Alaska

Lake Clark National Park and Preserve

September 13, 2023 Raven About The Parks 2 Comments

Lake Clark National Park and Preserve

Alaska

Managed by National Park Service

Established 1978 National Monument, 1980 National Park

4,030,025 acres

Website: nps.gov/lacl

Overview

Lake Clark National Park and Preserve is inaccessible by road and receives only about 15,000 visitors annually. It sits at the northern end of the massive Alaska Peninsula southwest of Anchorage, home to the twin 10,000-foot volcanoes Redoubt and Iliamna. Cloaked in the whitest of snow, on a clear day they dominate the skyline view from a boat bobbing in Cook Inlet or a vehicle driving the Sterling Highway. Behind the mountains lies massive Lake Clark itself, as well as the Twin Lakes made famous in the film Alone in the Wilderness and the book One Man’s Wilderness that both documented Richard “Dick” Proenneke’s cabin building and backcountry lifestyle (see our list of the Top 10 Non-Fiction Books Set in a National Park and Alaska). Many visitors take flightseeing tours and never step foot on the ground, but that does not make their experience any less extraordinary.

Learn more in the expanded 2nd edition of our guidebook to the National Parks— A Park to Yourself: Finding Solitude in America’s 63 National Parks.

Highlights

Redoubt Volcano, Iliamna Volcano, Port Alsworth, Lake Clark, Richard Proenneke Historic Site, Double Glacier

Must-Do Activity

You can easily see the twin 10,000-foot volcanoes (Redoubt and Iliamna) within the park from Anchorage or Homer on a clear day, but getting to them is no easy task. Your best bet is to take a float plane charter service and land on one of the big, glacier-fed lakes. While you are over there try to do some salmon fishing; that is why the brown bears and bald eagles like it here. The park’s visitor center is in Port Alsworth on Lake Clark, and another popular destination is Richard Proenneke Historic Site on Twin Lakes. The park’s best attraction may be the massive glaciers that cling to the peaks of the Alaska and Aleutian Ranges and the Chigmit and Neacola Mountains. Flying over a jagged glacial field offers a unique perspective on these giant rivers of ice and the boulder strewn valleys where gray, milky streams follow the wide pathways left by receded glaciers.

Best Trail

At the park’s visitor center in Port Alsworth, 2.5-mile Tanalian Falls Trail is the only officially maintained trail and a popular destination for backpackers. At Richard Proenneke Historic Site, we hiked the scenic and steep Teetering Rock Trail less than a mile up to its namesake boulder that moves when you push on it.

Instagram-worthy Photo

Viewed from above, Double Glacier appears cracked and fissured like the skin on the back of a human hand. Rocky debris in lines of black accentuate the frozen white that hint at the slow flow of the ice river down the valley. Deeper crevasses reflect a cerulean shade that bewilders the eye in this otherwise monochrome landscape.

Peak Season

Summer

Hours

https://www.nps.gov/lacl/planyourvisit/hours.htm

Fees

None, but it is expensive to access by airplane. We took Kachemak Air Service to Twin Lakes and Talon Air Service to Double Glacier and Big River Lakes/Wolverine Creek.

Road Conditions

Essentially, there are no roads in Lake Clark National Park and Preserve.

Camping

No designated campgrounds exist within the park, so backcountry campers must come prepared with everything they need, plus the supplies required to wait an extra week for pickup should the weather turn bad.

Chugach National Forest (Alaska)

Kenai Fjords National Park (Alaska)

Explore More – Before this area was a National Park, when did Richard “Dick” Proenneke arrive at Twin Lakes to begin building his cabin?

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List

Top 10 States for State Parks

September 7, 2023 Raven About The Parks 4 Comments

We are currently finishing up our newest travel guidebook 50 States of Great (for sale now on Amazon), which focuses on our favorite State Park, National Forest, Roadside Attraction, and nine other categories for every state in America. Choosing one State Park for some states was easy, but others have so many great options it was a difficult decision. We wanted to honor those states in this list, and we also included our favorite parks in each state (with the best named first). Some of the listings are State Historic Sites that may be managed by a different government agency than State Parks or State Forests. Click here to see all of our Top 10 Lists, including our Top 10 States for National Forests and Top 10 States for National Park Service sites.

