The Oklahoma Chronicles - Chapter 2

The Great Bison Hunt
Our main purpose for visiting the Tall Grass Prairie Preserve was to see the bison (buffalo) herd. A few years ago, a small herd of 300 was introduced to the preserve in an attempt to restore the mighty plains buffalo to a semblance of their former glory. (Well, there was probably some conservation / scientific type reason, but I won't try to explain it here. If you want to know more, do an internet search on the subject & you'll find a lot of good info.)

My sister is enamored by all things western, as in, anything west of the Mississippi. Her all time favorite tv show is Little House on the Prairie, so I knew she'd love this little excursion to the real prairie. We packed a lunch, gassed up the car and off we went to hunt buffalo, our weapons of choice being Nikon & Sony.
After a lovely drive to Pawhuska, Gateway to the Tallgrass Prairie, we drove the 50-mile Bison Loop - all gravel road.


We saw oil pumps.We saw a herd of .... regular cows.

We thought this tree was very interesting. As you come up a little hill, it seems to be growing right in the middle of the road.

We saw a real Longhorn. Rather menacing looking.

And we saw the most spectacular sunset ever. Oh my gosh, it was gorgeous. Sunset on the Prairie. Equally beautiful was the moonrise. It looked like a huge, hot pink-orange ball sitting on the horizon. That alone was worth the trip.

Oh, the Bison, you ask? The herd that has increased from 300 to 2,500? The ones you almost always see somewhere along the Bison Loop with it's many warning signs to be cautious... I've been there before & seen them. They are magnificent.

But not today. Oh nooooooooo. Today, when I bring my Little House on the Prairie Lovin' Sister from Ohio, the buffalo are roaming elsewhere. And this is what we saw:

The "Eat More Chikin" cows.