National Park Opinions

[wadesworld]

Thinking about taking a road trip over Labor Day.  Want to keep it cheap (hence the road trip rather than flying somewhere).  Would take off of work on Friday September 2nd and return home on Monday September 5th so ideally a drive that can be made in one day (say 15 hours or under).  Early September so hoping weather won't be an issue at the time.  Leaving from/returning to Milwaukee.

Have it more or less narrowed down to (in order of most to least impressive Google images...):

Badlands
Theodore Roosevelt
Great Smoky Mountain
Shenandoah
Wind Cave

If anyone doesn't mind commenting on any of the above places, or has any other suggestions as to places that can be made into a 1 day drive and pretty cheap from Milwaukee in early September, that would be greatly appreciated.

[forgetful]

It really depends what type of vacation you are looking for.  The Great Smoky Mountains are beautiful that time of year.  I would recommend the Townsend area in Tennessee (avoid nearby Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge; they are very crowded).

Shenandoah is also extremely beautiful.  You can find some remote areas; we've stayed along some creeks in that area and you could really hide from the world, without being too far away from civilization.

Be sure to take a ride down Skyline Drive.  There are some great hikes along that route and a nice campground. 

I've never done the others. 

What is your goal?  Are you taking girlfriend/wife/kids?  What is your ideal vacation?

[brandx]

It really depends what type of vacation you are looking for.  The Great Smoky Mountains are beautiful that time of year.  I would recommend the Townsend area in Tennessee (avoid nearby Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge; they are very crowded).

Ahhh.  You are right on. We go every September for a couple weeks and always stay on the Townsend side.

Wades, if you are into hiking, you can't beat the Smokies. There are hundreds of trails. And as Forgetful said, avoid Galtlinburg and Pigeon Forge (Wisconsin Dells on steroids). From the Wisco/Illinois border, it is about an 11 hour drive. If you decide on this, go on line and find a cabin rental in the Townsend area. Lots to choose from and really beats staying in a motel. Can find a one bedroom in the $120 range. Most have hot tubs as well.

Shenandoah is a little closer. Again, lots of nice trails. Drive the full length of the Park and head about 20 miles east to Charlottesville, VA and visit Monticello - well worth it. The lodges in the park are probably booked by now, so you would have to get a motel room at one end of the park or the other.

Badlands are closer too. Then go another 60 miles or so to Custer State Park. Best view of Mt. Rushmore is from the park - long distance, but you get a much better perspective than actually visiting. You can also find bison and wild donkeys driving through Custer. And if you watched Deadwood when it was on HBO, you can go another 30-40 miles north to get there. Nice little town. Great cemetery there if you like walking uphill.

[dgies9156]

Wade, you also may want to consider Voyagers National Park in Northern Minnesota. It's part of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area and extremely rugged and very beautiful. The NPS, State of Minnesota and the regional governments have deliberately worked to keep this area very rugged/primitive to preserve something of what Midwest once was. Voyagers is not especially well known

Warning: If you go here, take a lot of mosquito repellent. The mosquitoes in Minnesota, besides being the state bird, show up on aircraft radar they're so big.

Another place that's not a national park but probably should be is the Brule River State Forest in Douglas County. It's a small river that flows into Lake Superior and a wonderful canoeing river.

[MU Fan in Connecticut]

Shenandoah is also extremely beautiful.  You can find some remote areas; we've stayed along some creeks in that area and you could really hide from the world, without being too far away from civilization.

Be sure to take a ride down Skyline Drive.  There are some great hikes along that route and a nice campground. 

I've never done the others. 

What is your goal?  Are you taking girlfriend/wife/kids?  What is your ideal vacation?

I have been to Shenandoah recently after a visit to Charlottesville and it was beautiful, but did not have the time to spend really exploring it.

My Seton Halls friend and his family, just drove the Skyline Drive (a very slow drive) 2 weeks ago, and took a picture of a bear right on the side of the road minding his own business. 

[GGGG]

As someone who has traveled on holiday weekends before, expect traffic to be much worse than you thought.  Especially if you go out east.  If I were you, I would consider going the weekend after Labor Day.

[MU82]

I highly recommend Squirrel Tail Park just outside Charlotte.

Never heard of it? Of course not. It's a little community park that doesn't offer much to see or do.

But it offers the opportunity to hang with me and Mrs. MU82, and the first round is on us!!!!

[MU Fan in Connecticut]

As someone who has traveled on holiday weekends before, expect traffic to be much worse than you thought.  Especially if you go out east.  If I were you, I would consider going the weekend after Labor Day.

