When cold winter weather has you trapped inside, you might start dreaming of a sunny beach vacation. In Florida, you can experience that magic year-round at Bahia Honda State Park. While most people only think about visiting the beach come summertime, it can be worthwhile to make the trip in cooler months. You can look forward to less crowded shores, gorgeous views, and early sunsets.
Tourists will find this park all the way down south, where pleasant temperatures stick around through winter. When you visit, take advantage of the great weather and scenic landscapes by getting active. Here are seven fun sightseeing spots and activities to consider when planning your trip.
Where can you see sand dunes, streams, and mountains all in one place? Did you guess Alaska? If not, it’s high time you discover the beauty of Kobuk Valley National Park.
Located in the remote Alaskan wilderness, this park is only accessible via aircraft, watercraft, and snowmobile. With no roads, campgrounds, or trails, Kobuk Valley is most suited for backcountry adventurers who know how to handle rugged conditions. As the park explains, “For visitors with the right skills and gear, it’s a trip of a lifetime.”
Tourists who aren’t ready to battle the elements can still enjoy Kobuk Valley, though. Local charter companies offer flightseeing tours over the park that give guests an aerial view of the region. Get a sneak peek at the sights you can see there in this stunning photo guide.
Less than an hour northeast of the bright lights in Las Vegas, one special destination invites curious travelers to explore a “geological wonderland.” At Valley of Fire State Park, petroglyphs and petrified trees from over 2,000 years ago decorate a landscape of sandstone and limestone rock formations.
This park is like few others in the world. While the park was established in 1935, the region’s history dates back much further. On a hike through Valley of Fire, you’ll see petroglyphs carved by Puebloans about 2,500 years ago. These historic carvings are in stark contrast to the glamorous hotels and casinos located roughly 46 miles away in Las Vegas. Get a taste of what this trip back in time is like with this photo guide to Valley of Fire State Park.
Missouri’s Ozark Mountains are a wonderland for outdoor explorers. Gorgeous parks invite hikers to wander along miles of trail or set up their tent at a nearby campsite. Lake resorts like Big Cedar Lodge welcome families looking for a fun weekend on Table Rock Lake. There are even curious caverns you can dive underground to explore.
While all of these attractions are worth trying, one destination stands out among all the other Ozark hotspots. That destination is Dogwood Canyon Nature Park. You’ll find this park on 10,000 beautiful acres in Lampe, Missouri. The park’s stunning landscapes provide guests with opportunities to go on wildlife tours, try horseback riding, and so much more. Get inspired to visit with this list of six facts about Dogwood Canyon Nature Park.
Since Wind Cave became a national park in 1903, millions of people have flocked to explore the area. This South Dakota landmark prides itself on protecting “two very different worlds – one deep within the earth, the other a sunlit world of many resources.” The park’s caves and lakes compel brave tourists to go spelunking, while grasslands and prairies above invite visitors on a lovely nature walk. No matter which part of the park you prefer, Wind Cave has something that will interest you.
Chart your expedition through Wind Cave National Park with this photo guide to its best sights. Get ready to discover some fantastic views.
Do creatures from the Black Lagoon and swamp things pique your curiosity? Have you ever wondered what lurks in the murky depths? If so, the Phinizy Swamp Nature Park in Augusta, Georgia, is for you. Here’s what you should know about the gorgeous and mysterious environments you can explore there.
Guests are invited to visit Phinizy Swamp Nature Park year-round, admission-free. And it’s worth the trip. After arriving at the park’s unassuming gravel parking lot, visitors can follow a short and serene tree-lined walking path down to the Floodplain Boardwalk. Here, atmospheric swamp landscapes will immediately draw you in. The boardwalk stretches out across the floodplain of Butler Creek, where egrets, beavers, and other critters hide in the trees and brush.
Since 1996, the Phinizy Center has worked to protect these wild landscapes and build healthy, sustainable watersheds. Before the nonprofit’s establishment, the area was an illegal dumping site, where trash and other pollutants compromised downstream water quality. It took teams of students, researchers, and other volunteers to clean up the land and rehabilitate it back to natural wonder status. Today, educators, caretakers, and other park team members use the thriving Phinizy Swamp Nature Park to educate the community and advocate for conservation.
While a stroll along the park’s beautiful Beaver Dam Trail can teach you a lot about the region, science-minded and outdoors-loving guests can deepen their understanding of the area through Phinizy’s Eco Explorers program. Just be prepared to wade through swamp water and face some bugs. The program takes visitors on a guided park tour, from the boardwalk down to Sunrise Pond.
At the pond, park volunteers and researchers like Rachael Gonzalez and Jacob Lott will guide explorers through the process of catching aquatic macroinvertebrates with a dip net. From there, you’ll take your catches up to a nearby covered pavilion and look at them under microscopes. As you try to identify which critters you’ve caught, your guides will provide insight into how these minuscule insects help researchers track water quality and environmental health.
Guests may very well come away from the program with a new love for Georgia’s wetlands. And if they do, there are some pretty cool ways to get involved at Phinizy. Volunteers, Phinizy members, and citizen scientists can all help make a difference.
Interested in learning more about the research projects going on at Phinizy? You can explore that, too! The park’s research page provides excellent resources and information on initiatives like the effort to monitor and restore the Shoals spider lily.
