Meteorological summer is here even if calendar summer isn’t yet, and that means it’s time for road trips!
The following ideas are more choose-your-own-adventure rather than encouraging you to drive this or that scenic byway; please spend a few days or even a few weeks to soak up all the majesty on offer!
Alaska: Denali to Kenai Fjords
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Denali is renowned for its abundance of large wildlife that includes Arctic and subarctic species, and it’s home to Mt. Denali, North America’s highest peak. After enjoying Denali, head south to Anchorage and then head south to Kenai Fjords national park for coastal scenery and huge glaciers.
The Alaska Highway
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Now completely paved, this 1,387-mile route begins at Dawson Creek in British Columbia and runs through Whitehorse in the Yukon Territory to Delta Junction in Alaska. Most people visiting Alaska go by commercial airlines or cruise ships, but if you have the time and a wish for more adventure, take this route.
The Canadian Rockies
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The classic road trip in the majestic Canadian Rockies is Lake Louise to Jasper via the Icefields Parkway in Banff and Jasper National Parks. However, there are plenty of other places to visit, including the area around the town of Banff itself, Kootenay National Park, and Yoho National Park. From Jasper, you can also drive north to Mt. Robson, the highest peak in the Canadian Rockies.
The Cascade Volcanoes
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From Mt. Baker in Washington to Lassen Peak in California, the U.S. part of the Cascade Range has 13 volcanoes considered active or potentially active (there’s also one in British Columbia). Mt. Rainier is the highest, and others among the best-known are Mt. Hood in Oregon and Mt. Shasta in California. Don’t forget to include Crater Lake in your trip; Mt. Mazama collapsed into a caldera after erupting long ago, allowing the formation of the country’s deepest lake and one of its most beautiful.
Olympic Peninsula to Redwood National Park
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On Washington’s Olympic Peninsula, spend time enjoying the mountains, rainforests, and coastline of Olympic National Park. When you’re ready to move on, follow U.S. 101 into Oregon and then to Redwood National Park in California. You’ll get to see some of the most beautiful coastal scenery in the world as well as the world’s tallest trees.
California Highway 1
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South of Eureka, U.S. 101 veers away from the coast, but at Leggett, California 1 departs and returns to the coast, running all the way to Interstate 5 in Orange County. Along this route, which briefly leaves the coast in the San Francisco area, rejoining U.S. 101 for a bit crossing the Golden Gate Bridge. This tour includes the Big Sur region, a stretch between Monterey and Morro Bay that many consider the most spectacular coastal scenery in the country.
California: The Eastern Sierra Nevada to Yosemite
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The eastern face of the Sierra Nevada is an impressive sight, rising as high as 10,000 vertical feet above the valley with little in the way of intervening foothills. From Lone Pine, U.S. 395 parallels the crest, with beautiful views the entire way, and you can make stops and detours along the way. At Lee Vining CA 120 heads west to the Tioga Pass entrance of Yosemite National Park, where you can enjoy the high country before making the long descent to the incomparable Yosemite Valley.
Idaho: The Salmon and the Sawtooths
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At Lost Trail Pass on the Montana-Idaho border U.S. 93 becomes the Salmon River Scenic Byway, passing through the town of Salmon and paralleling its namesake river, finally ending near the headwaters at Stanley in the Sawtooth National Recreation Area. There, continue south to Ketchum, with the spectacular Sawtooth Range as your companion for much of the way. You might actually want to start this trip a bit to the north in Hamilton, Montana, so that you can see the best of the storied Bitterroots as well.
Yellowstone to Glacier
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Consider starting this one south of Yellowstone in Wyoming’s Grand Teton National Park. A drive of about 30 minutes connects the two parks, and in Yellowstone, plan for plenty of time to enjoy the geysers and other geothermal features, lakes, rivers, wildlife, and more. Exit the park via Gardiner, Montana, and then enjoy the drive through the scenic Paradise Valley. When you reach I-80 at Livingston, you have a choice. More people reach Glacier National Park from the west via Kalispell, but the approach from the east via U.S. 89, while a bit longer, is more scenic and less busy. Once you’re in Glacier, drive the incredible Going-to-Sun Road and visit other prime areas like Two Medicine and Many Glacier Valley. If you have time, pair this trip with a tour of the Canadian Rockies for an epic and unforgettable mountain journey.
Colorado to Arches: Rocky Mountain National Park and the Colorado River
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From Estes Park, enter RMNP via Trail Ridge Road, which in short order climbs into the mountainous heights and winds through alpine tundra. As it descends, you’ll reach the valley where the Colorado River has its headwaters. Here, the mighty waterway that cut the Grand Canyon is a modest mountain stream, but outside the park, it starts to grow quickly. South of Kremmling, pick up the partially unpaved Colorado Headwaters Scenic Byway and follow it and the river to I-70. Soon, you’ll drive through beautiful Glenwood Canyon. After Grand Junction, the interstate continues into Utah and the river goes in another direction, but you can pick it up again in Utah via the Colorado River Scenic Byway, which winds through gorgeous sandstone country and ends at U.S. 191 just north of Moab and just south of the entrance to Arches National Park.
Color Country: Arches to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon
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With any luck, you’ll have the time to pair this trip with the previous one. Visit all five of Utah’s national parks– Arches, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef, Bryce Canyon, and Zion– with plenty of additional amazing scenery along the way. From Zion, drive back out the eastern side and then south to Kanab, where you can stock up for going into Arizona and the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, only open in summer. There will be a lot of hot sun on this trip, but the scenery’s more than worth it, and you can get respites from the worst of it in a few rivers along the way and at the higher elevations of Bryce Canyon and the North Rim.
Maine: Baxter to Acadia
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Since winter makes travel difficult or impossible in much of the West, that region gets more attention for epic summer road trips, but the East has some great ones as well. In Maine, start at Baxter State Park, and if you’re up to it, hike one of the routes up Baxter Peak, Maine’s highest and the northern terminus of the famous Appalachian Trail. Alpine tundra graces the upper reaches, and expect chilly weather up there, but the views are amazing. Leaving Baxter, drive to Acadia National Park on the Atlantic coast for rugged coastline, sandy beaches, mountaintops with sweeping ocean view, and more.
Shenandoah to the Smokies
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From north to south, Skyline Drive in Virginia’s Shenandoah National Park follows the crest of the Blue Ridge for 105 miles. Right across the road from its end is the Blue Ridge Parkway, which continues the mountainous journey for 470 miles into North Carolina and Great Smoky Mountains National Park. There is no more epic road trip in the East than this one, and you get over 600 miles of great scenery and recreational opportunities without encountering a single traffic light.
North Carolina: From the Mountains to the Sea
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Here’s another one that pairs nicely with one of the others here, namely the previous one. Western North Carolina has rolling mountains, granite domes, rivers, and waterfalls and lots of public land to enjoy them. When it’s time to go, pick up U.S. 64 and follow it all the way to the coast at the Outer Banks near Nags Head. That can be your end destination, but more great driving awaits if you drive SR 12 south through Cape Hatteras National Seashore.
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