Traffic on any summer weekend in the Boston to DC corridor.  Ouch! 

[GWSwarrior]

Wade, you also may want to consider Voyagers National Park in Northern Minnesota. It's part of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area and extremely rugged and very beautiful. The NPS, State of Minnesota and the regional governments have deliberately worked to keep this area very rugged/primitive to preserve something of what Midwest once was. Voyagers is not especially well known

+1

[Benny B]

As a kid, our family vacations mostly rotated between the Smoky Mountains and Dinney World.  I would not recommend the former unless - as Brandy mentioned - you want the southern version of a Wisconsin Dells vacation; however, if tourist traps are your cup of tea, my recommendation is to go off grid and visit the Canadian Dells, a/k/a Niagara Falls. 

Seriously, the Smoky Mountains are simply Wisconsin Dells with a Waffle House, and Niagara Falls is Wisconsin Dells with a Tim Horton's.  And we all know that Tim Horton's >>>>>>> Waffle House.

Seriously though... if you've never been, it will take you less time to drive to Buffalo than eastern Tennessee (about 9 hours), and Niagara Falls is a national park (well, a "National Heritage Area," whatever that means) though with the caveat that the "good" part is on Canadian soil... which by the way the exchange rate, though slightly recovered from it's February trough, still has the USD trading very favorably to the CAD.  And did I mention they have Tim Horton's?  Do the touristy thing for half a day, then drive north into Niagara wine country... sure it's no Napa or Sonoma, but it's beautiful country with decent wineries (and craft breweries).  Best part... Labor Day ain't no thang north of the border... you'll pretty much have the place to yourself on Sunday.  Stay at the Sheraton downtown and get a room that faces the falls (with a window that opens or "balcony").  Take in the only 100% non-smoking casino (and sportsbook) in North America outside of Chicago.  Grab a dozen at Tim Horton's.  Drink the beer (it's like moonshine).

And if you do take my advice, don't cross in Detroit... the 403 can be spotty on Friday afternoons until you're well past Hamilton and you'll lose an hour trying to decide between bridge and tunnel.  Actually, if you want to give yourself a small break and really take the road less traveled (literally), take the 6:00a Lake Express Ferry across to Muskegon, cross at Sarnia, and you'll make it through Hamilton just before 4:00p when things start getting squirrely.

[Sir Lawrence]

Since you are leaving from Milwaukee, on the Friday of Labor Day weekend,  and returning on Labor Day, I would avoid the Chicago area traffic and simply head west. You can drive from Milwaukee to the Badlands in about 12 hours.  From there I would recommend Custer State Park, and then drop down to Wind Cave.  Boring drive until you get to the Badlands, but it's less stressful than heading south or east, and a heck of a lot to see in a short period of time.   

Rent a Harley. 

[MU82]

Even though I tried to be hilarious in my earlier post, I am finding this discussion to be interesting, so keep 'em coming everybody.

We have been to only a few national parks, with Grand Canyon #1 in my book, followed by Yellowstone and Grand Tetons. We definitely want to visit more. We only live a few hours from the Smokies now and certainly we should get there, so I like the perspectives about that.

Niagara Falls definitely has its schlocky surrounds, but the Falls themselves are spectacular to behold. The boat ride is an amazing experience. If I were going again, I'd want to spend as much time as possible in Canada just because it's different from all of those Rust Belt U.S. cities one has to pass through.  Although I will say that if everybody in the family likes rock, the HoF in Cleveland is pretty cool.

[warriorchick]

As a kid, our family vacations mostly rotated between the Smoky Mountains and Dinney World.  I would not recommend the former unless - as Brandy mentioned - you want the southern version of a Wisconsin Dells vacation; however, if tourist traps are your cup of tea, my recommendation is to go off grid and visit the Canadian Dells, a/k/a Niagara Falls. 

Seriously, the Smoky Mountains are simply Wisconsin Dells with a Waffle House, and Niagara Falls is Wisconsin Dells with a Tim Horton's.  And we all know that Tim Horton's >>>>>>> Waffle House.

The North Carolina side of the Smoky Mountains is beautiful - and last I checked, not tacky at all.  You are painting with a pretty broad  brush there, my friend.  You can go as tacky or as natural as you want there -- just like you can go eat a bunch of fudge, slide down water slides, and ride go-carts in Wisconsin Dells, or get a little bit out of town and enjoy the natural beauty.

