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Georgia

Georgia Road Trip Itinerary

February 21, 2024 Raven About The Parks 3 Comments

Georgia

36,808,634 acres (1.6% of U.S.)

Statehood 1788 (4th of 50)

Capital: Atlanta

Population: 10,711,908 (8th of 50)

High Point: Brasstown Bald (4,784 feet)

Best time of year: Spring for mild temperatures and flowering dogwood blooms

We recently published our guidebook 50 States of Great: Road Trip Guide to America, so we decided to start a new type of blog post where we create a travel itinerary for all 50 states, in addition to our usual National Forest and National Park entries. After starting with Kansas, we decided to do an east coast state. We made an ambitious seven-day plan starting in the northwest corner of Georgia, with many options to extend the trip.

Day 1

Ed Jenkins National Recreation Area (click here for our blog post)

Formerly named after Springer Mountain, the southern terminus of the Appalachian National Scenic Trail (click here for our blog post) is marked with a bronze plaque and trail register. Most backpackers start from potholed Forest Service Road 42 and ascend 0.9 miles south to the summit then spend the night in the open-front trail shelter or turn around to head back north. For day hikers, a nice option is to add the eastern part of the Benton MacKaye Trail to make a 4.7-mile loop that passes Owen Vista.

Chattahoochee National Forest (click here for our blog post)

The Gennett Poplar (a tulip-poplar tree more than five feet in diameter) is accessed by hiking 1.8 miles out-and-back with two stream crossings on the Bear Creek Tail. Other large tulip-poplars and yellow buckeyes are found in 175-acre Sosebee Cove Scenic Area. You can spend the night riverside at the free Hickey Gap Campground, one of our Top 10 National Forest Campgrounds.

Optional stop at Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park (click here for our blog post)

Half of this park is situated in Tennessee around Lookout Mountain, but at Georgia’s Chickamauga battlefield a seven-mile long driving tour explains what happened there on September 20, 1863.

Optional stops at Brasstown Bald, Tallulah Gorge State Park, Amicolola Falls State Park, and Cloudland Canyon State Park

Start your itinerary a day early in Georgia’s northeast corner by enjoying some State Parks and the state’s high point Brasstown Bald, managed by Chattahoochee National Forest.

Day 2

Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park (click here for our blog post)

Wait out the morning traffic into Atlanta by driving or hiking to the top of this steep hill in the city’s suburbs.

Georgia Aquarium

Holding more than 10-million gallons of water in its numerous tanks, Georgia Aquarium is the best in the nation (even better than California’s Monterey Bay Aquarium). It contains more than 500 aquatic species, but the most impressive are the 30-foot-long whale sharks that reside in the 6.3-million-gallon Ocean Voyager Gallery, the world’s largest indoor marine exhibit.

Optional stop at Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historical Park (click here for our blog post)

A short walk from the visitor center is required to enter King’s boyhood home (which is wheelchair accessible). Silence is mandatory while inside. Outside the neighboring King Center, the Reflection Pool contains the tombs of Martin Luther King, Jr. and his wife Coretta Scott King, as well as an eternal flame.

Optional stop at Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area (click here for our blog post)

Established in 1978, this park is a combination of government jurisdictions and private land that protects 48 miles of the Chattahoochee River downstream from Lake Sidney Lanier northeast of Atlanta. Due to its lack of large rapids it is popular with canoers.

Day 3

Andersonville National Historic Site (click here for our blog post)

This notorious Civil War prison remains an active military cemetery and is also home to the National Prisoner of War Museum run by the National Park Service. This may not be the best place to bring children, given that the exhibits in the museum do not pull punches in their depictions of the brutality endured by captured combatants throughout the ages.

Museum of Aviation in Macon

This free Air Force aviation museum has airplanes on display both inside and outside, everything from a P-40 Flying Tiger to an SR-71 Blackbird.

Optional stop at Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park (click here for our blog post)

One of the best examples of temple mounds from the Mississippian Culture that began around 1,100 years ago. Starting from the National Park Service museum (which contains artifacts dating back to 8000 B.C.E.), walk under the railroad tracks, go inside the replica earth lodge, and up the stairs to access the top of the 55-foot-tall Great Temple Mound.

