Built To Roam: November 2012

Honestly speaking I never really thought too much about Oklahoma. I mean, I knew someone set us up the bomb there, and there was a musical about it.....but that's about it. So when I booked my plane tickets to see my brother graduate from boot camp, while pumped that I got to be a part of that, I didn't think I would be able to find much of anything for us to do there. It would have been easy to not think about it and just go and hope to find something to do, but if you're going to travel somewhere you wouldn't normally go and probably never will again, why wouldn't you try to see everything there is to offer? So after a little research I came up with an itinerary, and as anyone who's come on a trip with me can tell you, I'm pretty famous for that. So after the plane landed in Dallas, I promptly picked up our rental car and ripped it down to Rahr and Sons brewery for a two hour beer and chili tasting. Save for an appearance by Chuck Norris riding a bull, this was exactly what I would have expected Texas to be like. So after pounding beers on a stomach filled only with microwave Texas Chili Bowls, we got back in the car and began our three hour trip to Lawton, OK only hoping that there would be plenty of rest stops along the way.
Before I go on to talk about the hiking/exploring I just want to say that I'm pretty damn proud of Kendrick and his choice to join the Army and it was awesome to get to see him graduate boot camp. I've never really thought to much about the military, I mean I've had friends that have joined up and gone away to boot camp or been deployed, but I never really thought about it to much, it was like they had just went away for a bit and I would see them when they got back. But when Kendrick went away, it was different. Weird. I thought about it a lot more, about what he was actually doing, the commitment and all that, and after spending a week on a military base and seeing how everyone acted and presented themselves, I gained a lot more respect for anyone who chose to join up, and I was completely proud of Kendrick for that.
The Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge was the big destination for this trip, and while I've included a link to their site, sadly as with most National/state/wildlife refuge park websites, it doesn't nearly do the place justice. In a state not know for much more than being flat and perceived as mostly boring, this place was an oasis of wildlife, hell there was even "mountains" perfect for any seeker of outdoor activities. Along with miles of hiking trails, some quite a bit more difficult that you would expect, the Refuge is home to "a total of 240 species of birds, 50 species of mammals, 64 species of reptiles and amphibians, and 36 species of fish". Not to mention free roaming herds of American Bison, Rocky Mountain Elk, White-tailed deer, and Texas Longhorn cattle. In the four days spent in Lawton, we went to the Refuge a total of 4 times, and I easily could have gone back 20 more times and not have had enough time to see everything.
During my time there I went on two separate hikes: The first, a short walk over a dam, and along the banks of a pond on the Baldy Trail. The second was a longer hike over bouldery terrain on a rough trail system known as Charon's Garden Trail. The second hike was the more notable hike from this trip, and "rough trail system" was an understatement. We set out from the parking area at about 11am and made our way into the woods past a mostly dried up stream bed. After hiking in dense forest, we came out into a rocky area with low vegetation, which reminded me a lot of the hikes I did in Utah earlier this year. Sarah and I took a short side trip to attempt to scramble up a rocky mountain to get a better view of the area. After about 45 minutes of attempting to find a suitable angle of attack, I got to the top of the mountain and was pretty pumped about the great 360° view it afforded, the rock climbers who top roped it, on the other hand, were a little less enthusiastic that they had just climbed a mountain that someone scrambled up ropeless. Sorry bro's. After climbing back down, we headed up the trail and pretty quickly became completely lost. A condition we could have easily prevented had we realized trails are usually not over lose boulders and giant shrubs. After Rob the Ringleader finally came to terms with his miss-sense of direction, we headed back in what seemed like the right direct. An hour later we found the trail and headed back to the car. Honestly as long as it's not dark, and it's not in the heart of Africa, getting lost can be a fun experience, just as John Locke.
Aside from hiking, we also came to the refuge to watch a meteor shower at night (Watching meteors is a bit less fun with the fear of stampeding Buffalo's, just ask my dad.) Took a self-guided safari, that included prairie dogs, Buffalo, Elk, Lizards, and a Texas Longhorn who almost gave my mom a chest piercing, ate at a burger restaurant that had been around since 19-2 (Meers Store and Restaurant), saw a western Sheriff, dined with scorpions, and drove to the top of Mount Scott. It was the first family trip I've been on in a while, and quite simply everything about it was great. It has become increasingly hard over the years to be able to spend time with my family, and this trip was exactly what I needed. I got a reminder of how awful my dad's sense of direction is, and how much my Mom realllllllly likes to take family pictures of everything, but most importantly I was reminded of how lucky I am to have them. Easily the cheesiest post I've written so far. Thanks for reading, Cheers!

Mileage: 3.5 Miles