Oliver Hudson leaves wife and kids for break in his 'happy place' - see photo

Oliver Hudson has been absent from social media this week and now we know why.

The Hollywood star has legions of loyal followers who find his Instagram antics hilarious. 

But he had a little breather to escape day to day life and took himself off to his "happy place."

Oliver — who is happily married to Erinn Bartlett — shared a photo to his Instagram feed, in which he was sitting on the back of a boat with the wind whipping through his hair. 

However, if you were expecting to see him basking on the back of a multi-million dollar yacht, you'd be wrong. 

Oliver was on a fishing vessel, out at sea. "10 days at sea on @excelsportfishing My happy place.. @deckhandsports @kickerfishing @buzbefishing @missingatsea @nolivebaitneeded," he captioned the post. 

He rocked a longer beard, and wild hair and was wrapped up in a warm jacket as the sun set behind him.

Oliver looked a far cry from the red carpets of Hollywood and despite his stoic expression, his words suggested he was loving the adventure. 

© Axelle/Bauer-Griffin

He is a big fan of fishing and the great outdoors, and often has his family — including his three children, Wilder, Bodhi and Rio — with him. 

His passion for the sport is so intense, however, he previously confessed that he turned down his This is Us callback to play Jack Pearson, to go fishing. 

The part was given to Milo Ventimiglia, but Oliver said he had been in the running for the part. 

© Instagram

"They wanted me to come and do a chemistry read with Mandy Moore, but this will tell you how much I love to fish," he admitted to Keltie Knight on her LadyGang podcast. "I had a 10-day fishing trip planned, and it's my life. Fishing is a big part of my life and it was this 10-day fishing trip."

"My agent said, 'We got a test. They really like you,' and I said, 'Ooh, I'm supposed to be going on a fishing trip.' He's like, 'OK. So? This is a big thing.' And I said, 'You know what? 'I'm going to do my fishing trip."

© Jerod Harris

Oliver later confessed that when he saw the ratings for the hit show, he thought "Oh [expletive]."

While he's enjoying some time away from his family, he'll be excited for their reunion.

Following his fishing post, he shared the famous family's Skims Christmas card, featuring his wife, kids, Kate Hudson, her fiancé and children, and Goldie Hawn too. 

Noticeably absent from the festive action was Kurt Russell and their son Wyatt Russell's family too.

Goldie previously opened up about her close bond with her family during a rare interview, telling Australian Women's Weekly: "A good family is the answer to happiness. I look at our kids and grandchildren and there's nothing in the world that could make me as proud as I am of all of them. "Being a grandmother is amazing, I love it. It brings incredible joy. Family is so important," she added.