My Memories of the State Park Essays -- Personal Experience

When I think about my favorite childhood places to visit, one spot stands out above the rest. My parents took my family to the State Park every year on Columbus Day weekend. Cramped in a station wagon between my three other brothers in the back seat, I remember the car ride to seemingly take triple the amount of time it really took. The time that it took to get to the state park was always increased when my parents would stop for lunch at the half way point, something they did each and every time. I knew we were close when I saw a sign for the Mall. It was a very weathered sign on the side of an even more deteriorating barn that could not have been larger than a classroom. I always laughed to myself about this sign because even though the sign advertised the mall was four miles ahead, the lettering of â€Å"4 miles ahead† was in a text size that you could barely make out as a passenger in a car traveling fifty miles per hour. If you were not paying attention, you would mistake this element torn building as the actual mall and feel a slight pity for the poor town. Though, seeing this sign and feeling the pity was a small price to pay for nearly being at your favorite place on Earth and out of your cramped conveyance. Shortly after the sign, there are road signs for the State Park which lead you to a steep, winding mountain road. Going up this incline in an overstuffed, late model station wagon seemed like it took more time than the two hour car ride it took to get to it. Then, finally, a carved boulder on the right side of the road appeared and proclaimed â€Å"STATE PARK.† This rock always had special meaning to me. It was a massive stone that never shifted from where it settled probably several decades ago. Th... ...ss visitors great experiences and upon arrival to it, it will be your turn to have them. The State Park holds many other places that offer different sorts of ventures, but when you truly respect the land, the tiniest encounters often yield the largest rewards. When you forego visiting the popular tourist destinations and decide to make your own exploits, the possibility of experiencing true freedom is increased. Going to a crowded beachfront by the lake, waiting in lines for bathrooms or to buy worms for fishing has less potential for adventure than simply walking into the woods without so much as a destination. There, in the woods, you will forget for hours that you live in society. Shortly after that absence of thought, you will find yourself doing unexpected and fulfilling activities that will shape your mind and outlook on life for as long as you live.