Malheur National Forest
In central Oregon, Malheur National Forest encompasses the Strawberry Range and Aldrich Mountains that run into the Blue Mountains. Much of its area is high desert, with grasslands, sagebrush, and juniper the predominant vegetation. Malheur National Forest contains the “Humongous Fungus,” a honey fungus (Armillaria solidipes) that spans 2,200 acres and is considered the largest known organism by area in the world. It is located mostly underground, high on a ridgeline immediately west of Clear Creek (44.4731°N 118.4816°W). Highlights Journey Through Time Scenic Byway, Cedar Grove Botanical Area, Yellowjacket Reservoir, Indian Rock-Vinegar Hill Scenic Area, Swick Old Growth Interpretive Site, Rosebud Creek, Arch Rock, Magone Lake, Tamarack Creek Trail, McClellan Mountain Trail
In central Oregon, Malheur National Forest encompasses the Strawberry Range and Aldrich Mountains that run into the Blue Mountains. Much of its area is high desert, with grasslands, sagebrush, and juniper. It contains the 2,200-acre “Humongous Fungus” considered the world's largest organism by area
05.11.2025 16:25 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
Mississippi Road Trip Itinerary
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, Georgia, Idaho, Rhode Island, Minnesota, Hawai’i, Arizona, Louisiana, South Dakota, Indiana, and Montana, we decided to do another state in the deep south. We made an ambitious seven-day plan starting in the south on the Gulf Coast and then zigzagging across the state with plenty of options to extend the trip. Day 1 Gulf Islands National Seashore (click here for our blog post) You will have to take a ferry to enjoy the white sand beaches of West Ship Island, which are considered some of the best in the U.S. If you are stuck on the mainland, at least check out the visitor center and hiking trails just off Interstate 10. Biloxi Biloxi has beaches, a lighthouse, casinos, and the Maritime and Seafood Industry Museum. I still want to see the Patriarch Oak, estimated to be more than 2,000 years old and located at Mary Mahoney’s Old French House seafood restaurant.
We made an ambitious seven-day plan starting in the south on the Gulf Coast and then zigzagging across the state of Mississippi with plenty of options to extend the trip. You will have to take a ferry to enjoy the white sand beaches of West Ship Island, which are considered the best in the state.
29.10.2025 15:49 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument
Central Maine is an ecological transition zone between boreal and broadleaf deciduous forests that provides habitat for Canada lynx, black bear, moose, and beaver. The waters are home to brook trout and Atlantic salmon, which are being reestablished with cooperation between government agencies and the Penobscot and other Wabanaki Nations. The official northern terminus of the Appalachian National Scenic Trail, Katahdin means “greatest mountain” in the Penobscot language and is the name of the 5,269-foot peak outside National Monument boundaries in neighboring Baxter State Park. This undeveloped landscape was purchased by the businesswoman Roxanne Quimby beginning in 2001 with the plan to turn it into a National Park. It was donated to the National Park Service to mark the centennial of its creation and, despite some controversy, was established by President Barack Obama. Opened in 2025 near the south entrance, the Tekαkαpimək Contact Station is seasonally open Friday through Sunday in a building inspired by Wabanaki culture. The National Park Service no longer works out of the Patten Lumbermen’s Museum (but it is still worth a visit). The 17-mile-long Katahdin Loop Road in the southern section of the National Monument is the most developed with picnic areas, vault toilets, and overlooks. The unpaved loop road is accessed from the east by miles of unpaved road and has no access to Baxter State Park. About 30 miles of the International Appalachian Trail runs through Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument with lean-tos dispersed along the route. Other than hiking, visitors enjoy stargazing, birding, leaf peeping in the fall, canoeing the East Branch of the Penobscot River with portages around its many waterfalls. In the winter, there are opportunities for cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, and snowmobiling.
This undeveloped landscape was purchased by the businesswoman Roxanne Quimby beginning in 2001 with the plan to turn it into a National Park. It was donated to the National Park Service to mark the centennial of its creation and, despite some controversy, was established by President Barack Obama.
