Red Rock Canyon Adventure Park, previously Red Rock Canyon State Park, is located south of Hinton in

Caddo County, Oklahoma Caddo County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of the 2010 census, the population was 29,600. Its county seat is Anadarko. Created in 1901 as part of Oklahoma Territory, the county is named for the Caddo tribe who were s ...

.Savage, Cynthia
"Hinton,"
''Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture'', Oklahoma Historical Society. Accessed April 20, 2015. Before the settlement of Oklahoma, the area was used by

Plains Indian Plains Indians or Indigenous peoples of the Great Plains and Canadian Prairies are the Native American tribes and First Nation band governments who have historically lived on the Interior Plains (the Great Plains and Canadian Prairies) of N ...

s as a winter campsite."Red Rock Canyon State Park,"
''Hinton Chamber of Commerce'', Accessed April 20, 2015. The canyon was a stop on the

California Road According to the Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture, there were two trails that may have been known as the California Road at the time of the California Gold Rush. A southerly route, which ran through present-day Oklahoma (then known only ...

where settlers would gather fresh water and repair their wagons.Oklahoma Recreation and Tourism Department
"Red Rock Canyon State Park,"
''TravelOK.com'', 2015. Accessed April 20, 2015. Wagon wheel ruts are still visible in the park. The canyon has the only remaining site of native Caddo maple trees. Park activities include rappelling down the canyon, walking on nature trails, hiking on a rocky trail, and fishing. There are picnic areas and group picnic shelters, a playground, a swimming pool and bathhouse. There are tent and RV campsites inside the canyon. The park and surrounding area have good opportunities for fall foliage-viewing.

Park history

The park area, originally known as Kiwanis Canyon Park, was donated to the State of Oklahoma in 1956 by the City of Hinton, the Hinton Kiwanis Club, and one other individual. The 310-acre park was renamed Red Rock Canyon State Park. 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 might be closed to help offset a reduction in its budget for 2018. Red Rock Canyon State Park was on this list. The list represented 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. On November 1, 2018, the state ceased operating the park. The

leased the park to the Town of

Hinton, Oklahoma Hinton is a town in Caddo County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 3,196 as of the 2010 census, up from 2,175 in 2000. It is approximately west of Oklahoma City. Geography Hinton is located in northeastern Caddo County at (35.479004 ...

. It is now operated privately under the Red Rock Canyon Adventure Park name.

References

State parks of Oklahoma Protected areas of Caddo County, Oklahoma Landforms of Caddo County, Oklahoma Canyons and gorges of the United States {{Oklahoma-protected-area-stub