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Indiana, itinerary

Indiana Road Trip Itinerary

June 25, 2025 Raven About The Parks 1 Comment

22,928,710 acres

Statehood 1816 (19th)

Capital: Indianapolis

Population: 6,785,528 (17th)

High Point: Hoosier Hill (1,257 feet)

Best time of year: Summer

Last year we 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 by jumping around to Kansas, Georgia, Idaho, Rhode Island, Minnesota, Hawai’i, Arizona, Louisiana, and South Dakota, we headed to the Midwest for our tenth state. We start in the northwest corner of Indiana on the shores of Lake Michigan near Chicago, then all roads lead to Indianapolis, so we head south with plenty of options to extend the trip. See for yourself why Indiana made it on our Top 10 States for State Parks list.

Day 1

Indiana Dunes National Park (click here for our complete blog post)

Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore was originally created in 1966 as a compromise between industrialists seeking to build more steel mills and conservationists wanting to preserve biodiversity. Though it is now one of the 63 National Parks, the quiet Dunewood Campground still provides hot showers in a wooded setting inland from the lakeshore.

Optional stop at Indiana Dunes State Park

Complete the 3 Dune Challenge by climbing the three tallest dunes in the State Park (separate entrance fee) to earn a prize at the visitor center shared with the National Park.

Day 2

Raclin Murphy Museum of Art

This museum on the University of Notre Dame campus in South Bend offers free admission and highlights Christian art from Europe. Guided tours are offered of the famous football stadium year-round, and the Basilica of the Sacred Heart and adjacent Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes spiritual shrine are always open. On a college football gameday, do not miss the midnight drumming circle beneath the golden dome and other traditions throughout the day.

Optional stop at Studebaker National Museum

South Bend was once the headquarters for manufacturing Studebakers and the museum displays many made-in-Indiana automobiles.

Day 3

RV/MH Hall of Fame

Elkhart is recognized as “the RV Capital of the World” since so many Recreational Vehicles are built in local factories. The Hall of Fame first opened in 1991 then moved to a larger building where it exhibits more than 50 historic vehicles dating back to the 1913 Earl Travel Trailer. You can also take a free plant tour of Jayco, Inc. to see RVs being manufactured in nearby Middlebury.

Optional stop at Hall of Heroes Superhero Museum

Six miles down the road in Elkhart, the Hall of Heroes Superhero Museum has more than 50,000 comic books and countless toys and movie props on display. All-you-can-play arcade games are included with your admission.

Optional stop at Turkey Run State Park

This popular state park is about an hour west of Indianapolis and offers camping, hiking, swimming, kayaking, and fishing.

Day 4

Indianapolis Motor Speedway

The first auto race took place here in 1909 and the first Indy 500 was held two years later. The car that won that inaugural Indy 500 was the Marmon Wasp and it is held in the track’s Hall of Fame Museum, along with the Borg-Warner Trophy. This is considered the world’s largest stadium (with a capacity of 257,325). When cars are not running, you can take a bus tour around the oval (at significantly less than 200 miles-per-hour) and kiss the 36-inch strip of bricks at the finish line left unpaved.

Optional stop at James A. Allison Exhibition Center

Down the road from the racetrack, the free James A. Allison Exhibition Center tells the story of a local auto parts builder who expanded his company (founded in 1915) into engines for military airplanes.

Optional stop at the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis

Hands-on exhibits abound in this renowned museum southeast of downtown.

Day 5

Spring Mill State Park

Today you can still buy cornmeal ground by the historic gristmill that runs for ten minutes every hour, part of Pioneer Village where costumed reenactors demonstrate chair caning, broom making, and fiddle making. The park also contains trails, an elevated flume reconstructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), Hamer Pioneer Gardens, guided boat trips that enter 500 feet into Twin Caves, and the Grissom Memorial Museum dedicated to the local hero who was the second American astronaut in space and died in a 1967 launchpad fire.

