State Highway 38 (abbreviated SH-38) is a
state highway
A state highway, state road, or state route (and the equivalent provincial highway, provincial road, or provincial route) is usually a road that is either ''numbered'' or ''maintained'' by a sub-national state or province. A road numbered by a ...
in the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...
of
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 ...
. It runs for in an irregular south-to-north pattern in eastern
Alfalfa County, in the northwest part of the state. The highway begins at
U.S. Route 64
U.S. Route 64 (US 64) is an east–west United States highway that runs for 2,326 miles (3,743 km) from Nags Head in eastern North Carolina to just southwest of the Four Corners in northeast Arizona. The western terminus is at U.S. Route 1 ...
(US-64) in
Jet and extends to
SH-11. SH-38 provides access to
Great Salt Plains State Park
Great Salt Plains State Park is a Oklahoma state park located in Alfalfa County, Oklahoma. It is located north of Jet, Oklahoma on SH-38 and east of Cherokee. , which the road skirts on the park's eastern edge.
The road that is now SH-38 was added to the state highway system as SH-35 . The highway was renumbered to SH-38 the following year.
Route description
State Highway 38 begins at an intersection with
U.S. Highway 64
U.S. Route 64 (US 64) is an east–west United States highway that runs for 2,326 miles (3,743 km) from Nags Head in eastern North Carolina to just southwest of the Four Corners in northeast Arizona. The western terminus is at U.S. Route 1 ...
in downtown Jet.
The road heads northward along a
section line
In U.S. land surveying under the Public Land Survey System
The Public Land Survey System (PLSS) is the surveying method developed and used in the United States to plat, or divide, real property for sale and settling. Also known as the Rectang ...
for approximately .
The highway then makes a sharp turn to the east along another section line to avoid the
Great Salt Plains Lake
Great Salt Plains Lake is a reservoir located within the Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge in Alfalfa County, Oklahoma in the United States named because of the salt flats in the area and for the Salt Fork Arkansas River, which is dammed to for ...
. The highway only heads east for about one mile (1.6 km) before turning back to the north; one mile further north, the highway makes a turn to the east, again avoiding the lake.
After traveling east for , SH-38 is forced to turn back to the north by
Kegelman Air Force Auxiliary Field, a secondary airfield of
Vance Air Force Base
Vance Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located in southern Enid, Oklahoma, about north northwest of Oklahoma City. The base is named after local World War II hero and Medal of Honor recipient, Lieutenant Colonel Leon Robert Va ...
.
As the highway continues north, it forms the boundary between Kegelman AFAF to the east and the
Great Salt Plains State Park
Great Salt Plains State Park is a Oklahoma state park located in Alfalfa County, Oklahoma. It is located north of Jet, Oklahoma on SH-38 and east of Cherokee. to the west.
Upon crossing the
Salt Fork Arkansas River
The Salt Fork of the Arkansas River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed May 31, 2011 tributary of the Arkansas River in southern Kansas and northern Oklahoma in the Unite ...
, the road turns back to the west, entering the park. Within the park boundaries, SH-38 is again forced to change course by the Great Salt Plains Lake, and turns back to a due north heading. One mile (1.6 km) north of the turn, the highway passes through the unincorporated place of
Vining.
SH-38 continues north, coming to an end at
SH-11.
History
The SH-38 designation was originally given to an alignment from
SH-58 in
Carrier
Carrier may refer to:
Entertainment
* ''Carrier'' (album), a 2013 album by The Dodos
* ''Carrier'' (board game), a South Pacific World War II board game
* ''Carrier'' (TV series), a ten-part documentary miniseries that aired on PBS in April 20 ...
south to US-60 and SH-15 (now US-412). The majority of this route had been reassigned to
SH-45, with the remainder being added to
SH-132, by 1963.
The road that is now SH-38 was added to the state highway system in late 1961 to early 1962 as SH-35.
When the SH-38 designation was freed up in 1962, SH-35 was renumbered to SH-38. No further changes to the route have occurred since then.
Major intersections
References
External links
{{Attached KML, display=title,inline
SH-38 at OKHighways
038
Transportation in Alfalfa County, Oklahoma