Trip Planning #1 – Northern/West National Parks
Since we can’t do much actual travel right now, the thing I can do is plan epic trips. So, when the time is right, we can hit the road.
This first trip plan is to hit some of the Northern and Western National Parks and Monuments. I have always been fascinated by the US National Parks System, and would love to hit all of the National Parks our country holds. So this trip would be an epic way to knock a lot of them off the list.
DAY ONE
START: North Canton, OH
END: Duluth, MN
ESTIMATED DRIVE TIME: 13.25 hours
ESTIMATED MILEAGE: 854 miles
INDIANA DUNES NATIONAL PARK
Not much going on with Day One, this would mostly be a travel day, driving from the home base over to Duluth, MN. The only park we would his is the Indiana Dunes NP, which is also tied into a state park. I have driven past the Dunes on the way to Chicago so many times, so it would be nice to finally visit the park. Duluth is a goal, as the next Park is Voyageurs National Park in Minnesota.
DAY TWO
START: Duluth, MN
END: Medora, ND?
ESTIMATED DRIVE TIME: 11.5 hours
ESTIMATED MILEAGE: 731 miles
VOYAGEURS NATIONAL PARK
The day would start with a 2.5 hour drive up to Voyageurs, to check out one of the most Northern National Parks in the continental United States. The rest of the day would be a slog across the state of North Dakota (passing through Fargo, ND). The goal would be to get to Medora, ND, which is the closest city to Theodore Roosevelt National Park. That could change depending on how much time we spent to Voyageurs.
DAY THREE
START: Medora, ND
END: Buffalo, WY
ESTIMATED DRIVE TIME: 11.25 hours
ESTIMATED MILEAGE: 706 miles
THEODORE ROOSEVELT NATIONAL PARK
DEVILS TOWER NATIONAL MONUMENT
MINUTEMAN MISSILE NATIONAL HISTORICAL SITE
BADLANDS NATIONAL PARK
MOUNT RUSHMORE NATIONAL MONUMENT
Busy day ahead, but everything is along the way, so why not? Starting the day at the Theodore Roosevelt National Park, the trip would then head South for a nice cluster of American historical sites. On the trip South, it’s an easy stopover to see the Devils Tower National Monument, before continuing South and East towards the Minuteman Missile National Historical Site. After hitting the Cold War era defense site, we would head back to the West for a stop at the Badlands National Park. The goal would be to get into Mount Rushmore before the park closes and then head for a hotel near Buffalo, WY.
DAY FOUR
START: Buffalo, WY
END: Yellowstone National Park
ESTIMATED DRIVE TIME: 4 hours
ESTIMATED MILEAGE: 219 miles
Yellowstone would be a nice layover for this trip, since there is so much to view at the large, popular park. I could envision spending a full day here, so not much else planned, potentially even adding Day 5 to enjoy more time at the park. Ideally, staying on-site would be preferred, but who knows how popular visiting the parks will be following the pandemic.
DAY FIVE
START: Yellowstone National Park
END: Provo, UT
ESTIMATED DRIVE TIME: 12 hours
ESTIMATED MILEAGE: 601 miles
CRATERS OF THE MOON NATIONAL MONUMENT
GOLDEN SPIKE NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK
GREAT SALT LAKE
2002 OLYMPIC WINTER GAMES CAULDRON
OLYMPIC PARK
This is looking like a detour day, as we approach some different types of historical sites. After leaving Yellowstone, we head Southwest to Craters of the Moon National Monument for a different look to the US landscape. The trip then heads for Salt Lake City, with a stop at the Golden Spike National Historical Park to see the spot where the Transcontinental Railroad met.
The trip then takes a turn in Salt Lake City, since it seems only appropriate to visit the Great Salt Lake State Park (not a National Park, somehow) before revisiting the 2002 Olympic Winter Games by visiting the Rice-Eccles Stadium. The venue is the home of the Cauldron from the 2002 Games and a plaza dedicated to the event. Following that, it’s time for an elevation change as the trip heads up to Park City, UT for the Mountain venues and museum. Provo is the last major city before heading to Arches, so makes sense to end the day there.
