One Week in the Heartland
For my second Fantasy RoadTrip I considered a number of places including the mid-Atlantic coast where I grew up, Wisconsin where my parents were born and grew up, and northern New England where I lived for my early adult life. But I've actually done those in real life and written up my experiences on these pages. So instead I decided to plan a trip in the heart of 'fly-over country' as an exercise in, and demonstration of, the principle that "There are no boring places." Otherwise, the same criteria as before.
One Week From Kansas City
Day 1: Kansas City KS/MO to Manhattan KS
Real World Driving Time: About 2 hours (Assumption: flight to KC, then the drive)
Days 2-3: Manhattan KS
Fort Riley/Custer Home
Milford SP
Eisenhower Library
Marysville Pony Express Station
Oz Museum
Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve
Days 4-5: Drive to Rapid City SD
Real World Driving Time: About 12 hours
Glen Elder SP
Kirwin NWR
Classic Car Collection
East Willow Island Wildlife Management Area
Overnight: North Platte NE
East Hershey State Wildlife Management Area
California Hill, Oregon Trail
Courthouse and Jail Rocks
Nebraska National Forest and Grasslands
Day 6-7: Rapid City SD
Mount Rushmore NM
Crazy Horse Memorial
Badlands NP
Wind Cave NP
Jewel Cave NM
Days 8-9:Rapid City SD to Kansas City KS/MO
Real World Driving Time: About 13 hours
Mitchell Corn Palace
Falls Park
Great Plains Zoo & Delbridge Museum of Natural History
Sioux City Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center
Sergeant Floyd River Museum & Welcome Center
Overnight: Omaha
Loess Bluffs National Wildlife Refuge
Pony Express National Museum
Jesse James Home Museum
AZBuck
Exploring Northern Minnesota
One week from Duluth, Minnesota
Day 1. Duluth, Minnesota to Fargo N. Dakota
Real World Driving Time with side trips 6.5 hours
FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT'S ONE AND ONLY GAS STATION
Extra Tall Paul Bunyan in Akeley
Big Tom Turkey
HoDo in Fargo
Day 2. Fargo, N. Dakota to Warroad, Minnesota
Real World Driving Time with side trips 4.5 hours
World's Second Tallest Structure.
Far North Spirits (The northernmost distillery in the contiguous United States)
Marvin Windows Museum
Day 3. Warroad, Minnesota to Biwabik, Minnesota
Real World Driving Time with side trips 5.5 hours
The Lookout Tower at Ft. Francis
Vermilion Falls, near Orr, MN.
Chisolm Iron Ore Miner Statue
World's Largest Loon
World's Largest Free-Standing Hockey Stick
Honk the Moose
Day 4. Biwabik, Minnesota to Silver Bay, Minnesota
Real World Driving Time with side trips 3.5 hours
Voyageur North Outfitters in Ely,
Tettegouche State Park
Silver Bay
Day 5. Silver Bay to Duluth along Lake Superior
Real World Driving Time with side trips 3.4 hours
Split Rock Lighthouse
Castle Danger Brewery
Two Harbors Lighthouse Museum
Great Lakes Candy Kitchen
Enger Tower
Duluth Aerial Lift Bridge
Uncle Harvey's Mauseleum
And Back to Duluth!
In Search of Dinosaurs & Badlands Bison
A One Week Circuit of North Dakota
For my next Fantasy RoadTrip -- I return to an area I last explored about six years ago. And since part of it closely follows a route that Peter wrote about in 2010, I include his short description.
Peter Thody:
Quote:
This quiet and often remote-feeling drive passes through some of North Dakota's loveliest and most dramatic scenery, taking in the history and nightlife of busy little Medora, the beauty and wildlife of North Dakota's Badlands in the form of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, and ending up close to the Missouri-Yellowstone Confluence, one of North Dakota's many Lewis & Clark-related sites.
Day 1. Dickinson, North Dakota to Watford City
Real World Driving: 4.5 hours
Dickinson Museum
Rough Riders Hotel in Medora
Grassy Butte Post Office
Cedar Canyon Road Scenic Drive in Theodore Roosevelt National Park
StoneHome Brewing
Door 204 Coffee
Day 2. Watford City, North Dakota to Minot, North Dakota
Real World Driving: 3.0 hours
Fort Burford State Historic Site
BBQ-n-Broncs in Tioga, ND
Lostwood National Wildlife Refuge (14,469 acres of prairie)
Norsk Høstfest
Mouse River Walk
Day 3. Minot, North Dakota to Bismark, ND.
