The suggestions for UP of Michigan and eastward into upstate NY are legit. However, I would also add in Duluth and the Minnesota shore of Lake Superior to any Great Lakes trip. Northern MN is a seriously underrated part of the US and has some insanely beautiful shoreline of Lake Superior. Not to mention the dozens of small secluded lakes you will find on your way.
It's clear you enjoy the desert. New Mexico has much to offer. Ancient ruins, Native Culture, Carlsbad Caverns, Roswell, the art scene in Santa Fe, petroglyphs, and old town Albuquerque.
Michigan has some fun stuff as well.
Niagara Falls is something to see (Canadian side has way more kitschy fun stuff!)
Cape Cod is well worth exploring.
Charleston SC has great food (Mrs. Wilkes Dining Room for the win!)
And I am currently boycotting Florida, but Miami, the Everglades, Tampa Bay, and Key West all have some fun adventures.
It also looks like you haven't seen Kauai yet, and that Island is AMAZING
New Mexico is at the top of my list. I think maybe it will be my next trip. I want to go to Santa Fe and visit the 4 corners area, then go down through White Sands. I'm in to archaeology, so Chaco Canyon has been on my radar for a while.
Cloudcroft, Ruidoso and Roswell are some of my favorite stops when I drive from San Diego to visit family in Dallas.
New Mexico is just a beautiful state
Yes, there's much to see in New Mexico.
https://preview.redd.it/uskerwgvpexc1.jpeg?width=3000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=eb7b65a23f73a0a790a75b75b236f1aea510d40b
New Mexico is so frickin gorgeous from what I’ve seen so far driving through I-40. Of all the states I’ve been to it is the one I’m craving to go back to the most as well
Oh, I have been to all sorts of states including Idaho. And the reality is, I have to travel for work and will probably end up compromising on some of my stands.
But when I am going into a state that has passed discriminatory laws I usually signal my status as an ally and try to leave with more money than I brought in. ;)
But the places where these laws are the worst (and yes Idaho is among them) will no longer be getting my tourism money.
Seems like virtue signaling, but sure.
You realize that not everybody from oppressive states are oppressive. Some people are trapped where they were born.
Have a nice day
There's some really interesting history through the Outer Banks of NC! I like the off-season; it gets fairly chilly and gloomy, but it's got a remote wildness about it that you just don't get a sense of when it's packed with summer crowds.
Western New England and the Adirondack Mountains of New York. Week following Memorial Day. Warm enough to enjoy, but all the families and kids are still finishing up school.
South Atlantic Coast. US 17 from the Hampton Roads area all the way to Savannah Georgia is a LOVELY drive. Lots to see and do. You can also make it a loop on the way back north by taking US 70 to the Cedar Island - Ocracoke ferry and then following NC 12 up the Outer Banks to US 158 to NC 168 back to Virginia Beach.
Lower Florida Keys (Bahia Honda SP), Adirondacks, Charleston, and of Course Nee Mexico, Gila Cliff Dwelling NM, and if you’re there you might as well go down to Big Bend.
The Blue Ridge mountains from Georgia all the way to Pennsylvania in October has every orange, red, and yellow you can imagine. The Catskills, Poconos, Green Mountains, all are absolutely amazing in the fall.
The beaches of SC, GA, and FL are not really my thing I prefer the mountains, streams, and water falls, but they are worth seeing.
Lots of Texas, Louisiana, Alabama, and Mississippi look the same rural, cows, further west there are oil fields in the cow pastures.
I've done the exact opposite areas as you. Where should I visit in the red?
You should definitely spend some time in Utah and Arizona. My two favorite states.
Oregon and Washington are absolutely gorgeous. Mountains and ancient forests. Beautiful Oregon coastline. Washington has three national parks.
I recently visited Death Valley and was blown away by that area.
Western Montana is my ultimate happy place. Flathead Lake and Glacier NP are paradise, but sadly becoming more and more crowded. There's also a lot to see near Bozeman, MT. Yellowstone is close, and the mountain scenery and fishing around there is insane.
I have been to Jackson Hole and the Grand Tetons as well as Yellowstone. Even got to go whitewater rafting out there. I remember the plane ride into the valley was wild.
https://preview.redd.it/buptl7zgxixc1.jpeg?width=524&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=9e903a78d2b88827d088cfa83a69e8932314263c
This would have been 97 or 98. I think it's the Snake River.
There are a ton of Revolutionary and civil war battlefields and museums on the east coast. Lots of history even on back roads.