DAY SIX
START: Provo, UT
END: Flagstaff, AZ
ESTIMATED DRIVE TIME: 10 hours
ESTIMATED MILEAGE: 581 miles
ARCHES NATIONAL PARK
CANYONLANDS NATIONAL PARK
CAPITOL REEF NATIONAL PARK
BRYCE CANYON NATIONAL PARK
Heading South from Provo leads us to Arches National Park and Canyonlands National Park, as we enter the Canyon phase of this trip. The trip heads further West as we approach Capitol Reef (which, the name is odd to me since we are nowhere near an ocean…), before heading South for Bryce Canyon National Park. The day ends with a trip South to Flagstaff, since there is no easy way to cross the Grand Canyon…
DAY SEVEN
START: Flagstaff, AZ
END: Las Vegas, NV
ESTIMATED DRIVE TIME: 9.75 hours
ESTIMATED MILEAGE: 592 miles
GRAND CANYON NATIONAL PARK
HOOVER DAM
DEATH VALLEY NATIONAL PARK
From Flagstaff, we head Northwest to the Grand Canyon, before heading West for one of the hottest places in the US, Death Valley. The trip from Death Valley to Joshua Tree is…not very populated. So with that, it’s a trip back East to Las Vegas, NV for a stopover…and maybe some gambling with one-armed bandits.
DAY EIGHT
START: Las Vegas, NV
END: Anaheim, CA
ESTIMATED DRIVE TIME: 5.25 hours
ESTIMATED MILEAGE: 310 miles
JOSHUA TREE NATIONAL PARK
Not much to talk about today, which mostly consists of a trip back to the Southwest from Vegas to the Joshua Tree National Park. After that, head West my friend, to Anaheim, CA, to see The Mouse, Mickey Mouse, at Disneyland. Option to spend a day or two here to hit the parks and then continue to the trip North.
DAY NINE
START: Anaheim, CA
END: San Francisco, CA
ESTIMATED DRIVE TIME: 10 hours
ESTIMATED MILEAGE: 525 miles
Sightseeing day! From Anaheim, we head for an optional trip to Long Beach, CA before heading to the LA Memorial Coliseum, the location of several US Olympics, including the upcoming 2028 Olympics. The last likely stop in LA is visiting the Santa Monica Pier, before heading North on the Pacific Coast Highway for San Francisco.
DAY TEN
START: San Francisco, CA
END: Yosemite National Park
ESTIMATED DRIVE TIME: 4.5 hours
ESTIMATED MILEAGE: 217 miles
YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK
Quick drive (compared to some others on this trip!) over to Yosemite from San Fransisco to spend the day (and hopefully the night) at the park before continuing to head North. Depending on what all we want to see at the park, there is a chance to add a day here. Other option is to head back to San Fransisco is there isn’t as much to check out (on our list, at least).
DAY 11
START: Yosemite National Park
END: Portland, OR
ESTIMATED DRIVE TIME: 13.25 hours
ESTIMATED MILEAGE: 777 miles
CRATER LAKE NATIONAL PARK
Back to the long driving day, as we head North from Yosemite to Crater Lake National Park, and on to Portland. Have to see how weird Portlandia is.
DAY 12
START: Portland, OR
END: Olympic National Park
ESTIMATED DRIVE TIME: 9.5 hours
ESTIMATED MILEAGE: 455 miles
MOUNT RANIER NATIONAL PARK
OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK
NORTHEASTERN MOST POINT
Traveling Northeast from Portland, we head to Mount Rainer, before descending down the homestretch. After heading Northwest, we enter the Olympic National Park area and make an optional trip to Cape Flattery for a quick hike to the Northwestern Most Point that you can get to by car and trail. Heading back towards the park for the night to see how high we can get by car, before retiring for the night.
DAY 13
START: Olympic National Park
END: Seattle, WA
ESTIMATED DRIVE TIME: 2.5 hours
ESTIMATED MILEAGE: 83 miles
NPS KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH – SEATTLE UNIT
FIRST STARBUCKS
PIKE’S PLACE MARKET
SEATTLE SPACE NEEDLE
We wrap up the trip with a short jog to Seattle, giving us a chance to see the sights of more normal tourists. There is the chance to knock out the Klondike Gold Rush Center, along with more common trips to the Pike’s Place Market and First Starbucks. Lots to see and do in Seattle before flying home and concluding our trip.
