I spent a long weekend in Cimarron County in northwestern Oklahoma and it was a great experience! There is so much to do in the county even if there isn’t a large tourist allure to the area. The wide-open spaces are worth it on their own! Black Mesa State Park was my main home base point for all of these treks and that state park has its own appeal for visits. So rent a spot at Black Mesa and go see the area before it’s gone!
Useful Links
Pros
- Lots of history in the county
- Dinosaur history
- Santa Fe Trail history
- Wide-open spaces and giant skies at night
- Everyone is very friendly and it’s easy to talk or ask questions
Cons
- You must drive due to the large distances between places
- Weather can be extreme, dry, and very windy
- Not a lot of public land to explore
- Only one main town in the center of the county – Boise City
Dinosaur History
There is a lot of dinosaur history from digs and unique spots around the county. There are two main dinosaur attractions. The dinosaur footprints are near the Black Mesa trailhead. It’s located at 36.961943, -102.953529. The official Oklahoma travel website explains that paleontologists believe it to be a theropod which is a bipedal T-rex type dinosaur. There are two sets of footprints around the creek but we were unable to find the second set. But as of October 2020, this is what the footprints in the creek bed look like.
The other interesting area is the dinosaur quarry. There is a bone relic from the digging that occurred around the area is located at 36.898893, -102.826365. Apparently, during digs in the area and road construction, many bones and dinosaur artifacts have been discovered around Kenton Oklahoma. There is a ton of dino history around the panhandle that one can discover.
Santa Fe Trail History
There’s also a ton of Sante Fe Trail history throughout the entire county. The main allure is Autograph Rock. Please stop by the Cimarron Heritage Center or call 580.544.3479 to get information on visiting the rock because it is on private property. Please get permission before visiting!
Autograph Rock was a stopping point along the Santa Fe trail that people stopped at to rest and relax on their trip from the center of the country heading out west. The many travelers decided to carve their names into the rock which they stopped next to. There are hundreds of names and inscriptions on the rock ranging from the mid to late 1800s. One of the more clear and famous inscriptions is from F. B. Delgado and his name is clearly legible in the rock!
There are also the ruts which you can see on the ground as you move west. The trail actually crosses the modern road at 36.786653, -102.805188. You can look out and see the grooves in the earth and how the soil and grass are different than the surrounding soil. You can even see it in the satellite photos in the link above. It’s amazing to think that thousands of people would pass that spot in the 1800s for many many years. There is literal history in the ground!
Tripoint Border Marker
Sammy sitting next to the Tripoint marker in Cimarron County Oklahoma. 
Sammy and Katie at the OK-CO-NM tripoint marker.
The Tripoint marker shows the point where Colorado, New Mexico, and Oklahoma all meet. The current marker that is found at 37.000155, -103.002343. This marker is the more modern marker and is located to the south of the historic marker. The historic marker is about 0.2 miles to the north near 37.002781, -103.002507. The border actually “moved” south when modern survey equipment was used to assess the border and the new marker was placed.
The marker is very easy to get to. It’s near a normal road and you only have to drive down the gravel road for a few thousand feet. There’s even a loop and some parking space next to the monument. The stone monument is pretty nice and the border runs through the points of the square marker. I like how each face of the marker is the name of the state so I really enjoyed seeing that.
Black Mesa State Park and Nature Preserve
You can read more about my stay at Black Mesa State Park in the post below. The state park is the base camp for many of the activities around the county. The state park is well maintained and seems to be open during many parts of the year but remember you must make digital reservations in order to stay at the park. The park also doesn’t winterize its bathroom but only closes group areas during wintertime so a hot shower should be available all year. This park is a great place to stay most times of the year.
The nature preserve is located about 15 miles to the north of the main state park. The nature preserve has a 4.5-mile one-way trail that anyone can hike during daylight hours. You can go to the highest point in Oklahoma at the end of the trail. The trail is easy to moderate and relatively flat in the valley below and on top of the mesa. You should try this trail if you’re in the area and you can spare about 3 hours.
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