Southeastern Oklahoma is lake and hill country with several destinations worth a day's drive from Hugo.
Beavers Bend State Park is about 130 kilometres east, near Broken Bow. The Mountain Fork River runs cold and clear through dense pine forest — dramatically different from the surrounding Oklahoma landscape. The park has canoeing, trout fishing, hiking trails, and a nature centre. One of the most scenically impressive state parks in Oklahoma and worth the drive.
Tishomingo National Wildlife Refuge lies about 80 kilometres northwest, at the confluence of the Washita and Red rivers. The refuge protects wetlands important to migrating waterfowl and is a good stop for birdwatchers, particularly in autumn during waterfowl migration.
Durant and the Choctaw Nation — Durant, about 90 kilometres west on US 70, is the headquarters of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma and has a tribal museum and cultural centre worth visiting for context on the deep Choctaw history of this part of the state. The region around Hugo is within the historic Choctaw homeland.
Sardis Lake is about 60 kilometres north and slightly west, near Wilburton. A large Corps of Engineers reservoir surrounded by wooded hills, good for fishing and boating, and notably less visited than more famous Oklahoma lakes.