Day 4

Savannah

Savannah is a great city for walking that offers countless public squares, beautifully landscaped Forsyth Park with its iconic fountain, spooky Bonaventure Cemetery (see photo), legendary River Street shopping district, and architectural gems like the birthplace of Juliette Gordon Low (who founded the Girl Scouts of America in 1912). Do not miss a photo at the tree-lined entrance to Wormsloe State Historic Site, a plantation located on the edge of an expansive marsh.

Optional stop at Tybee Island

After touring the city, drive on to the Atlantic Ocean for some beach time. Once you have soaked up some saltwater, sand, and sun, check out the Tybee Island Light Station and Museum, built at this site in 1773, then reconstructed after the Civil War. Also, check out the nearby World War II-era Battery Garland in the decommissioned Fort Screven.

Day 5

Fort Pulaski National Monument (click here for our blog post)

Located 17 miles from Savannah on Cockspur Island, photogenic Fort Pulaski National Monument protects a brick fort named for a Polish Count who was killed in action during the American Revolution. Claimed by the Confederacy early during the Civil War, it was surrendered to the Union Army in April 1862 after thirty hours of shelling from nearby Tybee Island.

Optional stop at Fort Frederica National Monument (click here for our blog post)

The British established Fort Frederica in the 1730s to stop Spanish encroachment from Florida into their American colonies. The town that formed around the fort peaked at a population of 1,000. Today it is a beautiful setting with tabby wall ruins and Spanish moss-draped trees.

Day 6

Cumberland Island National Seashore (click here for our blog post)

Only accessible by boat, most visitors arrive by ferry from St. Marys (reservations recommended) and spend a full day here. Bicycles can be rented once you arrive on the island (they are not allowed on the ferry) and are permitted on the many miles of roads, but not on the trails or beach. While it is fun to spend time beachcombing or seeing the ruins of the Dungeness mansion, what really sets Cumberland Island apart are the 50 miles of hiking trails that cut through the maritime forest of twisty live oak trees. Watch for feral horses, white-tailed deer, armadillos, turkeys, and other birds along the way.

Day 7

Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge

The largest freshwater wetlands in the country are home to about 12,000 alligators. The baldcypress swamp spreads across 448,000 acres around the Suwannee River. There are no roads across Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge and it is most easily accessible from the west through Stephen C. Foster State Park, which has a campground and kayak rentals to access camping platforms in the swamp.

Day 8+ optional swing through western Georgia

Providence Canyon State Park

Clearing the forests for farmland in the mid-1800s is what allowed these 16 gullies to erode the soft red-clay hills into the colorful spectacle they are today (with many shades of orange, pink, lavender, and yellow). The 1,003-acre State Park was established in 1971 to protect the area and it is featured as a U-Haul Super Graphic. The best views are from the rim walk, but to truly appreciate the depth (up to 150 feet deep) and palette of colors you need to hike down into some of the nine canyons with trails.

Jimmy Carter National Historical Park (click here for our blog post)

The former Governor, Nobel Peace Prize-winner, and U.S. President Jimmy Carter is the most well-known peanut farmer in Plains, and was a regular at the Plains Peanut Festival held every September. The National Park Service manages the Jimmy Carter National Historical Park with two visitor centers, one at the former Plains High School and the other at the family’s 360-acre farm.

Learn more about Georgia’s Most Scenic Drive, Wonderful Waterfall, Top State Park, and other categories in in our new travel guidebook 50 States of Great: Road Trip Guide to America.

