Gonna share this in a few threads. https://www.arkansasoutside.com/rebranding-the-buffalo-national-river/ Cliffs: Walton group conducting surveys to gauge interest in turning national river into national park and preserve. Walton, Bass Pro, and a couple other groups also buying loads of land in the surrounding areas. No public transparency or plan in place, Walton group not really engaging public. #33393 minutes ago
tomorrow's the last free park admission day of the year planning on going to Saguaro NP East tomorrow after spending all day on the Sendero Esperanza Trail/Wasson Peak in the West section today Tucson is cool as shit. If I lived here I'd be on that trail about every weekend Spoiler
I have only seen horned lizards, javelina and tons of hummingbirds when the cactus were blooming but IIRC there are six different species of rattlesnake in the park. Would love to see a desert tortoise and Gila monster. It's a reptilian playground and I think mountain lions roam the area too
Set to hit Great Smoky Mts NP the first week of April. Going to have to get lucky with the weather a little bit but I'm looking forward to it.
Set to hit Great Smoky Mts NP the first week of April. Going to have to get lucky with the weather a little bit but I'm looking forward to it.
I shall also be there that week. I typically get lucky around that time - but even wet hiking/backpacking in the Smokies is awesome. My all time fav place to backpack.
Nice! My first time going. Any recs? Going to be car camping, maybe split time between Cade's Cove and Smokemont to see some different parts of the park. Have a guidebook with some of the trails for NPs. Want to go out to Max Patch as well, we're going to camp out there but figured we may as well head into the park. But idk no reservations made yet, availability is still good for now.
Anybody have any recommendations for Redwoods, Lassen Volcanic, and Crater Lake. Wife and I are taking our two boys out this summer starting in Portland and going to loop through those three over ten days.
not sure if you’re dipping down to the Bay Area but I just did Muir Woods last month. Need to make a parking rezy in advance. It has easy walk area that takes about 1.5-2 hours or offshoot trails if you want more difficulty https://www.nps.gov/muwo/index.htm
Yes I have done all 3, though I did Crater Lake and Lassen in 1 day so I didn't get to do a ton of hiking. Honestly, I think 1 day is plenty for those 2, especially Crater Lake. Though beautiful, it is what it is, a giant lake of an insanely beautiful color but not a whole lot outside of that. At Crater Lake we stayed in Medford and drove over for the day. There is a pathway that leads down tom the lake where there are a few docks and we swam in the lake. Fun but cold. I believe we did the Garfield Peak Trail which you can find on the All Trails app. Probably a medium hike in terms of how strenuous it is (3.5 miles, 1,000 ft elevation gain), but you get a panoramic view of the lake from the top of the trail that is pretty amazing. I'd advise you to do that, I think it's safe to say it's the best hike with the best view in the park. After that we drove done and stayed in Dunsmuir as a base for the next 2 days. Dunsmuir is a very cool little town in the shadow of Mt. Shasta, I enjoyed it and was impressed by it. There are two waterfalls nearby that are pretty stunning. Mossbrae Falls is in Dunsmuir itself, and Burney Falls is close by. If you're doing Lassen, I would definitely try to hit those two waterfalls if you and your family might be into that sort of thing. As Lassen is pretty big and we only had a day there, I just basically drove around the park and stopped at each turnoff and read about the history, etc. Unfortunately I did not have time to hike there, but honestly Bumpass Hell was the only part of that park that stood out. Bumpass Hell should not be missed though- it is very Yellowstone-like and has all the geothermal springs etc. Really cool. I have visited about 25 National Parks or so and I think Redwood is probably the most underrated park I have been to. On the way to the park, make sure you don't miss stopping at the Avenue of the Giants. The groves around that area are breathtaking and hold the tallest trees in the world. Once you get in the park, talk the rangers about the elk herds that roam the park. They're beautiful and they'll be able to point you to the spot where they were last seen. Maybe a more little known part about the park that I absolutely loved where the tidal pools. Check online for when low tide occurs and there are a few area on the beaches in the park where you will have the opportunity to see tons of huge starfish of every variety, crabs, and other sea creatures when the tide recedes. I may post pictures later if I can find any suitable. Fern Canyon is a part of the park that gets tons of hype but I thought it was just OK and a little overblown, but I'd still stop to see. My favorite part of the park though is walking through the groves with the giant trees. I *think* I did the Cathedral Trees Trail (absolutely massive trees on this one) and the Prairie Creek Trail. Both were very easy, flat, and stunningly beautiful. While I love Muir Woods and would advise anyone going to the Bay Area to make that #1 on the to-do list, this park is like Muir Woods on steroids. Awesome place to visit, I'm jealous you're getting to go.