Koetsu Ichinei was the first person our group met on a trip to DaisetsuzanNational Park, and I cannot imagine a better park ambassador. The prominent photographer has spent decades hiking the Daisetsu Mountains with his heavy old Linhof Master Technica 4×5 camera. He used to camp for a month in winter, and two to three months in other seasons, capturing the year-round beauty of these mountains in Hokkaido, Japan’s northernmost island. Now that he’s 84, he only camps for a week. During our group’s visit to his photo gallery — where his mountain photos fill a former school — he was preparing to take his old camera out to shoot fall foliage.
Photographer Koetsu Ichinei is the lead photographer of Daisetsuzan Volcanic Group. / Photo by Teresa Bergen
Daisetsuzan is Japan’s largest national park (875 square miles) and boasts some of the country’s wildest scenery, but it seems undiscovered by foreign tourists. In my few days touring the park, I mostly encountered domestic travelers out for a hike.
Photo by Teresa Bergen
“Daisetsuzan” means great snowy mountains. Which is apt, considering there’s a looong winter season here and a short summer. If you don’t want to freeze, July through September are good times to visit. Fall foliage usually peaks in mid-September. It starts snowing again in October. During my few days in the park, I could appreciate why Ichinei spent his whole photography career capturing its many moods.
Wildlife in Daisetsuzan
Before setting out on the Daisetsu Kogen Onsen Numa-meguri Hiking Trail, you’re required to watch a bear preparedness video. My group sat in the Brown Bear Information Center, absorbing the mixed message. Everybody was curious about seeing a bear (why else would they hike the notoriously bear-infested trail?), yet the video preached avoidance. This heightened the drama. We looked at a map of the designated areas along the trail where visitors are allowed to eat. These sectioned-off spaces reduce the chances of attracting bears. Also, you can’t cook anything or even make coffee on the trail.
A scene from the instructional video shows defensive techniques. / Photo by Teresa Bergen
Besides brown bears (aka grizzlies), Daisetsuzan is home to Ezo red foxes, Yezo sika deer, Hokkaido squirrels, and Yezo stoats, which are weasel relatives. I had mixed feelings about bear sightings but would have loved to see Blakiston’s fish owl, the world’s largest living owl, which can have a six-foot wingspan. However, we saw only squirrels.
The hike was rooty and rocky, so you had to watch your step, but it wasn’t too steep. The leaves turned late this year, so in mid-September, we saw the first yellows and reds. We also saw sulfurous vapors pour out of fumaroles. These volcanic mountains are still very active.
Visitors can explore fumeroles at Daisetsuzan. / Photo by Teresa Bergen
Further along, we crossed swampy areas full of skunk cabbage, flowing streams, and ferns that reminded me of my Pacific Northwest home. We stopped to rest by picturesque ponds.
Onsen hotels
You can stay in several onsen hotels in Daisetsuzan National Park. These hot springs resorts feature bathing pools and the chance to swan around the property in a yukata, or bathing kimono.
We stayed at Hotel Taisetsu, a huge and luxurious lodging in a dramatic gorge. It had three different onsens to soak in, including the glorious rooftop bath with a mountain view. Hotel Taisetsu made us a lavish, multi-course dinner and was kind enough to accommodate my vegan ways. They also have a bakery café with espresso and good pour-over coffee, which is not always easy to find in Hokkaido.
Photo courtesy of Taisetsu Kamuimintara DMO
If you go
If you’re visiting from another country, you’ll probably fly into Tokyo and then take a domestic flight to Asahikawa, the nearest airport. Unless you speak Japanese, you might need some help getting around. Our English-speaking guides at AdventureLab Taisetsu Hokkaido were excellent.
Disclaimer: While this article was not sponsored, Outdoors Wire did visit Lake Shikaribetsu on a press trip in conjunction with the Adventure Travel World Summit. As always, Outdoors Wire operates independently, and this doesn’t influence our coverage.
At Yosemite National Park, it’s not hard to find beautiful landscapes. At almost every turn, you’re guaranteed to witness something marvelous. Waterfalls, meadows, mountains, and more make the park an outdoorsy traveler’s paradise. Even so, some spots shine a little brighter than all the others.
If you want a collection of stellar photos that capture the wonder of your trip to this magical destination, prioritize visiting scenic overlooks. For first-time visitors, this list of Yosemite National Park’s six best overlooks and viewpoints will serve as a helpful guide for finding gorgeous sights. And for more adventurous guests, these spots can be a jumping-off point for more extensive excursions.
Birdwatchers, get ready to add a new destination to your bucket list. In Sumter, South Carolina, the incredible Swan Lake Iris Gardens invites guests to explore 150 acres of vibrant flowers. The gardens are described as a “birdwatcher’s paradise,” with swans, geese, ducks, herons, and more making homes there. Speaking of swans, Swan Lake Iris Gardens is the only public park in the United States where people can see all eight swan species. Oh, and did we mention that admission and parking are both free?
Fat Bear Week brings a lot of attention to Alaska’s stunning Katmai National Park and Preserve. While the region’s bears are incredibly loveable, they’re not the only wonders found within Katmai. This unique park offers a world of adventure for curious, outdoorsy visitors.
In addition to being an excellent place for spotting wildlife, Katmai also provides one-of-a-kind opportunities for backcountry sightseeing. The park encompasses 4 million acres of remote Alaskan wilderness, from frosty mountaintops to glittering lakes. Guests can turn their journey into a real outdoor retreat by staying at a local lodge or campsite. Get inspired to plan a trip to Alaska with this list of seven fascinating things to do at Katmai National Park and Preserve.