Michigan

Hiawatha National Forest

February 7, 2024 Raven About The Parks Leave a comment

Hiawatha National Forest

Michigan

Managed by U.S. Forest Service, Eastern Region

1,294,645 acres (894,836 federal/ 399,809 other)

Website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/hiawatha

Overview

Hiawatha National Forest is separated into two sections on the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, both of which touch Lake Superior and Lake Michigan. The East Unit also fronts Lake Huron, and includes scenic Round Island Lighthouse near Mackinac Island, as well as beautiful Point Iroquois Light Station. Most of these sandy soils in the East Unit were never homesteaded, so they were easily designated Marquette National Forest by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1909. Land purchases for the West Unit began in 1928, and were later replanted by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). The West Unit includes 13,500-acre Grand Island National Recreation Area (see our blog post) in Lake Superior, a popular destination for camping, biking, and kayaking at the western edge of Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.

Highlights

Grand Island National Recreation Area, St. Helena Island National Scenic Area, Whitefish Bay Scenic Byway, Point Iroquois Light Station, Scott Falls, Diamond Hill Lookout, Porcupine Nature Trail, Haymeadow Falls Trail, Naomikong Point Blue Trail, North Country National Scenic Trail

Must-Do Activity

Several lighthouses are located along the shores of the Great Lakes, including the picturesque Round Island Lighthouse near touristy Mackinac Island, Point Iroquois Light Station (see Instagram-worthy Photo) on the Whitefish Bay Scenic Byway, and one on private land near Wick Point within Grand Island National Recreation Area (see our blog post). Further to the west Highway M-28 follows the shores of Lake Superior, where a Wayside Park at the east side of AuTrain Bay provides parking for those wishing to carefully cross the road to see ten-foot-tall Scott Falls.

Best Trail

Foley Creek Day Use Area is located just off Interstate 75 at a large pullout along paved Mackinac Trail Road. A hike starts at the north end of a former campground, and soon the sound of the freeway is dispersed by the trees as you enter the small Horseshoe Bay Wilderness. The trail has boardwalks across the wettest spots and after 1.4 miles opens up to a secluded sandy beach on Lake Huron with views of Mackinac Island. Naomikong Point Blue Trail is a popular 3.4-mile out-and-back trail that connects with the North Country National Scenic Trail, crossing Naomikong Creek on a suspension bridge then ending at Menekaunee Point on Naomikong Island.

Watchable Wildlife

These forests are home to gray wolves, black bears, bobcats, Canada lynx, mountain lions, red foxes, coyotes, striped skunks, weasels, minks, river otters, porcupines, beavers, muskrats, snowshoe hares, white-tailed deer, and moose. Large birds found here include wild turkeys, spruce grouse, ruffed grouse, golden eagles, bald eagles, ospreys, great blue herons, sandhill cranes, and trumpeter swans. Hiawatha National Forest has more than 100 miles of shoreline on three Great Lakes, offering fishing for walleye, northern pike, muskies, Atlantic salmon, and steelhead trout. In addition, there are 75 inland lakes and 600 miles of streams, including five National Wild and Scenic Rivers: Carp River, Indian River, Sturgeon River, Tahquamenon River (East Branch), and Whitefish River. The 0.9-mile Haymeadow Falls Trail loop partially follows a productive trout stream.

Instagram-worthy Photo

Located on the Whitefish Bay Scenic Byway, the iconic 65-foot Point Iroquois Light Station stands on the shores of Lake Superior at the mouth of St. Mary’s River. The first lighthouse and residence were built here in 1855, and the current buildings were placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975. When not under construction, you can pay to enter the museum and climb the spiral staircase to the top of the tower.

Peak Season

Summer

Fees

None

Road Conditions

Whitefish Bay Scenic Byway is fully paved, and we found the unpaved roads to Hovey Lake Campground to be in good enough shape for our passenger vehicle.

Camping

We spent an enjoyable night at the free Hovey Lake Campground and awoke to find a pair of trumpeter swans on the water. Hiawatha National Forest has many other campgrounds, including two near the Mackinaw Toll Bridge: Lake Michigan (35 campsites) and Carp River (44 sites). Near the town of Brimley on Lake Superior, Bay View (24 sites) and Monocle Lake (39 sites) Campgrounds are also popular.