Lassen - we did Lassen Peak and loved it, though it’s not a quick/easy hike Redwoods - agreed with tracking down the elks and Avenue of the Giants
I've done all three and all three are really cool parks. If you are starting in Portland one thing I would I highly recommend is driving the Colombia River Gorge. Its an awesome drive where you can pull over and see waterfalls and pull off and do some hiking at different spots. Oneonta Gorge is a really neat hike where you walk up a creek bed to a waterfall. The water can be up to your waist in spots, so if your kids are little you might have to carry them in a few places, but its a super neat experience. I only spent one day in Lassen, but I highly recommend doing Lassen Peak. It's steep, but only five miles round trip. You get to summit a mountain and you can see forever at the top. Then there is a geothermal area that is worth seeing, especially if your kids haven't seen that sort of thing. Near Lassen is McCarthur-Burney Falls. It's a really neat waterfall where the water comes over the top but also seeps through the rock throughout the the fall and makes it look cool. McCloud Falls is another park nearby that has three different waterfalls you can visit. The last one has a place you can cliff jump which is always fun. But it's probably close to being the highest I've felt comfortable jumping off something, so I wouldn't do it with small kids, but teens would have fun. I was also only in Crater Lake one day, and I was there a little early in the season. It was the day before they started running boats on the lake and the road was only about 3/4 open due to snow. The trail down to lake is something I would recommend, just so you can see it from that perspective. There is also a cool rock you can dive off of into the lake. Swimming out was not the easiest thing I've done, because when you dive into 38 degree water your muscles immediately contract. I did Garfield Peak which was a nice hike to overlook the whole lake. Watchman Peak was a shorter trail that I think I liked better from a photo standpoint because you had the Island directly in front of you which I felt was a better composition. Redwood is one of my favorite parks in the whole system. The giant trees are just so awesome and just walking under them in any of the groves is such a unique experience. Looking back at my notes Cathedral Grove, Stout Grove and Lady Bird Johnson Grove were ones I visited. Fern Canyon is another short hike I did that I enjoyed. You don't see the giant trees, but ferns hanging off the cliff walls makes for a unique landscape. There are also some nice scenic drive in the area, Avenue of the Giants being the highlight. Watching the sunset over the lighthouse in Crescent City was neat as well. Driving the Oregon Coast is also a fun thing to do with a bunch of nice sights along the way.
This was great thanks. We were only planning a day for Crater Lake and 2 days for Lassen. Redwoods is the one I’m really looking forward too. I’ve wanted to get to it for a long time and everything about it sounds amazing.
We are planning to drive Columbia River Gorge first on our way to Bend where we’re staying our first night.
Did that same trip in the Fall of ‘20. Lassen Volcanic is underrated as NPs go. I still check out Shingletown from time to time on Zillow as I’d love a spot there once I retire. We did a hike through Redwoods, in the Hoopa area, that actually ended out on the beach. You will love all three. Like others have mentioned you can see all of Crater lake in a day or two for sure.