Optional stop at White River State Park

Located in downtown Indianapolis, this unique State Park surrounds the Indiana State Museum, Eiteljorg Museum of American Indian and Western Art, Indiana Zoo, and NCAA Hall of Champions featuring many interactive exhibits next door to the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) headquarters.

Day 6

Hoosier National Forest (click here for our complete blog post)

Created in 1935 from cutover and abandoned farmland, the National Forest’s best hike is Hemlock Cliffs Trail, a 1.2-mile loop through a canyon that passes two unique waterfalls. A 0.8-mile trail runs through the 88 acres of old-growth forest of Pioneer Mothers Memorial Forest. The tall trees here range in age from 150- to 600-years-old, and the black walnuts that grow in a moist cove known as Walnut Cathedral are considered the finest specimens in the country.

Optional stop at Muscatatuck National Wildlife Refuge

A visitor center and auto trail make this the most developed National Wildlife Refuge in Indiana for birding and fishing. The nearby Big Oaks National Wildlife Refuge encompasses a former military property and requires special authorization to visit.

Day 7

Lanier Mansion State Historic Site

The beautiful Lanier Mansion was built for James Franklin Doughty Lanier, a prominent businessman in the state of Indiana around the mid-1800s. The Greek Revival-style house was completed in 1844 and is one of the finest buildings in Madison’s National Historic Landmark District on the Ohio River. Well-preserved Madison was an important waystation on the Underground Railroad.

Clifty Falls State Park

This park protects a deep, boulder-strewn canyon with several waterfalls, including one with a 60-foot drop. It also has a campground and the blufftop Clifty Inn built in 1924 with views of the Ohio River.

Optional stop on the Indiana Cave Trail

A driving route connects several show caves in the southern part of the state where the brisk air is always a humid 57°F. Highlights include Indiana Caverns, Wyandotte Caves State Recreation Area, Squire Boone Caverns, Marengo Cave, and Bluespring Caverns that offers a one-hour boat ride through America’s longest navigable underground river.

Day 8+

George Rogers Clark National Historical Park (click here for our complete blog post)

A beautiful 80-foot-tall granite memorial was built on the site of Fort Sackville in the 1930s to commemorate the victory Clark led there on February 25, 1779. After watching the 20-minute film in the visitor center in Vincennes, go inside the circular memorial with 16 columns in classic Greek style to see a bronze statue surrounded by seven murals. You can then walk down the Wabash River to see the home of President William Henry Harrison and the old territorial capitol.

Holiday World

Located in the town of Santa Claus, this Christmas-themed amusement park has roller coasters, a water park, and many shops.

Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial (click here for our complete blog post)

Take a walk past the pioneer cemetery to the Cabin Site Memorial where a bronze casting of sill logs and the fireplace hearthstones are at the site of Abraham Lincoln’s family cabin from 1829. The Living Historical Farm has costumed interpreters in the summer that depict homestead life at an authentic cabin and several outbuildings that were moved here from other parts of Indiana.

Angel Mounds State Historic Site

Near Evansville is a 430-acre site where there are 11 grass-covered Mississippian mounds built as early as 1,000 years ago, plus a replica village, simulated excavation site, and a visitor center full of artifacts.

Milan ’54 Museum

Commemorates the town’s 1954 high school boys’ basketball team that defeated the mighty Muncie Central for the state championship, as immortalized in the 1986 film Hoosiers.

Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame

In a state obsessed with basketball, this museum was moved from the capital city to New Castle in 1990 so it could have more room for expansion.

Learn more about Indiana’s Most Scenic Drive, Top Backpacking Destination, and other categories in our travel guidebook 50 States of Great: Road Trip Guide to America.

New Mexico

Lincoln National Forest

June 11, 2025 Raven About The Parks 3 Comments

Lincoln National Forest

New Mexico

Managed by U.S. Forest Service, Southwestern Region

1,271,064 acres (1,103,897 federal/ 167,167 other)

Website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r03/lincoln

Overview

Lincoln National Forest is best known as the birthplace of Smokey Bear, a black bear cub that survived a 1950 wildfire in the Capitan Mountains and became a national symbol. The nearby Smokey Bear Historical State Park is the final resting place for the famous bear that passed away at Washington D.C.’s National Zoo in 1976. Lincoln National Forest includes parts of the Guadalupe, Sacramento, Sierra Blanca/White Mountains, Capitan, and Gallinas ranges. There are several long trails through the National Forest, including the 20-mile Crest Trail in the White Mountain Wilderness and the 11-mile South Base Trail in the Capitan Wilderness. All but one mile of the 29-mile-long Rim Trail is open to OHVs.

