FORT SILL, Okla. -- In the early '80s my father was in the Army and stationed in South Korea, where he met and married my mom, a Korean citizen.
As with all military life, my family would move from duty station to duty station. My mom was excited when we moved to places like Fort Carson, Colo., which gave my mom the mountains she missed so much and less excited about places like Texas -- where they live now. Though I love my home state, Texas is not quite known for its mountains (although, yes, there are some if you are up for a L-O-N-G drive).
So when I called my mom and asked her if she wanted to go hiking with me, she was both confused and excited. Where is there to go hiking in Oklahoma, she asked. I was happy to tell her I knew of a little place nearby.
Saturday rolled around and we decided we would leave at 8 a.m. to beat the Fourth of July crowd.
As we drove through the Wichita Mountain Wildlife Refuge we discovered we were late. Fishermen were already out casting their lines in hopes for a bite and families were getting their picnics ready at roadside stops. We also discovered how close we could get to the "wildlife." The lack of barriers meant longhorn cattle could make their way across roads while prairie dogs ran around mimicking "whack-a-mole" as they popped up and down out of their burrows.
It was 8:40 a.m. when we arrived at the visitor's center located in what appears to be the middle of nowhere. The drive from Key Gate to the center took about 30 minutes (we didn't quite leave right at 8 a.m.) and though the sign said they opened at 9 a.m., they went ahead and let us in anyway.
The visitor's center is worth the trip all on its own. In addition to the wealth of knowledge available at the front desk, visitors can take a stroll through exhibits which showcase local wildlife while also explaining the history of the area. My mom and I stood behind a hallway of glass watching birds play. It was almost as if they were putting on a show for us. For a non-birdwatcher, like me, it was pretty neat-o.
Back at the front of the center we looked at a 3-D topographic map and chose the tallest point as our destination. It was then we learned we could drive up Mt. Scott. Right up to the peak. We decided we didn't really need to hike, and we should probably be more considerate of my husband and dad who were back home watching the children. They'd probably wait to have lunch until we got back and we didn't want to keep them. Yes, we were considering their feelings when we decided to drive up Mt. Scott.
We'd passed the entrance to the mountain on the way in, and almost missed it on the way back. The road circles the mountain with frequent areas to pull over and take photos.
Igneous boulders from the Paleozoic Era make up Mt. Scott's 2,464 feet although you get a 500-foot head start because of elevation. The mountain, named after General Winfield Scott (who served on active duty as a general longer than any other in American history) is the second highest peak in the refuge. We parked at the top (there is a parking lot at the top!) and made our way to the edge, climbing up and over boulders before pausing to take photos (photos taken at an angle that made it look like we were moments from falling off the face the mountain).
We saw lizards, at least one hummingbird and a few dozen people while we hopped from rock to rock. My mom commented on the size of the boulders, some large enough for a family to have a picnic she said, hinting strongly at an activity she expected to do on her return to the mountain. But she spent most of her time gushing over the view, the way the wind felt, the shape of the mountains in the distance and the number of fruit trees on Mt. Scott.
She talked about telling her Korean friends about the "hike," about inviting them to come with her in the fall and about how much she missed the mountains. I, on the other hand, listened, feeling pretty good about asking her to join me. Korea is a long way away and it's not often my mother can go visit her family there so I'm happy to give her even a little taste of what she misses about her home. It's like they say, if the mountain won't come to Muhammad, than Muhammad must go to the mountain. Only in this case, if Korea can't come to my mom, then I'll have to bring a little bit of Korea to her.
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