Every year for the past 7 years, my sons and I, my brother-in-law and his sons, my father-in-law and other brother-in-law have taken a trip to the Wichita Mountain Wildlife Refuge (WMWR) near Lawton, Oklahoma. On these trips, we generally spend 2 days hiking, bouldering and rock climbing. This year, for the first time, it was just my oldest son (12), myself, my brother-in-law and his son (11). So, this time we felt we'd be a little adventurous. We got more than we bargained for!

For those who have never been to the WMWR, it is an extremely rugged piece of property near Fort Sill outside of Lawton, Oklahoma. The mountains are small compared to most ranges in the Rockies and even the Appalachians, but there are few maintained trails and the terrain is generally covered with very large chunks of granite strewn about. You must keep a watchful eye on the trail at your feet to avoid twisting an ankle or stumbling and doing a face plant into the 10 grit sandpaper-like rocks.

Hey Guys, McKay and Ryan here again. Last year we were defeated in our attempts to hike the Bull of The Woods loop. We wrote an email to you guys about it called "the bridge is out and the the trail is on fire". Well, this year, we did it. We hiked about 30 miles in three days.

We set out from the Wild Basin Trailhead parking lot on a Wednesday and would return on Saturday. The primary lot was fairly full, but mostly dayhikers.  Over the next 4 days, we would see roughly 10 or so backcountry hikers, which was fantastic and a far cry from the copious amounts of backcountry hikers in the Smokies.  As with our Smokies trip, though, we still did not see a bear.  Not that I'm hoping an ursa comes rummaging through my campsite, but I would really like to see another bear.  I was fortunate to get close (but not too close) to a griz in the Tetons in 2007.

Most people are familiar with the many physical challenges of hiking. We all know about cold weather, hot weather, bruises, blisters, uphills, downhills, aches and pains. But undoubtedly, there is one challenge that trumps all of the physical afflictions, and that's the mental challenge.

The mental aspect of hiking is a head game of monumental proportions. It's offense, defense, strategy, skill, and brute force. It's as tough as a hard hitting football game, as slow paced as an extra innings 0-0 baseball game, as beautiful and balanced as a gymnastic competition. It's an emotional roller coaster of highs, lows, and swift turns of self-doubt. It makes you weaker. It makes you stronger. It makes you wonder why you want to do it. Yet, it's the head game, the mental challenge, that attracts most people to the trail.

On a recent backpacking trip in April, I had the chance to spend 5 days inside my own head, and it was quite a challenge....