State Highway 43 (SH-43 or OK-43) 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 ...

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 ...

, United States. It runs 65.3 miles west-to-east through

Coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when dea ...

, Atoka,

Pushmataha Pushmataha (c. 1764 – December 24, 1824; also spelled Pooshawattaha, Pooshamallaha, or Poosha Matthaw), the "Indian General", was one of the three regional chiefs of the major divisions of the Choctaw in the 19th century. Many historians cons ...

and Pittsburg counties.

Route description

SH-43 begins at

US-75 U.S. Route 75 is a major north–south United States Numbered Highways, U.S. Highway that extends in the central United States. The highway's northern terminus is in Noyes, Minnesota, at the Canada–United States border, Canadian border, wh ...

SH-3 The Sikorsky SH-3 Sea King (company designation S-61) is an American twin-engined anti-submarine warfare (ASW) helicopter designed and built by Sikorsky Aircraft. A landmark design, it was one of the first ASW rotorcraft to use turboshaft engin ...

in Coalgate, the seat of Coal County. It runs east from Coalgate for toward

US-69 U.S. Route 69 (US 69) is a major north–south United States highway. When it was first created, it was only long, but it has since been expanded into a Minnesota to Texas cross-country route. The highway's southern terminus (as well as ...

. Before meeting US-69, it crosses into

Atoka County Atoka County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of the 2010 census, the population was 14,007. Its county seat is Atoka. The county was formed before statehood from Choctaw Lands, and its name honors a Choctaw Chief named ...

and over

Atoka Reservoir Lake Atoka Reservoir (also called Atoka Lake) is a reservoir in southeastern Oklahoma, north of Atoka, Oklahoma, county seat of Atoka County, Oklahoma. It was built in 1959 to expand the water supply for Lake Stanley Draper in Oklahoma City and At ...

. Two boat ramps on the reservoir are accessible from SH-43. After crossing the reservoir, SH-43 reaches US-69, which it begins a

concurrency Concurrent means happening at the same time. Concurrency, concurrent, or concurrence may refer to: Law * Concurrence, in jurisprudence, the need to prove both ''actus reus'' and ''mens rea'' * Concurring opinion (also called a "concurrence"), a ...

with. US-69 and SH-43 head south, passing through

Flora Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous) native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' gut flora'' or '' skin flora''. E ...

, an unincorporated place, and in between Atoka Reservoir and Sub-Penitentiary Lake. The two highways pass to the west of Grants Gap before reaching Stringtown. There, SH-43 splits off to the east, leaving US-69 five miles (8 km) south of where the two highways first joined. At Stringtown, SH-43 turns back to the east, paralleling Chickasaw Creek south of Grants Gap. The highway runs along the southern edge of the Atoka Wildlife Management Area west of unincorporated Redden. SH-43 has an interchange with the

Indian Nation Turnpike The Indian Nation Turnpike, also designated State Highway 375 (SH-375), is a toll road in southeastern Oklahoma, United States, running between Hugo and Henryetta, Oklahoma, a distance of . It is the longest tollway in the state. Route descript ...

, east of Stringtown. The

diamond interchange A diamond interchange is a common type of road junction, used where a controlled-access highway crosses a minor road. Design The freeway itself is grade-separated from the minor road, one crossing the other over a bridge. Approaching the ...

, Exit 38 from the turnpike, carries the destination cities of Stringtown and Daisy. Daisy lies just east of the turnpike on SH-43. East of Daisy, SH-43 passes just north of unincorporated

Goss Goss may refer to: Places * Goss, Georgia, a place in Georgia, United States * Goss, Mississippi, United States * Goss, Missouri, United States *Göss Abbey (Stift Göß), Leoben, Austria *Goss Moor, Cornwall, United Kingdom *Goss Stadium at ...

, then crosses into

Pushmataha County Pushmataha County is a county in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of the 2010 census, the population was 11,572. Its county seat is Antlers. The county was created at statehood from part of the former territory of the C ...

. Turkey Mountain is just south of the highway as it enters the county. The route travels through the Jackfork Creek basin, a low area between the Jack Fork Mountains and the Big Caney Mountains. After passing through another unincorporated place, Adel, the highway cuts across the far southeast corner of Pittsburg County. SH-43 re-enters Pushmataha County southwest of the far south arm of Sardis Lake, a reservoir formed by impounding Jackfork Creek. The highway runs along the south shore of the lake. At the southwest corner of the lake, SH-43 runs across the top of the lake's dam. Northeast of the dam, the highway intersects SH-2. This intersection is the highway's eastern terminus.

Junction list

External links

SH-43 at OKHighways.com

References

{{reflist 043 Transportation in Coal County, Oklahoma Transportation in Atoka County, Oklahoma Transportation in Pushmataha County, Oklahoma Transportation in Pittsburg County, Oklahoma