Real World Driving: 4.0 hours
Pride Dairy Ice Cream Parlour
International Peace Garden
Geographical Center of North America in Rugby.
Fort Totten
Icelandic State Park
Arrowwood National Wildlife Refuge
National Buffalo Museum
North Dakota State Capital Tour
Lewis & Clark Riverboat Tour
Fort Abraham Lincoln State Park
Day 4. Bismark, North Dakota back to Dickinson, North Dakota
Real Time Driving: 3.0 hours (it is only 98 miles, but lots of stops)
Salem Sue
Bur Oak Nature Trail in the Schnell Recreation Area
Geese in Flight on the Enchanted Highway -- Must stop!
Wasn't that a fun one!
-Mark
maybe you should create a CP-->RA about it?
Donna,
Actually RoadTrip America has been to a couple more places in North Dakota:
Fort Mandan
Fort Clark Trading Post
So far, no one has written about the Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center -- maybe you should create a CP-->RA about it?
Other North Dakota articles are here.
Thanks,
Mark
One Week on the Lower Mississippi
Although I've been through this area more than once, all my trips have been just east-west segments of larger RoadTrips. Since I was born just blocks from its banks, one of my (so far) unfulfilled desires is to drive some significant portion of the Big Muddy. It might as well be where it's at its biggest and muddiest.
One Week From Memphis
Days 1-2: Memphis TN
Beale Street
Graceland
Elvis Presley Automobile Museum
National Civil Rights Museum
Mississippi River Museum
Blues Hall of Fame
Days 3-4 Drive: Memphis to New Orleans using the Great River Road and/or the Blues Highway
Real World Driving Time: About 12 hours
Yazoo National Wildlife Refuge
Vicksburg National Military Park
Overnight: Natchez
Museum of African American History and Culture
Delta Music Museum
Old River Control Structure (The Mississippi will break through someday.)
USS Kidd Veterans Museum
Day 5-7: New Orleans LA
French Quarter
Bourbon Street
Jackson Square
New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park
The National WWII Museum
Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve
Venice Marina (as far down the Mississippi as you can get by car)
Days 8-9: Drive: New Orleans to Memphis
Real World Driving Time: About 10 hours
Lake Pontchartrain Causeway
Mississippi Petrified Forest
Overnight: Jackson MS
Natchez Trace Parkway
Elvis' Birthplace
Holly Springs National Forest
Back in Memphis
Along the Rio Grande in Texas
Many of us have driven along sections of the "Great River Road" (this is way more challenging than most people might think!!!) but I think a Fantasy Trip would be to drive along the Rio Grande, crossing back and forth at will across the USA/Mexico border. It would be really fun to drive most of Nuevo Leon Hwy-2 on the sections when the corresponding US highways veer away from the border.
So... One Week from Brownsville to El Paso Along the Rio Grande
Day 1. Boca Chica State Park to Rio Grande City, Texas
Real World Driving Time: 3.0 hours (+ 3 hours for stops)
From Brownsville drive to the beach Boca Chica Blvd to Boca Chica State Park
Resaca de la Palma State Park
Progreso International Bridge
Donna Rio Bravo International Bridge
Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge
Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park
Las Palmas Wildlife Management Area
Fort Ringgold
Day 2. Rio Grande City, Texas to Del Rio, Texas
Real World Driving Time: 7.0 hours
Republic of the Rio Grande Museum
Piedras Negras
Fort Clark
Amistad National Recreation Area
Day 3. Del Rio, Texas to Terlingua, Texas
Real World Driving Time: 6.0 hours
Boquillas del Carmen
Bid Bend National Park
Trip Report from Peter Thody about Big Bend
Starlight Theatre
Day 4. Terlingua, Texas to El Paso, Texas
Real World Driving Time: 8.0 hours
Contrabando Film Set
Teepee Rest Stop
Fort Leaton State Historical Site
Chianti Hot Springs
Candelaria
Fort Quitman Hot Springs
Time Traveling through the Four Corners
Hey!
I definitely love this concept. Eight days (plus or minus) is a really nice amount of time, and if we’re allowed to choose any starting point we’d like, the possibilities loop all the way to the moon and back. I was going a little bit nuts trying to narrow it down, and finally elected to keep things simple by reverting to Buck’s original concept, using my home in Phoenix as my starting point. The itineraries I created for my book, Arizona and New Mexico: 25 Scenic Side Trips were all (technically) single-day excursions. Having a whole week to work with is a great opportunity to hook a few of them together, and do something really interesting.
