Camping in Whispering Pines Campground
We woke up to a chilly 32 degrees but the sun was shining. I made mini waffles for breakfast and then I started putting things away because we were moving on. We're not leaving Oklahoma we're just going 120 miles to Robbers Cave State Park. We were on the road around 9:30.
As we were leaving the camping area we stopped at the dump station. The tanks really didn't need to be dumped but it was convenient. The dump station was brand new, it had two dumps and you can pull in from either direction. Before leaving Beavers Bend Recreation Area we stopped at the dam to look at Broken Bow Lake. We had been hearing the siren about opening gates since the rain but we didn't see any gates open. The lake was built by the U.S. Corps of Engineers between 1961 and 1970. It a beautiful lake.
Plaque for Broken Bow Lake
Broken Bow Lake
The route was two lane highways through small towns. We saw a lot of cattle with calves and horses. We drove through a mountain pass, at places there were switchbacks and Larry had to slow down to 15mph. As we drove we saw logging trucks and areas that were logged and replanted. We stopped in Talihina, OK to fill the Minnie with gas. Then we parked the Minnie in a lot and had lunch. After lunch we continued on.
We arrived at Robbers Cave State Park at 2:00. We didn't have to check in but Larry stopped at the park sign and picked up a map of the park and hiking trails. This is the first time we have been here, the park is huge and is on both sides of the highway making it a bit challenging to find Whispering Pines campground. There are two campgrounds in our area, Whispering Pines and Old Circle. The signs of the Oklahoma state parks are gorgeous and big so we had no problem finding our site. The site has power and water, picnic table and fire ring and a lot of trees.
Once we set up the Minnie I played my Event: Medium Mayhem Mini of 5 games. It took me 14 minutes and 58 seconds, which put me in 13th place in my group. Then we went on 2.5 mile hike. We hiked the Coon Ridge Trail, which is a 2 mile loop. The terrain was challenging because of all the big rocks but we didn't have to climb any hills. The trail weaved through the trees and was very pretty. As we hiked we saw beautiful rock formations. The trail was very well marked with red hiking figures. At this park the trails are color coded, which is great because we know what trail we're on. Part of the Coon Ridge trail is shared by Belle Starr Loop, which has white hiking figures. We had a great hike.
When we got back to the Minnie I finished playing my computer games, which were the Solitaire and Mahjong Daily Challenges. For dinner I heated up the leftover tamale pie. After dinner I walked around for an hour and a half so I could get my steps. I walked to the lodge but didn't take any pictures because it was undergoing a major rebuild. Then I walked around the cabin area, they have a lot of pretty cabins that were built by the CCC. The cabin section had a playground and it took me about 10 minutes to walk around. Most of the cabins look over the mountainside. I walked around the cabin section three times. Then I walked around the Old Circle Campground three times. As I walked I said hi to the other campers. I had a great walk. When I got back I made cookies for dessert.
One of the cabins
A couple more cabins
The restroom in the Old Circle Campground
After dessert I went outside and finished my steps. I ended up doing 26,500, which put me in 3rd place in my group. We had a super day.
No comments:
Post a Comment
I would love to hear friendly comments on anything at all. Ruth