Highlights

Sunspot Scenic Byway, Billy the Kid Scenic Byway, Trestle Recreation Area, Sitting Bull Falls, Sierra Blanca Peak, Rim Trail, Willie White Trail, Dog Canyon National Recreation Trail, Capitan Peak Trail

Must-Do Activity

Sunspot Scenic Byway (State Road 6563) provides great views and access to one of the world’s largest solar observatories that is open for tours on summer weekends. At its remote southern end, the National Forest borders both Carlsbad Caverns and Guadalupe Mountains National Parks. Roads only connect with the latter, where a short detour takes you to the half-mile trail for 150-foot-tall Sitting Bull Falls. In 1898, the Alamogordo and Sacramento Mountain Railway was constructed to access timberland 4,747 feet in the mountains above. One of its scenic remnants is the 320-foot trestle over Mexican Canyon near Cloudcroft. Lincoln National Forest has six fire lookouts listed on the National Register of Historic Places, including the stone Monjeau Lookout built by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) that is accessible on a steep dirt road. Given its proximity to Carlsbad Caverns National Park, it is not surprising that there are hundreds of caves in the National Forest that require a permit to explore.

Best Trail

Dog Canyon National Recreation Trail follows a prehistoric travel route into the Sacramento Mountains east of White Sands National Park. The trailhead starts in Oliver Lee Memorial State Park, which has a nice campground and charges a day use fee (though we have seen cars avoid this by parking just outside its entrance). The 5.5-mile one-way trail climbs quickly above a beautiful canyon providing views of the Tularosa Basin before leveling out. Past the cabin ruins at the three-mile point, look for fossils along the trail as it again steeply rises into the agave and cacti-studded mountains. After gaining more than 3,000 feet in elevation, it dead ends at Forest Road 90B.

Watchable Wildlife

Ecosystems in the National Forest vary widely since it is spread across several mountain ranges and encompasses Chihuahuan Desert, pinyon-juniper woodlands, pine forests, and alpine meadows above 11,000 feet. Game species include elk, mule deer, black bear, mountain lion, and exotic Barbary sheep.

Photographic Opportunity

Look for fossils in the rocks along Dog Canyon National Recreation Trail.

Peak Season

Spring and fall

Fees

None

Road Conditions

The Sunspot Scenic Byway and the road into Oliver Lee Memorial State Park are both paved and maintained, although the paved access road (137) through Lincoln National Forest to the north part of Guadalupe Mountains National Park has many potholes in it. Be aware that there are also four-wheel-drive only roads to some trailheads.

Camping

There are a few developed campgrounds in the middle of the National Forest off Highway 82. Although not all areas are open to dispersed camping, popular spots include Upper Bonito Dispersed Camping Area northwest of Ruidoso and Lower Karr Canyon south of Cloudcroft.

Wilderness Areas

Capitan Wilderness

White Mountain Wilderness

Related Sites

Cibola National Forest (New Mexico)

Salinas Pueblo Missions National Monument (New Mexico)

Gila National Forest (New Mexico)

Nearest National Park

Carlsbad Caverns

Conifer Tree Species

ponderosa pine, pinyon pine, limber pine, one-seed juniper, Engelmann spruce, Douglas-fir, white fir

Flowering Tree Species

New Mexico locust, quaking aspen, bigtooth maple, Rocky Mountain maple, mountain-mahogany, hophornbeam, Texas madrone

Explore More – What was the Lincoln County War of 1878?