I have a background in anthropology, and a life-long fascination with “residuum,” which is, basically, the stuff left behind by people who are no longer around. Since there’s quite a lot of that sort of thing within striking distance of Phoenix, I decided to make “Archaeology” the essential theme of my road trip, focusing on sites of historical significance that were built, painted, or scratched into the rock at least 500 years ago, before the first of the Europeans arrived on the scene. The goal: to visit as many such sites as possible in the time allotted, stringing them together like an interconnected series of seriously Scenic Side Trips!
Fair warning: I also love mountain roads with hairpin curves and switchbacks, so I’ll be throwing those in as often as possible; my way of adding a little spice to the drive!
One Week from Phoenix:
Day 1: Phoenix AZ to Flagstaff AZ via AZ 89 and AZ 89A (Wickenburg, Prescott, Jerome, Clarkdale, Camp Verde, Sedona, and Oak Creek Canyon): Google Maps says: 248 miles/5:38; Real World Driving Time: About 10 hours
S'edav Va'aki Museum (formerly Pueblo Grande Museum and Archaeological Park)
Tuzigoot National Monument
Montezuma Castle National Monument
Oak Creek Canyon Scenic Drive
The first day of this trip follows the same route as Scenic Side Trip #9, which was the first route that I created when I wrote my book, and one of my personal favorites. There’s one significant deviation from the book: on this route, after stopping at Tuzigoot, I’ll proceed to Montezuma Castle before continuing on to Sedona. There are several gloriously curvy sections of road, around Yarnell and Jerome, and of course the wonderful stretch north from Sedona through Oak Creek Canyon. You might wonder why it would take ten hours to drive less than 300 miles, when Google says 5 hours and 38 minutes? That’s because the roads are slow, and so am I. I’ll be stopping often, so 10 hours is bare minimum.
Day 2: Flagstaff AZ to Monument Valley, UT: Google Maps says: 353 miles 6:38; Real World Driving Time: About 10 hours
Walnut Canyon National Monument
Sunset Crater National Monument
Wupatki National Monument
Coal Mine Canyon
Old Oraibi Hopi Village
Tsakurshovi Trading Post
Navajo National Monument
Monument Valley (sunset)
Day 2 of the trip follows part of the route taken by Scenic Side Trip #15. The stop at Coal Mine Canyon requires a permit that can be purchased in Cameron. I’ll visit the Hopi Village of Old Oraibi, then I’ll make a stop at Tsakurshovi trading post to see my friends Joe and Janice Day, and pick up a new “Don’t Worry, Be Hopi” T-shirt (since my old one is quite worn out). Turn around on AZ 264 and return to Tuba City, then head north to Navajo National Monument before ending my day at Monument Valley. With any luck? Right on time for the sunset.
Day 3: Monument Valley UT to Cortez CO via Chinle and Navajo Route 13 to Shiprock : Google Maps says: 254 miles/4:48; Real World Driving Time: About 9 hours
Monument Valley (sunrise)
Canyon de Chelly National Monument
Navajo Route 13 over the Lukachukai Mountains to Shiprock
Day 3: Get an early start to catch a Monument Valley sunrise, and then drive to Chinle by way of Kayenta and Indian Service Route 59 through Many Farms. Drive the South Rim Drive at Canyon de Chelly National Monument, and if I’m doing well on time, make the hike down to the White House ruin and back, to give myself a couple of hours of good exercise out of my Jeep. After the South Rim Drive, take the North Rim Drive, and after the Mummy Cave Overlook, keep going on Indian Route 64 through Tsaile, then up and over Buffalo Pass at the crest of the Lukachukai Mountains. (Portions of this section of the route follow roads described in Scenic Side Trip #16.) Take some time to admire the amazing views of Shiprock peak from Navajo Route 13, then drive north through the town of Shiprock, and on to Cortez Colorado for the night.
Day 4: Cortez CO to Farmington, NM: Google Maps says: 96 miles/1:49
Real World Driving Time: About 3 hours, leaving lots of extra time for stops
Canyons of the Ancients National Monument
Mesa Verde National Park
Aztec Ruins National Monument
Not as much driving on Day 4, which will allow a more relaxed pace when exploring two amazing National Monuments and a wonderful National Park. Arrive in Farmington late in the day, a very nice time to stroll around the ruins at Aztec.
