Granted that the Washita Battlefield is in Oklahoma, and not Kansas, reaching this site was originally the the main goal of the trip. It also marked the end of a whirlwind tour of a portion of the Custer Trail. Scenes from the Wahsita are featured in another segment of this web site, but a few photos were not included.
After leaving Ft. Dodge, I headed, south on highway 283 in an attempt to get to the Washita before sunset. I was making good progress until reaching the town of Minneola. There, the southbound traffic was delayed by a long funeral procession. Rather than being frustrated by the time delay, I began to ponder who the deceased was. What role he or she played in the community. Judging by the length of the procession, it must have been a well-liked person. What would it be like to be layed to rest in the lonely prairie of southern Kansas? Several miles south of town the procession made a left turn off the highway to the cemetery. Eventually highway 283 ends at highway 63 in Oklahoma. There one goes east to the town of Buffalo where highway 183 south is reached and in a short while one arrives at Ft. Supply.
Ft. Supply was established by Gen. Sheridan in 1868 to serve as a base from which to continue operations in the southern plains. much to my surprise, most of what was Ft. Supply is now a correctional facility for the state. A smaller portion is stated to have a few old structures, but unfortunately for me, that day it was closed to visitors. The photo above is a view of the Ft. Supply area looking west on highway 183. This is some of the flat land that lies between the junction of Beaver and Wolf Creeks.
At the next town, Woodward, one turns right and heads west on route 16, which parallels Custer's route to the Washita along Wolf Creek(although Custer was on the north bank). At the town of Shattuck go south on 15 to Arnett, and then south on 283, which deadheads to Cheyenne, Oklahoma which is near the Washita. The photo above is from the bluffs on the north bank of the Canadian River. This river valley is the widest that I had seen thus far and the view is breathtaking.
Looking west from the same vantage point as the preceding photo, one sees in the distance one of the landmarks of this region and the Washita campaign, the Antelope Hills. These are the buttes that can be seen on the horizon.
The next day, on the way back to Denver, I found the entrance to the the road leading to the Antelope Hills. In the Washita campaign, Custer rode his horse up to the top of the second hill from the left to scan the terrain looking for Indians. It is from this spot that he saw the scout Jack Corbin coming from the west to inform him that Major Elliot had struck a fresh trail leading to the Washita valley.
Continuing on highway 283 to the bridge crossing the Canadian River. The road then leads over the divide and into the Washita valley.
Crossing the Washita for the first time. The town of Cheyenne is in the distance. After a long day of traveling through two states, I had finally arrived. The Washita link on the main page contains photos of the battlefield.
The next day, I had a marathon drive back to Denver to catch my flight back home. The conclusion of a great adventrue along the Custer Trail.