Description

Woods County is home to the Little Sahara State Park, and Alabaster Caverns State Park.

See the latest news from Woods County

Events

FEBRUARY
26	Chamber Chili Cook-off	Waynoka	580-824-4741
APRIL
29-May1	Waynoka Rattlesnake Hunt	Waynoka	580-824-4741
MAY
14	Waynoka Car Show and Mower Races	Waynoka	580-824-4741
TBA	Mud Run	Alva	580-327-2317
JUNE
4	Nescatunga Arts Festival	Alva	580-327-3700
11	June Jam and Mower Races	Waynoka	580-824-4741
AUGUST
11-13	75th Annual Cimarron River Stampede Rodeo	Waynoka	580-824-4741
18-20	Freedom Rodeo and Old Cowhand Reunion	Freedom	580-621-3276
SEPTEMBER
17	18th Sand Fest and Lawn Mower Races	Waynoka	580-824-4741
17-18	Big Cruise & Car Show	Alva	580-327-1647
OCTOBER
14-16	Powered Parachute Fly-In & Ranch Rodeo	Waynoka	580-824-4741

Cities

Alva

NWOSU Homecoming Celebration
The annual Homecoming Celebration for Northwestern Oklahoma State University in Alva brings alumni and visitors to town each fall during football season. A committee of volunteers plan the celebration months in advance. High school seniors representing their communities present a scholarship pageant on Thursday and Friday. University students hold special events all week. Marching bands, floats and other attractions liven up Alva’s downtown square on Saturday. The traditional Ranger football game and queen coronation takes place in the afternoon. For more information: www.nwosu.edu/homecoming

Nescatunga Arts Festival
Usually held during the first week of June, the Nescatunga Arts Festival brings together artists and craftspeople from a four-state region, to display and sell their handiwork. Scattered throughout the craft displays are specialty food booths.

Big Cruise and Car Show
Held in mid-September, one of the most popular events in Alva is the Big Cruise and Car Show. Street rods, antique cars, motorcycles and trucks come to the downtown square from all over the tristate area to show off their prized vehicles.

Alva Mural Tour
Since 1998, the Alva Mural Society has placed 22 historical murals on buildings and two water towers throughout the city. www.alvamurals.org

Alva is proud of its Educational Opportunities including Northwestern Oklahoma State University, Northwest Technology Center and Alva Public Schools. More information on these educational entities can be found through the Alva Chamber of Commerce website at www.alvaok.net

So Much to See and Do!
Alva is the best motel location for access to many Red Carpet Country attractions, such as Great Salt Plains State Park, Little Sahara State Park, Alabaster Caverns State Park, the Selman Bat Cave, the Alva Mural Tour, and MAYB Basketball Tournaments and NWOSU Homecoming.

Ask about Alva’s WWII Prisoner of War Camp Site-thousands of German and Italian POWs were interred here (Alva Municipal Airport Museum). There are several unusual museums in Alva- the Museum of Natural History and the NWOSU Museum, both located on campus. Also, be sure and visit the Cherokee Strip Museum on U.S. Highway 64.

EDUCATION

• Northwestern Oklahoma State University, visit www.nwosu.edu.
• Northwest Technology Center, visit www.nwtechonline.com.
• Alva Public Schools

AIRPORT

• Alva Municipal Airport 580-327-2898

Alva Area Chamber of Commerce
For more information about Alva, contact the Alva Area Chamber of Commerce at 580-327-1647, chamber@alvaok.net or visit our website at www.alvaok.net.

Avard

Avard, OK is located 7 miles south and 6 miles west of Alva, OK. Avard got its name from the mother of Frank Todd whom owned the land where Avard is located.
Avard has always been a railroad town with both the Santa Fe and Frisco lines running through the town.The Avard Folk Festival the first Saturday of October. Join us for western music, cowboy heritage demonstrations, dutch oven cooking, quilt displays and more.

Avard Lake Park offers fishing, picnicking and primitive camping. RV hookups are available, and a community room is available for rent for reunions and parties.

Vina Rae’s Café offers home cooked meals and catering. Contact Vina Rae’s at (580) 435-2451 for more information.