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

Montana

Lewis and Clark National Forest

May 28, 2025 Raven About The Parks 4 Comments

Lewis and Clark National Forest

Montana

Managed by U.S. Forest Service, Northern Region

1,999,256 acres (1,863,788 federal/ 135,468 other)

Website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r01/helena-lewisclark

Overview

East of the Continental Divide in Montana, Lewis and Clark National Forest is split across eight mountain ranges east and west of the Missouri River. The largest western section butts up against Glacier National Park to the north and includes parts of the Scapegoat and the Bob Marshall Wilderness areas, which provide crucial habitat for grizzly/brown bears and world-class places for backpacking. The Lewis and Clark Forest Reserve dates back to 1897, with the now-defunct Jefferson and Absaroka National Forests added in 1932 and 1945 respectively. Since 2014, it has been co-managed with Helena National Forest.

Highlights

King Hill Scenic Byway, Cataract Falls, Sun River Gorge, Gibson Reservoir, Mt. Wright, Deep Creek Loop National Recreation Trail, Windy Mountain Trail, Crystal Cascades Trail, Crystal Lake Shoreline Loop Trail, Continental Divide National Scenic Trail

Must-Do Activity

We have always wanted to visit the National Park Service and U.S. Forest Service’s 25,000 square-foot Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center in Great Falls, Montana. It features an exhibit hall, hiking trails, and a 158-seat theater, and it is open daily in the summer and Wednesday through Sunday in the offseason. We have also wanted to backpack in the rugged Snowy Mountains, which draw backcountry skiers in the winter and horseback riders in the summer. We will have to return to this central part of Montana, which includes one of our favorite places to explore: Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument run by the Bureau of Land Management.

Best Trail

One of the most famous formations along the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail is the 15-mile long Chinese Wall, a 1,000-foot-tall cliff composed of five-million-year-old limestone. Its closest access is 15 miles one-way from the South Fork Sun Trailhead, which is often marked as Packers on maps at the end of the gravel Benchmark Road (Forest Road 235). The trail begins by following the South Fork Sun River before crossing a bridge and entering the Bob Marshall Wilderness. We got a late start on the way in and came across a grizzly/brown bear grazing near the trail that evening and, on the drive out, we stopped to photograph three moose near Wood Lake Campground and a common loon in Anderson Lake.

Watchable Wildlife

Grizzly/brown bears are the most famous residents of the National Forest. Additional mammals include black bears, mountain lions, Canada lynxes, wolverines, mule deer, Columbian white-tailed deer, mountain goats, bighorn sheep, elk, and moose. Bald eagles, red-tailed hawks, and three types of grouse are often spotted. There are excellent fly-fishing opportunities in the 1,600 miles of rivers and streams.

Photographic Opportunity

The 15-mile long Chinese Wall is an iconic landmark along the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail.

Peak Season

Summer

Fees

None except for the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center in Great Falls, which costs $8 per person or you can use an America the Beautiful pass.

Road Conditions

We drove the gravel Benchmark Road (Forest Road 235), which was long and in excellent condition.

Camping

There are 29 vehicle-accessible campgrounds in Lewis and Clark National Forest, including Wood Lake Campground near the South Fork Sun Trailhead. Backcountry and dispersed camping options abound.

Wilderness Areas

Bob Marshall Wilderness (also in Flathead National Forest)

Scapegoat Wilderness (also in Helena and Lolo National Forests)

Related Sites

Deerlodge National Forest (Montana)

Bighorn National Forest (Wyoming)

Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument (Montana)

Nearest National Park

Glacier

Conifer Tree Species

western redcedar, Douglas-fir, limber pine, whitebark pine, lodgepole pine, ponderosa pine, Engelmann spruce, subalpine fir, western larch, common juniper

Flowering Tree Species

quaking aspen, Rocky Mountain maple, western serviceberry

Explore More – Why is the 200 square-mile Badger-Two Medicine area of the National Forest managed differently?

