South Central Road Trips

The Old West lives on in Texan towns founded on the sweat of dusty cattle wranglers and hammer-wielding railroad men. Other stops recall more recent moments in history—some painful, others playful. Lingering yesterdays mingle with modern indulgences on this journey through a land of malls and coiling freeways, Western stomping grounds still tread by boots and horseshoes.

With its Panhandle ghost towns and carnival-like atmosphere, this historic route is a time capsule filled with the sights of days gone by. Flat plains line the road and the sky is the main attraction; well, that and the aging signs promising two-headed rattlesnakes and a leaning water tower. Plus, the “Mother Road” shelters some of the coolest gas stations ever built.

One scenic vista follows another as SR 7 winds through the Arkansas Ozarks, a rugged region characterized by flat-topped mountains and valleys created by rushing streams. The Buffalo National River—so designated to preserve the natural environment—is overarched in spots by massive sandstone bluffs. The clear water offers great fishing for bass, perch and catfish.

This pleasant byway in one of the seven wilderness areas of the Mark Twain National Forest features many places to stop and hike, camp, fish or canoe. And while you might think a forest drive is all trees and canopies, quite a bit of it looks like open farmland as the road winds leisurely just north of the Arkansas border.

Stop at the scenic overlooks along the winding byway to enjoy the breathtaking forested mountain views. For a panoramic view, climb the old Rich Mountain Fire Tower located at the highest point on Arkansa's Talimena Scenic Drive (SR 88), at 2,681 feet. The east-west Ouachita Mountain range is ablaze with yellow, orange and crimson colors in autumn.

The scenery along Oklahoma’s Scenic Countryside Route 152 is decidedly rural, with nary a traffic signal in sight. Passing through the blink-and-you’ll-miss-it town of Cogar, movie buffs may recognize the abandoned gas station at the intersection of SR 152 and SR 37—the storefront appeared in a scene in the 1988 movie, “Rain Man.”