Our Exploration of Lake Whitney State Park and
Cliff Jumping at Soldier Bluff Park.
So it was another one of those summer days where I knew we had to do SOMETHING.
My kids were bored but they didn’t know it, they were just doing what comes easy to them, like adults who are bored that get on their phones, my kids were playing video games. Which I’m totally fine with to a certain extent, as long as it’s within the healthy boundaries of a healthy lifestyle. And I pretty much allowed that on Friday because they were recovering from a very busy week. Anyway, I didn’t want to go into or through the city of Dallas to do anything because I wanted as little stress as possible, including the commute, so I looked outward..asking the question, what is a place that I have not explored that I might be missing out on?
I immediately remembered hearing about Cliff Jumping on Lake Whitney! I knew it wasn’t too far, and it was south/west of Dallas, so I was like, yep…that’s our destination…we officially had our heading.
I did not grow up in this area, so pretty much everywhere I visit here in Texas is new to me…I didn’t do any pre-arrival research, I just relied on the location and figured I’d figure it out when I got there.
So I secretly loaded my van (to avoid any protests)…see my post on How to get your family outside when they don’t want to go.
What I threw in there:
- Towels
- Sunscreen
- Change of Clothes
- Wet wipes
- Hand Sanitizer
- Fishing poles and tackle (requested by the children)
- Bikes (air pump for tires)
- Life Jackets
- Sportbrella
- Picnic Blanket
- Empty
- Ice Chest (to fill later)
- Bungee cords and rope (just because I usually keep it in there any way)
- Small first aid kit
- Dog (plus leash)
Not all of these things are essential but it’s always nice to be prepared for whatever plus, ya never know what activities the location might present.
Anyway, so without researching anything except the State Park fee (from an app on my phone) we just went.
What we found:
- State Park entrance fee: $5 adults , kids free.
- Friendly park ranger staff at the front gate.
- Tons of camp sites, some secluded-ish
- Fish Cleaning station. (That we did not intend to use).
- Not an overly crowded park, we found a very private place to throw our poles in.
- Boat Dock.
- Swimming Beach.
Just an all around very nice place that I would totally feel comfortable camping at.
However, it’s not what I came to Whitney for and I was disappointed…I felt like this day trip was a fail. I was there in search of the cliffs and hadn’t found them.
After swimming a bit at a remote location I told the boys, let’s head out, I’m looking for something…I did a quick “cliff diving search on Lake Whitney” and found that I was about 10 miles or less from where I wanted to be. We loaded up and off we went (again, they didn’t want to go anywhere but home).
This is when we found Soldier Bluff Park, it’s right by the dam, as soon as I saw all of the cars I knew I was in the right spot..finally.
We parked, walked around the corner and like angels singing ( I mean, I felt happy) we saw the cliffs and people jumping! We went straight back to the car grabbed some life jackets and some towels and headed straight for the cliffs. Now, we didn’t do any major cliffs, this was our first trip and honestly the end to a long day and the kids were really not into exploring any longer, plus, they were hungry and whiny. I agreed we’d do a few jumps (one kid didn’t want to participate) and then go get some food.
What we found:
- Price: FREE
- Pet’s: Yes
- People relaxing with coolers and Canopies.
- Life jacket borrow station (don’t count on it though).
- People floating, jumping and enjoying themselves.
A popular destination for families and older teens/younger college student’s, although I think they traveled a little further up to a more secluded location.
The place we went to was mild and the cliff’s were not too tall, I did not have the opportunity to explore this lake by boat or kayak, however when I do, I will be happy to report back on this popular destination.
The best part was, it was easy, it was free, and we had a blast for the short time that we were there.
This day trip was unsuccessful at first because it was so hot and the kids were kinda bored, but we found something new and tried something new, so overall I’d say it was a huge success and I plan to go back. In fact, I can’t hardly wait!
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