In A Nutshell
Operating Hours & Seasons
The park is open year-round with no entrance fee.
The Visitor Information Station, located in the Chamber of Commerce Building at 717 West Broadway, Sulphur, Oklahoma, is open Tuesday through Saturday from 9:00am to 6:00pm from Memorial Day through Labor Day. After Labor Day until the Friday before Memorial Day it is open Monday through Friday 8:00am to 5:00pm.
The Travertine Information and Nature Center, located on Travertine Creek near the easter edge of the Platt Historic District, is open all year 9:00am to 6:00pm from Memorial Day though Labor Day. After Labor Day until the Friday before Memorial Day it is open from 8:00am to 5:00pm except for Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Year's Day.
Park Headquarters, located at 1008 West Second Street, Sulphur, Oklahoma, is open Monday through Friday from 8:00am to 4:30pm except for Federal Holidays.
Summers are hot and humid with daytime temperatures near 100 degrees common from July to September. Humidity frequently exceeds 50 percent. Thunderstorms are common April through July. Winters are mild with temperatures rarely dropping below 32 degrees for more than two or three consecutive days.
Directions
Getting Here
Plane
Both Dallas and Oklahoma City have international airports that are served by most major airlines.
Car
Chickasaw National Recreation Area is located on State Highway 177, just south of the town of Sulphur, Oklahoma.
The park is approximately 90 miles south of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma . Driving south on US I- 35 take exit 55 to State Highway 7.
The park is approximately 120 miles north of Dallas, Texas. Driving north on US I-35 take exit 51 to State Highway 77 until reaching Hwy 7.
Drive through the towns of Davis (3 miles) and Sulphur (10 miles) to the intersection of Hwy. 7 and 177. Drive south on Hwy. 177.
Park Headquarters is located at 1008 West Second Street in Sulphur, Oklahoma.
Fees & Reservations
Park Fees
There is no fee to access the Park, but the following fees are applicable.
CAMPING
Non-utility site $12.00 - Cold Springs, Guy Sandy, & Rock Creek Campgrounds
Non-utility site $14.00 - Buckhorn and the Point Campgrounds
Utility site $20.00 - Buckhorn and the Point Campgrounds, and one site at Rock Creek Campground
Premium utility site $22.00 (May through September) - Buckhorn Campground, Loop D sites #24, 25, 26 and Buckhorn Campground, Loop C sites #4, 5, 6, 7
Group sites $24.00 - Rock Creek, Cold Springs & Central Campgrounds
Persons may camp up to 14 consecutive days, not to exceed 30 days total between Memorial Day and Labor Day.
Reservations for campgrounds and group sites can be made through the Internet at www.recreation.gov or by calling 1-877-444-6777.
BOAT LAUNCHING
Each vessel that uses the Lake of the Arbuckle will require a permit. Permits are available at the Point, Buckhorn and Guy Sandy launch ramp fee machines. The costs are $4.00 for a daily permit or $30.00 for an annual pass.
The annual pass receipt and boat registration must then be taken to one of the following locations to be redeemed for the official decal: Point Ranger Station, Buckhorn Ranger Station, Travertine Nature Center, Headquarters Building.
NOTE: Golden Age or Golden Access Passport 50% discount applies only to individual campsites and lake launching permits, not group sites.
PICNIC PAVILIONS
The picnic pavilions at Veterans Lake and Buckhorn can be reserved for $30.00 a day.
Pets
Pets are prohibited on the trails east of the Travertine Nature Center, within the Travertine Nature Center, and in all swimming areas along Travertine Creek east of US 177, south of the Northeast Perimeter Road, and north of the Southeast Perimeter Road east of Sycamore Crossing. This includes the swimming areas known as Little Niagara, Bear Falls, and Panther Falls, and their immediate environs. An exception to this rule is granted for service dogs accompanying persons with disabilities, regardless of the disability requiring the use of a service dog. This restriction does not apply to animals used by authorized Federal, State, and local law enforcement officers in the performance of their official duties.
All pet excrement must be removed by the owner/keeper from all trails, roads, camping areas, picnic areas, and parking areas, and shall be deposited in refuse containers or removed from the area.
Chickasaw In Depth
News from the Parks
National Parks Escape, This Time Around
January 8, 2009 - 5:17pm
Unlike the last two years, popular recreation areas in Western Washington have escaped serious damage from this week’s heavy rain. Mount Rainier National Park and Gifford Pinchot National Forest were devastated by flooding in 2007. Last year, flooding hit Olympic National Park.
January 8, 2009 - 5:17pm
Unlike the last two years, popular recreation areas in Western Washington have escaped serious damage from this week’s heavy rain. Mount Rainier National Park and Gifford Pinchot National Forest were devastated by flooding in 2007. Last year, flooding hit Olympic National Park.
Dorgan with Game and Fish
January 8, 2009 - 5:06pm
Sen. Byron Dorgan, (D-N.D.) said he agrees with the North Dakota Game and Fish Department on the elk situation at Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Since the unveiling of the National Park Service’s Draft Elk Management Plan and Environmental Impact Statement on Dec. 17, Game and Fish officials have voiced their displeasure that the document did not include their “Alternative G,” as a viable option.
January 8, 2009 - 5:06pm
Sen. Byron Dorgan, (D-N.D.) said he agrees with the North Dakota Game and Fish Department on the elk situation at Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Since the unveiling of the National Park Service’s Draft Elk Management Plan and Environmental Impact Statement on Dec. 17, Game and Fish officials have voiced their displeasure that the document did not include their “Alternative G,” as a viable option.
Coming to the Inauguration? Read This First, Then Think Again
January 8, 2009 - 5:05pm
All roads will lead to Washington on Inauguration Day, but many of them will be closed. With packed trains, buses and planes, how will as many as 2 million people who are hoping to witness history crowd into a city whose subway system usually accommodates 718,000 a day?
January 8, 2009 - 5:05pm
All roads will lead to Washington on Inauguration Day, but many of them will be closed. With packed trains, buses and planes, how will as many as 2 million people who are hoping to witness history crowd into a city whose subway system usually accommodates 718,000 a day?
Scientists Ready to Analyze Yellowstone Park Quake Data
January 8, 2009 - 5:01pm
Between Dec. 27 and Jan. 2, more than 500 small earthquakes shook Yellowstone National Park. The swarm of quakes was centered below Yellowstone Lake, beginning southeast of Stevenson Island and migrating north toward Fishing Bridge before quieting.
January 8, 2009 - 5:01pm
Between Dec. 27 and Jan. 2, more than 500 small earthquakes shook Yellowstone National Park. The swarm of quakes was centered below Yellowstone Lake, beginning southeast of Stevenson Island and migrating north toward Fishing Bridge before quieting.
Haleakala National Park Gets New Superintendent
January 8, 2009 - 5:00pm
Sarah Creachbaum, a 15-year veteran of the National Park Service, has been named superintendent of Haleakala National Park.
January 8, 2009 - 5:00pm
Sarah Creachbaum, a 15-year veteran of the National Park Service, has been named superintendent of Haleakala National Park.
