Planning Your Visit
Welcome
Park Film Sit back and relax, take a break from your drive by watching the park's 27-minute film: Destiny at Dawn - Loss and Victory on the Washita, in the new park visitor center on Highway 47A just west of Cheyenne, Oklahoma. The film focuses on the engagement and the events that led to it. It's a great way to learn the history of the site before taking a hike.
Discover History Naturally – Take a Hike Visitors can join a park ranger for tours and talks during the summer program schedule. Visitors are asked to meet at the historic site’s overlook pavilion on Highway 47A to participate in the programs. Talks and walking tours are also available during the week on a walk-in request or pre-arranged basis. There is a 1.5 mile self-guided trail open from dawn to dusk, starting from the overlook. Starting Memorial Day we will be providing guided tours to the public. Guided tours will begin at 9:30 a.m. every Saturday until Labor Day. Weekend tours after Labor Day can be arranged as staff are available.
New Visitor Center Construction delays, due primarily to inclement weather, have pushed back the permanent opening of the new visitor center until late August. A History Day special event is scheduled for Saturday November 17, 2007. Museum exhibits will be installed in the fall. In addition to museum exhibits, the new park visitor center will feature an auditorium that will feature the park film, a Western National Parks Association bookstore, a sweeping view of the Washita River valley through large glass windows, and headquarters offices for Washita Battlefield National Historic Site and Black Kettle National Grassland.
Local Attractions - There are many local attractions: the Metcalfe Museum, the Roll one-room schoolhouse, the Pioneer Museum, and the Cheyenne city park to mention a few. For more detailed information, go to Nearby Attractions under the Things to Do section of the website.
Operating Hours & Seasons
To view the park's film or to request a walking tour or talk, contact park staff at NPS headquarters, located half a mile out of town on Hwy 47A west of Cheyenne, OK.
Park Headquarters: The visitor center is open 7 days a week, 8 AM to 5 PM, except December 25 and January 1. The building will be the headquarters for both the Black Kettle National Grassland and Washita Battlefield National Historic Site. It also contains a Western National Parks Association bookstore that has books and gifts for sale. A 27-minute film, entitled Destiny at Dawn: Loss and Victory on the Washita, is available for viewing at the visitor center every day of the week. The film is shown upon request.
Overlook and Trail: Open everyday, dawn to dusk. Restroom and water fountain at the overlook. Picnic tables available. Overlook consists of the trailhead, the historical marker, and a monument commemorating the site. An engraved panel indicates the approximate route, approach, and attack by the 7th U.S. Cavalry. The historic location of the Cheyenne Indian village can be viewed from this overlook as well. Ranger led talks during the summer take place at 9, 10, 11 AM and 2, 3, 4 PM. Reservations for park ranger led walks and programs can be made.
Fees & Reservations
FEES: Visitation to the park is free of charge and there is no fee.
RESERVATIONS: We recommend making a reservation if you want a presentation or guided tour from one of the park guides or an interpretive ranger. Otherwise, the 1 1/2 mile walking tour is self-guiding. Trail Guide booklets may be obtained at the trailhead, or the visitor center
PRESENTATIONS: To view the park's film or to request a walking tour or talk, contact park staff at the visitor center. Walk-in requests for film presentations or ranger led programs are welcome and encouraged at no charge. School group or tour group presentations are recommended to be made in advance.
AMERICA the BEAUTIFUL - NATIONAL PARKS AND FEDERAL RECREATIONAL LANDS PASS PROGRAM: Since the park does not charge a fee we do not sell these passes. For your convenience we provide this link for this information. Link to Lands Pass Program
Directions
WHERE IN THE WORLD IS WASHITA Battlefield NHS: The historic site is located near the town of Cheyenne, which is situated in western Oklahoma halfway between Amarillo, TX and Oklahoma City, OK. Cheyenne is approximately 30 miles north of I-40 on Hwy 283 and approximately 20 miles east of the Texas border.
Plane
Nearest major airports are Will Rogers International in Oklahoma City about 145 miles east. To the west is the Amarillo Airport, about 130 miles distant. A small airport, for private and small planes, is located just west of Cheyenne, OK, near the engagement site.
Car
From I-40 take exit 20 (Sayre) and travel north on US-283 to Cheyenne. In Cheyenne take US-283 north until it intersects with Hwy 47. At the US-283 and Hwy 47 intersection travel west through scenic downtown Cheyenne. Once out of town continue west half a mile and turn north on Hwy 47A. Continuing on Hwy 47A will take you to the new visitor center. By taking 47A a little farther you will find the historic site, featuring the park overlook and interpretive walking trail.
Public Transportation
Not Available
Washita Battlefield In Depth
News from the Parks
National Parks Escape, This Time Around
January 8, 2009 - 5:17pm
Unlike the last two years, popular recreation areas in Western Washington have escaped serious damage from this week’s heavy rain. Mount Rainier National Park and Gifford Pinchot National Forest were devastated by flooding in 2007. Last year, flooding hit Olympic National Park.
January 8, 2009 - 5:17pm
Unlike the last two years, popular recreation areas in Western Washington have escaped serious damage from this week’s heavy rain. Mount Rainier National Park and Gifford Pinchot National Forest were devastated by flooding in 2007. Last year, flooding hit Olympic National Park.
Dorgan with Game and Fish
January 8, 2009 - 5:06pm
Sen. Byron Dorgan, (D-N.D.) said he agrees with the North Dakota Game and Fish Department on the elk situation at Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Since the unveiling of the National Park Service’s Draft Elk Management Plan and Environmental Impact Statement on Dec. 17, Game and Fish officials have voiced their displeasure that the document did not include their “Alternative G,” as a viable option.
January 8, 2009 - 5:06pm
Sen. Byron Dorgan, (D-N.D.) said he agrees with the North Dakota Game and Fish Department on the elk situation at Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Since the unveiling of the National Park Service’s Draft Elk Management Plan and Environmental Impact Statement on Dec. 17, Game and Fish officials have voiced their displeasure that the document did not include their “Alternative G,” as a viable option.
Coming to the Inauguration? Read This First, Then Think Again
January 8, 2009 - 5:05pm
All roads will lead to Washington on Inauguration Day, but many of them will be closed. With packed trains, buses and planes, how will as many as 2 million people who are hoping to witness history crowd into a city whose subway system usually accommodates 718,000 a day?
January 8, 2009 - 5:05pm
All roads will lead to Washington on Inauguration Day, but many of them will be closed. With packed trains, buses and planes, how will as many as 2 million people who are hoping to witness history crowd into a city whose subway system usually accommodates 718,000 a day?
Scientists Ready to Analyze Yellowstone Park Quake Data
January 8, 2009 - 5:01pm
Between Dec. 27 and Jan. 2, more than 500 small earthquakes shook Yellowstone National Park. The swarm of quakes was centered below Yellowstone Lake, beginning southeast of Stevenson Island and migrating north toward Fishing Bridge before quieting.
January 8, 2009 - 5:01pm
Between Dec. 27 and Jan. 2, more than 500 small earthquakes shook Yellowstone National Park. The swarm of quakes was centered below Yellowstone Lake, beginning southeast of Stevenson Island and migrating north toward Fishing Bridge before quieting.
Haleakala National Park Gets New Superintendent
January 8, 2009 - 5:00pm
Sarah Creachbaum, a 15-year veteran of the National Park Service, has been named superintendent of Haleakala National Park.
January 8, 2009 - 5:00pm
Sarah Creachbaum, a 15-year veteran of the National Park Service, has been named superintendent of Haleakala National Park.
