Mid August 2006 Trip to Western Oklahoma

In mid August 2006, I took advantage of a rare cool day to visit the western part of the state. Some locations visited included the Washita Battlefield National Historic Site, Black Kettle National Grassland, and Washita National Wildlife Refuge. This was a spectacular area, as I hope these pictures attest.

Sign describing the Battle of the Washita, a key battle for control of the Southern Plains which occurred in 1868 between Chief Black Kettle and General George Custer.	Red slate hills at Washita Battlefield.
A very and increasingly rare Texas Horned Lizard near Croton Creek, in Black Kettle National Grassland.	Prairie Snow-on-the-Mountain, a common wildflower of the western prairie.
Typical view while driving along the eastern edge of Black Kettle National Grassland.	Silvery Skipper on a late Buttonbush flower at Spring Creek Lake in Black Kettle National Grassland.
Black Kettle Lake.	Typical scene driving through the red slate hills of Black Kettle National Grassland.
Wide view of strong thunderstorm over the grassland.	Storm and red slate hills.
Ominous severe storm over the sunlit slate hills of Black Kettle National Grassland.	Line of towering cumulus that developed along a storm's inflow band, from Washita National Wildlife Refuge.