10. South Dakota (view our 7-Day Road Trip Itinerary)

Custer (pictured), Bear Butte, Palisades, Newton Hills, Fort Sisseton

Custer State Park might be the only one on this list worthy of being a National Park for its iconic wildlife and historic architecture

9. Indiana (view our 7-Day Road Trip Itinerary)

Indiana Dunes, Spring Mill, Falls of the Ohio, Angel Mounds, Clifty Falls, O’Bannon Woods, Brown County

The best part of Indiana Dunes National Park might be Indiana Dunes State Park, plus you can buy some freshly ground cornmeal at Spring Mill

8. Montana

Lewis and Clark Caverns (pictured), Makoshika, Bannack, Pictograph Cave, Flathead Lake

A limestone show cave, badlands full of dinosaur fossils, and the ghost town that started the 1862 gold rush

7. Missouri

Elephant Rocks, Johnson’s Shut-Ins, Taum Sauk, Ha Ha Tonka, Route 66, Prairie, Montauk, Meramec

A fun mix of pretty hiking trails and interesting history can be found in Missouri

6. Nevada

Valley of Fire, Cathedral Gorge, Berlin-Ichthyosaur, Lake Tahoe Nevada

Geology is the highlight in these beautiful State Parks

5. North Carolina

Hammocks Beach, Chimney Rock, Jockey’s Ridge, Fort Macon, Stone Mountain, Fischer Point, Raven Rock, South Mountains, Hanging Rock, Pilot Mountain, Brunswick Town, Morrow Mountain, William B. Umstead

Entry is free to nearly every State Park here and we have visited 30+ in our former home state

4. Hawai‘i (view our 14-Day Trip Itinerary)

Waimea Canyon, Napali Coast (pictured), Kealakekua Bay, ‘Iao Valley, Diamond Head, Lava Trees, Akaka Falls, Koke‘e, Isaac Hale, Iolani Palace, Ahupuaa O Kahana

Incredible scenery is almost a given on the islands of this tropical paradise

3. Arkansas

Crater of Diamonds (pictured), Pinnacle Mountain, Petit Jean, Mt. Magazine, Mississippi River, Devil’s Den, Village Creek, Lake Chicot

The only publicly-owned diamond mine in the world is a major attraction in Arkansas

2. Utah

Goblin Valley, Coral Pink Sand Dunes, Kodachrome Basin, Antelope Island, Goosenecks, Dead Horse Point

Geology is the highlight in these beautiful State Parks

…and finally our #1 state for State Parks:

1. Texas

Caprock Canyons (pictured), Palo Duro Canyon, Resaca de la Palma, Big Bend Ranch, Monahans Sandhills, Davis Mountains, Enchanted Rock, Devil’s Sinkhole, Kickapoo Cavern, Old Tunnel, Brazos Bend, Caddo Mounds, Mission Tejas, San Jacinto Battleground, Pedernales Falls

A large, diverse state offers a wide variety of park experiences from evening bat flights to backcountry camping

Honorable Mentions

Virginia

False Cape, Grayson Highlands, Fairy Stone, First Landing, Douthat, Westmoreland

Backpacking on the beach in and the mountains, plus collecting fairy stones are highlights of our time in these (somewhat expensive) parks

California

Calaveras Big Trees (pictured), Pfeiffer Big Sur, Anza-Borrego Desert, Humboldt Redwoods, Moss Landing, Emerald Bay, Montaña de Oro, Mt. Tamalpais, Oceano Dunes, Fort Ross, Natural Bridges, Mt. Diablo

There have to be more State Parks here than anywhere else, some of which are amazing while others are not so great

Alabama

Cathedral Caverns, Rickwood Caverns, DeSoto, Cheaha, Fort Toulouse-Fort Jackson (pictured), Gulf, Joe Wheeler

Cave tours, waterfalls, and mountain views can all be found in diverse Alabama

Oregon

Silver Falls, Beverly Beach, Smith Rock, Farewell Bend, Fort Stevens, Jessie M. Honeyman, Sunset Bay, Seal Rock, Wallowa Lake, La Pine

From the ocean to the mountains and all in between

Georgia (view our 7-Day Road Trip Itinerary)

Providence Canyon (pictured), Stephen C. Foster, Tallulah Gorge, Cloudland Canyon, Fort Mountain

Forested slopes, steep cliffs, waterfalls, and the lowlands of the Okefenokee Swamp

Michigan

Mackinac Island, Porcupine Mountains, Hartwick Pines, Fort Wilkins, P.J. Hoffmaster, Straits

Mackinac Island State Park was once a National Park and the Porcupine Mountains offer an incredible wilderness for backpacking on Lake Superior

South Carolina

Huntington Beach, Edisto Beach, Colonial Dorchester, Myrtle Beach, Hunting Island, Table Rock, Hampton Plantation, Devil’s Fork, Mountain Bridge

Some of the best ocean side campgrounds in the United States

North Dakota

Cedar River National Grassland

August 29, 2023 Raven About The Parks 1 Comment

Cedar River National Grassland

North Dakota

Managed by U.S. Forest Service, Northern Region

6,717 acres (6,717 federal/ 0 other)

Website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/dpg/recarea/?recid=79471

Overview

Cedar River National Grassland was created in 1998 from part of Custer National Forest, as is true of all four of the units managed as The Dakota Prairie Grasslands by the U.S. Forest Service. The number above showing 0 acres of private inholdings is a little misleading since Cedar River National Grassland is a patchwork of public lands surrounded by the Standing Rock Reservation of the Lakota Sioux. It is administered from the office just across the state border in Lemmon, South Dakota along with 154,783-acre Grand River National Grassland. Although situated close to the Cedar River, the grassland contains no river bottomlands and is primarily composed of rolling hills cut by dry gullies.

