Two weeks, starting from Long Island New York- Any Suggestions?

[tamisaac]

Hi all,

Thanks for this great forum.

Our family has two weeks in late August to take a road trip. We live near New York City, on Long Island.

We originally wanted to go to Yellowstone but it looks like too much to do in two weeks- would you agree?

We've been to Acadia and would like to do something else. Our favorite places we've visited so far are Yosemite and Bryce/Zion/Grand Canyon. Definitely looking for beautiful nature.

Our children are ages 20, 18, 14 and 12.

Thanks!

[Lifemagician]

Welcome to the Great American Roadtrip Forum.

Two weeks to go to Yellowstone and back would be a very rushed trip, especially when you consider that you will be spending up to four days just enjoying the park.

Has your family been to Niagara Falls? You could imcorporate a trip there with touring some of the great sites along the Great Lakes' shores. If you have passports, that would be all the better giving you access to the great sites on the Canadian side.

Lifey

[AZBuck]

Welcome aboard the RoadTrip America Forums!

When planning a RoadTrip, the tendency is to focus more on what we want to see and do, and less on the constraints placed on us by our circumstances. I think that you particular case is one where just the opposite approach would be in order. Your primary constraints are time (two weeks) and the number of people involved (four adults and two teens). Both of those argue for staying relatively close to home. Yes, you could drive to the Rockies or even the west coast and back in two weeks, but that would mean that most of your time would be all cramped together in your vehicle rather than out and about enjoying the beautiful nature that is your goal.

So, what would I suggest? Probably New England and Atlantic Canada. While not as visually spectacular as the Rockies, the Green, White and Longfellow Mountains of northern New England have a charm all their own, and the coasts of Maine the Bay of Fundy and Nova Scotia (particularly the Cabot Trail) draw nature lovers from all over the world. And the best part about it all? You can be 'there' in less than a day's worth of driving and spend your time mostly being there rather than getting there. You will need to have your passports in order, but you should have time to take care of that if they're not already in hand.

That, of course, is just one idea from among many. Others (in order of increasing driving distance) would be: the Appalachians including Shenandoah, Great Smoky Mountains, Cumberland Gap and Big South Fork national park lands; a tour of the Great Lakes with sites such as Apostle Islands, Pictured Rocks and Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshores as well as possibly Niagara Falls and the Thousand Islands area of the upper St. Lawrence (passports would help here too); even western South Dakota (Badlands, Mount Rushmore, Wind and Jewel Caves, Devils Tower) and the central Rockies (Rocky Mountain NP, Great Sand Dunes, Pikes Peak) aren't out of the question, it's just that more of your time would be spent confined to the car.

AZBuck