Day 5: Farmington NM to Santa Fe NM Google Maps says: 262 miles/6:18
Real World Driving Time: About 11 hours
Bisti Badlands
Chaco Canyon National Historical Park
Bandelier National Monument
Get up bright and early and head south from Farmington on NM 371 to the Bisti Badlands Wilderness Area, just in time for some sunrise photos. From there, on to the Chaco Culture National Historical Park, followed by a wonderful drive through the mountains, past the Valles Caldera National Reserve, with a stop at Bandelier National Monument before continuing on to Santa Fe for the night. This day of driving utilizes sections of Scenic Side Trip #17, as well as some pieces of Scenic Side Trip #22.
Day 6: Santa Fe NM Google Maps says: 264 miles/6:07
Real World Driving Time: About 10 hours
High Road to Taos (as well as the Low Road!)
Taos Pueblo
Enchanted Circle Scenic Byway
Rio Grande del Norte National Monument
Wild Rivers Visitor Center
Day 6 calls for a second night in the same hotel (what a concept!), but it won’t be a day for relaxation. I’ll drive the Low Road to Taos, where I’ll tour Taos Pueblo. From there, I’ll head toward Questa and the Rio Grande del Norte National Monument, where I’ll check out the Wild Rivers Visitor Center, and the breath-taking views at the end of the road. If I’m doing well time-wise, I’ll complete the amazing drive around the Enchanted Circle, and then I’ll take the one-of-a-kind High Road from Taos back to Santa Fe. This day was lifted straight out of my book: Scenic Side Trip #24 Part A and Scenic Side Trip #24 Part B. I’ll drive it just as it was written.
Day 7: Santa Fe NM to Silver City NM Google Maps says: 378 miles /7:39
Real World Driving Time: About 12 hours
Indian Pueblo Cultural Center
Petroglyph National Monument
Gila Cliff Dwelling National Monument
Day 7: The adventure continues with a drive from Santa Fe down to Albuquerque, where I’ll check out the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center and Petroglyph National Monument. Leaving Albuquerque, I’ll jump on I-25 and I’ll drive south, about 160 miles to the junction with NM 152 (the longest stretch of straight-up freeway driving on this whole trip). Then I’ll follow that fantastic curvy mountain road over Emory Pass to San Lorenzo, where I’ll pick up NM 35, which will take me to NM 15, which will take me to Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument, one of the most remote, least visited National Monuments in the lower 48 states. I dearly love this place: a nearly intact cliff dwelling in a gorgeous setting, and there are so few visitors, people are still allowed to enter the ruin, and view it up close. It’s a long drive, and it’s not on the way to anywhere else, but for me, that’s part of the appeal. There’s no place to stay near the National Monument, and I don’t plan to do any camping, so I’ll have to time my departure carefully to make sure I have enough daylight left for the drive south to Silver City. That’s where I’ll heave-to on the last night of my trip, in one of several historic hotels. Much of this day’s drive will follow squarely in the footsteps of Scenic Side Trip #2.
Day 8: Silver City NM to Phoenix AZ Google Maps says: 355 miles/6:47
Real World Driving Time: About 11 hours
Besh ba Gowah Archaeological Park and Museum
Tonto National Monument
Apache Trail Historic Road
Casa Grande National Monument
My last day is an old favorite: I’ll drive south from Silver City to Lordsburg, where I’ll pick up US 70, which I’ll take west to Globe. If I get an early start, before sunrise, I’ll be driving through the Gila River Valley in the golden light of dawn.(See Scenic Side Trip #4.) I’ll check out the Besh Ba Gowah ruin and Museum that’s run by the City of Globe, and then I’ll take US 60 north to Tonto National Monument. The Apache Trail Historic Road is a wonderful way to cross the mountains, following the course of the Salt River, in view of three beautiful lakes. A particularly gnarly section of the road was badly damaged during a big storm last year and there’s no certainty about the timing of the repairs. If it’s open? I’ll make that drive from Roosevelt west to Apache Junction (see Scenic Side Trip #11). Otherwise, I’ll backtrack and take US 60 west from Globe (completing SST #4). Either way, I’ll go just a tiny bit out of my way to pick up one last prehistoric ruin: Casa Grande National Monument. From there, it’s less than an hour back to Phoenix, and:
Home!
Rick
I hope to see this in person one day soon
Really cool photos, Rick!
