I have forgotten the last time I really took the time to enjoy a sunrise. This past weekend we camped at Lake Murray near Ardmore Oklahoma, right across from Tucker Tower as we usually do but this time there were so few people it seemed we had the lake and the campground to ourselves. I took a break from my self-induced change of eating habit and enjoyed the all american cuisine; the hotdog. My son grilled them and we did a taste test of two brands and we both agreed that mine was far superior and yet at the same time-your camping so it doesn’t really matter how good your dogs are-your camping so everything tastes better. I am partial to Nathans and Hebrew National-I’m just sayin.
We got to watch deer from across the lake and I wasn’t sure who was watching who-except for the fact that we had flash lights and they didn’t. The night was the perfect start to fall although the moon was so bright it felt like it was daylight all night. I actually slept even if the wind was gusting at a ridiculous rate and we were wondering if the tent was going to fly off without us-it was pretty perfect all in all.
The next morning, I got to enjoy the sunrise, kayak for three hours and enjoy my sons sausage and eggs-my change of diet habits start again on Monday. After kayaking we went to a place that I have visited many times but I felt like I was seeing it for the first time, Tucker Tower. A long walk from the parking lot to the upper deck gave me quite a workout but by the time I got to the top I was ready for more. The gold, amber and red leaves were perfect complements to the deep blue green lake. I think I have only been up during the later winter months and never got the full beauty of the autumn foliage. My son had been up once before but it was so long ago it was all new to him. One interesting thing about the top of the tower-the overabundance of lady bugs and millipedes, we split our visit between looking at the amazing lake and checking out the busy lady bugs as they swarmed us.
Our next stop was Turner Falls in Davis Oklahoma, another place I had visited many times before but for some reason it was particularly beautiful that afternoon and the light was at the perfect angle. I have painted the waterfall before and I have already started sketching a new one because the light and color were so amazing. I was already a bit tired from climbing to the top of the tower and kayaking against the wind-did I mention the wind was still strong during the afternoon and directly in the opposite direction as we were kayaking. So I wasn’t planning on doing the hiking to the top of the falls, so instead we hiked over the falls and to the other side of the mountain, again by the time I was done I was ready for more exercise, nothing like adrenalin to give you lots of energy.
On the other side of the falls you can look over the river that feeds the falls and explore a second cave that I had never seen before. I had visited the falls many times and never had a chance to the see this side of the falls. The fall foliage was breathtaking against the mountains surrounding the river. I still am eager to explore the other miles of trails around the falls and feel like I had just discovered Turner Falls after so many years of just fishing for trout and taking pictures of the falls, there is a whole other area of this park I am eager to explore.
It was just a weekend but the fact that we did so much made it feel more like a full vacation. We got home early in the afternoon, tired but refreshed and ready for the week. I think it is not just what we choose to do on our vacations it’s how open we are to nuances and find new aspects of places we’ve been before.