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

California

Lassen National Forest

May 15, 2025 Raven About The Parks 2 Comments

Lassen National Forest

California

Managed by U.S. Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Region

1,375,593 acres (1,070,992 federal/ 304,601 other)

Website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r05/lassen

Overview

Lassen National Forest Reserve dates back to 1905, then a decade later when Lassen Peak explosively erupted (the first eruption to be photographed in the continental U.S.), 106,589-acre Lassen Volcanic National Park was carved out. The two federal areas are connected by the 187-mile-long Lassen Scenic Byway (Highways 44 and 89) that traces the volcanic legacy of the southern Cascade Range. The 41,100-acre Ishi Wilderness was named in 1984 to honor the last surviving member of the Yahi band of Southern Yanas, taken from his native home near Oroville in 1911 and employed as a janitor at the University of California’s Anthropology Museum in San Francisco until his death from tuberculosis five years later.

Highlights

Lassen Scenic Byway, Lake Almanor, Eagle Lake, Subway Cave, Hat Creek Recreational Area, Triangle Lake, Heart Lake National Recreation Trail, Bizz Johnson Trail, Spencer Meadows National Recreation Trail, Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail

Must-Do Activity

Lassen National Forest runs campgrounds and boat ramps on both Lake Almanor and Eagle Lake, although most of their shorelines are privately owned. Between the two lakes is the town of Susanville, where a railroad bed abandoned in 1978 was converted into the Bizz Johnson Trail that follows the Susan River for 26 miles. The trail features 12 river crossings and two tunnels with scenic mountain views. Camping is restricted to specific portions of the trail. The 20,546-acre Caribou Wilderness was one of America’s first Primitive Areas designated in 1932 and along with the 16,335-acre Thousand Lakes Wilderness was established immediately following passage of the 1964 Wilderness Act. In a proposed Wilderness area on the west side of Lassen Volcanic National Park, Heart Lake National Recreation Trail is a 2.4-mile one-way hike up to a glacial lake that connects to the longer Twin Meadows Trail.

Best Trail

Subway Cave is only 1,300 feet long, but the lava tube is the main attraction in Lassen National Forest, with free guided tours offered on summer weekends. Lava flowed through here less than 2,000 years ago and interpretive signs along the 0.7-mile loop trail explain lavacicles and other geologic oddities. A flashlight is necessary to explore past the openings of the 46°F cave, which drops to four feet in some places with a maximum ceiling of 17 feet. One mile south on the Lassen Scenic Byway (Highway 44) is the 1.7-mile roundtrip Spatter Cone Trail (across from Hat Creek Campground). The trail passes a variety of volcanic formations in a forest of Jeffrey pine trees.

Watchable Wildlife

Lassen National Forest is home to black bears, pine martens, mountain lions, bobcats, red foxes, coyotes, and a few gray wolves that migrated south from Oregon. You are most likely to see mule deer or one of the variety of chipmunks or squirrels. Bird sightings include mountain chickadees, Steller’s jays, Clark’s nutcrackers (at high elevations), and eight species of woodpeckers such as pileated and white-headed.

Photographic Opportunity

Sitting at 4,505 feet in elevation, Lake Almanor stretches for 13 miles near Chester, California and is a good place for summer boating and fishing.

Peak Season

Summer

Fees

None

Road Conditions

Subway Cave is located right off Lassen Scenic Byway (Highways 44 and 89) and most of the unpaved roads we have explored in the National Forest have been maintained, probably because of the continued harvesting activities that we witnessed on our field trip from Cal Poly University in 2010.

Camping

Lassen National Forest runs campgrounds on both Lake Almanor and Eagle Lake, plus Hat Creek Recreational Area has seven campgrounds. If you are looking to disperse camp outside Lassen Volcanic National Park, take the road west outside the southern entrance (but keep a clean campsite as we saw a black bear in the area).

Wilderness Areas

Caribou Wilderness

Ishi Wilderness (also managed by BLM)

Thousand Lakes Wilderness

Related Sites

Lava Beds National Monument (California)

Devils Postpile National Monument (California)

Whiskeytown-Shasta-Trinity National Recreation Area (California)

Nearest National Park

Lassen Volcanic

Conifer Tree Species

red fir, white fir, western hemlock, Jeffrey pine, ponderosa pine, lodgepole pine, western white pine, California juniper, incense-cedar

Flowering Tree Species

quaking aspen, Fremont cottonwood, ceanothus, manzanita

Explore More – Other than the namesake for Lassen Peak, who was Peter Lassen?

