Road Trip MN to Annapolis
Some road trips require getting from point A to point B on the fastest route. And some road trips are for meandering and finding new places along the way to your destination. We choose the serendipity mode of road-tripping for our drive from our home in MN to Maryland. We were heading to the Annapolis area to work at the boat shows and had plenty of spare time to wander.
Hiking On A Road Trip
There are many ways to go about planning special stops for a road trip. Would we focus on history, foods, arts, museums, music, nature, or small towns? So many choices! We decided hiking trails in natural settings would direct our destinations as we made our way to Annapolis, Maryland. For each day’s leg of our road trip, I found a state or national park where we could do some hiking. Those new places took us on slight, sometimes more than slight, detours from a straight path to Annapolis.
Indiana Dunes National Park
Our first day’s hike was Diana of the Dunes in Indiana Dunes National Park. Hiking up many steps and then on sand dunes, oh my! It didn’t take long to work up a sweat as we climbed up a long staircase, then through the woods, and over a sand dune. Walking on the sand dunes is more tiring than walking on solid ground and it’s slower. It took longer to cover any amount of distance but our muscles felt it nonetheless.
The hike exited onto a beautiful beach on Lake Michigan with plenty of smooth skipping rocks to choose from. Tony always beats me on skipping rocks, but if Travis were along, he would win hands down!
Edit: Tony says otherwise, “Are you up for the challenge Travis?”
Shawnee State Park
Our next stop was Shawnee State Park in Ohio. Funny Story: the Ohio part was a mistake, but not a problem as we’re on a relaxed, serendipity road trip. When I originally found Shawnee State Park on google maps it was the one in PA and appeared to be fairly close to our route to MD. Later, when I went to book lodging near the park, I found Shawnee State Park had a lodge onsite. What I didn’t notice was it was the Shawnee in OH. After realizing my error, we decided either State Park was probably a fine place to explore and hike. Since the Ohio park would position us to visit Shenandoah the following day, we just rolled with my planning mishap and made the best of it!
Our hike in Shawnee State Park (in Ohio) was very different from the previous day’s climbing on sand dunes. In the woods, we saw evidence of beavers at work and many patches of orange mushrooms. On our way to and from the hiking trails, they were setting up for a big disc golf tournament in the park. It was interesting how they set up a course incorporated into the natural setting here.
Shenandoah National Park
Next on our agenda was to drive a portion of the Shenandoah National Park’s Skyline Drive. It did not disappoint! We stayed in a cabin at Big Meadows Lodge which was busy with a wedding that evening. What a unique backdrop for wedding photos! When we checked in, we asked for a hiking trail map and noticed the Appalachian trail was part of the nearby trail system. That made it an easy decision about which trail to hike. We would hike a portion of the Appalachian trail, take a side trail to Lewis Falls, and then turn around and return to the lodge.
We feel we’re fairly good hikers, but this was a rugged trail!
Along the way, it was interesting to notice other hikers. Some were solo hikers, some with a dog, and some hiking as part of a group. Some carried big packs and appeared to be on a long journey and others traveled light (like us) who were just out for a few hours.
Although a difficult hike and we returned exhausted, it was a highlight of our road trip. It was a great sense of accomplishment to take this challenging hike. And to make it back before sunset!
The next day, we continued north on Skyline drive and stopped at many of the overlooks to view the special vistas. This truly is a scenic drive.
We felt like we were driving through a postcard!
It was a perfect last driving day before we arrived at our rustic cabin for a month’s stay in Maryland.
From sea turtles to land lubbers. Boy what a crazy few years. But good to see you’re still smiling and taking pictures and moving around.
A lot has transpired over the past couple of years! Not always the adventures we had planned, but we’ve enjoyed many adventures nonetheless!
Sounds like great fun communing with Mother Nature, the pictures are beautiful – Glad you are enjoying the trip!
Uncle Jay
If we can’t be out on the water, we like to be hiking in the woods! It was fun to see some new places. Glad you enjoyed the photos!
What beautiful locations to stop at!
(And yes, I would absolutely win a rock-skipping contest)
Grandpa is up for the challenge, guess we should plan a road trip with you to a premier rock-skipping beach!