Wilderness Areas

Big Island Lake Wilderness

Delirium Wilderness

Horseshoe Bay Wilderness

Mackinac Wilderness

Rock River Canyon Wilderness

Round Island Wilderness

Related Sites

Ottawa National Forest (Michigan)

Keweenaw National Historical Park (Michigan)

Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore (Michigan)

Nearest National Park

Isle Royale

Conifer Tree Species

eastern hemlock, jack pine, eastern white pine, red pine, balsam fir, black spruce, white spruce, eastern arborvitae, tamarack

Flowering Tree Species

basswood, red maple, sugar maple, American beech, quaking aspen, paper birch, white birch, northern red oak, mountain holly

Explore More – The subject of a famous Henry Wadsworth Longfellow poem, who was Hiawatha in real life?

Learn more about this and the 154 other National Forests in our new guidebook Out in the Woods

Michigan

Grand Island National Recreation Area

January 31, 2024 Raven About The Parks 2 Comments

Grand Island National Recreation Area

Michigan

Managed by U.S. Forest Service, Eastern Region

13,279 acres

Website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/hiawatha/recarea/?recid=13270

Overview

The turquoise color of Lake Superior beneath the sandstone cliffs of Grand Island National Recreation Area makes it seem warmer than it actually is. Glaciers carved this island’s shoreline thousands of years ago and the Ice Age never seems far off in the lake’s cold waters. Managed by Hiawatha National Forest, the most popular activities here are commercial boat tours, backpacking, and mountain biking the 20-mile loop around the island. Paddling a sea kayak can be an unforgettable experience and guides can provide the necessary gear. Most of the northern two-thirds of Grand Island is surrounded by cliffs with nowhere to land a boat, so be careful as large waves can become hazardous on Lake Superior.

Highlights

East Channel Lighthouse, 1870 wreck of the Bermuda, Williams-Powell Cemetery, Stone Quarry Cabin, Waterfall Beach Overlook, Merchandise Beach, Echo Lake

Must-Do Activity

After a night spent at the free Hovey Lake Campground in Hiawatha National Forest, we kayaked to Grand Island from the ferry dock west of Munising to see East Channel Lighthouse and the 1870 wreck of the Bermuda from the water. We then landed our boat on the sandy beach at Murray Bay Group Site to walk to Williams-Powell Cemetery and Stone Quarry Cabin. You can pick up a guided boat tour from the docks in Munising that makes a long explanatory stop over the Bermuda or take the ferry to the island with your mountain bike for exploring. Make sure to visit the free Pictured Rocks Interpretive Center in downtown Munising for informational displays provided by the U.S. Forest Service.

Best Trail

There is a 20-mile-long bike trail that circles Grand Island, with some inland trails (like the one to Echo Lake) and a few open only to hikers. The non-motorized trails are closed to eBikes.

Instagram-worthy Photo

East Channel Lighthouse is situated on private land near Wick Point, so no landing is allowed onshore there.

Peak Season

Summer

Fees

A day use fee of $5 per person, per trip applies if you land on the island. Ferry rides cost $23 per person and camping fees also apply ($8 to $10 per night).

Road Conditions

Bike trails around the southern part of Grand Island are roads also used by tour vans, so watch out for traffic.

Camping

There are many campsites on the island, including a few protected in Murray Bay about two miles from the Williams Landing ferry dock. Reservations are required for camping except at Flat Rock, Cobble Cove, and Muskrat Point, which offer first-come, first-served campsites all in the southeast corner of Grand Island.

Related Sites

Hiawatha National Forest (Michigan)

Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore (Michigan)

Keweenaw National Historical Park (Michigan)

Nearest National Park

Isle Royale

Explore More – Given the common names of northern white-cedar or eastern arborvitae, why is Thuja occidentalis known as the “tree-of-life”?

