Keystone Mountain Bike & Hiking Trail ~Keystone Lake, OK

 I asked my husband if we could hike the Keystone trail so I could get new pictures to do an updated blog post.

We visit this trail a couple times a year but recently we have been running it so I do not bring my camera.

It was nice to go through it at a little slower pace last Saturday.

entrance

The parking lot is located across from the Keystone State Park.

I realized when we pulled up that it can be a little hard to find unless you already know what you are looking for so I took a picture of the entrance.

start

Once you pull into the parking lot there are two main entrances to the trail system.

We usually do a loop so it does not really matter which way we go.

There is a map at the travelok.com site to help you out though.

trailhead

This was one of the earlier hikes my husband and I did when we first got married, almost 10yrs ago!

We had gotten turned around a bit and went longer than intended(at least that is what I was told).

I remember thinking I was going to die…

My face was all red(I do not glisten, I sweat, and turn into a tomato) and I was breathing really hard.

My husband barely broke a sweat.

He almost got a rock thrown at him when at the very end he said “Hey! I am starting to sweat!”.

We were at slightly different fitness levels.

marker

I fared better during this hike, it is nice to know I am in better shape than I once was.

There is an easy loop for beginners(green).

It is a stacked loop system with 8miles of trail total with the longest uninterrupted loop(with portions of each loop) being around 5 miles.

nicktrail

turtle

We saw two turtles nesting while out!

I had never seen this before!

turtletrail

rocky

Portions of the trail are really rocky so I try to make sure I have sturdy boots when hiking there.

backpack

rocks

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rock

trailsigns

I think the difficulty rating is geared more towards bikers but I am not one hundred percent sure on that.

The Expert portion does not seem as difficult as others we have done with a similar rating.

tatur

ferns

You can avoid brushing up against foliage for most of the trail so we were able to walk away with few if any ticks.

plants

break

curls

myboys

kentucky

expert

creek

trail5

paintbrush

climb

trail3

waterdrops

We heard a storm coming but thankfully it was not too bad.

I welcome rain while hiking(I was hot!) but I had not brought a bag for my camera and I do not like to hike in a thunderstorm.

trail2

rain

His hair goes curly in the rain.

family

We ended up with over 5 miles!

Nick had been in China for a week so I was pretty happy to be able to get out and hike a longer hike!

I try to stay away from long hikes when I am alone with the boys.

It felt really good to push myself!

If you live in the area you should check out this trail!

It is a great hike!

If you want to find more local hikes I have made it easy for you.

Check out my Oklahoma board on Pinterest, I included the map feature so you can easily find hikes and events I have done or want to do in the area.

At first I said no.

After watching me take many pictures of this cute little bunny that visited our yard, my youngest asked if he could take some pictures.

I had just put the camera back in the house and sat down in the hammock.

I knew I should probably put a strap on the camera(we never use them) if he was going to walk around with it.

So I said now was not a good time.

As soon as I said it though I realized his excitement and interest made it a great time.

I did not know how interested he would be in taking pictures when it was more convenient for me.

Isn’t this one of the reasons I homeschool so that my kids can pursue something because they actually want to know more about it instead of it being the next chapter in the textbook?

So I went inside and got my backup camera ready for him to use.

flowers

I think saying not right now is okay.

My boys know that I am not there to grant their every wish.

takingpics

I am just glad this time I said yes.

happy

My oldest tends to question shots.

He deletes them and tries again.

My youngest on the other hand had only good things to say about his pictures.

I heard “got it” over and over again.

his

These are two of the shots he took.

his2

I love seeing my boys learn with enjoyment.

Woodward Park and the Linnaeus Teaching Gardens ~Tulsa, OK

WoodwardRoseGarden

Last week we went with friends to Woodward Park to see the roses and visit the Linnaeus Teaching Gardens.

I had been talking to my oldest about bringing his camera for over a week and he was really excited to take pictures of the flowers.

We were running short on time so I had checked his camera before we left, realized his memory card was full, and transferred them onto the computer.

When we got to the park he turned on his camera and told me it said there was no memory card…

Oops.

I forgot to put it back in the camera.

We hurried to the nearest Walgreens though and I bought him another memory card.

I would usually not do that but I had really talked up this trip to him.

jrosepetal

These two shots are his.

jlittle

tadpoles

Their ponds were filled with tadpoles in all different stages of growth!

tadpoles2

jtadpoles

His shot of the tadpoles.

her

I am surprised she looked up at me.

They are so used to me stalking them with the camera, they do not even notice me usually.

looking

rose2

pictures

He kept showing them the shots he got.

So cute.

jrose

This is his picture of a rose.

photographer

jsilly

The shot he was taking.

rose

jus

He requested that we stand in front of the roses for a picture.

The kids were smiling and looking in the first two he took but the ISO was way too high and they were to bright.

I helped him fix it but they were done by then.

jinside

These next three are his.

jflowers

jhandful

 

teachinggardens

On our way into the Teaching Gardens.

linneaus

I need a pond like this and someone to take care of it…

fish

checking

water

jfairygarden

This is his.

She wanted him to take a picture of the fairy gardens.

her2

bridge

Looking at the fish.

bridge2

jme

These two are his.

jfish

greenhouse

We decided to visit the greenhouse in the park before we left.

frog

This little guy was hiding in one of the plants.

jfrog

This is his shot.

I really enjoy seeing the day through his eyes!

orchid

I always enjoy visiting the teaching gardens!

If you live in the area be sure to check it out this summer!

The roses start fading pretty soon so you  need to go soon to see them.

Do you have a favorite garden in your area?

Here is the post from our visit last year.