You may have watched National Parks—yet another epic Ken Burns film series on the Public Broadcasting System. Burns has proven to be the greatest chronicler of our nation’s history. His topics have included baseball, jazz music and the Civil War. His technique is to mix real time shots with archival photographs and film, along with words from the actual historic subjects mixed with those from today’s authorities.
Why, you may ask, is this a travel tip? I’ve been very fortunate to travel all through the United States on two wheels. In those travels, I have visited 28 of our National Parks. As a matter of fact, they were often the focus of my journeys. I can tell you right now that unless you do some serious planning ahead of time, you will miss a great deal of what is wonderful about these locations. And that would be a shame.
Foremost in your planning should be accommodations. It doesn’t matter if you plan to camp or “rough it” at a motel, make your reservations NOW! National Parks are our nation’s treasures and still draw incredible numbers of visitors. If you have some flexibility within your vacation time, consider visiting during their off-season. This can greatly increase your odds of reserving a room.
Get out your maps and your back issues of RT. The farther away a National Park is, the more likely you will be to plot some other neat stops along the way. Great lengths of twisting highways, relaxing state parks, unique shopping opportunities, and historic destinations can be lined up like a row of dominoes between Point A and Point B. One technique we’ve utilized is to plan a slower, scenic route going one way and then “cannonball” it traveling the opposite direction.
It’s never too early to start thinking about next year’s vacation. Just be sure and plan in lots of “down time,” enough time to decompress from your work and all the hectic demands of your everyday schedule. Just sitting and soaking up nature’s beauty is probably the best example of quality time on vacation. Your mind will be playing back those mental pictures of your trip for years to come.
