Category Archives: Hiking

Camping, Canoeing, Hiking, My Family, Parks

Looking for the good moments

06/13/2026 Danielle Huddleston Leave a comment

It has been 3yrs since I last posted.

Life got busy and something needed to be dropped.

Then life got very very hard and I was just fighting to keep above the waves.

But today I was looking for a place we had gone on my blog and realized how many things I had written down about our lives that I had totally forgotten.

So I want to document what good things happened in ours lives in the last three years.

I need the reminder.

So to start here is the moments I want to hold tight to in 2023.

We went to a local BBQ festival and it ended up being so fun and Nick and the big kids got to eat until they couldn’t possibly eat any more! HA

We went on the most beautiful trip to Minnesota and Indiana. So much bike riding.

The girls and I did a long bike ride through Itasca State Park and it will be a core memory for my life. They did amazing.

We got to do the Steam Threshers Reunion in MN and it is such an epic event!

We went up to Voyagers.

Am I crying looking at these?

Yes.

I had no clue this would be our last big trip for a long time.

We would go on a small camping trip in November but this was it.

I thought this was the beginning of our future of travel.

But life changes plans.

Jay Cooke State Park was beautiful.

Split Lighthouse on Lake Superior.

Maquoketa Caves State Park in Iowa was like stepping back in time.

Caden and I went to explore just the two of us later in the day and he explored the caves to his hearts content.

Man alive, I wish I had known then that it might be his last big adventure with me.

He is 18 now and talking about college and moving and just, life.

We stayed at state parks in Indiana during the week then stayed with my parents over the weekend.

First up was Turkey Run State Park and so much bike riding.

We paddled part of the park and it is so much more work when you do it yourself vs. paying someone.

But it was an experiance!

Our youngest was obsessed the whole trip with finding edible berries.

Mill Creek State Park

We went up to visit my sister and do the giant historic event held in her town. It was so big we could have done multiple days there.

I think this was the last time I saw her. It’s been so long.

On the way back to Oklahoma we stopped at the George Washington Carver National Monument.

I went zipling for my 40th birthday with friends and it was so amazing!

In November we camped in Arkansas near Mt Magazine and I did a hike I had been wanting to do that goes from Mt Magazine to the campsite.

The twins even did some with me!

I believe they did 8.2 miles with me and I had 4 left to cove lake.

This was our last trip we took.

We haven’t gone anywhere outside of Oklahoma since.

We have tried to have small adventures still though and I will be working on a post of those for the next year.

Because I really need to concentrate on the good.

Camping, Hiking, History

Hawthorn Bluff Campground ~Lake Oolagah

06/15/2022 Danielle Huddleston Leave a comment

We did another week of living life in the rv while Nick went to work! This time at Lake Oolagah!

I thought we would be staying in a lakeside spot like last time but the site map for booking ended up being a bit off and we were just on the otherside of the road.

It ended up being a blessing because I was not sure if I wanted to worry about kids near the cliff all week anyway.

I had lots of plans to visit the surrounding area while we were rving starting with day one!

Then I realized I had left my purse in my husbands vehicle…

It ended up being a perfect low key day though!

We hiked at the Skull Trail and took the longest loop which follows near the lake mostly.

It’s about 1 mile long for the longest loop

These guys and pill bugs were all over the trees!

We went swimming later at the swimming area near our campground

It rained a lot for the whole week but we were able to go to Will Rogers Birthplace Ranch still.

I wanted to hike the next day but it was going to storm so we quickly checked out the Teaching Garden in Claremore and then headed to the Will Rogers Museum

All the rain meant the dam near us was overflowing and had lots of birds.

This little guy blocked our trail on our way back from the swimming beach to our campground one day!!!!!! My youngest son almost stepped on it!

We checked out the Summerfest at Collinsville and it was a beautiful way to end the day.

They have it on the second Thursday of the month through the summer and show a movie in the park also when it gets dark.

Had a great time and I am already planning when we can go again!

Camping, Hiking

Thunderstorms, loud neighbors, and leaky air mattresses…our time in the Daniel Boone National Forest

05/22/2022 Danielle Huddleston Leave a comment

Even with the hardships and struggles that come with travel and camping I find myself disappointed that it is over.

30mins into leaving my parents house on our way to Kentucky our brake caliper locked up and needed replaced.

Not going to miss the leaky air mattress though…kind of reminded me of my parents old waterbed but without the fun water.

Red River Gorge in Kentucky won me over with the first hike.

The woods felt earthy, deep, and wonderful. And I knew I would miss them.

Mountain Laurel abounded as well as magnolias, giving the place a rainforest and magical feel.

Thunderstorms came which lead to a lot of “keep away from the sides of the tent!” But also falling asleep to the sounds of rain (and let’s be honest kids complaining of rain leaking in).

Tearing down and setting up the camp is stressful and not my favorite but the endless possibilities to explore make it worth it.

I missed our RV but enjoyed being closer to the forest. I did not enjoy being closer to loud neighbors that liked to stay up until 2am though…

Cumberland falls took me back in time and I reread “Moonbow Inn” by Laura Frantz while we stayed there. Seeing the places described in the book made it come alive.

Cumberland Falls State Park Campground was a letdown after the beauty and peace of the Koomer Ridge campground. The spaces were smaller, tons of light flooded our tent all night, and the heat and bugs were pretty oppressive but I loved the falls.

Next time I would just stop for the day. But I am glad we got the chance to hike out to Dog Slaughter Falls ( my kids were concerned about taking our dog to such a tragically named place though). Hardly anyone was on the trail and the hike and falls were breathtaking.

I feel like we went at a great time of the year, bugs were not too bad, the weather was pretty good although it got a bit hot once or twice, and the crowds were non existent.

I would not mind going in early May again!