Hello,
Looking for some recommendations for a family trip to the east. We're going tent camping in June from Tucson AZ to Cleveland OH, and plan on spending about 11 days for the one-way trip. OUr return will be in July from the Adirondacks, NY back to Tucson, taking about 12 days.
Below I listed some places along our route we are considering visiting. We are flexible (but with the limited time, huge detours are not really possible)
We have two easygoing kids, 8 mos and 4yrs, and we are into outdoor activites.
I'm looking for recommendations in the following areas along the route:
*Nice campgrounds (again, we are tenting, and do not need electricity or even water. Prefer natural settings. Near a stream is the best!)
*Waterfalls to see
*Nice short hikes (1-3 hours)
*Vegetarian or healthy restaurants, cafes, etc.
*Scenic areas/parks/rivers
*Any other interesing things to do with the kids. The oldest is interested in everything, the youngest doesn't know any better yet!
These are some of the current areas we are considering visiting/driving through
Outbound:
Tucson
Flagstaff
Four Corners
Mesa Verde NP
Black Canyon NP
Colorado Springs
Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana: On or along I-70 (we're not locked to the highway)
Ohio
Return:
Adirondacks
Ithaca
Central PA
Appalachian range (not sure exactly how yet)
Asheville NC
Smokies NP
Ozarks?
??? (Not sure what route to take or what to see)
Tucson
If you are into 1-3 hour hikes, waterfalls and streams, the Smoky Mountains National Park will do. DW and I camped in the park at Elmont CG. The CG has a nearby stream and lots of hiking and waterfalls in the area. Cherokee, NC is an interesting place for sightseeing as well as Cades Cove in the Park. If you are into tourist traps then Gatlinburg is the place to go.
I would also check out Shenandoah National Park and the Blue Ridge Parkway. It would be a good way to see the Appalachian Mountains.
Sounds like a great trip you have planned.
Jim & Junnie
2005 Sunline Solaris T-2553 Our Web Site
For campgrounds, go with state parks, national forests, and as a 3rd choice for tenters, COE CGs. NY State has some beautiful SPs, and talk about waterfalls!! Taughannock Falls SP near Ithaca, Watkins Glen SP, and probably others in the Finger Lakes would fit your bill.
Having a trailer, we stayed at the Wilmington-Lake Placid KOA in the Adirondacks last summer, and it was really nice. Walking around the CG, we found some beautiful, wooded and fairly private tent sites - you might look into these. Nice pool in this CG, hayrides for the kids in the evening, canoes & kayaks to rent.
Along the I-70 corridor (sort of), in western Indiana just off US 41, a little south of I-74, there is Turkey Run SP. I'd advise reservations for a nice site, even for a weekday, as it's very popular for folks to spend their vacations there. Close by are tube, canoe & kayak rentals (including bus ride to the start and pickup at the finish) for a fun ride down Sugar Creek, and some of the trails at T.R. can't be beat!! The IN DNR website will give a description of the campsites, so you can find out if it's shaded or not, etc. Most sites have elec hookup, which is convenient (you'd need a good long outdoor-rated extension cord), and the CG has showers.
Missouri has a good reputation for SPs, and the advantage is you can SEE a photo of each site on their DNR website! AR also has a good rep for SPs, and there is also Hot Springs NP near the center of the state (north of I-30/I-40).
Some of the Ohio SPs come highly recommended on this forum. We've stayed in 2 and they were quite nice, though not as heavily wooded & private as we would normally want tent sites to be.
Word of caution: BRING BUG REPELLENT!!!! Those woods harbor lots of mosquitos, etc. No scorpions and very few rattlers, but lots of skeeters. Check with your doctor to see what's recommended as insect repellent for the kiddies.
Back in my college days I worked for a van touring company that catered to foreign travelers and I did a couple of camping trips similar to the one you plan -- mine all took the south route though from east to west coasts. Be prepared for long long days of driving -- this country is something big! But you have some beautiful places on your itinerary! Best wishes!
I remember the 4 corners area as especially beautiful with great camping in the public (state and national) parks -- it won't be hard to find them, if I remember correctly - - we just pulled in and got a site most times. I remember loving the Durango area.
As for the East, I'm trying to think of cg near streams and can only come up with Gettysburg CG -- it's a private campground with a very friendly staff and fun stuff for kids. Tent camping is back by the creek, which you can fish from or wade in. G-burg is busy in the summertime . . . and HOT and humid, but it's not to be missed if you rarely get to the East. You can easily jump on 81 from G-burg and go down through the mountains of VA and NC, etc.