01.10.2025 15:37 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument
In central Montana, 149 miles of the Upper Missouri River were designated as a National Wild and Scenic River in 1976, upstream from the reservoir in Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge. This stretch of the river still looks much the way it did when the Lewis and Clark expedition first explored it in 1805 and their former campsites are marked by posts. The breaks are a topographic area where the Missouri River eroded sedimentary rock that formed as horizontal layers laid down at the bottom of an ancient sea. The National Monument comprises public land in a matrix with private ranches, with cattle making the water unfit for filtering. There are a couple places to drive to along the river, but the best way to experience it is by floating a canoe or kayak down the non-motorized sections. Highlights Ft. Benton, Decision Point, Neat Coulee, Citadel Rock, Hole-in-the-Wall, Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail
In central Montana, 149 miles of the Upper Missouri River were designated as a National Wild and Scenic River in 1976. This stretch of the river still looks much the way it did when the Lewis and Clark expedition first explored it in 1805. The National Monument is both public and private land.
17.09.2025 16:37 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
I am excited to announce the publication of my newest travel guidebook! Monumental America: Your Guide to All 138 National Monuments is now available for sale on Amazon amzn.to/4g0XWDA
10.09.2025 17:47 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
We published Monumental America: Your Guide to All 138 National Monuments!
We are excited to announce the publication of our newest guidebook Monumental America: Your Guide to All 138 National Monuments. It is now available for sale on Amazon. The mission of our guidebook is to introduce readers to the diversity of National Monuments by providing information on what makes each of them worthy of protection and how to go about experiencing what they have to offer. National Monuments cover a broad range of sites of historic and geologic interest from as small as 0.07 of an acre up to 2.2-million acres in size. While numerous guidebooks exist for the United States of America’s National Parks, this is the first ever volume dedicated to recreation in all 138 National Monuments. Altogether, they cover 18.4-million acres of public land across 33 states and territories, plus 759-million acres of ocean in the five expansive Marine National Monuments created since 2006. Only 40 National Monuments have an entry fee, while the others provide free opportunities to learn about history or enjoy the outdoors. National Monuments feature internationally recognized icons like the Statue of Liberty, as well as overlooked places that even locals rarely visit. They protect fossil quarries, historic homes of important Americans, caves open for exploration, sites significant to the Civil Rights Movement, volcanic wonders, relics of indigenous cultures, old military forts, and whitewater rafting spots. A select few National Monuments have visitor centers and guided tours, while others are undeveloped wildlands encompassing everything from deserts to glaciers, including wetlands, sand dunes, and coastlines that provide habitat for countless species of wildlife. Whatever you are interested in, there is a new adventure out there waiting.
We are excited to announce the publication of our newest guidebook Monumental America: Your Guide to All 138 National Monuments, now available for sale on Amazon.
The mission of our guidebook is to introduce readers to the diversity of National Monuments by providing information on how to visit.
09.09.2025 14:57 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
Jimmy Carter National Historical Park
Jimmy Carter was the 39th U.S. President (1977-1981) and the first to reach the age of 100 before he passed away on December 29, 2024. Following his presidency, he and his wife (Rosalynn) returned to their hometown of Plains and cemented their legacy as diplomats and humanitarians, mostly through their work with the Carter Center in Atlanta. Up until the end, Jimmy Carter taught Sunday school at Maranatha Baptist Church, which is open to the public. The National Historical Park encompasses Jimmy’s boyhood farm, high school, and the old Plains railroad depot. It also includes his residence since 1961, which continues to be closed but will eventually be turned into a museum by the National Park Service (NPS). In July 2025, the Carter Gardens and Burial Site of Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter opened to the public.
Jimmy Carter was the 39th U.S. President (1977-1981) and the first to reach the age of 100 before he passed away on December 29, 2024. Following his presidency, he and his wife (Rosalynn) returned to their hometown of Plains and cemented their legacy as diplomats and humanitarians.
27.08.2025 15:22 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
Montana Road Trip Itinerary
After we published our guidebook 50 States of Great: Road Trip Guide to America in 2023, 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 public land entries. After starting with Kansas, Georgia, Idaho, Rhode Island, Minnesota, Hawai‘i , Arizona, Louisiana, South Dakota, and Indiana, we decided to head back west to Montana. There are so many great trails in the state’s National Forests that we had a difficult time narrowing it down. We made an ambitious seven-day plan starting in southeast Montana on Interstate 90, with enough options to easily extend the trip into three weeks or more. Day 1 Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument (click here for our blog post) The best time to visit the National Monument is around June 25, the anniversary of Custer’s Last Stand when a reenactment of the battle is held on private land bordering the National Park Service site. Makoshika State Park
Montana Road Trip Itinerary - There are so many great trails in the state’s National Forests that we had a difficult time narrowing it down. We made an ambitious seven-day plan starting in southeast Montana on Interstate 90, with enough options to easily extend the trip into three weeks or more.