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

itinerary, Louisiana

Louisiana Road Trip Itinerary

February 12, 2025 Raven About The Parks 9 Comments

27,650,496 acres

Statehood 1812 (18th)

Capital: Baton Rouge

Population: 4,657,757 (25th)

High Point: Driskill Mountain (535 feet)

Best time of year: Winter and spring

Last year we 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 by jumping around to Kansas, Georgia, Idaho, Rhode Island, Minnesota, Hawai’i, and Arizona, we headed back to the south for Louisiana. Just in time for Mardi Gras, we made an ambitious seven-day plan starting in New Orleans, with plenty of options to extend the trip.

Day 1

Café du Monde

Eating beignets is a great way to start your trip to Louisiana, and this is the most touristy place to get them, located on the Riverwalk in New Orleans.

National WWII Museum

It is easy to spend an entire day here (fee) because of all the interactive exhibits and informational touchscreen kiosks. You do not even have to leave for lunch, since the Soda Shop and American Sector Restaurant & Bar are on site. We recommend you purchase a ticket including the 4-D film Beyond All Boundaries and the submarine experience based on the final mission of the USS Tang. This is our vote for #1 museum in the entire U.S.

French Quarter

Every American needs to visit the French Quarter at least once in their life (although whether that’s during the wildness of Mardi Gras is up to you), and it is walkable from the National WWII Museum. Consider stopping by iconic Lafayette Square, Old Ursuline Convent Museum, or the New Orleans Pharmacy Museum.

Ghost Tour

We have heard rave reviews about the ghost tours offered in New Orleans, and hope to attend one someday to compare it to the others we have done.

Optional stop at Mardi Gras World Museum

Visit this warehouse (fee) where floats are made for Mardi Gras parades, situated right along the Mississippi River.

Optional stop at Bayou Segnette State Park

We camped here and it felt like we were off in the wild while still within the city’s suburbs.

Day 2

New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park

The New Orleans Jazz Museum (fee) is located in the old U.S. mint building right in the heart of the historic French Quarter. Check the online schedule for musical performances put on by the National Park Service (NPS) and enter the free visitor center shared with Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve.

Go out to lunch in New Orleans

Louisiana is famous for its Cajun food, including gumbo, étouffée, jambalaya, po’boys, and red beans and rice.

Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve (click here for our blog post)

Make sure you visit the 24,000-acre Barataria Preserve to experience the bayous of Louisiana, whether you hike or take a boat tour (fee). South of downtown New Orleans off Highway 45, keep your feet dry by hiking the boardwalks on the Bayou Coquille Trail. In addition, this park includes three Acadian Cultural Centers spread throughout southwestern Louisiana.

Optional stop at Chalmette Battlefield

Another part of Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve encompasses the land where Andrew Jackson led the defeat of the British to retain New Orleans for the U.S. after the end of the War of 1812.

Day 3

Baton Rouge

Check out the art-deco capitol building where you might see white pelicans floating on the lake next door. We read that the pelican on the state flag is supposed to be a brown pelican (the official state bird) even though the artist made it white so it stood out against the blue background. Also consider visiting the Old State Capitol, Old Governor’s Mansion, or USS Kidd destroyer ship.

Optional drive along the Lake Ponchartrain Causeway

Not the most direct route between New Orleans and the capital city, this 23.8-mile causeway is considered the longest continuous bridge over water in the world. It is free to drive northbound, but don’t attempt it when it’s smoky or foggy, as it becomes very dangerous to drive.

Optional stop at LSU Tigers game

Louisiana State University is located in Baton Rouge and they are famous for their tailgating scene and raucous fans who support their perennially excellent football, women’s basketball, and gymnastics teams.

