Destinations
Every park, monument, and town we've stopped at. Grouped by kind, alphabetical within each.
National parks
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ME Acadia National Park
A planning page for Acadia: Cadillac sunrise reservations, the Island Explorer bus, the flat family loops, and where the crowds actually are.
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UT Arches National Park
Planning notes for Arches with kids: when to go, the arches that sit close to the road, the one hike to skip with small legs, and why you fill the water jugs in Moab first.
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SD Badlands National Park
Planning notes for Badlands with kids: the paved Loop Road overlooks a few steps from the car, the boardwalk trails and the one cliff ladder, the free bison and prairie dogs on Sage Creek, and the heat and lightning to plan around.
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TX Big Bend National Park
Planning notes for Big Bend with kids: the three districts and the miles between them, the short canyon hikes worth the drive, the Boquillas crossing into Mexico, and why you carry more water than you think.
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FL Biscayne National Park
Planning notes for Biscayne with kids: a park that is mostly water, how a boat-less family still sees it, the one land trail, and why there is no food or fresh water past the mainland.
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CO Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
Planning notes for Black Canyon with kids: the single rim road and its overlooks, the one trail that drops below the rim, the long edges to mind, and why supplies come from Montrose first.
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UT Bryce Canyon National Park
Planning notes for Bryce with kids: the one amphitheater everything circles, the gentlest way down among the hoodoos, why the altitude is the real limit, and a dark sky worth a second Junior Ranger badge.
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UT Canyonlands National Park
Planning notes for Canyonlands with kids: which of the four districts a family can actually reach, the short Island in the Sky walks worth the drive, and why every supply gets bought in Moab first.
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UT Capitol Reef National Park
Planning notes for Capitol Reef with kids: the family-walkable Fruita core, the petroglyphs you can read from a boardwalk, the pie that sells out by late morning, and the districts a sedan can't reach.
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NM Carlsbad Caverns National Park
Planning notes for Carlsbad Caverns with kids: the elevator versus the Natural Entrance descent, the 56-degree cave, the dusk bat flight and its electronics ban, and the year-round timed-entry reservation.
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CA Channel Islands National Park
Planning notes for Channel Islands with kids: the boat-only logistics, which island is gentlest to land on, why you pack in every drop of water, and how to see the park from the mainland when the boat day won't line up.
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SC Congaree National Park
Planning notes for Congaree with kids: the elevated boardwalk through the tallest forest in the East, the Mosquito Meter at the door, the mid-May fireflies, and why you pack lunch in Columbia first.
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OR Crater Lake National Park
Planning notes for Crater Lake with kids: a lake you see from the rim, the short snow-free season, the lakeshore closure through 2029, and the trails and viewpoints that work around it.
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OH Cuyahoga Valley National Park
Planning notes for Cuyahoga Valley with kids: the falls and the marsh boardwalks, the train you ride one way and bike back, and why this corridor park between Akron and Cleveland charges no fee.
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CA Death Valley National Park
Planning notes for Death Valley with kids: when to go around the heat, the stops that sit at the car, the canyons to hike in the morning, and why the salt flats are off the table midday in summer.
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AK Denali National Park and Preserve
Planning notes for Denali with kids: the one road, the Mile-43 closure that reshapes the whole trip, the sled-dog kennels Big and Little will remember, and the entrance-corridor hikes a family can reach today.
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FL Dry Tortugas National Park
Planning notes for Dry Tortugas with kids: a boat-and-seaplane park 70 miles west of Key West, the masonry fort that fills Garden Key, the calm moat-wall snorkeling, and why you carry every drop of water in.
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FL Everglades National Park
Planning notes for Everglades with kids: when to go around the mosquitoes, the boardwalks that put alligators at stroller height, why Flamingo is an hour each way, and the water you have to carry in.
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AK Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve
8.4 million acres of the central Brooks Range north of the Arctic Circle, with no road, no trail, and no campground inside the boundary, and the least visited national park in the country.
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MO Gateway Arch National Park
The 91-acre urban park in downtown St. Louis built around Eero Saarinen's 630-foot stainless-steel Arch, the smallest national park in the country and among the most visited per acre.
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AK Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve
A water park in Southeast Alaska where the only road ends at Bartlett Cove, the glaciers are reachable by boat, and the bay has been Huna Łingít home since time immemorial.
