Love Your Local State Park -Oakwood State Park
30 minute drive from Brooking, SD
Roughly 4.5 miles of trails
Unlimited free visits with annual state park pass ($30 annually)
One of my favorite not so secret secrets in and around Brookings is Oakwood State Park. Our family heads there year-round for a chance to get out and wander in a bit of nature. It astounds me how the kids can climb into the car after school some afternoons looking downtrodden and morose; I say it is a nice day and we need to go walk the dogs, I swing by the house and grab the dogs and then a half hour later the kids climb out of the car with grins and vivaciousness while running toward the trail. They immediately launch into the imagination games they only play together when out on hiking trails. A priceless retreat from the drudgery of school and work. It works every time.
Oakwood offers just about any recreation you can want on a small scale. For our family it is a way to quickly get out on a whim and enjoy a short hike, or shore fishing – not to likely catch a fish but just for an afternoon of playing along the shore and thinking we are fishing (kids are still young enough that they don’t spend much time with a pole in hand anyways), and we have found some great pavement that isn’t well traveled for some hilly skateboarding.
I would call us opposite season enthusiasts. In the summer the park is teaming with campers and bicycles; when we do head over to float in the lake, I admire the comradery of the camper villages with lawn chairs encircling fire rings, and games of corn-hole and kids leisurely biking down to play in the lake. But it ultimately feels crowded and too tamed, a bit trampled if you will. For souls that seek solitude in nature, to wander unnoticed except by the birds and critters, it doesn’t fit the bill. Fortunately in South Dakota the trailers roll in and out on a clockwork season from Memorial Day to Labor Day, and for the other two-thirds of the year the park is blissfully vacant. If you go mid-week you rarely see another person; and in mid-winter you can be the only car in the entire place.
Tetonkaha Trail
Distance .8 mile
This is my favorite place in the whole park and we get on this trail at least a few times a month with the kids. For one thing this trail circles the perimeter of Scout Island, which has a nice history that is told in placards about the Boy Scouts using the island. They have recently installed a trail head sign that includes brochures and scavenger hunt lists that the kids love to take along on our walk. When you hit the tip of the island there is a bench that is a natural resting spot to sit and enjoy looking out over the lake and look for what birds or fish might be around. There is a mailbox nearby with a card instructing kids to take a picture of themselves by the box. When you leave the park, you can stop by the office and show them your picture from the day to get a prize. The kids are always excited by this idea. I like that the island is naturally enclosed and I can feel comfortable letting everyone have a bit more freedom to explore at will, since when you park you can see if there are other cars there, and most of the times that we go out there are rarely other visitors on the trail at the same time. Our own private island to explore – priceless!
Prairie Trail
Distance 1.2
Another nice trail to feel like you are out in a bit of nature and away from the world. This trail leads through a bit of forrest near the lake and also cuts across the prairie grasses. You can see this trail as you drive to the park since the road intersects it. It seems longer than 1.2 miles so I will have to pay closer attention the next time we do this walk and see if we are inadvertently combining this with one of the other shorter trails. This trail doesn’t have any of the hiking signs, scavenger hunts or other established materials to keep the kids entertained, it feels more like hiking and is intresically enjoyable. The kids feel like they have earned sitting on the few benches and munching a trail snack with a bottle of water.
Mortimer Shoreline
Distance 1 mile
I have only really done this section once or twice. It runs along the main lake and is close to much of the campgrounds and road. It feels exposed. I always see ski tracks in the winter and think it must be a great levelness for cross country skiing.
In the four years we have been in this region our family has made many happy memories at Oakwood. When we first visited my husband dismissed it as not wilderness. True, it is a very tame park, but I saw what it was perfect for. With a family of young children, it is the perfect training ground for bigger adventures in the wilderness. It is so close that we don’t need to spend any time prepping or packing to go, if we are hungry or the weather turns; we just head home. The kids go regularly enough that we can talk about the changing seasons, the various animals and their seasonal habits, and the kids realize outdoor fun is available no matter what the weather. With activities like the snowshoe race and the kids ice fishing tournament being fun memories. I find any excuse to head out for a little while and have used the park to entertain guests and as a training ground for bigger hikes.
Oakwood still has many adventures waiting for us. They host many events designed to help kids get closer to the possibilities available in the outdoors. The kids are strong enough swimmers now that we will rent canoes this summer and also spend more time at the beach. We also hope to rent a cabin for a few days just for the fun of it. I am grateful to have so much waiting just a short jaunt down the road.
tamingthemilemonster 