Delusions of Grandeur...

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264Magnum

Sharpshooter
Special Hen
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The Gray Area
...or The Lake that Never Was.

This is Optima Lake. We made a quick trip out there while deer hunting to see the area. We assumed it was an actual lake, not just a misleading name. Apparently the ground sucked down the water faster than the river could fill it. It was finally abandoned in 1966. You can hunt this entire place, which is a very weird feeling walking around a vacant campground with a rifle hoping to jump a deer out of a thicket that used to be a park. One thing that really surprised me was the almost complete lack of graffiti and vandalism.

Boat ramp
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Ground where the lake would've been. Those are deer tracks in the road.
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Parking lot
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Where the lake should be
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Bathroom
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Picnic area
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Entrance to the main campground
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The "lake"
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264Magnum

Sharpshooter
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The Gray Area
There's not quite as much water as the map leads us to believe. I think this is some kind of Government conspiracy, I'm just not sure what kind yet. My aluminum foil hat is being fitted as I type this.

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Shadowrider

Sharpshooter
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Tornado Alley
I heard that they opened up the dam for some reason and never closed it back up. That's why there is no water. At least that is what one of the ladies told me in the Guymon courthouse...
 

okcowboy

Sharpshooter
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Bixby
I heard that they opened up the dam for some reason and never closed it back up. That's why there is no water. At least that is what one of the ladies told me in the Guymon courthouse...

She doesn't know what she is talking about. I was born and raised in Guymon. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (from Tulsa?) built the lake. The water evaporated faster than it flowed in and now even the water that was supposed to feed it has been diverted for irrigation.

There are several homes in the area that were moved (trees, landscaping and all) to higher ground in case of the lake flooding. :D

In the panhandle, if you see trees in the middle of nowhere, there either used to be a house or a creek/river and both are probably long gone. If you see a creek that actually has water in it, it is b/c someone just took a leak. :D
 

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