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MT Glacier National Park
Planning notes for Glacier with kids: how to split a trip across the Continental Divide, the road and walks that sit close to the car, the bear habit to build first, and what is in flux at Many Glacier for 2026.
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AZ Grand Canyon National Park
Planning notes for Grand Canyon with kids: which rim to start on, the overlooks that sit close to the paved walk, how far down to go before turning around, and why the canyon floor is a separate trip.
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WY Grand Teton National Park
Planning notes for Grand Teton with kids: when to go, the views that sit close to the road, the flat lake hikes and the Jenny Lake boat shuttle, grizzly habits, and the construction to plan around in 2026.
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NV Great Basin National Park
Planning notes for Great Basin with kids: the bristlecones older than the pyramids, the tour-only cave and its 2025 to 2026 closure, why altitude beats mileage here, and where the gas and food actually are.
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CO Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve
Planning notes for Great Sand Dunes with kids: when Medano Creek is running, which dune to climb, where to rent a sled, and how to plan around 150 °F sand.
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TN/NC Great Smoky Mountains
Most-visited national park in the U.S. — straddles Tennessee and North Carolina. Free to enter.
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TX Guadalupe Mountains National Park
Planning notes for Guadalupe Mountains with kids: the highest point in Texas, the spring-fed fall color in McKittrick Canyon, the kid-scaled walk to the Pratt Cabin, and a park with no food, fuel, or lodging inside the line.
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HI Haleakalā National Park
A planning page for the two-district park on Maui: the 10,023-foot summit and the coastal Kīpahulu rainforest, and why they are separate days.
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HI Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
Planning notes for Hawaiʻi Volcanoes with kids: how eruption status decides the trip, the crater hikes that suit short legs, the night-glow overlooks, and why you check the volcano observatory before you book.
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AR Hot Springs National Park
Planning notes for Hot Springs with kids: how a national park sits on a downtown street, where to actually soak in the spring water, the free indoor anchor for a hot day, and the short hikes behind Bathhouse Row.
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IN Indiana Dunes National Park
Planning notes for Indiana Dunes with kids: the beach and the dune-climb stairs, the marsh and bog walks, why the state park next door is a separate gate, and how the train from Chicago drops you inside the boundary.
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MI Isle Royale National Park
Planning notes for Isle Royale with kids: how to get to an island with no road, when to go, the day hikes from Rock Harbor that small legs can manage, and why you carry all your own food.
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CA Joshua Tree National Park
Three days with kids in mid-November — when to go, the trails that worked, where we slept and ate, and what we'd do differently.
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AK Katmai National Park and Preserve
A fly-in park on the Alaska Peninsula built around Brooks Falls, where brown bears fish for sockeye, and the ash-filled Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes left by the 1912 Novarupta eruption.
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AK Kenai Fjords National Park
Planning notes for Kenai Fjords with kids: the one glacier you can drive to, the six-hour cruise that reaches the rest of the park, and why everything starts in Seward.
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CA Kings Canyon National Park
Planning notes for Kings Canyon with kids: the two halves of the park, the year-round General Grant Tree, the seasonal canyon road to Cedar Grove, and where you stock up before you drive in.
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AK Kobuk Valley National Park
An Arctic park with no roads, no trails, no campgrounds — 1.75 million acres of dunes, river, and 9,000 years of Iñupiaq use at Onion Portage.
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AK Lake Clark National Park and Preserve
Four million acres of glacial lakes, two active volcanoes, and Dena'ina homeland southwest of Anchorage, reached by floatplane only. We have not been yet.
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CA Lassen Volcanic National Park
Planning notes for Lassen with kids: the one road that strings the volcanoes together, when it is open, the hydrothermal hike to do, and why you carry food in.
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KY Mammoth Cave National Park
Planning notes for Mammoth Cave with kids: which cave tour to book, how cold it stays underground, the above-ground walks worth the time, and why the tour ticket is the whole plan.
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CO Mesa Verde National Park
Planning notes for Mesa Verde with kids: how the cliff-dwelling tickets work, which ranger tour fits younger legs, the no-ladder sites you can see for free, and why the museum comes first.
