Trip Accolades
List of Trips Ranked
Having been on so many amazing trips and adventures, it's near impossible to rank these trips against one another. That said, I am going to try!
Here you can find my listing with a brief description of why I felt this trip was placed where it was placed in the rankings.
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No hard feelings!
Alaska - Denali National Park & Kenai Fjords National Parks
July 2018
If you are even the slightest bit into adventure or the outdoors, you've probably heard of this little place called Alaska. If you really have heard of Alaska, The Last Frontier, you know it's not so little and a whole lot of wild.
For obvious reasons, Alaska takes the top of the list and probably will for a long time to come. On this trip, I hit a lot of huge bucket list items. The Arctic Ocean, seeing Denali many times, seeing glaciers, the Harding Ice Field, and all the bears! Sooo many bears! All this and more made this trip the undisputed top of the list where it will likely stand for many years to come.
Rocky Mountain National Park
September 2016
Rocky was, until Alaska came along, my favorite trip of all time. It will forever hold a special place with me as it was the first trip of this magnitude that I planned for myself. It was the trip of my dreams and it happened as if it was my dream! There was perfect weather, despite having planned the trip 6 months in advance in an entirely different state, brief snow -which I also enjoy quite a bit, and bears of course! This trip really was a dream come true and one that I will hold on to for a long time to come!
Yellowstone & Grand Teton National Parks
June 2002
In my memory, Yellowstone was the first big trip of my life. It was held as the top trip for many years as well! The geography, the abundant and varied wildlife (read bears), hikes, sights, sounds, and smells made this one tough adventure to top for the longest time! Any time a mid-westerner can see snow in June, you know it's going to be hard to beat!
Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks
May 2014
Regrettably, Sequoia & Kings Canyon became the first highly ranked trip to not see the top of the list. It had everything an outstanding adventure needed! The most bear sightings, doubling that of Yellowstone, amazing views, snow, and so much more! Yellowstone had the very unique geology and smells that kept Sequoia edged out of the top spot. It still is a very beautiful place worth a visit for sure!
Glacier National Park
June 2016
I'm almost ashamed Glacier didn't place higher... It really is the Crown of the Continent and deserves a higher place in the rankings for living up to this praiseworthy title. There is definitely a right time of year to visit Glacier to see it at its finest and I would definitely say I was there at that time! Absolutely gorgeous scenery, abundant and varied wildlife (including bears of course though no grizzlies were spotted), snow, and so much more! Really, Glacier deserves an honorary rank of #1 for being what it is, the Crown of the Continent!
Zion & Bryce Canyon National Parks
October 2017
Zion is another beautiful park that I wish could rank higher. It's a hiker's playground with many unique trails and terrain and astronomer's dream with the darkest skies that actually shine brightly because of the number of stars you can see! How cool is that?! Zion is unbelievable and it's easy to see why it's consistently one of the most visited parks in the US.
Blue Ridge Parkway National Scenic Byway
October 2019
The Blue Ridge Parkway has been on my list for a long time and I finally got a chance to experience at least part of this scenic byway! The best time, in my opinion, to take this drive would be during peak fall colors. Unfortunately, although I was there during peak fall colors, the climate had stifled the colors quite a bit. There were more brown leaves than there were vibrant colors of red, yellow, and orange. No matter, there is plenty more to explore again some day!
Cape Hattaras National Seashore
October 2019
There wasn't much to explore here, that I'm aware of at least, so having 1 day to see it wasn't as much of a limiting factor. The drive was great, the relaxing sounds of the ocean, and exploring the Cape Hattaras lighthouse grounds were all highlights of the trip for sure! On a return trip, I may try to hit the beach during turtle nesting season to add to the trip.
Grand Canyon National Park
June 2009
Grand Canyon is one of those places that a lot of people herald as highly rated. I'm the exception, unfortunately. Don't get me wrong, Grand Canyon is stunning but, because of my limitations in the trip I took i.e. not making it to the bottom, it doesn't rank very high on my list. There is only so much you can do from the rim and even there the view doesn't change substantially. I will say this, for a trip to the desert in June, the weather was incredible! I blame myself for wasting the good weather opportunity to make it to the bottom and back without dying.
Mt Rainier & Mt St Helens National Parks
1998
This really was the earliest trip in my life to a big park. Unfortunately, because it was so long ago, I don't remember that much about it. I do have some pictures buried in my things... somewhere... to help me remember the trip. I can tell you I hiked to the highest point I could reach on Mt Rainier that one could reach without a permit. I can also tell you Mt St Helens is absolutely unreal! Driving to the visitor center and suddenly entering the blast zone seeing all the trees laying over and nothing but mud for miles around... it was awe inspiring for sure! What a tremendous event.
List of Trips Taken & Planned
A chronological listing of the trips taken and a plan of trips to be (some day)!
Mt Rainier & Mt St Helens National Parks
1998
Yellowstone & Grand Teton National Parks
June 2002
Ozark National Scenic Riverways
June 2006
Grand Canyon National Park
June 2009
Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks
May 2014
Glacier National Park
June 2016
Rocky Mountain National Park
September 2016
Zion & Bryce Canyon National Parks
October 2017
Denali & Kenai Fjords National Parks
July 2018
Blue Ridge Parkway National Scenic Byway
October 2019
Cape Hattaras National Seashore
October 2019
Canyonlands National Park
Coming soon!
Great Smokey Mountains National Park
Coming soon!
Padre Island National Seashore
Coming soon!