Highlights

Knispel Wildlife Area, Cedar River

Must-Do Activity

The soils of Cedar River National Grassland are mostly clay, but we found some interesting rocks on the surface near the buttes at Knispel Wildlife Area off Highway 31. Although it is not in the National Grassland, you should try to drive across one of the bridges over the namesake Cedar River. Using the Forest Service app, we hiked to a small pond with cattails we could see on the aerial photos near the North Community Allotment.

Best Trail

There are no designated trails in Cedar River National Grassland, so we just walked cross-country. We do recommend a stop at the World’s Largest Petrified Wood Park in nearby Lemmon, South Dakota.

Watchable Wildlife

About 25% of the National Grassland was reseeded with crested wheatgrass providing good grazing for white-tailed deer, pronghorn, and cattle. Sharp-tailed grouse and exotic pheasants are also found in this area and the neighboring farm fields (primarily growing sunflowers). Potholes and stock ponds provide habitat for blue-winged teals, gadwalls, and mallards, as well as fathead minnows, painted turtles, and northern leopard frogs. In the summer, listen for the songs of western meadowlarks. Birds of prey reported are red-tailed hawks, ferruginous hawks, Swainson’s hawks, northern harriers, American kestrels, golden eagles, and bald eagles. We saw evidence of a hut on a dry stream built by a beaver, and there are also or muskrats, raccoons, coyotes, red foxes, and badgers.

Instagram-worthy Photo

Cottonwood trees are about the only subject that will break the horizon in a photograph at Cedar River National Grassland.

Peak Season

Summer

Fees

None

Road Conditions

Highway 31 is paved, but most of the roads were unpaved; those with gravel were in good shape in October, although the clay could turn to gumbo during wet spring months.

Camping

There is not a designated campground and dispersed camping might be tough due to the lack of pullouts and the predominance of private land. It is probably better to head south to Grand River National Grassland, which has campgrounds.

Related Sites

Cimarron National Grassland (Kansas)

Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site (North Dakota)

Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site (North Dakota-Montana)

Nearest National Park

Theodore Roosevelt

Explore More – After the federal government acquired about 48,000 acres of the Standing Rock Reservation from homesteads in the 1930s, how many acres did they later return to the Lakota Sioux (although the tribe would like it all returned)?

Vermont

Moosalamoo National Recreation Area

August 23, 2023 Raven About The Parks 1 Comment

Moosalamoo National Recreation Area

Vermont

Managed by U.S. Forest Service, Eastern Region

15,875 acres

Website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/gmfl/recreation/recarea/?recid=64903&actid=29

Overview

Created by the New England Wilderness Act of 2006, Moosalamoo National Recreation Area is located in the northern portion of Vermont’s Green Mountain National Forest. Moosalamoo (pronounced moose-ah-la-moo) comes from the Abenaki word for a moose call. Recreation here is centered around water, with the Falls of Lana on Sucker Brook, a hike-in campground on Silver Lake, and boating on Sugar Hill Reservoir formed by Goshen Dam. There are 70 miles of hiking trails, which are also open to mountain bikers, equestrians, and cross-country skiers in the winter. Blueberry picking is a fun activity in the fall along trails and in cultivated fields at Blueberry Hill Inn in Goshen.

Highlights

Falls of Lana, Silver Lake, Voter Brook Overlook, Sugar Hill Reservoir , Robert Frost Interpretive Trail, Goshen Trail, Chandler Ridge-Leicester Hollow Loop, Mt. Moosalamoo Trail

Must-Do Activity

A short, steep hike from Silver Lake South Trailhead takes you underneath a welded steel penstock (or water pipe) that is part of a hydroelectric project. From here, carefully go left down the rocks on an unmarked route to the base of the Falls of Lana. The trail continues to the Rattlesnake Cliffs (closed seasonally due to raptor nesting) and Silver Lake, which has a backcountry campground. Another popular hike climbs about 1,500 feet in 2.5 miles to the top of Mt. Moosalamoo, with an additional 0.2-mile sidetrip to the South Vista.

Best Trail

Robert Frost, a four-time Pulitzer Prize winner in poetry, spent his summers at the Bread Loaf School of English, which he cofounded. On Highway 125, the Robert Frost Interpretive Trail is a handicap accessible boardwalk with posted poems by the author that also connects into the Crosswalk, North Star, Afternoon Delight, and Sundown Trails. Look for evidence of beavers near the ponds and the South Branch of the Middlebury River, as well as blueberries and huckleberries growing in old fields (maintained with prescribed fire). Unique to Forest Service trailheads, this one is a bus stop on the Tri-Valley Transit route.