20.08.2025 11:53 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
Top 10 National Forests for Day Hiking
We have hiked in all 155 National Forests, and we used those experiences to write our guidebook Out in the Woods. Most National Forests have hundreds of miles of trails, which are a great way to explore the landscape. Sometimes it can be overwhelming because there are so many options. Compared to our Top 10 Day Hiking Trails in National Forests, this list is focused on places where there are many good trails to choose from (and we made sure not to overlap). We hope you are inspired to throw on your daypack and hit the trail. Click here to see all our Top 10 lists, including our Top 10 National Forests for Backpacking and Top 10 Summit Trails in National Forests. 10. Tonto (Arizona) Due to its proximity to Phoenix, many areas like Peralta and First Water Trailheads are often packed with hikers (as is Siphon Draw Trail, another favorite hike that gains 2,781 feet of elevation to the Flatiron, usually starting from Lost Dutchman State Park). 9. Hoosier (Indiana) Pioneer Mothers Memorial Forest features a 0.8-mile trail that runs through the old-growth forest. Hemlock Cliffs Trail is a 1.2-mile loop through a sandstone canyon that passes behind two unique waterfalls. Longer hiking options include the 36.3-mile Terrill Ridge Trail that enters the Charles C. Deam Wilderness (Indiana’s one and only) and the 24.1 miles of trails around German Ridge Lake. 8. Chequamegon (Wisconsin)
We have hiked in all 155 National Forests, and we used those experiences to write our guidebook Out in the Woods. Most National Forests have hundreds of miles of trails, which are a great way to explore the landscape. Sometimes it can be overwhelming there are so many options, so we hope this helps.
08.08.2025 19:12 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
Kobuk Valley National Park
In northwest Alaska, an area roughly the size of Delaware is set aside to protect an 85-mile stretch of the Kobuk River. Kobuk Valley National Park also includes the Waring Mountains to the south and the Baird Mountains that border Noatak National Preserve. Hunters have been coming for at least 12,500 years to Onion Portage where caribou gather to cross the river. In the 1960s, archeologist J. Louis Giddings built a cabin and cache so he could excavate a two-acre plot. He and his assistants dug through 30 artifact-bearing layers that provided evidence of nine cultural periods from the Akmak Complex to the Arctic Woodland Eskimo. The Northwest Arctic Heritage Center in Kotzebue is located 75 river miles from the western edge of the park. Riverside ranger stations operate in the summer at Kallarichuk in the west and Onion Portage in the east. A flightseeing tour of the park typically lands on the Great Kobuk Sand Dunes, which are the remnant of a dune field that once covered as much as 200,000 acres after the Pleistocene glaciation. Float trips take at least a week on the wide Kobuk River or the rougher Salmon River, which is designated a Wild and Scenic River. The Kobuk River starts within a narrow canyon with Class V rapids inside Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve, but soon flattens out and becomes a braided channel, like many rivers in Alaska.
Kobuk Valley National Park is roughly the size of Delaware is set aside to protect an 85-mile stretch of the Kobuk River. It was the last of the 63 National Parks for Scott to visit, which he accomplished on June 14, 2025 on a flightseeing tour that landed on the Great Kobuk Sand Dunes!
23.07.2025 17:01 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
Lolo National Forest
Located in western Montana, the elevation of Lolo National Forest ranges from less than 2,400 feet on the Clark Fork River below Thompson Falls to the top of 9,186-foot Scapegoat Mountain. West of Missoula off Interstate 90, the Ninemile Historic Remount Depot preserves a Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) camp and pack stock training facility. Founded in 1907, the Savenac Historic Tree Nursery Area is also well developed for visitors, including an arboretum and cabin rentals in what were formerly the cookhouse and bunkhouse. Following a path used by the Corps of Discovery in 1805, the Lolo National Historic Trail shadows Highway 12 west into Idaho (see Clearwater National Forest).