Montana

Helena National Forest

January 24, 2024 Raven About The Parks 1 Comment

Helena National Forest

Montana

Managed by U.S. Forest Service, Northern Region

1,175,125 acres (984,558 federal/ 190,567 other)

Website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/hlcnf

Overview

Helena National Forest surrounds Montana’s capital city of Helena, encompassing several mountain ranges. The Big Belt Mountains were the site of the of the 1949 Mann Gulch Fire, which killed 13 smokejumpers who were immortalized in Norman Maclean’s classic book Young Men and Fire (see our Top 10 Non-Fiction Books on National Forests). There is a Mann Gulch Memorial located in Meriwether Campground. Much of the National Forest is grassland and sagebrush, with conifer trees dominating the canyons and mountain slopes. In the winter, snowmobiling, snowshoeing, and cross-country skiing are popular pastimes.

Highlights

Gates of the Mountains, Mann Gulch Memorial, Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail Interpretive Center, Gypsy Lake, Crow Creek Falls, Elkhorn Mountains, Blackfoot Canyon, Red Mountain, Refrigerator Canyon, Hanging Valley National Recreation Trail, Meriwether Canyon Trail

Must-Do Activity

Meriwether Lewis named the Gates of the Mountains on July 19, 1805, and today a two-hour jet boat tour on the Missouri River details the history of the Corps of Discovery, American Indian pictographs, the Mann Gulch Fire, and the collapse of Hauser Dam. North of Helena on Interstate 15 in Great Falls is the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail Interpretive Center, which is run by the U.S. Forest Service.

Best Trail

Refrigerator Canyon is less than ten feet wide at its narrowest point, where towering 200-foot limestone cliffs keep it cool and breezy throughout the summer. The trailhead is accessed by driving 12 miles of washboard road that turns left off paved York Road just after crossing near the dam that forms Hauser Lake on the Missouri River. It is a short quarter-mile hike to reach the canyon’s pinch point that was full of rock climbers during our visit. The route then gets steeper, gaining 1,100 feet in two miles and providing excellent mountain views. The trail eventually levels out and continues for another seven miles past Bear Prairie in the Gates of the Mountains Wilderness. It can be connected to the Meriwether Canyon Trail, which dead ends at the Missouri River 18 miles from the Refrigerator Canyon Trailhead.

Watchable Wildlife

Grizzly bears can be found in the Scapegoat Wilderness in the northwest part of Helena National Forest where it borders Lewis and Clark National Forest (considered part of the massive Bob Marshall Wilderness complex connecting to Glacier National Park). Other predators include black bears, gray wolves, wolverines, ermine, mountain lions, bobcats, and Canada lynx. River otters and beavers can be found on the Missouri River. Grazing ungulates commonly seen are elk, moose, mule deer, and pronghorn, in addition to bighorn sheep and mountain goats at higher elevations. Trout streams and lakes provide fishing opportunities for humans, as well as bald eagles and ospreys.

Instagram-worthy Photo

You might see rock climbers blocking narrow Refrigerator Canyon, but be sure to continue through on the steep trail for beautiful views of the Gates of the Mountains Wilderness.

Peak Season

Summer

Fees

None

Road Conditions

The washboard road back to Refrigerator Canyon was in good enough shape for our passenger vehicle.

Camping

A Mann Gulch Memorial is located in Meriwether Campground, plus there are numerous other campgrounds and dispersed campsites located throughout the National Forest’s network of unpaved roads.

Wilderness Areas

Gates of the Mountains Wilderness

Scapegoat Wilderness (also in Lewis and Clark National Forest)

Related Sites

Beaverhead National Forest (Montana)

Deerlodge National Forest (Montana)

Flathead National Forest (Montana)

Nearest National Park

Glacier

Conifer Tree Species

lodgepole pine, ponderosa pine, limber pine, whitebark pine, Rocky Mountain juniper, Douglas-fir, alpine larch, subalpine fir

Flowering Tree Species

quaking aspen, balsam poplar, narrowleaf cottonwood, Rocky Mountain maple, paper birch, willow, red-osier dogwood, choke cherry

Explore More – Before it changed its name to Helena in 1864, what was the name of the gold mining camp that became Montana’s state capital?

Learn more about this and the 154 other National Forests in our guidebook Out in the Woods

Kansas

Kansas Road Trip Itinerary

January 17, 2024 Raven About The Parks 5 Comments

Kansas

52,325,581 acres (2.3% of U.S.)