I second the recommendations for state/national park camping and for bug spray . . . And I'll say again how hot and humid it gets as you near and drop below the Mason Dixon Line into the southeast in July. Keep hydrated and take advantage of places to swim.
Have an awesome time!!
Beth
wifey of G and mama to Silver Bells (4) and Gracious (2)
2007 season: 1998 Starcraft Starlounger towed by 1998 Chevy Blazer
2008 season: 2005 Fleetwood Sequoia towed by 2008 Toyota Tacoma (hurry up and get here already!)
If you're looking for waterfalls, why not stop by the big one: Niagara Falls. I would stay on the Canadian side. Then you could say it was an international trip
DW and I in our Gulfstream Amerilite 21MB
Chevy Silverado 2500 HD - Duramax Diesel 6.6L - Allison Tranny
"We can categorically state that we have not released man-eating badgers into the area." - Major Mike Shearer - British Army - Basra, Iraq
Hershey Park is a nice amusement park in central PA. Do not go near Gettysburg on or near 4th of July. Even as a local with backroads knowledge it is a nightmare every year.
Since then I have moved to the foothills of the Smoky Mtn. National Park. Someone already mentioned the good places to visit there. Townsend is known as the quiet side of the Smokys because it is almost the polar opposite of Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg. Lots of waterfalls and hiking in the NP. Oak Ridge Children's museum is neat if you are into WW2 history.
A note on I40 through Knoxville though... 40 is closed in Knoxville for about a year for a major construction project. I640 is the alternate. Traffic wise it has gone smoothly but I mention it so you don't let it suprise you.
mistert20 wrote: Hello,
Looking for some recommendations for a family trip to the east. We're going tent camping in June from Tucson AZ to Cleveland OH, and plan on spending about 11 days for the one-way trip. OUr return will be in July from the Adirondacks, NY back to Tucson, taking about 12 days.
Below I listed some places along our route we are considering visiting. We are flexible (but with the limited time, huge detours are not really possible)
We have two easygoing kids, 8 mos and 4yrs, and we are into outdoor activites.
I'm looking for recommendations in the following areas along the route:
*Nice campgrounds (again, we are tenting, and do not need electricity or even water. Prefer natural settings. Near a stream is the best!)
*Waterfalls to see
*Nice short hikes (1-3 hours)
*Vegetarian or healthy restaurants, cafes, etc.
*Scenic areas/parks/rivers
*Any other interesing things to do with the kids. The oldest is interested in everything, the youngest doesn't know any better yet!
These are some of the current areas we are considering visiting/driving through
Outbound:
Tucson
Flagstaff
Four Corners
Mesa Verde NP
Black Canyon NP
Colorado Springs
Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana: On or along I-70 (we're not locked to the highway)
Ohio
Return:
Adirondacks
Ithaca
Central PA
Appalachian range (not sure exactly how yet)
Asheville NC
Smokies NP
Ozarks?
??? (Not sure what route to take or what to see)
Tucson
I live in New York, and every summer we fly down to Asheville, NC to visit my folks. My kids and I (aged 5 & 7), always go to Jellystone Park in Marion, NC for the day to enjoy their monstrous water slide (check it out on the web). It's addicting for the adults, too. The owners welcome day-trippers for a nominal fee, and they have tent sites and cabin rentals, too, plus a fishing pond, play area, and a nice snack house. Plus a very nice pool and a kiddie pool. This year we want to rent one of their cabins overnight.
Also, Jellystone Woodridge outside of Ellenville, New York is a favorite of ours. They have a fantastic spray pool for the kiddies that's heated, an Olympic-sized pool, plus an amazing play park and lots of Yogi Bear activities for the kids. We rent a cabin there every summer, and they have nice wooded tent sites. You won't be disappointed, and the children will love it.
Sounds like a great trip. If you are looking to camp in eastern Kansas, you have two nice lakes, with nice campgrounds, between Topeka and Kansas City. Perry Lake is north of I-70 (approx 6 miles) and Clinton Lake west side of Lawerance. Lake is about 3 miles south from I-70.
There are also several places west of Topeka along I-70. Milford Lake is west of Junction City, north of I-70 approx 5 miles. Wilson Lake is about 10 miles north of I-70 about 60 miles east of Hays in central Kansas.
Offline
AR also has a good rep for SPs, and there is also Hot Springs NP near the center of the state (north of I-30/I-40). 
