Tag: Roadtrip

What IS the National Park to Park Highway?

National Park-to-Park Highway

 

Last week we announced our biggest adventure yet. A seven week, 5,600 mile auto tour of the National Park to Park Highway. You may be wondering the same thing everyone I’ve talked to does:

What exactly IS the National Park to Park Highway?

National Park-to-Park Highway
Image from Paving the Way: The National Park-to-Park Highway

History

In 1920 there wasn’t good road access to the National Parks of the West. The primary transportation in and out of National Parks was the railroad or roads designed for use by horse and wagon, not the increasingly popular automobile.

A group of intrepid travelers wanted to change that. With the help of AG Westgard, route finder for AAA, and Stephen Mather, the first director of the National Park Service, the National Park to Park Highway Tour was born.

The Playground Trail

National Parks were known as The Nation’s Playgrounds in those early days, and this book by Lee and Jane Whiteley is the best resource I’ve found about it. It’s a wealth of information with authentic maps and photographs, plus directions on driving the tour today.
 
One thing I learned from The Playground Trail: The National Park-to-Park Highway was that roads in the 1920s were named and maintained by private groups, usually auto clubs. Nowadays we take for granted that some government agency maintains our roads, but at that time private groups provided signs, maps and maintenance of their adopted route.

 

 

Although many auto trails existed, nothing connected all of the National Parks of the west. The National Park to Park Highway association banded together to fix this.

Paving the Way National Park-to-Park Highway documentary
View on Amazon.com

Paving The Way
The PBS Documentary Paving the Way: The National Park to Park Highway directed by Brandon Wade is another invaluable resource. It chronicles the efforts of the dedicatory tour that left Denver on August 27, 1920.

Twenty vehicles joined the 5,600 mile caravan on The Longest Auto Highway in the World. Along the way they advocated for paved, well-maintained roads to connect the National Parks.
 
Their 76 day schedule is truly amazing considering how slow and difficult car travel was compared to nowadays.

 

If you have any interest in early National Parks or good historical story telling I highly recommend watching Paving the Way: The National Park-to-Park Highway.

 

See America First

You can learn all you want from books and movies, but at some point you have to be in a place to truly experience it. That’s why I’m taking my mountain family on a tour of the twelve Parks on National Park to Park Highway, plus six more National Parks and Monuments along the way.

Since 2016 is the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service it’s the perfect time to celebrate these outdoor spaces. This summer we hope you can #FindYourPark along with us as we take the advice of the 1920s National Park advertisements and See America First. We’re taking off in late June 2016 and would love for you to come along.

To see all of our National Park-to-Park Highway posts click here.

Mountains to Ocean

OCTOBER 2018 UPDATE: See the awesome sights of the National Park-to-Park Highway and our family’s journey in this FREE photo ebook. Just put in your email in the box right here and we’ll send it right to your inbox:

We are currently on a year-long, full-time RV road trip around North America and would love for you to join us via email.

Psst…This post includes affiliate links. I receive a small commission if you purchase something by clicking through these links.

Out for a Drive

It may be an old time past time to go out for a drive but it’s one of our family’s favorite lazy Sunday activities. This drive was a spontaneous turn off the Cascade Springs scenic byway onto Mill Canyon road. It’s a dirt biker’s dream with trails that crisscross the Wasatch range. A 4 wheel drive vehicle is a must there.

Mountain Dad and I packed a picnic which we all enjoyed while overlooking Utah valley on one side and Hebert valley on the other.

Cascade Springs

Yesterday our adventure was a hike around the natural springs nearby. Cascade Springs is located in the Uinta National Forest off the Alpine Loop road. The Alpine Loop is a beautiful drive on its own, connecting Provo and American Fork canyons and sporting grand vistas of the Wasatch mountain range. Off the loop road is a Scenic Byway that takes would be adventurers to Cascade Springs, another amazing drive with views that my young children didn’t appreciate. The springs has a series of interconnected paths and boardwalks that meander past natural springs. The path is paved but there are stairs in parts so strollers are not recommended.

On this adventure my sister brought her four boys along too. With our children ranging from age 10 to 9 months we raced, walked, jumped and climbed our way through the maple, box elder and oaks. Thanks to the signs along the trail we learned about yellow warblers, forest fire, and stinging nettle (yes it really stings). The hike isn’t too strenuous, there are water fountains along the way and it’s beautiful. All in all it was a great adventure.