels while in Oklahoma and my favorite was definitely the Hyatt Regency Tulsa. It was excellent value using our World of Hyatt points, had a good club lounge, a great location in the center of downtown Tulsa and great service.

Shae – I have to agree that the Hyatt Regency Tulsa was my favorite accommodation as well. However, I do have to give a shout-out to the Aloft Tulsa Downtown for being incredibly pet friendly and welcoming.

Favorite Meal

Stephen – We had a lot of great food, but I think my favorite was the 1lb plate of meat I got from Swadley’s BBQ in Oklahoma City.

I also absolutely loved Hurts Donut, Andolini’s Pizzeria, Nic’s Place, Pie Junkie and more.

Shae – My favorite meal was Andolini’s Pizzeria. The service, food, drink, gelato… everything was just fantastic. An honorable mention must go out to the Tulsa State Fair for some amazing food as well!

Most Disappointing Meal

Stephen – I don’t think I ate anything I’d class as disappointing, but I guess my least favorite of everything we had was pizza from Sam & Ella’s in Tahlequah. Again, it wasn’t bad pizza, but it had nothing on the pizza we had at Andolini’s Pizzeria in Tulsa.

Shae – I was disappointed by the ‘best burger in Oklahoma’ at Meers. Maybe if we’d been inside for the full experience, but just as a to-go order so we could eat outside with Truffles, it just wasn’t worth it.

Favorite Free Activity

Stephen – As hard as it was, I think I’m going to have to go for hiking the New Horizon trail up Quartz Mountain. It was a good workout and had beautiful views all the way up and also at the summit.

Shae – For me it was definitely the Wichita Mountain Wildlife Refuge. Seeing wild bison was exhilarating, but hands down my favorite part was the prairie dog town.

Favorite Paid Activity

Stephen – The Tulsa State Fair. It was the first state fair that we’d ever been to and it was much more fun than I’d been expecting.

Shae – The Tulsa State Fair was also my favorite paid activity. It was so much fun and there was so much to see. I had a blast!

Favorite Pet-Friendly Activity

Stephen – Going for drinks at Welltown Brewing in Tulsa. They don’t serve food, so dogs are welcome inside – not just out on a patio. We got chatting to a nice couple the first time we visited (hi Kim & Dustin!) and Jeremy – the owner of Welltown Brewing – was also very friendly and gave us some great suggestions of things to do in Tulsa.

Shae – I want to say Quartz Mountain, but honestly it was too stressful for all of us to be fun. I think Truffles’ favorite activity was playing on the beach at Great Plains State Park.

I also really loved the times we spent at Happy Tails Dog Park near OKC. I met so many great people and pets. It made my time in OKC a lot more fun.

Least Favorite Activity

Stephen – Carrying Truffles up Quartz Mountain. She’s a great little hiker, but it was too steep for her as her paw pads didn’t have enough grip. I was therefore nervous the entire way that I’d slip and drop her, but it was fine in the end.

Shae – My anxiety was off the chart at Quartz Mountain. I have to agree that it was my least favorite activity. Between trying to climb and stressing about snakes and cactus I had a really hard time enjoying myself. I think if we hadn’t had Truffles with us it would have been much better and it’s rare that I don’t want her with us.

Favorite Hike

Stephen – From what I can think of, we only did one hike and that was up Quartz Mountain.

Shae – Quartz Mountain, not just because it was our only hike, but when I could ignore my stress about Truffles it was a great hike.

Favorite Quirky Thing We Did

Stephen – The Cotton Pickin’ Chili Cookoff in Altus – you pay $5 and get to try up to 50 different chilis. The Blue Whale of Catoosa also deserves an honorable mention.

Shae – I liked Pops 66. We didn’t spend a lot of time there but there were tons of sodas to check out and friendly staff.

Favorite Memory

Stephen – Sitting atop Quartz Mountain and having lunch.

Shae – My favorite memories include new and old friends. Spending quality time with Josh, Sarah, Esther and Nehemiah. Dinner with January, Derek and Tiny Odin (plus the girls!), meeting Tonya at the Manager’s Reception and our time spent getting to know Judy in OKC at the Residence Inn, Kim and Dustin at Welltown Brewing, Jade, Jordan and their family at the Hampton Inn and all the time we spent with Katie in Tulsa.

I also really loved teaching J & L about pet photography at the dog park in OKC. It did my teachers heart good to spend time with children and teach them new things.

Funniest Moment

Stephen – Shae and I were having lunch at the top of Quartz Mountain and could hear a couple of guys approaching the summit from the opposite side of the mountain than we’d taken. We’d assumed they could hear us talking as we could hear them, but the wind must’ve been blowing in the opposite direction as Shae scared them when they reached the top as they had no clue anyone else was there.

Shae – All my animal selfies at the Tulsa state fair’s petting zoo. You haven’t laughed until you’ve stealthily tried to chase a little potbelly pig around trying to take his pigture!

Thing We Most Regretted

Stephen – Not doing as much in Oklahoma City. Shae and I were both exhausted pretty much our entire 10 days there, so we didn’t explore the city anywhere near as much as we’d intended.

Shae – I regret not spending a lot more time in the Altus area. I would have loved to explore more trails at Quartz Mountain Nature Park and to spend at least a full day hiking at Wichita Mountain Wildlife Refuge and Mt. Scott.

Something We Missed And Want To See

Stephen – There isn’t anything specific, but I’d like to explore downtown Oklahoma City more than we did.

Shae – I feel like we missed a lot of Tahlequah and wider parts of Oklahoma. I would have liked to have seen Guthrie, the original state capital and learned more about the Native American presence in the state and the land rush.

Our Biggest Surprise

Stephen – There were a couple of surprises for me. The first is how great a city Tulsa is. There’s a lot to do, some great places to eat and drink, an amazing new park called Gathering Place, no traffic, etc.

The second surprise was Oklahoma’s terrain. I’d pictured it being flat and covered in plains, but there are far more hills, mountains and lakes than anticipated.

Shae – How much I enjoyed Altus. I’m not always one for small towns and rural settings but the occasional mountain terrain and the community spirit we found at the chili cook-off really made it a nice end to our time in Oklahoma.

My Oklahoma Drinking Game Would Be…

Stephen – Taking a drink every time you see a mountain that looks more like a hill.

Shae – Take a drink when you see bison symbols… or actual bison!

Summary Of Oklahoma In 10 Words Or Less

Stephen – Surprisingly interesting, great food, lots of free things to do.

Shae – Way better than I expected – I really loved this state.

Oklahoma Cities We Visited In Order From Favorite To Least Favorite

Stephen – Tulsa, Oklahoma City, Altus

Shae – Tulsa, Altus, Oklahoma City