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WA Mount Rainier National Park
Planning notes for Mount Rainier with kids: the family hubs at Paradise, Longmire, and Sunrise, the trails small legs can actually do, and how to plan for a mountain that hides behind cloud more days than not.
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AS National Park of American Samoa
Planning notes for the National Park of American Samoa with kids: how the flight schedule sets the trip, the village rules that come first, the short Pola Island walk, and the snorkeling lagoon on Ofu.
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WV New River Gorge National Park and Preserve
Planning notes for New River Gorge with kids: the rim views and falls worth the stop, the coal towns the river left behind, the one descent to skip with small legs, and why there is no entrance fee.
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WA North Cascades National Park
Planning notes for North Cascades with kids: why almost nothing is drive-up, the State Route 20 stops that are, when the highway is even open, and where the gas and food actually are.
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Washington Olympic National Park
A planning guide to Olympic National Park: three ecosystems, alpine ridge, rain forest, and wild Pacific coast, that sit hours apart on the US 101 loop.
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AZ Petrified Forest National Park
Planning notes for Petrified Forest with kids: the 28-mile day-use drive, the short paved loops worth stopping for, the one trail to walk down into the badlands, and why nobody pockets a single piece of wood.
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CA Pinnacles National Park
Planning notes for Pinnacles with kids: pick an entrance before you drive, bring a headlamp for the talus caves, check whether Bear Gulch is open for the bats, and watch for condors at dawn.
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CA Redwood National and State Parks
Planning notes for Redwood with kids: which of three hubs to pick, the flat old-growth loops that suit short legs, the reservations Fern Canyon and Tall Trees need, and why the rain layers go in first.
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CO Rocky Mountain National Park
Planning notes for Rocky Mountain with kids: how to handle the altitude, the timed-entry permit, the flat lake loops worth doing, and why fall is the season to aim for.
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AZ Saguaro National Park
Planning notes for Saguaro with kids: which district to pick, the two scenic drives that tour the cactus forest from the car, why the cool season runs backward from school breaks, and where the water actually is.
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CA Sequoia National Park
Planning notes for Sequoia with kids: the Giant Forest big trees, the elevation that catches families off guard, the winter chain controls on Generals Highway, and where you sleep and eat inside the park.
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VA Shenandoah National Park
Planning notes for Shenandoah with kids: when to drive Skyline Drive, the short summits and waterfalls worth the stop, the one scramble to skip with small legs, and the displacement history the park does not hide.
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ND Theodore Roosevelt National Park
Planning notes for Theodore Roosevelt with kids: the South Unit Scenic Loop near Medora for bison, prairie dogs, and wild horses from the car, the Maltese Cross Cabin and Painted Canyon, the quieter North Unit 70 miles north, and the heat, mud, and mosquitoes to plan around.
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VI Virgin Islands National Park
Planning notes for Virgin Islands National Park with kids: getting to St. John by ferry, the lifeguarded snorkel beach, the Reef Bay petroglyph hike, and the post-hurricane facilities that open and close.
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MN Voyageurs National Park
Planning notes for Voyageurs with kids: a water park on the Canada border where the interior has no road, what a family without a boat can still see, and why the ranger boat tour is the unlock.
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NM White Sands National Park
Planning notes for White Sands with kids: the one road into the dunefield, why the gypsum stays cool to the touch, where to sled, and how missile-test closures can shut the gate.
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SD Wind Cave National Park
Planning notes for Wind Cave with kids: the cave tour to book first, the prairie wildlife drive, the no-entrance-fee budget, and why a fleece comes underground in July.
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AK Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve
Planning notes for Wrangell-St. Elias with kids: the two roads that do not meet, the footbridge into Kennicott, the one glacier hike a family can make, and why the trip is booked months ahead.
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WY/MT/ID Yellowstone National Park
The first national park in the world — geysers, wolves, supervolcano, and 27 associated tribes — and what we're reading before we go.
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CA Yosemite National Park
Planning notes for Yosemite with kids: when the waterfalls run, the Valley stops close to a shuttle stop, the climbs to admire instead of attempt, and whose homeland this is.
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UT Zion National Park
Planning notes for Zion with kids: the shuttle you have to ride, the river you can wade, the climb to point at instead of attempt, and the homeland the canyon belongs to.
Other
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