McGee Creek State Park is a state park in southern

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

. The park is on the south side of

McGee Creek Reservoir McGee Creek Reservoir is a reservoir in Atoka County, Oklahoma. It impounds the waters of McGee Creek and several smaller streams, including Potapo, Panther, Little Bugaboo, Bear, Blue, Mill, and Crooked creeks, all of which are tributaries of M ...

, which impounds the waters of McGee Creek. Created in 1985 the reservoir provides

flood control Flood control methods are used to reduce or prevent the detrimental effects of flood waters."Flood Control", MSN Encarta, 2008 (see below: Further reading). Flood relief methods are used to reduce the effects of flood waters or high water level ...

. The park is approximately and the reservoir is approximately . Its main staple is recreational and sport fishing. The main fish fished for in this park include

Crappie Crappies () are two species of North American freshwater fish of the genus ''Pomoxis'' in the family Centrarchidae (sunfishes). Both species of crappies are popular game fish among recreational anglers. Etymology The genus name ''Pomoxis'' ...

, Sunfish,

Largemouth bass The largemouth bass (''Micropterus salmoides'') is a carnivorous freshwater gamefish in the Centrarchidae ( sunfish) family, a species of black bass native to the eastern and central United States, southeastern Canada and northern Mexico, but ...

, and

Channel catfish The channel catfish (''Ictalurus punctatus'') is North America's most numerous catfish species. It is the official fish of Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, and Tennessee, and is informally referred to as a "channel cat". In the United States, the ...

. The McGee Creek Wildlife Management area is located between the two arms of the reservoir. Bear and deer are among the animals present.

Shortleaf pine ''Pinus echinata'', the shortleaf pine, is a species of pine native to the southeastern United States. Description The tree is variable in form, sometimes straight, sometimes crooked, with an irregular crown. The tree reaches heights of with a ...

, though near its western limit, is abundant. When the park, the lake and the Wildlife Management Area are considered together, the total protected area around the lake is about ."McGee Creek Lake, Oklahoma, USA." Lake lubbers.com.
Accessed August 28, 2015. McGee Creek Natural Scenic Recreation Area is connected to with McGee Creek State Park. Both are a part of the McGee Creek Wildlife Management Area. The Natural Scenic Recreation Area is located in the top northeast area of the

wildlife Wildlife refers to domestication, undomesticated animal species (biology), species, but has come to include all organisms that grow or live wilderness, wild in an area without being species, introduced by humans. Wildlife was also synonymous ...

refuge. Activities in the Scenic Recreation Area include horseback riding, hiking, mountain biking, camping, fishing, canoeing, kayaking, and bouldering.

Proposed park closure in 2018

In March 2017, the

Oklahoma Department of Tourism and Recreation The Oklahoma Department of Tourism and Recreation is a department of the government of Oklahoma within the Tourism and Branding Cabinet. The Department is responsible for regulating Oklahoma's tourism industry and for promoting Oklahoma as a tour ...

published a list of 16 state parks that may be closed to help offset a reduction in its budget for 2018. McGee Creek State Park is on this list. This list represents approximately one-half of the parks remaining after the department closed seven parks in 2011.Fultenberg, Lorne. "Half of Oklahoma state parks could close with budget cuts." KFOR News. March 13, 2017.
Accessed November 1, 2017.

References

Protected areas of Atoka County, Oklahoma State parks of Oklahoma {{Oklahoma-protected-area-stub