Statehood 1861 (34th of 50)

Capital: Topeka

Population: 2,937,880 (35th of 50)

High Point: Mt. Sunflower (4,041 feet)

Best time of year: Fall for apple picking, football games, OZtoberFest, and fall foliage

We recently published our guidebook 50 States of Great: Road Trip Guide to America, so we decided to start a new type of blog post where we create a travel itinerary for all 50 states, in addition to our usual National Forest and National Park entries. We are starting with Kansas, an often-overlooked travel destination where we have had a lot of fun on multiple visits dating back to 2007. We made a seven-day plan starting in the southwest corner of the state, with plenty of options to extend the trip.

Day 1

Cimarron National Grassland (click here for our blog post) / Santa Fe National Historic Trail

The state’s largest parcel of public land at 108,175 acres contains Middle Springs, Cottonwood Picnic Area (with the 10.5-mile Turkey Trail), and Point of Rocks, an important landmark on the Santa Fe Trail and third highest point in Kansas. In the spring, birdwatchers gather at two viewing blinds to watch the elaborate mating rituals of lesser prairie-chickens, one of the more than 360 bird species identified here.

Liberal

Dorothy’s House landed here after it was swept up in the tornado to the Land of Oz, located next to the free Seward County Coronado Museum. While visiting, you can pose with your favorite character from L. Frank Baum’s allegory along a yellow brick walkway.

Optional stop at Dalton Gang Hideout Museum

Walk the 95-foot-long escape tunnel built by the notorious outlaw family beneath their farmhouse to evade law enforcement.

Day 2

Big Well Museum in Greensburg

Completed in 1888, it is the world’s largest hand dug well at 109 feet deep (and 32 feet in diameter) to access the massive Ogallala Aquifer. On May 4, 2007, the town of Greensburg was devastated by a powerful tornado, but the resilient population rebuilt around the historic well.

Boot Hill Museum in Dodge City

This bloody frontier town earned the moniker “Wickedest Little City in America.” Even though the buildings on Front Street are mostly reproductions, there remains an authentic Wild West vibe in the air as you walk past artifacts from the 1800s. If you plan to spend the night after your visit to the Boot Hill Museum, consider paying extra for the brisket dinner and nightly variety show (in the summer) at the Long Branch Saloon.

Optional stop at Dodge City Zoo

Across the railroad tracks from the Boot Hill Museum, the Dodge City Zoo in Wright Park offers free admission to see a multitude of mammals and birds.

Day 3

Fort Larned National Historic Site (click here for our blog post)

The fort was only active from 1860 to 1878, but after becoming private property it continued to function as a working ranch which explains why it is in such good shape today. Costumed re-enactors are really what make this site special, from the blacksmith to the schoolteacher to the commissar to the officers’ wives.

Quivira National Wildlife Refuge

A 14-mile auto route and hiking trails to observation blinds offer great opportunities to see a variety of birds and mammals in this wetland south of the great bend of the Arkansas River.

Optional stops at Geographic Center, Coronado Heights Park, Big Basin Prairie Preserve, and Mushroom Rock State Park

Roadside attractions in central Kansas include the Geographic Center of the 48 contiguous states and the hilltop tower at Coronado Heights Park near historic Lindsborg. There is also a small herd of bison in 1,818-acre Big Basin Prairie Preserve. At Mushroom Rock State Park, interesting sandstone concretions held together by calcium carbonate have withstood the erosion that washed away the surrounding bedrock over time.

Day 4

Strataca in Hutchinson

Strataca takes visitors in an elevator 650 feet down through the Equus Beds Aquifer into an underground salt mine with 67 miles of tunnels. A tram tour (hardhat provided) is part of the admission price, as is the opportunity to take home a big chunk of salt.

Cosmosphere in Hutchinson

Cosmosphere International SciEd Center and Space Museum contains the largest collection of space artifacts outside the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C.

