East Midwest / North Central Atlantic Region

T1DCarnivoreRunner

Hi everybody!

I'm hoping to be be able to put a road trip together for about a week around Memorial Day. I live in Iowa, and I plan to head out East. Here is why: There are only 5 states I've never visited: Alaska, Hawaii, Connecticut, Delaware, and Rhode Island. Since 3 of them are in the same general area, I want to check them off my list, so to speak.

There are likely some good historical sites that I might visit, but I want to do some hiking in those areas if I can. Does anyone have any suggestions in CT, DE, or RI? Or, do you have suggestions between IA and those states? I'm thinking Cuyahoga Valley National Park in Ohio for either on the way out or on the way back, but would like to see if there are any other good spots that you might suggest.

These should all be day hikes, ranging from a few hours to all day, but nothing overnight. When I do road trips, I drive to the next place at night and see/do stuff during the day.

Thanks in advance!

juliet3455

Not for CT, DE, or RI. When you plan your Alaska trip stop through the Canadian Rockies.
Get the book The Canadian Rockies Trail Guide by Brian Patton and Bart Robinson. It describes over 200 hiking and backpacking trails in the Canadian Rockies, Banff National Park, Jasper National Park and other parks.
Also you should pickup Scrambles in the Canadian Rockies - by Alan Kane, as it has a great listing of scrambles and day hikes. Then there is the local's knowledge to the hidden gems that are not listed in any guide,

T1DCarnivoreRunner

The Alaska trip is just an idea at this point... I don't know when, how, or where, but will keep that in mind if I drive.

I just started taking a look at National Parks along the way, as well as other destinations based on distance. Keep in mind that, since I'm driving overnight and seeing/doing stuff during the day, there is an optimal distance to various locations. So I can go overnight from point A to point B, then nothing more than 1-2 hours from point B for all of the things I plan to do that day. Otherwise, I waste too much daylight in the car.

So far, I've started building a more southern route for the trip out... I'll probably leave on Friday (after work) before Memorial Day. I'm thinking I'll drive from SW Iowa to southern Indiana the first night and on Sat. stop for a couple of historical sites in IN, and down to Mammoth Cave in KY. The next night, I figure I'll head over towards Shenandoah NP in VA and spend all day Sun. there... maybe.

I'll have to see what schedules are for Memorial Day and work around that. It may be that I stop somewhere else (in WV perhaps) on Sun. and spend Mon. at Shenandoah NP so that I am in DE on Tues. That might be the case if Shenandoah is open on Mon. and the destination in DE is not... or maybe it will work out and I find a good destination in WV anyway. It just might not be an optimal distance (I may have too much extra time), but will have to look at it.

beemerphile1

midwesterner85 wrote: »

...The next night, I figure I'll head over towards Shenandoah NP in VA and spend all day Sun. there....

I recommend the day hike to 'Old Rag'.
hikingupward.com/SNP/OldRag/

The hike is inside the park but the trailhead is outside the park. It is a popular hike so I recommend a dawn start.

Some of the AT goes through Shenandoah also.

T1DCarnivoreRunner

@beemerphile1 Thank you for the tip! That looks like a challenging hike, but from what I can tell, it is just short of requiring specialty rock climbing gear and techniques (something I wouldn't be comfortable with at this point).

beemerphile1

Only gear needed might be some gloves to protect your hands on the rock scrambles.

The views at the top are incredible. I packed food and sat on a huge boulder at the top and ate lunch.

Watch for snakes, I had a Timber Rattler strike at me on the way up. When hiking solo I try to stay in the center of the trail and the snake strike came up a little short thankfully.

T1DCarnivoreRunner

Here are the locations I plan to visit for hiking (I'm not including history only sites I plan to visit because it would not be germane):

1. Mammoth Cave (KY)
2. New River Gorge (WV) - If anyone has advice for which trails are good for an all day (approx. 15 miles, more or less) excursion, that would be appreciated.
3. Shenandoah (VA)
4. Brandywine Creek (DE)
5. Valley Forge (PA)
6. Weir Farm (CT)
7. Chatfield Hollow (CT)
8. Upper Delaware / Delaware Water Gap (PA)
9. Cuyahoga Valley (OH)
10. Effigy Mounds (IA)

Some of these will be longer than others... #2, 3, and 8 are the only ones where I plan to spend a whole day. Others will range in time, but will be shorter.

I haven't yet figured out what route I will take at all of these locations... still working on that. For the all day hikes, I am not opposed to going on a 5-10 mile trail and then driving to another trailhead to go to another trail if that makes the most sense based on trail options. But I'm open to suggestions at any of those locations yet. TIA.