My Favorite Place: Grand Lake o' the Cherokees

(A view of a part of Grand Lake near Grove, Oklahoma.) 
Source:Wikimedia Commons 

Growing up in a rural area I was blessed to be a short drive away from bodies of water at all times and this lead to my summers being spent on the back of a boat or floating in the cool water to escape the Oklahoma summer heat. Originally my favorite lake to visit was Lake Tenkiller in eastern Oklahoma, this is where I learned to swim and would spend summer weekends on the deck of my grandparents' cabin there. This little piece of paradise  sadly disappeared for me when my grandparents' decided it was time to sell their cabin and to move onto different things in their lives at the time. For several years after this I was limited to the shores of the Kaw Lake and Lake Ponca, both of which are located in my hometown of Ponca City, Oklahoma on the Kansas border. These two bodies of water were fine for the time and both provided me the opportunity for lifelong memories to be made. Still, there was always something missing that you just couldn't receive from traveling to a lake five minutes from your home. Traveling to a different city, interacting with new individuals who you are unfamiliar with, these were things I missed about our summer visits to Lake Tenkiller. During college I have been fortunate enough to make some truly close friends and this has allowed me the opportunity to travel to a lake that was once foreign to me, but is now slowly becoming home away from home. I have spent the majority of the last three summers on the waters of Grand Lake creating lasting memories I won't soon forget, and new traditions I plan to carry on for years to come.I am never more relaxed or truly at home as a I am when I am on the water with close friends and family enjoying the Oklahoma sunshine, supplemented by a cool breeze off the water. Grand Lake is a wonderful place to visit for a day, a week, or even simply just to drive by and admire. Grand Lake has slowly become my new favorite place and I can't imagine this changing anytime in the near future, unless my family makes a return to Lake Tenkiller. Only time will tell...