About 40 miles southeast of Alva, the Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge protects a 32,000-acre expanse of salt flat, mudflat, marsh, and reservoir along the Salt Fork of the Arkansas River. The salt crust is a remnant of an ancient inland sea; on a clear summer morning the surface is blindingly white and you can see for miles in every direction.
The refuge is one of the most important stops on the Central Flyway. Whooping cranes, sandhill cranes, and white pelicans stop here on migration, and the area supports one of the few inland breeding populations of snowy plover in North America. Spring and autumn bring the biggest concentrations of birds, but the refuge has something to see in every season.
The most unusual feature is the selenite crystal digging area, open from April through mid-October. The Salt Plains are the only place on earth where selenite crystals form with hourglass-shaped inclusions of reddish-brown clay. You are allowed to dig for and keep up to ten pounds of crystals per person per day — the crystals form just below the wet surface layer and can reach the size of a fist. Bring a small shovel, plenty of water, and a broad-brimmed hat; the open flats offer no shade and the sun reflects off the salt.
Lake Ellsworth, the refuge's reservoir, is popular with anglers and is good for waterfowl in winter. The visitor contact station near Jet has trail maps and bird checklists. The drive in from Alva or Waynoka passes through wheat and red-dirt ranch country that has its own austere appeal.