Hiking in Stone State Park.
While walking the miles of footpaths in Stone State Park, you can’t help but be in awe that Sioux City has such a magnificent area. Stone State park is full of activities for people who are adventurous, and those who would rather stick for not getting lost. That parks’ trees have leaves that are already falling, some trees turning golden, and the warm air blowing through the trees.
First inhabited by the Dakota Sioux, the land has plenty of history. After the Native Americans left the land, a man named Daniel Talbot started buying it piece by piece. The land was turned over the Iowa Department of Natural Resources in 1925 and now totals 1,242 acres. This land expands through Iowa and South Dakota, running along the Missouri River in North Sioux City.
Although it’s a bit of a drive from the Morningside campus, it’s worth it. My friend Madison and I make the trip together, her with a camera around her neck and me with a backpack with pen, paper, and water. Arriving at Stone State Park, you come to a fork in the road- you go up the hill or you go down the hill. The roads are narrow and steep, winding around the hills. Signs point in all directions. We drive all the way down to Turtle Lake, park the car, and start hiking. It’s a ten-minute walk to reach the lake on dirt paths that go through the forest. As Madison and I reach the lake, we notice that the path is worn and uneven, as if water used to travel over it. The rust colored path is as hard as stone, like the dried up rivers around the Mid-West due to the drought. The area to the left ad right of that dried up path is given life from the lake nearby.
The main portion of Turtle Lake sits up on a hill. The grassy area has trees that shade it, letting the warm sunshine seep through the branches and leaves, casting shadows on the green floor. The wind carries the smell of rotting leaves, moist dirt, and a slight swamp smell. Heading down the hill, the wind picks up and causes the lake to ripple with waves. The floating dock tilts slightly as I step on it. The water is murky, but still, I see the bluegills swimming happily along the seaweed. Across the water, the sunlight hits a tree that hangs out over the lake, illuminating the leaves and turning the tree golden. It’s beautiful.
We hike for another hour, going along the trails exploring and trying not to get lost. In the expansive forest area, the trails travel far. There are trees that have fallen in past storms, trees that are rotting away, and trees that are hundreds of years old. Somewhere near us, a woodpecker drills a hole into a tree trunk, the noise echoing through the quiet space. Rabbits run across the trail when they hear my footsteps and hop into hiding.
After an hour and a half of hiking, Madison and I decide to leave- it’s getting warm out in Sioux City as we reach the peak of the afternoon. We loved being out there. As Madison put it, “Stone State park has a lot of horse and hiking trails. It’s a great place for families to visit.”
Stone State Park brings visitors to the area. If you want to hike, run, ride horses, fish, camp, or go sight seeing, Stone State Park has it all. It’s great for people to get out of their comfort area, for the adventurous to explore, and for families to have picnics and go fishing. Stone State Park is a magnificent area in Siouxland to visit.
To view all the available activities, go to the DNR website.
(Photos courtesy of Madison Fisher.)
Turtle Lake in Stone Stone Park.