Ouachita Ladder™: Backroad Map from Panorama Ranch
Along the way you'll pass the Peter Conser House, cross numerous national forest creeks, go right by Post Mountain Lake and see some of the Talimena Scenic Drive. Take it one rung at a time or the whole ladder in a day. Either way it's some of the prettiest backroad country in Oklahoma.
The ladder is just the beginning. Everything inside is the journey.
Along the Ouachita Ladder™: ATV · hike · mountain bike · ride horses · fish · hunt · picnic · sightsee · swim · camp
Folks ask me all the time where to go from the ranch, so I put it on one map. The Ouachita Ladder™ starts at our gate on Reichert Summerfield Rd and climbs into the Ouachita National Forest. It's laid out like a ladder: two north-south rails and five east-west rungs, crossing Holson Valley, Blue Mountain, the Talimena Scenic Drive and Billy Creek. The outer loop alone is 67.4 miles with about 5,200 feet of climbing, topping out at 2,233 feet near the top of Lenox Ridge. Follow every rung and it's 92.4 miles of road, or 102.2 miles gate to gate.
The ladder
West rail, 17.2 mi
- Earls Flat Rd, 5.5 mi
- Goats Bluff Rd, 1.9 mi
- Holson Valley jog, 1.5 mi
- Deadman Trail Rd, 3.8 mi
- OK-1 jog, 0.8 mi
- FS 6010 / Deadmans Trl, 3.7 mi
East rail, 27.0 mi
- Conser Creek / Post Mtn Rd (FS 6017), 6.9 mi
- Holson Valley jog, 1.2 mi
- Tall Cedar Rd (FS 6014), 3.7 mi
- Talimena Scenic Dr (OK-1), Lenox Ridge top to Tall Cedar, 6.2 mi
- Lenox Ridge Rd (FS 6022) / Billy Creek Ln, 9.1 mi
Rungs
- Reichert Summerfield Rd / Conser Rd, 7.9 mi
- Blue Mountain Rd (FS 6009), 9.9 mi
- Holson Valley Rd, 10.3 mi
- Talimena Scenic Dr / Skyline (OK-1), Deadman Gap to Lenox Ridge top, 4.9 mi
- OK-63 / Camp Tom Hale / Muse / Billy Creek, 15.4 mi
Totals
- Every ladder road once, 92.4 mi
- Gate to gate covering it all, 102.2 mi (9.8 mi ridden twice)
- Loop only, 67.4 mi, about 5,200 ft of climbing
Go prepared
- Black Fork Mountain and Upper Kiamichi River are designated wilderness, closed to motor vehicles and bikes.
- Forest roads can be rough, washed out or seasonally closed. Check the USFS Ouachita National Forest motor vehicle use map and current conditions before you go.
- The Wister Waterfowl Refuge is closed Oct 15 to Jan 31.
- The Conser Landing boat ramp on the Poteau River is listed as closed by the Corps of Engineers. Check before you count on it.
- Land boundaries are approximate. Watch for posted signs, private land and hunting seasons.
- Mileage is a guide, not a route guarantee.