We stayed once at an amazing place in Bryson City, North Carolina, called the Hemlock Inn.  You can get breakfast and dinner included, and the food is incredible.  There are homemade biscuits at every meal, and when we were there, they served vegetables they had picked from their garden that morning.  Here is the view from the porch - and not a souvenir stand in sight, I might add.



 

[GooooMarquette]

Since you are leaving from Milwaukee, on the Friday of Labor Day weekend,  and returning on Labor Day, I would avoid the Chicago area traffic and simply head west.

+1

By the time you'd get through the Chicago area, you might very well already be to the Badlands or Voyageurs.

[brandx]

As a kid, our family vacations mostly rotated between the Smoky Mountains and Dinney World.  I would not recommend the former unless - as Brandy mentioned - you want the southern version of a Wisconsin Dells vacation; however, if tourist traps are your cup of tea, my recommendation is to go off grid and visit the Canadian Dells, a/k/a Niagara Falls. 

Seriously, the Smoky Mountains are simply Wisconsin Dells with a Waffle House, and Niagara Falls is Wisconsin Dells with a Tim Horton's.  And we all know that Tim Horton's >>>>>>> Waffle House.

Seriously though... if you've never been, it will take you less time to drive to Buffalo than eastern Tennessee (about 9 hours), and Niagara Falls is a national park (well, a "National Heritage Area," whatever that means) though with the caveat that the "good" part is on Canadian soil... which by the way the exchange rate, though slightly recovered from it's February trough, still has the USD trading very favorably to the CAD.  And did I mention they have Tim Horton's?  Do the touristy thing for half a day, then drive north into Niagara wine country... sure it's no Napa or Sonoma, but it's beautiful country with decent wineries (and craft breweries).  Best part... Labor Day ain't no thang north of the border... you'll pretty much have the place to yourself on Sunday.  Stay at the Sheraton downtown and get a room that faces the falls (with a window that opens or "balcony").  Take in the only 100% non-smoking casino (and sportsbook) in North America outside of Chicago.  Grab a dozen at Tim Horton's.  Drink the beer (it's like moonshine).

Benny, you are right about the Smokies IF you stay near Gatlinburg. It is a completely different experience on the Townsend side of the park. Give it a try - you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Another great area is the Finger lakes area of NY. Dozens of wineries and great hiking trails around Ithaca and Watkins Glen.

[brandx]

I have been to Shenandoah recently after a visit to Charlottesville and it was beautiful, but did not have the time to spend really exploring it.

My Seton Halls friend and his family, just drove the Skyline Drive (a very slow drive) 2 weeks ago, and took a picture of a bear right on the side of the road minding his own business.

Skyline is actually part of a great drive - the Blue Ridge Parkway. My wife and I did it in April from Shenandoah to Asheville NC. Peaceful and lots of things to see on the way.

[warriorchick]

If you are talking National Parks, I would also consider Mammoth Cave in Kentucky. They have a lot of great tours, including one where they turn all the lights off and all the participants carry oil lanterns - just like they did in the 19th Century when tours first started. 

If you have the time (and a reservation), the Wild Cave Tour is a once-in-a-lifetime experience.  They only take a handful of folks at a time for a 6-hour trip through part of the cave the general public doesn't get to see - a lot of crawling on your belly, wriggling through tight spaces, etc.  It requires some advance planning (you have to have hiking boots, gloves, etc.), but it is so worth it.

[Spotcheck Billy]

wadesworld didn't mention camping but we have camped in the Pisgah Nat'l Forest in the Smokies and loved it, can't recommend any hotels.

We have camped out in Custer State Park near Rapid City and the Badlands, that was also a great time. And of course there is the fabulous Wall Drug nearby offering free ice water.

If going to Mt. Rushmore, I highly encourage anyone to time your visit to that evening's monument lighting ceremony, frickin' incredible patriotic moment. As also mentioned, Boot Hill Cemetery above Deadwood is kind of neat. We missed getting tickets for one of the tour buses (sold out) going there so we just drove up on our own and ended up arriving at the same time so we crashed the group to hear the guide's spiel for free.

Even closer to MKE would be Mammoth Cave in KY, I don't think there is too much else in the area so the only activities would be to take a few of the different tours offered. The cave is pretty incredible.

Isle Royale in Lake Superior is cool for hiking and by then the black flies shouldn't be too bad.

[MU Fan in Connecticut]

As a kid, our family vacations mostly rotated between the Smoky Mountains and Dinney World.  I would not recommend the former unless - as Brandy mentioned - you want the southern version of a Wisconsin Dells vacation; however, if tourist traps are your cup of tea, my recommendation is to go off grid and visit the Canadian Dells, a/k/a Niagara Falls. 

