42. Oklahoma

Surprising to no one, another Great Plains state makes the bottom 10.

Until recently, I had not spent more time in Oklahoma than a night at a campground, so I’m glad I got the opportunity to drive through the state on the way back from my trip to the Southwest. I will say, if I had not made that drive through Oklahoma, it probably would have ranked much lower, and I did get to see what makes the state special. 

What makes Oklahoma different from the other Plains states is that it has honest to god hills. And forests! You wouldn’t believe how refreshing that is bordering north Texas and Kansas. I also learned that a lot of western Oklahoma has this beautiful red soil that really stands out. Never before have I thought road construction could make somewhere cooler, because you could see what is underneath your feet.

Arial view of Oklahoma City

However, Oklahoma City has the same sprawl problems that so many of these other metro areas have, and the city itself is not cool enough to justify another visit for me. I was more impressed by Tulsa which is built into the edge of the Ozark hills, which was pretty neat to see.

With all this being said, Oklahoma is still a Great Plains state, and its scenery still can’t quite live up to what is yet to come on this list, but even at #42, it still is awesome that I can be pleasantly surprised by a state I hadn’t spent much time in before.