Great Salt Plains State Park facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Great Salt Plains State Park |
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 Great Salt Plains State Park
Location in Oklahoma
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| Location | Alfalfa County, Oklahoma, United States |
| Nearest city | Jet, OK |
| Area | 840 acres (340 ha) |
| Governing body | Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department |
Great Salt Plains State Park is a special place in Alfalfa County, Oklahoma. It covers about 840 acres (3.4 km²) and is a popular Oklahoma state park. You can find it about 8 miles (13 km) north of Jet, Oklahoma on Highway 38. It's a great spot for outdoor fun and exploring unique natural features.
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Exploring the Park
Great Salt Plains State Park offers many activities for visitors. You can go boating on the lake or set up camp for the night. Picnicking, swimming, and hiking are also popular. If you like adventure, try mountain biking on the trails. There's always something to do here.
Great Salt Plains Lake
The park is home to the Great Salt Plains Lake. This lake is quite large, covering about 9,300 acres (38 km²). It has about 41 miles (66 km) of shoreline. The lake is shallow, usually only about 4 feet (1.2 m) deep.
The water in the lake is salty, but not as salty as the ocean. It's about one-fourth as salty as sea water. This makes it a unique place for fishing. You can try to catch catfish, saugeye, sandbass, and hybrid striper. However, personal watercraft like jet skis are not recommended here.
The Salty Landscape
The Great Salt Plains area is huge, covering about 11,000 square miles (28,000 km²). It gets its name because the ground is covered with a layer of salt. This salt was left behind a very long time ago by an ancient inland sea.
Even today, salty water flows beneath the ground. When this water comes to the surface and evaporates, it leaves more salt behind. This process keeps the plains salty. The first explorers to see this area in 1811 called it the Grand Saline.
Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge
Right next to the state park is the Great Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge. This refuge was created by President Herbert Hoover in 1930. It's a fantastic place for nature lovers.
The refuge is perfect for watching birds, especially during migration seasons. In the fall, the trees show off beautiful colors. It's a peaceful spot to enjoy Oklahoma's wildlife and scenery.
Digging for Crystals
One of the most exciting things to do here is dig for crystals. The Great Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge is the only place in the world where you can find a special type of crystal. These are called hourglass selenite crystals.
Hourglass selenite is a rare and delicate form of gypsum. It gets its name because sand gets trapped inside the crystal in the shape of an hourglass. You can dig for these unique crystals from April 1st to October 15th each year. It's a fun and unique treasure hunt!
Park Fees
To help keep the park nice and make improvements, there is a small entrance fee. This fee started on June 15, 2020. It helps fund important maintenance and upgrades for the park.
The fee is charged per vehicle. For a single day, it costs $10, or $8 if you are an Oklahoma resident with an Oklahoma license plate. Good news: the fees are waived for honorably discharged veterans and Oklahoma residents who are 62 years old or older, along with their spouses. You can also buy passes for three days, a week, or even an annual pass that works at many state parks.