Freedom

Freedom, Oklahoma lays nestled along the banks of the historic Cimarron River below towering gypsum bluffs. Visitors to Freedom are amazed by the lingering presence of the “Old West,” as nearly every building in the downtown is fronted with native cedar wood in designs typical of an early day cow town. Just to the south of Freedom is the Alabaster Caverns State Park which is the largest gypsum cave open to the public in the world.

Waynoka

Growth

The things that make Waynoka an exciting place to visit also make Waynoka a wonderful place to live! There are great opportunities in Waynoka. The town sits next to the Little Sahara State Park, which is one of the nation’s best sand dune parks. We are “America’s Sandbox”. Waynoka welcomes more than 250,000 visitors annually. Some are seeing fun in the sand, and others are hunters looking for that trophy whitetail deer or some of the world’s best quail hunting.

Waynoka is a hotbed for growth. The energy industry is a thriving part of our economy, with related businesses continuing to grow. From the traditional wheat and cattle to the unique, such as honey bees and organic lamb, Waynoka’s culture has a special place in it’s heart for agriculture. We truly desire a diverse economy; so much so that we’re installing a business incubator. This will be an invaluable tool in encouraging a myriad of new businesses to flourish in Waynoka. Tourism is the sleeping giant that is beginning to awaken. We see increased sales in homesites and storefronts, a high percentage of this growth related to recreation. We can proudly boast of fine schools, medical services, churches and civic and social organizations, as well as a low unemployment rate. The City of Waynoka as well as the Chamber of Commerce actively work to develop business opportunities and offer incentives to help grow our town. If you are looking for a place to pursue your dreams, here we are. It’s easy to get involved! It only takes a phone call to get the ball rolling.

Recreation

WOW! People from all over the USA and several foreign countries come to play in our sandbox! Little Sahara State Park is nearly 2,000 acres of living sand dunes and is only 3 miles from downtown Waynoka. It is among the most popular sand dune parks in the nation, open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. You can also ride your ATV or ORV on our trail to town and park on the street in front of your favorite store or eating establishment. Yep, Waynoka is known for our sand dunes. But wait, we’re known for our rattlesnakes, too! The 65th Annual Rattlesnake Roundup happens the first weekend after Easter. During Snakehunt, our town grows by 10-20 times our usual population with all kinds of folks looking for fun. And they find it here in Waynoka! We’re also known for the Cimarron River Stampede, the oldest rodeo in the area celebrating our 75th year in 2011. We also have the Great Plains Trail, if you’re interested in meandering through nature. Don’t forget the chili cookoff, sandfest, the lawnmower races, and…well, there’s something going on in Waynoka almost Every Week. With long established events like these, it’s obvious we know how to have fun! Check our schedule or call the Chamber of Commerce to make your plans for a weekend or an entire vacation.

Heritage

Mrs. Lindbergh had it right! Waynoka has a rich history and locals have worked hard to preserve our heritage. In 2010, USA Today listed Waynoka among the Top 10 Harvey Houses to visit in all of America! The Harvey House has been meticulously preserved and has a museum chronicling the development and duration of the Transcontinental Air Transport and the Railroad Industry, whose crossroads were anchored in Waynoka for a number of years.

One hundred years after Fred Harvey built one of his famous eating houses in Waynoka, the historic Waynoka Station is a fantastic place to visit and tour.

The Harvey House and Santa Fe Depot stand next to one of America’s fastest and busiest rail lines, the BNSF Transcon. The ambience of dining by rail is unequaled for nostalgia.

The Waynoka Air Rail Museum showcases Waynoka’s transportation history on the second floor of the Harvey House. Waynoka had its beginnings as a U.S. Post Office in 1887 when the Santa Fe Railroad built a branch line across the Cherokee Strip. The town was established at the opening of the Cherokee Outlet in the greatest land run in the history of the world.

Transcontinental Air Transport, under the direction of Col. Charles Lindbergh, built Oklahoma’s first transcontinental airport at Waynoka. Travelers from New York to Los Angeles crossed the country in 48 hours, flying by day and riding the train at night. Waynoka was a transfer point between rail and air. Amelia Earhart was an officer in the company, and she and Lindbergh were familiar faces in Waynoka. It was a historic time in Waynoka with icons of government and industry dining at the Harvey House as they journeyed coast to coast.

Attractions