BLUESTREAM FALLS IN PAWHUSKA OKLAHOMA
Bluestream Falls in Pawhuska, Oklahoma is one of the stops you must see if you are in the area sightseeing. Any nature lover would enjoy this spot. We stopped by here around sunsise on our way to the Pioneer Woman Mercantile and Osage Nation DiscGolf Park in downtown Pawhuska, from Bartlesville, Oklahoma.
I heard about Bluestream Falls just by searching the internet looking for outdoor activities. From highway 60 it was a winding country road. We had no issue following the Google Maps directions, and ended up at a small dirt parking lot. There was a metal road crash barrier that we walked around until we landed on a cement slab crossing.
From there it was a 30 second walk to the falls, it was so obvious what way to go you couldn’t miss it. My main concern when walking to the falls was footing (there were crevasses from the water eroding the rock here) and snakes. While we didn’t see any snakes, we did see snake skin.
The morning light here was so beautiful to enjoy. I captured these photographs on Kodak P800 35mm film with my Nikon FM 10 and 50mm lens.
Now that I am looking at these photos in this morning light, I can really see why they call it Kodak Gold. It almost beats CineStill's film in terms of that glowing low-light, and it’s more versatile in its richness of color in full sun.
The waterfall was not rushing like I saw in pictures, there was a good flow but only in part of the falls. The water arrives to the falls from the nearby Bluestream Lake, which is a man-made lake from the 1950s. It is not a naturally occurring waterfall.
We drove out another way than we did on the way in, and we ended up driving through a small ravine that went by the lake and through a waterway. I was a little nervous to drive through the water, but it wasn’t that deep so we just went for it. I can’t imagine going through that section in high water.
After Bluestream falls we enjoyed a meal from the Pioneer Woman Mercantile and played the Osage Nation DiscGolf Park (an 18-hole disc golf course designed by 2009 PDGA MPO World Champion Avery Jenkins).
Where to Stay Near Bluestream Falls
Taylor Ranch in Pawhuska, Oklahoma is also the home of Oklahoma’s #2 rated disc golf course for the past 16-years (no big deal). They have The Cabin, The Cottage and the “Modern Day Teepee” onsite at the disc golf course, availble to rent on airbnb.
The Boarding House, a “cowboy luxury” hotel by the Pioneer Woman
The Frontier Hotel
BarDrew Valley Inn (a Bed & Breakfast)
They have plenty of other options to choose from in Pawhuska, Oklahoma. But one place that I have personally always wanted to stay at is the Inn at Price Tower. It is located in downtown Bartlesville, Oklahoma and was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, it is the only skyscraper he ever designed.
THINGS TO DO NEARBY IN PAWHUSKA, OKLAHOMA
If you are a disc golfer (that is not a beginner) you must play The Lodge at Taylor Ranch
Tallgrass Prairie Preserve is just to the north of Pawhuksa. There are wild buffalo here, and at sunrise or sunset you can listen to the most beautiful melody of singing birds (I have never heard anything like it).
The Pioneer Woman “thing” yes it is a whole thing. Check out The Pioneer Woman Mercantile (AMAZING food and bakery), P-Town Pizza, Charlie’s Sweet Shop and you can tour the ranch (where Ree Drummond films her Food Network television show!).
Wool-A-Roc Museum & Wildlife Preserve