I guess I missed this when you posted, but I live near the park on the Tennessee side and if you have question feel free to ask. I'm less of an expert on the North Carolina side, but I get over there from time to time. This is the best site for hiking info https://hikinginthesmokys.com/ As far as recommendations April is the best time to see wildflowers, but the first week will be a little before peak. Last year I did White Oaks Sinks for the first time and it was maybe the best wildflower trail I've done anywhere. Once you get to the hollow at the end of the trail the forest floor is carpeted with purple flowers. I also saw a couple of pink Lady Slippers, which is a flower the park is famous for because I think its the only place in the south they grows. I also saw a yellow Lady Slipper which is super rare. Once you get to the end of the trail they have rangers down there to point out different plants, and to keep people from destroying some of the rare plants. Porters Creek trail is the best short hike in the park, and is another great wildflower hike with a lot of other things as well. When I tried to go last spring it was closed because part of the road was washed out, so check the park website before you go. Overall its a really cool trail that you start by walking above a creek. There is an old cemetery and an old barn along the way you can stop at. Once you cross the creek you enter the wildflower area and then you finish at a waterfall. My favorite trail in the park is Charlie's Bunion. It's about eight miles out to a rock outcropping that is exposed and give you great views off of it. There is a spur trail off of it out to a place called the jump off where you hike out to a cliff edge with more good views. Mt LeConte is the highest mountain in Tennessee and another good hike. You can get there several different ways but the Alum Cave route is the most popular. Another one I always recommend is Rocky Top. You start from Cades Cove campground but its is one of the most difficult hike in the park. You get to the summit referenced in the song. Much of the hike is along the AT. Before you reach Rocky Top you come to Spence Field which is a nice clearing along the ridgeline. It a good place to stop for a picnic. Going in April means there will be at least chance of rain. But Waterfall hikes are just as nice in the rain. Ramsey Cascade is one of my favorite waterfall hikes. Its consistent elevation gain the whole way for four miles but a lot of it is along a nice creek. There are some old growth trees along the way and the waterfall is one of the best in the park. In Cades Cove is Abrams Falls which is one of the most popular hikes in the park. It finishes at a big waterfall that in the spring can have impressive volume. Hen Wallow Falls is nice trail to a tall waterfall in Cosby which is not too far from Max Patch. On the North Carolina side in Deep Creek there is a three waterfall loop trail that I really enjoyed. Spruce Flats Falls is in Tremont near Cades Cove is another good waterfall trail that's probably less than two miles and not too popular. I've seen bears on this trail twice, so keep your eyes peeled. One thing I think a lot of people miss on the North Carolina side is Cataloochee. The park has reintroduced a herd of Elk there and if you go in early evening they are usually out in the valley. I would think April would be a good time to see calves. These are just some of the things I would recommend for April. I'm generally averse to sleeping outside and I live here, so I can't give too much advice on camping.
This was perfect timing. Just locked in our reservations for camping 3 nights at Smokemont and 2 nights at Cades Cove. Thanks!
This post might have just made some April weekend plans for me. Want to do the new park in WV this fall.
I’m in the early stages of planning a relatively (for me) last minute trip to Great Sand Dunes, Mesa Verde, and Black Canyon of the Gunnison in early May. Anybody here been and have recommendations for those 3? Not sure if guided tours of Mesa Verde will be happening that early, so would love insight on that.
Of those I’ve only been to Mesa Verde. it’s a cool place but you don’t need more than 1-2 days there. When we went a couple of years ago you needed to get in line first thing in the morning to book your tour that day. We did two different tours and enjoyed both of them. The hiking isn’t anything special compared to other places in Colorado but the cliff houses are the attraction. We stayed in Cortez drove in/out and saw everything we wanted in one day.
As is our tradition, we will be camping inside the park so not terribly concerned about that side of things. I think we have a little under 2 full days there, so it looks like we should be good on timing. How many of the cliff houses can you see or get to without a guided tour?