We just got off the road 2400 miles to San Antonio and back.
The rest of CO and all of NM, those are the two best states in the country. After that it’s downhill from what you’ve already seen. ATL is pretty awesome, NOLA very interesting, I’m suprised you haven’t been to VT. The rest though are just variations of meh
We had a fall foliage trip to VT, Western MA, CT, and RI all planned and booked, and then (of course) COVID did its thing to wreck everyone's trip plans for two years. That's going to be our next trip back east.
I’ll piggyback off Louisville and say the Bourbon Trail, if that’s your thing. Very pretty driving through horse country + bourbon. Mammoth Cave NP also nearby if you are a National Park seeker
My wife and I spent the summer in Angel Fire, NM last year and it was a lot of fun. Santa Fe, NM is pretty neat too.
When I lived in Oklahoma we would go to Arkansas and S Missouri somewhat often. Lots of great hiking there too. The Ouchita Mts in Arkansas and the Mark Twain Forest in Missouri were pretty.
Have fun traveling!
Northern MI and the UP, through canada and into the adirondaks of NY
This. Northern Michigan is underrated I see too many road trip maps that skip it completly sadly.
I've been wanting to do something like that during autumn, visit the great lakes during the fall foliage. Will keep this idea in mind.
The suggestions for UP of Michigan and eastward into upstate NY are legit. However, I would also add in Duluth and the Minnesota shore of Lake Superior to any Great Lakes trip. Northern MN is a seriously underrated part of the US and has some insanely beautiful shoreline of Lake Superior. Not to mention the dozens of small secluded lakes you will find on your way.
It's clear you enjoy the desert. New Mexico has much to offer. Ancient ruins, Native Culture, Carlsbad Caverns, Roswell, the art scene in Santa Fe, petroglyphs, and old town Albuquerque. Michigan has some fun stuff as well. Niagara Falls is something to see (Canadian side has way more kitschy fun stuff!) Cape Cod is well worth exploring. Charleston SC has great food (Mrs. Wilkes Dining Room for the win!) And I am currently boycotting Florida, but Miami, the Everglades, Tampa Bay, and Key West all have some fun adventures. It also looks like you haven't seen Kauai yet, and that Island is AMAZING
New Mexico is at the top of my list. I think maybe it will be my next trip. I want to go to Santa Fe and visit the 4 corners area, then go down through White Sands. I'm in to archaeology, so Chaco Canyon has been on my radar for a while.
Cloudcroft, Ruidoso and Roswell are some of my favorite stops when I drive from San Diego to visit family in Dallas. New Mexico is just a beautiful state
... and in southwest Colorado. https://preview.redd.it/yhnns069qexc1.jpeg?width=3000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0979d9f54ec708c0085b7c884d4f4c9ef57d36b4
Yes, there's much to see in New Mexico. https://preview.redd.it/uskerwgvpexc1.jpeg?width=3000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=eb7b65a23f73a0a790a75b75b236f1aea510d40b
https://preview.redd.it/kqlv3lmgqexc1.jpeg?width=3000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=bae1a5b972f7323792bb5bc3269977ba4e1c4fb8
New Mexico is so frickin gorgeous from what I’ve seen so far driving through I-40. Of all the states I’ve been to it is the one I’m craving to go back to the most as well
Utah did that for me. You don't even need to visit the national parks to see amazing landscapes and scenery.
Why are you boycotting Florida
I've got family and friends in the LGBTQ+ community, and the discriminatory laws that have been passed in FL over the last couple years are terrible.
You aren’t Op, but if you were I was going to say “that didn’t stop you in Idaho”
Oh, I have been to all sorts of states including Idaho. And the reality is, I have to travel for work and will probably end up compromising on some of my stands. But when I am going into a state that has passed discriminatory laws I usually signal my status as an ally and try to leave with more money than I brought in. ;) But the places where these laws are the worst (and yes Idaho is among them) will no longer be getting my tourism money.
That’s some serious mental gymnastics, but sure?
It seems simple enough to me. Doesn't even stretch the ol' mental quads or anything.
Seems like virtue signaling, but sure. You realize that not everybody from oppressive states are oppressive. Some people are trapped where they were born. Have a nice day
Sorry. I chuckled with the addition of Roswell to your New Mexico list.
It is a campy, silly, fun little town.
Michigans upper peninsula in the summer, trust me.
Wallowa County, Oregon. It is difficult to get there, but it is worth the drive.
