Road Trips

The road trips listed below include just a few of the road trips found in each state.

Alabama

Natchez Trace Parkway (three states of road tripping: Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee)

Highway 9 between Wetumpka to Arbacoochee by the Talladega National Forest

Highway 90 from Pascagoula, Mississippi to Pensacola, Florida--stop in Mobile for lunch, dinner, or the evening

Alaska (Summer road trips)

Highway 3 from Anchorage to Fairbanks

Highway 2 and 4 from Fairbanks to Valdez

Highway 9 from Seward to Anchorage (Combine these for one long and exciting circle tour)

See British Columbia and Yukon for the Alaskan Highway

Arizona

Road trippers should leave Interstate 8 and wander to Casa Grande, Gila Bend, and Yuma. From Casa Grande, Interstate 10 connects with Chandler, Litchfield Park, Mesa, Phoenix, Tempe, and Tucson. The Interstate 17 corridor is becoming quite populated and includes Phoenix, Scottsdale, Flagstaff, Glendale, Sedona, and Tempe. If travelers want to go east, Interstate 19 is a quick way of going from Tucson to Nogales. Interstate 40 wanders near Flagstaff, Holbrook, Kingman, Seligman, Williams, and Winslow.

Northern Arizona to Utah on Highways 89, 160, and/or 180

From the Petrified Forest to New Mexico on Highways 180 and 191 or to Tucson on Highways 60, 61, and 79

Flagstaff to Lake Havasu City

Wind through the Four Corners (Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, and Arizona)

Arkansas

Ozark National Forest in northwest Arkansas (also visit Missouri)

Pine Bluff to Lake Providence, Louisiana

Arkadelphia to El Dorado for some history of the wild and wooly days

California

Coastal Highway 1 from Oregon to Mexico

Highway 101 around San Luis Obispo

Fort Bragg to Woodland or Napa

Sierra Nevada Cathedral Range

Circle Tour--Start at San Bernardino and go to Barstow, Death Valley Junction, Olancha, Mohave, and back to Barstow

Palms Springs and Joshua Tree National Park

Road trippers on winery tours go north of San Francisco to Napa, Sonoma, and Santa Rosa

Colorado

Southwestern Colorado through the San Juan National Forest

I-70 west of Denver to Utah

Denver to Steamboat Springs

Connecticut

Highways 7 and 15 from the New York state line past Bridgeport

Coastal highways Highway 7 from Danbury to Torrington

Highway I-69--Plainfield to Massachusetts

Delaware

Highway 9 from Delaware City to Dover

Florida

Coastal highways

Alligator Alley (1-75)

Highway 41 from Holopaw to Belle Glade

Highway 1 to Key West

Georgia

Chattahoochee National Forest

Coastal highways

Oconee National Forest

Hawaii

Drive along the coastal highways and take circle tours of all of the islands

Idaho

Highway 55 north of Boise

Highways 75 and 93 to the Bitterroot Mountains

Coeur d'Alene National Forest

Illinois

Go to Effingham where I-70 and I-57 meet and decide whether to go to the East Coast, West Coast, or the Gulf of Mexico coast

Wind around southern Illinois from Carbondale to Cape Girardeau, Missouri or Paducah, Kentucky or follow the scenic byways along the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers

Northwestern Illinois using Galena as the base to travel south and east

Indiana

Southern Indiana Ohio River through the Hoosier National Forest

Iowa

Meander along the river bends of the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers

Kansas

Northeastern Kansas River bends along the Missouri River

Highway 56 from Great Bend through Dodge City to the Cimarron National Grassland to Oklahoma

North from Garden City on Highway 83 to northern prairie counties of Kansas

Kentucky

Go through the Cumberland Mountains

From Monticello through the Daniel Boone National Forest

Stop at Mammoth Cave National Park then roll-down the windows and drive along Highway 31

Louisiana

Southern LouisianaPort Arthur, Texas (Subject to change after hurricanes)