Seriously, the Smoky Mountains are simply Wisconsin Dells with a Waffle House, and Niagara Falls is Wisconsin Dells with a Tim Horton's.  And we all know that Tim Horton's >>>>>>> Waffle House.

Seriously though... if you've never been, it will take you less time to drive to Buffalo than eastern Tennessee (about 9 hours), and Niagara Falls is a national park (well, a "National Heritage Area," whatever that means) though with the caveat that the "good" part is on Canadian soil... which by the way the exchange rate, though slightly recovered from it's February trough, still has the USD trading very favorably to the CAD.  And did I mention they have Tim Horton's?  Do the touristy thing for half a day, then drive north into Niagara wine country... sure it's no Napa or Sonoma, but it's beautiful country with decent wineries (and craft breweries).  Best part... Labor Day ain't no thang north of the border... you'll pretty much have the place to yourself on Sunday.  Stay at the Sheraton downtown and get a room that faces the falls (with a window that opens or "balcony").  Take in the only 100% non-smoking casino (and sportsbook) in North America outside of Chicago.  Grab a dozen at Tim Horton's.  Drink the beer (it's like moonshine).

And if you do take my advice, don't cross in Detroit... the 403 can be spotty on Friday afternoons until you're well past Hamilton and you'll lose an hour trying to decide between bridge and tunnel.  Actually, if you want to give yourself a small break and really take the road less traveled (literally), take the 6:00a Lake Express Ferry across to Muskegon, cross at Sarnia, and you'll make it through Hamilton just before 4:00p when things start getting squirrely.

I last visited Niagara Falls two years ago and the Canadian side is eons less schlocky then my first visit 25 years ago.  As Benny indicated there is of course a giant Tim Horton's in the center of downtown.  The boat ride on the Canadian side is no longer called Maid of the Mist and is now called Hornblower Cruises and you can buy your tickets ahead of time on the web.  A dozen years ago my Ontario friends introduced my wife and I to the Niagara-on-the-Lake area north of Niagara Falls.  Niagara-on-the-Lake is a quaint historic town 25 minutes drive from Niagara Falls with plenty of good restaurants and without the tourist horde.  You can visit a public park on Lake Ontario and spy Toronto across the lake.  The bonus is there are 40-50 wineries you can visit in and around the land between N-o-t-L and NF with farm stands selling peaches, plums, cherries, etc.  The area is known for it's Ice Wine.

They tried to spruce up the American side by building an Indian casino and a Hard Rock Café, but it's still extremely schlocky.  The New York State Park is worth visit as you can stand right next to where the water goes over and you can take the elevator down and walk on the cliff next to one of the falls.

And on the Canadian side, your cell phone still picks ups the USA signal so you don't have to worry about foreign cell charges.

[martyconlonontherun]

If you are talking National Parks, I would also consider Mammoth Cave in Kentucky. They have a lot of great tours, including one where they turn all the lights off and all the participants carry oil lanterns - just like they did in the 19th Century when tours first started. 

If you have the time (and a reservation), the Wild Cave Tour is a once-in-a-lifetime experience.  They only take a handful of folks at a time for a 6-hour trip through part of the cave the general public doesn't get to see - a lot of crawling on your belly, wriggling through tight spaces, etc.  It requires some advance planning (you have to have hiking boots, gloves, etc.), but it is so worth it.

Yeah, I was going to mention Mammoth Caves as an honorable mention. These other parks probably offer better views and scenery, but Mammoth Caves is a great weekend trip without a lot of fuss. If you leave super early Friday and miss the Chicago traffic, the trip is easily less than 7 hours. It's close to the highway and has decent facilities. It has a lot of Devil's lake-type views with bluffs over looking a river.

When ever I travel south (either to Nashville or to the gulf coast) I try to break up the drive and stop here for a quick run and hike. They have showers so you can hop back in the car 2 hours later and feel refreshed.


How was the Wild Cave Tour? Was it hard or can anyone who is in decent shape do it? Is it a type of thing you can show up solo, or is it better to have a partner?

[Coleman]

Head to Branson MO heyna

[warriorchick]

Yeah, I was going to mention Mammoth Caves as an honorable mention. These other parks probably offer better views and scenery, but Mammoth Caves is a great weekend trip without a lot of fuss. If you leave super early Friday and miss the Chicago traffic, the trip is easily less than 7 hours. It's close to the highway and has decent facilities. It has a lot of Devil's lake-type views with bluffs over looking a river.

