Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
theCooksonHills,you'llsooncometoTenkillerLakeanditsdam.Anoverlook,providing
far-reaching vistas, lets you preview the scenery before continuing northward.
Did you know…
Rte. 66 stretches approximately 2,500 miles from Chicago to Santa Monica,
crossingeightstatesandthreetimezones.Althoughitwasofficiallydecommis-
sionedin1986andreplacedbyfiveinterstatehighways,therearelargestretches
that are drivable. The old red barn in Arcadia, OK, is the most photographed
barn along this route.
2.
Tenkiller State Park
Big, blue, and beautiful, Tenkiller Lake extends for 34 miles or so, but its shoreline, full
of twists and turns, totals about 130 miles—a diverse mix of bluffs, woodlands, manicured
lawns, and bathing beaches. Rte. 100 follows along the water's edge, rolls right across the
top of the dam, then skirts Tenkiller State Park, one of more than a dozen spots that can
serve as convenient bases for camping, fishing, boating, and even scuba diving.
3.
Cherokee Heritage Center
Rte. 100, which overlaps here with Rte. 82, roughly parallels the eastern shore of Tenkiller
Lake. A few miles before Tahlequah, stop in nearby Park Hill to see the stately Murrell
Home,anelaboratemansionbuiltin1843.Itsoriginalowner,abusinessmanfromVirginia,
married a Cherokee chief's niece, a union that helped forge a link between Cherokees and
the settlers. In addition to touring the sumptuously furnished home, visitors can follow a
nature trail through the grounds, green with flowery gardens, shrubs, and trees.
Follow Rte. 82 through the oak and hickory forest to the Cherokee Heritage Center in
Tahlequah. One could easily spend a whole day at the complex: The Cherokee National
Museumoffersexhibitsontriballife,bothpastandpresent,are-createdvillagedepictslife
in the 1500s, and actors at an outdoor theater dramatize the tragedy of the Trail of Tears.
4.
Tahlequah
More Cherokee history awaits in nearby Tahlequah, where marchers on the Trail of Tears
ended their journey. Here the tribe's eastern and western branches joined hands and crafted
a constitution for the Cherokee nation. The area's first newspaper, the
Cherokee Advoc-
ate
, was published in town, offering its readers articles in both the newly created Cherokee
written language and English. Self-guiding tours of Tahlequah are available; stops along
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