Instagram-worthy Photo

Voter Brook Overlook was clearcut and planted with apple trees to provide a nice viewshed in this otherwise dense hardwood forest.

Peak Season

Summer

Fees

None

Road Conditions

All the gravel roads we drove were in good shape during the spring and we were so impressed by one new road culvert we stopped to take a photo (see below).

Camping

Open from Memorial Day through Labor Day, Moosalamoo Campground has 18 campsites located at the base of the Mt. Moosalamoo Trail, near Voter Brook Overlook. There are a couple dispersed campsites also on the road, but we had one of our worst nights camping here with college kids blasting music late and another group waking us up before sunrise. The backpacking campground at Silver Lake is nice, or you can stay at Branbury State Park on Lake Dunmore.

White Rocks National Recreation Area (Vermont)

Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park (Vermont)

Saint-Gaudens National Historical Park (New Hampshire)

Nearest National Park

Acadia

Explore More – Although his name is not Lana, the Falls of Lana are named for which U.S. Army General who served in the 1848 Mexican-American War?

Oklahoma, Texas

Black Kettle National Grassland

August 16, 2023 Raven About The Parks 4 Comments

Black Kettle National Grassland

Oklahoma, Texas

Managed by U.S. Forest Service, Southern Region

33,113 acres (31,286 federal/ 1,827 other)

Website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/cibola/home/?cid=stelprdb5397425

Overview

Like Cimarron National Grassland in Kansas, Black Kettle National Grassland was purchased by the federal government during the 1930s Dust Bowl. This is one of the only National Grasslands with a visitor center, shared with the National Park Service (NPS) who manages Washita Battlefield National Historic Site at the site of an 1868 massacre that took the life of Chief Black Kettle of the Southern Cheyenne. Even though the downstairs U.S. Forest Service office was closed on our Saturday visit, the NPS ranger at the desk provided a map and information on the National Grassland. We also walked the paved interpretive trail at the visitor center that explained homesteading, prescribed burning, and preserving the rare shinnery oak species.

Highlights

Black Kettle Recreation Area, Lake Marvin, Spring Creek Lake, Croton Creek Watchable Wildlife Area, Skipout Lake, Cheyenne Nature Walk

Must-Do Activity

Recreation here surrounds four reservoirs, including a tiny parcel around 63-acre Lake Marvin in Texas. In Oklahoma, there are 60-acre Skipout Lake, 50-acre Spring Creek Lake, and 80-acre Dead Warrior Lake. Fishing, picnicking, and free primitive camping are allowed at all four reservoirs, with a 1.75-mile trail circling Skipout Lake and wooded trails south of Dead Warrior Lake in Black Kettle Recreation Area.

Best Trail

Unlike some other National Grasslands, there are multiple marked and maintained trails here, including two loops totaling 1.6 miles at Croton Creek Watchable Wildlife Area (south of Highway 47) lined by small signs describing native grasses, trees, and birds. A slightly hidden trail is shown on the Forest Service app in the town of Cheyenne where a sidewalk heads into the woods leaving from the parking lot at the high school baseball field. The Cheyenne Nature Walk is paved and has a gazebo and boardwalk crossing a wetland area that was dry during our May visit.

Watchable Wildlife

Three unique bird species we spotted during our May visit were Mississippi kites, northern bobwhite quail, and scissor-tailed flycatchers. In addition, we saw cardinals and woodpeckers, and heard whippoorwills, barn owls, and barred owls overnight. Wild turkeys, cedar waxwings, and lesser prairie chickens are also among the 277 bird species identified. Tracks of white-tailed deer and raccoons were abundant on the Croton Creek Trail, plus there are bobcats, mountain lions, and beavers in the area. Fishermen can catch black bass, saugeye, catfish, and other types of pan fish.

Instagram-worthy Photo

This area is more heavily wooded than some other prairie National Grasslands, which can be experienced on the Croton Creek Trail and Cheyenne Nature Walk (watch for poison-ivy).

Peak Season

Spring and fall

Fees

None

Road Conditions

Highways 283, 33, and 47 are paved roads that run through the National Grassland, and despite abundant spring rainstorms, we did not have any difficulty with the unpaved roads.

Camping

All four lakes offer free primitive campsites with some picnic tables, as does Croton Creek Watchable Wildlife Area where we stayed only six miles west of Cheyenne. RV campsites with hookups at Lake Marvin cost $20 a night.

Alibates Flint Quarries National Monument (Texas)

Cimarron National Grassland (Kansas)

Nearest National Park

Great Sand Dunes