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| Did the Vikings carve these runes? |
It just may be possible that Vikings stood on a hilltop in Southeastern Oklahoma around the year 600. Say what??? On a rugged mountainside near the Oklahoma/Arkansas border sits a massive flat piece of sandstone with eight symbols carved on its face. The symbols are believed to be Viking runes that say Glome Dal or Valley owned by Glome. Other scholars believe that it says Gnome Dal or Valley of the Gnomes. This is not the only one of these runestones in the area. Imagine!
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| The road to the runestone goes straight up! |
The theory is that the Vikings traveled in their shallow draft ships into the Gulf of Mexico, up the Mississippi, turned west onto the Arkansas River and then onto the much smaller Poteau River. So, we just had to stop and see the runestone they may have left behind on our winding trip North and East toward home.
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| Along the hiking trail down to the runestone |
The earliest eyewitness sighting on record of the runestone was in 1898. Back then it was called the "Indian Rock." Interest in the stone came and went over time, until a local resident, Gloria Farley, who had visited it in 1928, rediscovered it in 1951. It was through her efforts that the runes have been studied and the area around the stone was made into an Oklahoma State Park in 1970. In 2011, in response to budgetary constraints, the state park was turned over to the City of Heavener to operate and maintain. The characters have been studied and translated by various runic scholars over the years.
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| Yup, mountains in Oklahoma - along the trail down to the runestone site |
The runestone is not without controversy. Some archeologists believe that it was inscribed in the 19th century, perhaps by a Scandinavian immigrant to Heavener. Other than the other similar stones (which could also be "modern" in origin) there is no other evidence of Viking presence in the area. Nevertheless, the stone is quite interesting.
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| Such a lovely valley (can see why Glome might want to claim it!) |
Heavener is off of a local highway. To get to the park, you drive along a narrow drive that seems to go straight up the side of the mountain. The view from the top of the lovely valley below is quite spectacular. I could see why Glome might want to claim the valley as his own.
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| The runestone in it's protective shed - it's really big |
To get to the runestone, you hike along a rough path that hugs the side of the mountain. The stone itself is protected from the weather by a small shed with glass separating it from you, interesting signs describing how the Vikings might have traveled there, and the locations of the other stones.
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| Lovely, green SE OK |
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| We prefer to travel on local roads, they take you through such pretty country |
We were very impressed with Southeastern Oklahoma. It is largely part of the Choctaw Nation. The rolling hills are thickly covered with hardwood trees. It was the first time that we had seen a forest in full leaf since September, and all of that lovely green was a welcome sight. While it had been warm on the Texas coastline, there aren't any forests there.
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Lake Wister, west of Heavener OK
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