Wichita

The state’s largest city and “Airplane Capital of the World” has the Great Plains Nature Center, Kansas Aviation Museum, and a fun dinner theater at Mosley Street Melodrama.

Optional stop at Hutchinson Zoo

Another one of the many free zoos located throughout Kansas.

Day 5

Fort Scott National Historic Site (click here for our blog post)

The maple trees were changing colors during our November visit to Fort Scott National Historic Site, their vibrant leaves in sharp contrast to the fort’s white buildings.

Louisburg Cider Mill

Fall is a great time to visit the cider mill to see the apples being processed and eat some freshly made cider donuts.

Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve (click here for our blog post)

There are many miles of trails that wander through the 10,894-acre preserve that is jointly run by the Nature Conservancy and National Park Service. A reintroduced bison herd roams these hills, where you can visit the historic Spring Hill Ranch and the one-room Lower Fox Creek School, which was open from 1884 to 1930.

Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site (click here for our blog post)

In downtown Topeka, you can tour the former African-American-only Monroe Elementary School, restored to its 1950s appearance with some classrooms turned into exhibits on the civil rights movement worldwide.

Optional stop at Kansas University in Lawrence

Come for a college football or basketball game and stay to see the original rules for basketball written by Dr. James Naismith, the free Spencer Museum of Art, the historic Natural History Museum, and numerous Jayhawk statues across campus.

Day 6

Kansas City

Not all the best attractions of Kansas City are in Missouri, so explore the beautiful Museum at PrairieFire, try some famous barbecue at Joe’s gas station, and go apple picking in the fall at Cider Hill Family Orchard.

Wamego

Like Liberal on the other side of the state, Wamego also has a Wizard of Oz-themed part of town and holds the annual OZtoberFest in October.

Optional stop at Kansas State University in Manhattan

Sample some Purple Pride and Apple Dapple ice cream at Call Hall Dairy Bar, then visit the free Beach Museum of Art and the American Museum of Baking inside Emerson Library that displays a sample of Egyptian bread dating back 3,800 years (insert fruit cake joke here). Kansas State University Gardens is a great stop regardless of the season given its fountains and Insect Zoo with a modest $3 entry fee.

Day 7

Ft. Leavenworth

Check in and get your day pass from the military visitor center before driving onto the army base to visit the Buffalo Soldiers Memorial and Frontier Army Museum at Fort Leavenworth.

Atchison

Amelia Earhart Birthplace Museum and Haunted Tours that include the infamous Sallie House.

Optional stop at Marysville

An Oregon Trail town founded in 1855 that still has its old Pony Express Station located downtown near the beautiful 1891 Marshall County Courthouse. It is also home to a population of black squirrels that are reportedly escapees from a traveling circus.

Day 8+ optional swing through northwestern Kansas

Nicodemus National Historic Site (click here for our blog post)

Founded in 1877 by former slaves from Kentucky freed after the Civil War, this historic town is representative of the African-American population boom in Kansas that jumped from only 627 to 43,107 between 1860 and 1880.

Mt. Sunflower

You can drive to the top of Kansas, a small hill near the western border with Colorado.

Buffalo Bill bronze sculpture in Oakley

An impressive 9,000-pound bronze statue stands outside a Cultural Center highlighting Buffalo Bill’s fascinating life. Also worthwhile is the Fick Fossil and History Museum.

Monument Rocks

A dirt road detour south of Interstate 70 takes travelers to Monument Rocks, the first National Natural Landmark designated by the U.S. Department of the Interior in 1968. The 70-foot-tall chalk formations are chock full of fossils formed 80-million years ago during the Cretaceous Period. The white monoliths really light up at sunset and sunrise, but since they are on private property no camping is allowed at the site.

Learn more about Kansas’ Most Scenic Drive, Wonderful Waterfall, Top State Park, and other categories in in our new travel guidebook 50 States of Great: Road Trip Guide to America.

Hiawatha National Forest

Grand Island National Recreation Area

Helena National Forest

Start your U.S. National Parks, National Forests, and National Monuments adventure here!