We went to Mesa Verde and Black Canyon in July. Both have campgrounds. We spent 2 nights at MV, the campground is quite nice. They also have a lodge up near the top but I believe it's seasonal. A large section of the park was shut down, and looks like it still may be. Weatherhill Mesa Road. So we spent the day stopping basically every roadside attraction on the other road with a tour at Cliff Palace. It took us a good bit of time, but it was also definitely peak season. I recommend the Cliff Palace tour as long as weather or health aren't issues. It's really cool to get down there and see it up close with some rangers to answer questions. That said, you could see it pretty well from the viewing area just a few short flights down from the parking lot. If you check out the map here - https://www.nps.gov/meve/planyourvisit/maps.htm -- you can really see everything listed there except Balcony house within steps of getting out of your vehicle with different pre-cliff dwelling structures. We didn't walk down to Spruce Tree house but you can see it behind the ranger station/museum there. All the pull offs are well marked and almost all have signage and information/self tours. Highly recommend catching sunset at one of the north rim overlooks. We were schedule to camp at Black Canyon but dipped early to go to Moab and drive into Arches at dawn. Assuming you're going to the south rim, all the overlooks are also really well marked with pulloffs and short little walks out save one slightly longer hike at the end. Great views but easily doable in a day unless you're doing some of the crazy hikes or drives down into the canyon. If you can, I found it very interesting to check out Chimney Rock National Monument near Piedra. It's a site with religious connections to all the history of the people of Mesa Verde and Chaco Canyon. If you've got the park pass it's free entry and no camping but a moderate hike up to the pit houses and other ruins. Also, the drive up 145 to Telluride between Black Canyon and MV is *chefs kiss*
Had this photo pop up on a historic photos feed I have. 1895 photo at Organ Pipe a little west of Saguaro. I’ve been to Grand Canyon three times, but never been to either Saguaro or Organ Pipe. Both look very cool.
Organ Pipe and Bisbee are the two big boxes I still need to check on my explorations of AZ. I'd read Organ Pipe was impacted quite a bit by Trump's border wall nonsense but it still looks incredible
I have had this gray organ pipe since 2008. My MIL bought it as a souvenir and then gave it to my daughter (then three). Two others beside it died immediately, but I kept watering it and never removed it from its pot. My daughter made and painted the penguin, when she was six, so we just leave it alone and keep watering it.
The wife and I finally decided to take the BIG road trip next month. Now or never with our HS Sr. about to graduate and go off the school. 4 kids in a van from Florida to Grand Canyon, Lake Powell, Arches NP, Salt Lake, Rocky Mtn NP are big stops on a long trip. Have a few guided trips planned but was hoping to know if there are any cool off the beaten path (ie, public trails that we don't need to pay $500+ for a tour guide) to do near page AZ and Moab.
Everglades quick hit recommendations? The situation is we land at 1PM at MIA on a Saturday. Boarding a cruise ship the next morning. I have a 4 year old that really wants to see gators. From what I’ve seen there are 2 park visitor centers roughly 45-60 minutes from MIA. We can skip hotel check in upon landing, we’ll have a rental car. Thoughts on where to head? This will be on Saturday 3/9 if that makes a difference. Trying to do this in a bit of a time crunch.
I've been twice around this time of year. I'm sure others closer will have more info to add Driving through the Everglades will be a disappointment imo. You need to either take a boat tour or go mucking in it to really enjoy it. The Flamingo Lodge area was a nice spot to walk around, but I really wouldn't bank on seeing any Alligators in my experience unless you do a boat tour.
We drove Orlando to Key West last Summer, and my kids (19 and 13) were amazed at two guys shooting gators in a pond on the side of the highway, but that’s probably more horrific for a four year old.
The highest and lowest elevations in the continental US are only 135 miles apart at Mt Whitney and Death Valley.
Looks like the roads to get up on Telescope Peak are all closed so nevermind Joshua Tree probably a better option right now I guess
Joshua Tree next weekend sounds fun Wanna do Ryan Mtn and looks like I should stay in Twentynine Palms and access the trail near the Ryan Campground Then Warren Peak and Panorama Loop would be staying in Yucca Valley and accessing the trails at Black Rock TH Those look like some of the best hikes in the park but open to suggestions
I did this same thing last year. If you want to see gators and other wildlife and get some education in about the Everglades, I highly recommend taking the tram ride at the Shark Valley Visitor Center (https://www.nps.gov/thingstodo/shark-valley-tram-tour.htm). It's about two hours long and you'll see tons of gators. There are also several private airboat tours like right next to the visitor center that you can't miss. They are likely all the same and take like 30 minutes, and again are pretty much guaranteed to see multiple gators. I'd recommend doing both, but if that's too much of time commitment for a 4 year old, and all they want to do is see gators, then maybe the airboat alone might be sufficient. I also drove down to the Coe visitor center but that drive was much more boring with much less wildlife. Long stretches of just nothing, though a few stops were decent. With kids that age I think the Shark Valley area of the park is much, much better for what you'll be looking for.