Oklahoma Railfanning?

I may be able to help you some on Oklahoma:

• Wagoner, OK- on US 69 and SH51, southeast of Tulsa. Once the junction of the MKT and MP, now a busy UP hotspot. Crossing diamonds are just SW of downtown, and MP depot is intact. General freight, grain, coal, auto traffic (no stacks or pigs).
• Tulsa, OK- on I-44. Southwest of town is BNSF's ex-Frisco Cherokee Yard, next to I-244. Just north of the yard is the junction of the ex-Frisco Avard connection to the ex-Santa Fe at Avard. This is where you'll find the stack trains run between California and the southeastern US. Northeast of Tulsa, if you stay on old US66, you'll be next to the ex-Frisco (now BNSF) Cherokee Sub. In the Tulsa area, the Sand Springs Ry. operates three EMD switchers on its line (a former interurban) between Sand Springs and Tulsa. Charles Page Boulevard runs next to the tracks for most of its route. The SSRy. is in west Tulsa and the industrial area of Sand Springs. SOuthwest of Tulsa, the Tulsa-Sapulpa Union Ry (another former interurban) runs between the two cities, using EMD switchers. I can't remember which highway parallels the TSU, but you can see some of the trackage from I-244 and I-44.

If you're into shortlines, I can easily recommend several:

In southeastern Oklahoma you have the Kiamichi RR and the Texas, Oklahoma & Eastern. Kiamichi is headquartered in Hugo, which is on US70 and US271 as well as the south end of the Indian Nations Turnpike. It's a RailAmerica property, and you'll see IORY and GSWR power, some former rent-a-wreck GP38s and en ex-CN GP40-2W. Also KRR's unique burgundy & white engines. The former Frisco depot is a museum in this former Frisco divisional town, and is fully refurbished.

East of Hugo on US70 is Valliant, home of a Weyerhaeuser paper mill and the west end of the Texas, Oklahoma & Eastern. This road's HQ is in De Queen, AR.

Oh, BTW- the KRR line is parallel to US70 between Durant and Idabel, OK, but runs next to the highway between Hugo and Idabel.

Out west on I-40, west of Oklahoma City, you'll find Farmrail. Their HQ is in CLinton, OK, just south of old US66. Lots of old Geeps and a GP38 or two, used to operate their former Santa Fe, Frisco, and Rock Island lines.

I know there are several more spots (suchh as Curtis Hill in NW Oklahoma, where you can see lots of BNSF action; the ex-ATSF line south from OKC to Gainesville, TX where it runs through the Arbuckle Mountains between Ardmore and Pauls Valley; the Stillwater Central operating ex-Santa Fe and Frisco trackage in north and SW Oklahoma), but I must claim ignorance on those areas.

Hope this helps.

 

oops- forgot Heavener, OK, in the eastern part of the state. Located on US59 south of Poteau, OK, the KCS changes crews and refuels trains here. The fuel racks, yard, and main are next to US59 running north to south. Lots of KCS, KCSdeM, and TFM power here, in the gray and RetroBelle colors.

 

A buddy of mine and I go to Claremore roughtly once a month to operate on the Claremore & Southern RR, and we go up highway 16 from Muskogee to Okay, and then north to Wagoner, then up 69 to Chouteau, then zip over to Inola and up SH88 to Claremore (this parallels the former MP main, and is used by UP as a northbound track- the Katy is used generally as a southbound). We'll see what's going on at the crossing (former Frisco/MP, now BNSF/UP) before heading north of town to the C&S. You're right- Claremore is a good place to catch action. Further up the old Frisco main, BNSF crosses the former Katy at Vinita, and you can catch southbound UP trains as well as BNSF trains.

Another good Green Country locale to catch motive power is the SKOL's ex-Santa Fe facility at Owasso- I've seen a boatload of rent-a-wrecks in all sorts of colors, including black high-nosed SD40s, ex-BNSF SD40-2s, and an ex-BAR Geep.