Highways 10 and 117 from Ville Platte to Natchitoches

Highway 1 south of Alexandria

Maine

Arcadia National Park

Coastal Highway 1

Highway 1 north to New Brunswick

Maryland

Eastern Shore Maryland and Virginia

Highway 68 in the Appalachian Mountains

Use Cumberland as a base and just wander

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Massachusetts

Drive out to Provincetown on the tip of Cape Cod

In western Massachusetts wander through the Berkshire Hills and the Taconic Range

get out of the car here and hike the Appalachian Trail

Take I-91 to Vermont

Michigan

Highway 22 around the Leelanau Peninsula to Traverse City and Highway 31 to Mackinaw City

Port Huron to Bay City on Highway 25

Highway 23 from Standish to Mackinaw City (combine these and do a coastal road trip)

Upper Peninsula Lake Michigan and the northern shoreline along Lake Superior

( Stop for gaming at Bay Mills Casino Resort or Kewadin Casino in Sault Ste. Marie.)

Minnesota

Lake Superior shoreline Minnesota

Highway 2 in the Chippewa National Forest to visit Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox Statue (The logging industry has a great history in Michigan, Maine, New York, Wisconsin, Washington, Oregon, and various Canadian Provinces. Paul Bunyan and other legendary heroes of the lumbering days pop up in many states and provinces. Some road trippers like to follow the trails of the lumberjacks.)

Follow the Mississippi River from the headwaters to Iowa

Mississippi

Natchez Trace Parkway

Highway 61 from Memphis, Tennessee to Louisiana--stop in Natchez for lunch, dinner, or the evening--go down to the river to enjoy the nightlife or visit a plantation

Highway 1 along the Mississippi River

Missouri

Drive along the Mississippi River to experience Mark Twain's boyhood (Mark Twain lovers should then drive to Hartford, Connecticut and visit his house where he raised his family.)

Wind through the Mark Twain National Forests

Follow Highway 65 south from Springfield south to Branson and other sites in the Ozarks

Montana

Follow I-15 from Idaho to Butte

Start in Mammoth Hot Springs, Wyoming and go north on Highway 89 to Great Falls

Start in Medicine Springs just across from Idaho in the Bitterroot Range and drive north through Missoula to Kalispell and Glacier National Park

From Glacier National Park drive north to Alberta, Canada and visit Waterton Lakes National Park before continuing on to Lake Louise and Jasper

Nebraska

I-80 follows the Platte River west of Grand Island

Road trippers on I-80 have to stop at Kearney and see the archway that crosses I-80 and depicts the history of the west (Kearney is halfway between the east coast and the west coast.)

Follow Highway 2 north of Grand Island and west to the Oglala National Grasslands

Highway 71 winds along the Missouri River

Nevada

Highway 50 crosses Nevada from Utah to Carson City

Muddy Mountains Las Vegas

Wind around the Silver Peak Range

New Hampshire

Drive north of Keene on Highways 9 or 10 Follow Highway 10 to the White Mountains

Wander around Berlin on Highways 110, 2, and 16--here is another place to get out of the car and hike the Appalachian Trail (for a challenge hike it from New Hampshire to Maine)

New Jersey

Highway 70 in central New Jersey

Southern New Jersey along the Delaware Bay to Cape May

Wharton State Forest

New Mexico

Drive through the San Juan Mountains in the north

Silver City as a base and drive on through the Elk Mountains or to Las Cruces

New York

Drive along Lake Ontario to the Thousand Islands

Wander around the Finger Lakes Region

Meander through either the Adirondack or Catskill Mountains

Tour Long Island--go to the tip or stop at Port Jefferson and take a ferry to Connecticut

North Carolina

Drive along the Cape Hatteras National Seashore

S

ore through the Appalachian Mountains and try hiking the southern Appalachian Mountain Trail in N. and S. Carolina