Located in western Montana, the elevation of Lolo National Forest ranges from less than 2,400 feet on the Clark Fork River below Thompson Falls to the top of 9,186-foot Scapegoat Mountain. West of Missoula off Interstate 90, the Ninemile Historic Remount Depot preserves a CCC camp.
16.07.2025 13:24 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
Rattlesnake National Recreation Area
Situated only four miles from Missoula, Montana within Lolo National Forest, Rattlesnake National Recreation Area is a popular area for outdoor recreation year-round. It was established in 1980, at the same time as the adjacent 32,976-acre Rattlesnake Wilderness, which ranges in elevation from 4,200 feet up to 8,620-foot McLeod Peak. The National Recreation Area has one of the only Sphagnum bogs in the western U.S. and Rattlesnake Creek hosts bull trout, cutthroat trout, and mountain whitefish. Highlights Rattlesnake Main Trail, Ravine Creek Trail. Sawmill Curry Gulch Loop Trail, Spring Gulch Trail, Stuart Peak Trail Must-Do Activity There are 73 miles of hiking trails in the National Recreation Area, but the most heavily used are the first three miles of Rattlesnake Main Trail along Rattlesnake Creek. These trails are also open to horseback riders, mountain bikers, and cross-country skiers. Be aware that mountain lions and black bears frequent the area, and we came across a bear on a morning in ------------. Best Trail Rattlesnake Main Trail follows an old logging road along the creek for the first nine miles before it gets steeper. Other popular hiking options include Ravine Creek Trail, Sawmill Curry Gulch Loop Trail, Spring Gulch Trail with its moderate elevation gain, and Stuart Peak Trail that climbs steeply up into the Rattlesnake Wilderness. Photographic Opportunity Rattlesnake Creek attracts many animals, including the American dipper or ouzel, an aquatic songbird.
Situated only four miles from Missoula, Montana within Lolo National Forest, Rattlesnake National Recreation Area is a popular area for outdoor recreation year-round. It was established in 1980, at the same time as the adjacent 32,976-acre Rattlesnake Wilderness, which ranges up to 8,620 feet.
09.07.2025 14:58 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
Indiana Road Trip Itinerary
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. 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.
Indiana Road Trip Itinerary-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 why Indiana made it on our Top 10 States for State Parks list.
25.06.2025 15:06 — 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
Lincoln National Forest
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.
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. It includes parts of the Guadalupe, Sacramento, Sierra Blanca/White Mountains, Capitan, and Gallinas ranges.
11.06.2025 13:20 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
New Philadelphia National Historic Site
About 77 miles west of Springfield, Illinois, a 42-acre parcel of land became the first U.S. town platted and registered by an African American in 1836. Back then, Illinois had stringent Black Codes that restricted African Americans and required proof they were not slaves. This did not deter “Free” Frank McWorter who was born into slavery in South Carolina and after being moved to Kentucky worked to purchase his pregnant wife’s freedom in 1817, then his own two years later. Once settled in Illinois, McWorter paid $100 for 80 acres and platted a portion of it into 144 lots that he named New Philadelphia. This was a time of racial tension in Illinois, when an abolitionist was killed while trying to protect his printing press in Alton and a violence flared after a petition to abolish slavery was signed in Griggsville only 13 miles east. It is likely that New Philadelphia served as a major stop on the Underground Railroad. The town’s population peaked in 1865 with 160 individuals, 30% of whom were black according to the census. Although the town was abandoned within a century, a major archaeological excavation in 2002 found artifacts including glass bottles, ceramics, children’s toys, possible pieces of the game Mancala, and a 1903 Illinois State Fair badge. The site was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2005 and became a National Historic Landmark in 2009.
New Philadelphia National Historic Site--About 77 miles west of Springfield, Illinois, a 42-acre parcel of land became the first U.S. town platted and registered by an African American in 1836. It is likely that New Philadelphia served as a major stop on the Underground Railroad.
04.06.2025 15:45 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
Lassen National Forest
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. 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.
California's Lassen National Forest has 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
15.05.2025 16:33 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
I'm a hiker, snowshoe artist, nature photographer, birder, and family genealogist. Current president of the Northeast Kingdom Section of the Green Mountain Club.
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