It’s nice to come across wilderness trails within a city. The Oxbow Lake and North Woods trails at Oxley Nature Center in Tulsa are a couple of scenic trails that make an easy 2-mile semi-loop with lush woods and pretty lake (pond) views.
Getting to North Woods Trailhead
These 2 trails are in the nature center’s North Woods Unit.
To get there, head to Mohawk Park, just as if heading to the Tulsa Zoo. The nature center is in the back of the park of the north end.
Instead of going in the main entrance of Oxley Nature Center, head to the northwest corner of the park and watch for the “North Woods Unit” sign (pictured) that is about 100 feet from the road.
There is not a parking area here, but I am told it is okay to park over to the side of the road on Mohawk Boulevard.
The Trails
This hike is a 2.2-mile semi-loop. Oxbow Lake Trail is the initial spur and then North Woods Trail is the loop.
The Oxbow Lake Trail is a .7-mile-long boomerang-shaped that starts at the North Woods Trailhead, heads west for about a quarter-mile, and then passes through a gate and turns to a northwest direction. After the turn, you can probably see Nelson’s Oxbow Lake on the right. This part of the trail is on an isthmus between Mallard Lake (a small triangular lake) and Nelson’s Oxbow on the right.
At about .6-mile, there is a bench with a Mallard Lake viewing area. The levee for Lake Yahola is in the distance.
About .1-mile further north is an access road crossing. After this is the North Woods Trail, mostly a loop about .9-mile long.
There is a short initial spur on North Woods Trail. Pretty quickly you arrive at the fork of the loop. On my recent hike, we took a right to take the loop counterclockwise.
The trail works its way through a mature forested area (with some cool tall trees) that is bounded by Nelson’s Oxbow Lake, Flat Rock Creek, and Bird Creek.
Final Notes
When I was last there, the signage was pretty good and the trails were pretty easy to follow and pretty well maintained.
There was a spot on North Woods where it looks like another trail is under construction and no signage to clearly indicate what it is. It wasn’t hard to figure out where the loop is to continue on though.
There is almost no elevation change on this hike. I had pretty good AT&T cell coverage.
These photos are all from my July 25, 2020 hike.
Photo Gallery
Click below for full-screen photo gallery.
Map
Oxley Nature Center: Oxbow Lake and North Woods Trails | |
|---|---|
| Location | Mohawk Park, Tulsa County, Oklahoma |
| Length/Type | Semi-loop, 2.2 miles. |
| Difficulty | Easy (1 of 5). |
| Other permitted usage? | No pets. |
| Gpx file (by Mike) | Link |
| Date Hiked | July 25, 2020 and earlier |
| Directions | Google Maps Directions to North Woods Trailhead at Oxley Nature Center |
| Official Info - Phone/Links | (918) 669-6644 Website Official Oxley North Woods Trail Brochure (pdf) |