When ever I travel south (either to Nashville or to the gulf coast) I try to break up the drive and stop here for a quick run and hike. They have showers so you can hop back in the car 2 hours later and feel refreshed.


How was the Wild Cave Tour? Was it hard or can anyone who is in decent shape do it? Is it a type of thing you can show up solo, or is it better to have a partner?

Glow and I did back when we were much younger, and yes it is hard.  I wound up with huge bruises on my legs.  Fortunately, our next stop was a B&B that had huge clawfoot tubs in the rooms, and I had a nice soak.  There is a requirement that you can't be more than 42" in the hips or chest, or else you will get stuck - even though Glow met the requirements, we still had to unwedge him from a particularly tight spot.  It is not for the casual tourist.

There will a group of you (I believe the normal group size is around 8), so going solo is fine.

[martyconlonontherun]

Glow and I did back when we were much younger, and yes it is hard.  I wound up with huge bruises on my legs.  Fortunately, our next stop was a B&B that had huge clawfoot tubs in the rooms, and I had a nice soak.  There is a requirement that you can't be more than 42" in the hips or chest, or else you will get stuck - even though Glow met the requirements, we still had to unwedge him from a particularly tight spot.  It is not for the casual tourist.

There will a group of you (I believe the normal group size is around 8), so going solo is fine.

Sounds fun. I'm closer to a child's XL than an adults XL so I should be fine with the size requirements.


Another easy suggestion would be Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. Headed up there tomorrow and is 5 hours from Milwaukee. (Bonus is you can stop at Lambeau on the way).
-Camping is $5 per person per night.
-Kayaking
-Hiking
-Beaches
-Bluffs
-Boat Tours
-Remote (No cell service in the Eastern Half of the 42 miles of park)
-Cliff diving - If you are brave and stupid, they were people jumping from what looked like 40+ feet. There were some safe places to jump off from about 10 feet, which was good enough for me.

It was the main setting in Kid Rock's Born Free music video as noted on all the billboards in the area.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bu3rsha1ZtI

[Sir Lawrence]

Wades, Marty has a pretty good suggestion, especially if you don't mind camping.  Easy drive, and you might consider a night in Marquette, less than an hour away, great town that time of year.   

[mr.MUskie]

I just got back last week from a 4,600 mile roadtrip to a bunch of national parks. We hit the Badlands, Mt Rushmore, Grand Tetons, Yellowstone and Glacier. We also went north into Canada to Banff National Park and Lake Louise. My thoughts...

Badlands. Interesting to see, but having seen them, I wouldn't go out of my way to see them again. They're called the Badlands for a reason. Not "pretty". Had dinner in Deadwood. Nice place to hangout for a couple of hours.

Mt Rushmore. Wanting to see this was what prompted the trip. Maybe that raised expectations, but while looking at it, I felt like if you've seen a picture of it you've seen Mt Rushmore. Also didn't like that although it's free to see, parking there (private company) is $11. There may be free options, but when you just pull in you find yourself at a cashier with cars behind you and no escape.

Yellowstone. Beautiful. Huge. Old Faithful. We saw lots of elk, antelope, big horn sheep and hundreds of bison. Also a few bears. Had dinner at the Lake Yellowstone Hotel. Pricey, but good. The air was kind of thin and humidity was super low, which made hiking a little difficult. Going down was ok, but coming back up...ugh.

Tetons. A short drive from Yellowstone and well worth it. Snow covered mountains, beautiful scenery.

Glacier. Spectacular! Take a ride up the Going To the Sun road. My favorite part of the whole trip. One breathtaking view after another. Glaciers, valleys, rugged snow covered peaks. I thought my camera was going to overheat. I'm already making plans to go back here.

Lake Louise. Breathtakingly beautiful area. Fantastic scenery. The ski lift is open during the summer to take you up the mountain for fabulous views. We saw 2 grizzlies on the way up. Tip: they charge $32 for the chairlift. For an extra $3 you can have a buffet breakfast, so go early. Saw several moose here. Had a big one one walk out of the brush and pass less than 10 feet from us. Debated whether to run, but he didn't seem fazed by the group of people with cameras.

En route, we also made made stops at Wall Drug and the Devils Tower (Close Encounters). Diversions to break up the long drive.

A tip for oldsters: if you're 62 or older you can get a National Parks pass for $10. It's good for life. The regular pass is $85/yr. It gets you into the parks for free (most were around $30 to get in) and also cuts your camping fee in half.