This trail is now on private property and is closed.

• Traversing this trail west of Three Sticks and east of Clayton is not allowed. You have been warned.
• Full transparency – while we love our Lexus GX we also enjoy our Jeep Wrangler LJ. From time-to-time you will see articles and videos that feature our Jeep. While not Lexus GX focused – we hope you enjoy the overland nature of this content.

Traversed the 42 mile stretch of K Trail between Clayton and OK Hwy 259. It took 10.5 hours total – each section was about 20 miles long. We spent the first night in Clayton Lake State Park before beginning the trail. The second night we stayed at Cedar Lake just north of Winding Stair Campground in the Ouachita National Forest. Day two of the trail started at the mid point on the Indian Hwy heading east to OK Hwy 259. The third night we stayed in the national forest just west of Broken Bow Lake.

K Trail – Western Half (Clayton, OK to Indian Hwy): This section lived up to its name of “the technical portion” with several large rocks to navigate. Also challenging were several unclear forks in the road requiring a few back-tracks. We entered the K Trail from Western Arcade Rd and were immediately blocked by a washed out section of the trail. We had to find our way around using another road to the north that eventually dumped us back out on the K Trail. From there we headed east navigating mostly easy, packed two track. A large wind farm installation has clear cut forest halfway through the western section. They are massive up close! Immediately after is a fairly steep rock section requiring low gearing.

K Trail – Easter Half (Indian Hwy to OK Hwy 259): The eastern section is less technical but still has challenging sections. Where the western half has large rocks/boulders and steep inclines to navigate, the eastern half has more mud, cobblestone and pin stripes. Fortunately, some grateful soul has pruned trees back for the first five miles. You will still encounter significant pin striping though. One of our vehicles got stuck in mud (high centered, loss of traction) but was able to self recover by backing up while turning the steering wheel side-to-side. A bypass allowed him to proceed. The Jeep (with front/rear lockers and enough speed) plowed through without issue. There is a long section of 6-12” deep water with a soft bottom that we chose to go around via a bypass. The fire tower is a welcomed landmark after hours of cobblestone and pin stripes.

Overall – we greatly enjoyed the adventure. I was nervous about the condition of the trail having read many reports about road closures, boobytraps, and trail obstacles. Having completed it – I would say this trail is a medium challenge. Not so much for it’s technical obstacles, but for the length of time to complete and for the “potential” obstacles (mud pits, sharp rocks to pierce tires, tree roots, etc). We completed the trail without damage to our vehicles and greatly enjoyed the scenery, not running into a single other vehicle for two days on the trail, and the general sense of accomplishment. We also greatly enjoyed the camping (both in defined and dispersed campsites).

Vehicles

• Nissan Xterra – 2” suspension lift, 2” body lift, steel front bumper with winch, sliders, front skid protection
• Jeep Wrangler LJ Rubicon – 4” suspension lift, steel bumper front/rear with winch, full skid protection, sliders

Check out our other Oklahoma overland trips and overland videos.