Tour the center of the state on Highways 24/27

North Dakota

Drive along the Little Missouri National Grassland

Follow the winding route of the Missouri River

I-29 follows the Red River in northern North Dakota and becomes Highway 75 in Manitoba--follow it to Winnipeg

Ohio

Start an Ohio road trip by visiting Chillicothe and the Hopewell Culture National Historic Park (geometric earthwork and mounds) where the pre-historic indigenous people established trade routes that were the origins of many modern highways--follow those highways

Chillicothe, Gateway to Appalachia, follow Highways 772 or 104 south to the Ohio River and cross to Kentucky at Portsmouth

Wind along the Ohio River

Go from Zanesville south on the scenic Highways 60 or 13

Drive along the Lake Erie shoreline in northern Ohio

Oklahoma

Highway 259 near Broken Bow Lake

Highway 59 in the northeastern region of Oklahoma

Marietta to Davis and the Chickasaw National Recreation Area

Oregon

Follow Highway 101 along the Pacific Coast from the Columbia River Gorge to California

Baker City Monument in central Oregon

Through the Cascade Range to Crater Lake National Park--lots of great hiking spots on this route

Pennsylvania

Zoom along the Pennsylvania Turnpike I-70/76 with its great tunnels

Allegheny National Forest

Appalachian Mountains and other mountain ranges including the Pocono Mountains in eastern Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

From Wickford to the Block Island Sound and on to Connecticut

Drive around Newport to see the mansions

South Carolina

Wander around the Atlantic Ocean coastline stopping at Charleston before going on to Savannah, Georgia

Highway 11 in the northwestern region of South Carolina

South Dakota

Take I-90 from Sioux Falls to Rapid City but stopping at Mitchell to see the Corn Palace and have lunch

Wind around the Black Hills and the Badlands--continue through the Black Hills to Devils Tower, Wyoming

Follow Highway 85 north of Spearfish to North Dakota through the geographical center of the United States to the Cave Hills and the Grand River National Grassland

Tennessee

Follow the Natchez Trace Parkway

Wind through the Appalachian Mountains to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park

With the Cumberland Plateau as the center, circle it on Highways 127, 101, and 108

Texas

Circle around the Big Bend Ranch State Natural Area and Big Bend National Park

Follow Highway 207 south of Borger to Highway 70 and Dickens

Drive from Port Arthur to Corpus Christi

Utah

I-80 traverses near the Great Salt Lake

I-15 is near Zion National Park and easy access to other national forests and national forests

Wasatch Range

Vermont

Wind along the Connecticut River from New York to Canada

Drive from the White Mountains in New Hampshire to the Green Mountains in Vermont

Seth Warner Memorial Highway

Virginia

Shenandoah Parkway, Shenandoah National Park

Eastern ShoreChesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel to Maryland

Use Charlottesville as a base and go in any direction

Drive around Roanoke (a NASCAR raceway is nearby)

Washington

Drive along Highway 101 through the Olympic Mountains from Port Townsend to the Pacific Ocean coastline and down to Oregon

Wind along Highway 20 to the North Cascades National Park

Follow Highway 155 south of the Grand Coulee Dam

West Virginia

Wind around the Yew Mountains near Richwood

Circle around the Shenandoah Mountains on Highway 259 through Virginia to the Shenandoah National Park and return on Highway 55

Use the capital city, Charleston, as a base to visit W. Virginia towns and villages as well as the New River Gorge National River

Wisconsin

Drive along the Lake Michigan shoreline from Illinois to Door County (see Great Lakes Circle Tours for extended road trips)

From Madison wind down to Platteville and Dubuque, Iowa on the Mississippi River

Go from Rhinelander north to Ontonagon, Michigan on Lake Superior or Ashland, Wisconsin on Lake Superior near the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore for some great fishing in Lake Superior

Wyoming

I-80 through Cheyenne, Laramie, and Green River near the Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area

Stop at Sheridan and Cody before driving to Yellowstone National Park

Drive through the Rocky Mountains from Yellowstone National Park to the Grand Teton National Park and Jackson Hole