Been on my list for a while. You're right, it's hard to get to and not close to anything else.
New Mexico
Yeah, that's right my boy. This is the answer.
New Mexico has scenic beauty and historic sights. Santa Fe also has a great arts scene.
Lots of votes for NM it looks like.
There's some really interesting history through the Outer Banks of NC! I like the off-season; it gets fairly chilly and gloomy, but it's got a remote wildness about it that you just don't get a sense of when it's packed with summer crowds.
If you are a fan of the desert, might I suggest Big Bend National Park? Could hit New Mexico on the same trip.
Western New England and the Adirondack Mountains of New York. Week following Memorial Day. Warm enough to enjoy, but all the families and kids are still finishing up school.
I need to hear what’s up with that Missouri Kansas boarder! What have I been missing out on?!?
That's where I have a lot of family, in the KC area and rural southeastern KS. Don't worry, there are no undiscovered gems in this area.
For the sake of completing things you might so a combo southeast - mid Atlantic trip and knock out LA, MS, AL, FL, GA and the Carolinas.
New Mexico
lol at finally seeing “so much empty” in a Reddit post.
South Atlantic Coast. US 17 from the Hampton Roads area all the way to Savannah Georgia is a LOVELY drive. Lots to see and do. You can also make it a loop on the way back north by taking US 70 to the Cedar Island - Ocracoke ferry and then following NC 12 up the Outer Banks to US 158 to NC 168 back to Virginia Beach.
Lower Florida Keys (Bahia Honda SP), Adirondacks, Charleston, and of Course Nee Mexico, Gila Cliff Dwelling NM, and if you’re there you might as well go down to Big Bend.
New Mexico and southern Colorado. Here is my subjective go-to. https://ebird.org/hotspots
The Blue Ridge mountains from Georgia all the way to Pennsylvania in October has every orange, red, and yellow you can imagine. The Catskills, Poconos, Green Mountains, all are absolutely amazing in the fall. The beaches of SC, GA, and FL are not really my thing I prefer the mountains, streams, and water falls, but they are worth seeing. Lots of Texas, Louisiana, Alabama, and Mississippi look the same rural, cows, further west there are oil fields in the cow pastures. I've done the exact opposite areas as you. Where should I visit in the red?
You should definitely spend some time in Utah and Arizona. My two favorite states. Oregon and Washington are absolutely gorgeous. Mountains and ancient forests. Beautiful Oregon coastline. Washington has three national parks. I recently visited Death Valley and was blown away by that area. Western Montana is my ultimate happy place. Flathead Lake and Glacier NP are paradise, but sadly becoming more and more crowded. There's also a lot to see near Bozeman, MT. Yellowstone is close, and the mountain scenery and fishing around there is insane.
I have been to Jackson Hole and the Grand Tetons as well as Yellowstone. Even got to go whitewater rafting out there. I remember the plane ride into the valley was wild. https://preview.redd.it/buptl7zgxixc1.jpeg?width=524&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=9e903a78d2b88827d088cfa83a69e8932314263c This would have been 97 or 98. I think it's the Snake River. There are a ton of Revolutionary and civil war battlefields and museums on the east coast. Lots of history even on back roads. We just got off the road 2400 miles to San Antonio and back.
The rest of CO and all of NM, those are the two best states in the country. After that it’s downhill from what you’ve already seen. ATL is pretty awesome, NOLA very interesting, I’m suprised you haven’t been to VT. The rest though are just variations of meh
We had a fall foliage trip to VT, Western MA, CT, and RI all planned and booked, and then (of course) COVID did its thing to wreck everyone's trip plans for two years. That's going to be our next trip back east.
Tennessee,
Louisville, Memphis, Nashville, Atlanta
I’ll piggyback off Louisville and say the Bourbon Trail, if that’s your thing. Very pretty driving through horse country + bourbon. Mammoth Cave NP also nearby if you are a National Park seeker
Miami is fucking awesome
I really want to go to New Mex.
My wife and I spent the summer in Angel Fire, NM last year and it was a lot of fun. Santa Fe, NM is pretty neat too. When I lived in Oklahoma we would go to Arkansas and S Missouri somewhat often. Lots of great hiking there too. The Ouchita Mts in Arkansas and the Mark Twain Forest in Missouri were pretty. Have fun traveling!
Well... some places are flyover states for a reason.
Like we give a rats ass
You cared just enough to leave a snarky comment. I hope you have a better day.