Day 4

Cat Island National Wildlife Refuge

Northwest of Baton Rouge, the largest of all baldcypress trees in the U.S. is found at the end of a flat, half-mile trail, where there is a new boardwalk built around the tree to protect its roots. This area is located down six miles of dirt road full of potholes (and is sometimes flooded).

Optional stop at Atchafalaya National Wildlife Refuge

Louisiana is home to 24 National Wildlife Refuges, many found in its southern half where bayous are full of alligators and mostly uninhabited by humans, like this one west of Baton Rouge.

Day 5

Creole Nature Trail All-American Road

In southwest Louisiana, this route traverses 180 miles of pavement around Calcasieu Lake and the Gulf of Mexico coastline. Much of the state’s oceanfront is inaccessible swamp, but in this corner of the state there are 26 miles of beautiful sandy beaches where ocean waves and seashells await. Consider spending the night in Holly Beach.

Sabine National Wildlife Refuge

Further inland, there are 700,000 acres of wetlands that attract waterfowl to Sabine National Wildlife Refuge, while the surrounding area is used by farmers to grow rice and raise crawfish.

Optional stop at Tabasco Brand Factory Tour and Museum

Before you head west, consider a stop in Avery Island where they have been bottling Tabasco Hot Sauce for over 150 years.

Day 6

Kisatchie National Forest (click here for our blog post)

There are eight parcels that constitute the sprawling 603,360-acre Kisatchie National Forest, which has over 40 developed recreation sites and 100 miles of trails. It encompasses lakes for boating and swimming, plus baldcypress-lined bayous for canoeing and fishing. Old-growth longleaf pine forests can be accessed by the paved Longleaf Trail Scenic Byway, just off Interstate 49. A 1.5-mile interpretive loop at Longleaf Vista is a good place to start.

Red Dirt National Wildlife Management Preserve

Camping is allowed in this area next to the 8,700-acre Kisatchie Hills Wilderness where you can backpack along trails. Kisatchie National Forest also offers several lakefront camping areas elsewhere. Lake Fausse Pointe, Lake Bistineau, and Chicot State Parks all have campgrounds with lake access, as well cabins available for rent.

Optional stop at Creole Nature Trail Adventure Point

The Creole Nature Trail Adventure Point is a self-guided audio tour and starts off Interstate 10 in Sulphur, where a museum has hands-on displays that introduce visitors to local wildlife and Cajun culture.

Day 7

Poverty Point National Monument (click here for our blog post)

Settled 3,700 years ago by hunter-gatherers, this ancient city with a population estimated at 1,500 was situated along Bayou Macon in northeast Louisiana. The inhabitants constructed several mounds, the most impressive is 72-feet-tall in the shape of a bird, which required approximately 15-million basket-loads of soil to complete.

Optional stop at Cane River Creole National Historical Park (click here for our blog post)

Oakland Plantation survived the Civil War intact, but in the wake of Reconstruction tenant farming created a new form of indentured servitude. Self-guided tours of the site take you through the mule barn, several cottages, and an old general store that still looks open for business along Highway 494. Slave/tenant quarters are also preserved at Magnolia Plantation downstream, but the main house is closed to the public.

Optional stop at Sci-Port Discovery Center in Shreveport

This science museum in northwest Louisiana is great for kids and adults with hands-on exhibits, a planetarium, and IMAX theater.

Day 8+

Rayne Frog Festival or Mudbug Madness

Festivals dedicated to celebrating and eating frogs and crawfish; it does not get any more Louisiana than that! Also, consider arriving during one of the many music festivals dedicated to jazz, zydeco, or other regional musical styles.

Port Hudson State Historic Site

An annual battle reenactment takes place at the site of a siege during the Civil War; further north, another Civil War reenactment is held at Pleasant Hill.

J.C. “Sonny” Gilbert Wildlife Management Area

This forested Wildlife Management Area is located between Monroe and Alexandria in central Louisiana. It includes Rock Falls, which at 17 feet in height is the tallest waterfall in the state, accessible on a seven-mile trail.

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

Lincoln National Forest

Lewis and Clark National Forest

Lassen National Forest

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