Sierra Nevada and other North America Things to Do Tips

Some of America's most beautiful scenery is in the Sierra Nevada, in the USA's California. The 400-mile long range includes large stretches of wilderness, giant sequoias, deep valleys, and small glaciers. The highest peak in the contiguous US, Mt. Whitney, is in the southern Sierra. The world's five largest living things, all giant sequoias, are preserved in the Sierra's Sequoia - Kings Canyon National Park. One of the world's most famous valleys, Yosemite Valley, is in Yosemite National Park; further north there is skiing at Lake Tahoe. In the eastern Sierra are many lakes and glaciers. Wilderness areas of the Sierra Nevada include Ansel Adams, John Muir, Desolation, Mokelumne, Golden Trout, Monarch, Hoover, Carson-Iceberg, and Emigrant.
Things not to miss:

Yosemite Valley- The "Incomparable Valley," a glacier-carved unbelievably beautiful canyon in Yosemite National Park. Famous landmarks of Yosemite are the giant granite rocks Half Dome and El Capitan, as well as some of the continents highest waterfalls, including Yosemite, Vernal, Nevada, and Bridalveil.

Mineral King- a wonderfully enchanting subalpine valley in Southern Sequoia National Park with easy access to alpine lakes.

Mono Lake- "The Dead Sea of California," a fascinating dying lake in the middle of the desert dotted with towers of tufa and brine shrimp.

Lake Tahoe- A deep, giant blue lake in the Northern Sierra, famous for winter skiing and summer hiking.

Giant Forest- Home to the largest trees on the earth, the giant sequoias, in Sequoia National Park. Centerpiece is the massive General Sherman Tree, the world's largest living thing.

Tioga Road- a beautiful and winding road that leads from Yosemite Valley across Tioga Pass to Lee Vining, allowing easy access to the high country.

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Directions: Western USA

The "Pacific Northwest" Region of North America generally includes Oregon and Washington States in the US and southern British Columbia in Canada. The predominant feature of this area is the Cascade Range, stretching from Mt. Garibaldi in British Columbia to Lassen Peak in Calfornia. The Pacific Northwest has some of the continent's wildest scenery. In the US, Crater LAke, Redwood, Lassen Volcanic, Olympic, Mt. Rainier, and North Cascades National Parks are in the Pacific Northwest, while in Canada, Pacific Rim National Park is in this area. One of the more well known features of the area are temperate rain forests, which are very verdant and damp, dotting the west coast and generally in the Coast Ranges (the only inland rain forest in the Pac Northwest is Carbon River Rain Forest in Mt. Rainier National Park.)

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Directions: Northwestern USA, Southwestern CA

The Canadian Rockies have some of the best scenery in North America. The four Canadian Rockies parks, Yoho, Kootenay, Banff, and Jasper, have been designated World Heritage Sites for their outstanding scenery. The parks include waterfalls, lakes, glaciers, and canyons. A few not-to-miss attractions:

Takakkaw Falls, in Yoho National Park, which drops 254-meters down a sheer cliff. One of the most impressive waterfalls in the Rockies.

Icefields Parkway (Hwy 93), in Banff and Jasper National Parks. This road is considered by many people to be the most beautiful road in the world, stretching from Lake Louise in Banff National Park to Jasper Townsite. On it's way, it passes many waterfalls (Athabasca Falls, Sunwapta Falls, etc), icefields, and lakes (Herbert Lake, Bow Lake, Peyto Lake, etc). Expect to spend at least 4 hours driving this parkway (that's without stopping).

Lake Louise and Moraine Lake, in Banff National Park, are two of the world's most beautiful lakes. While Lake Louise gets all the press, I prefered Moraine Lake, which didn't have a giant hotel right beside it. Good hikes in the area lead to Consolation Lakes, Larch Valley, and Lake Agnes.

Maligne and Medicine Lakes, in Jasper National Park, are two fairly large lakes (Malinge Lake is the largest in the Canadian Rockies) and are very scenic and easily accessible from the Jasper Townsite. I actually likes Medicine Lake better than Malinge Lake, and though the Spirit Island Cruise at Malinge Lake is very popular, it didn't live up to all the hype.

Athabasca Glacier, in Jasper National Park, is one of the world's most famous and photographed glaciers. It's very easily accessible, since you can take Snocoach Tours straight onto the ice.

In Jasper Townsite, you can see many lakes or take the Jasper Tramway up Mt. Whistler, where there are great views. In Banff Townsite, you can soak in the Upper Hot Springs or ride a gondola up Sulphur Mountain.

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Directions: In western Canada, shared by British Columbia and Alberta

New England is one of the most charming places in the United States of America. However, it is sometimes expensive and driving distances from attractions are often far. New England's major city is Boston, though Hartford, New Haven, Portland, and Providence also play big roles in the area. I'll try to sum up some of the better places I've visited in New England:

Boston, in Massachusetts, is the largest city in New England, with a pop of a little over 500,000. The city has a great science museum, as well as the historic town s of Lexington and Concord on it's outskirts, where the American Revolutionary War began. In the city itself, the Prudential Tower is one of the city's highest buildings, though riding to the skydeck on top is not worth the money. Public Gardens and the Boston Commons are nice, free areas you can wander around; Boston also has a nice Chinatown.

Acadia National Park, in Maine, is the only New England national park. It is one of America's smallest national parks, covering only 35,000 acres, but it has a lot of scenic diversity. The main part of the park is on Mt. Desert Island, though there are also sections on the Schoodic Peninsula and on Isle au Haut. On our visit, we saw boot he Mt. Desert Island and Schoodic Peninsula areas. On the Mt. Desert Island, highlights include driving the Park Loop Road (and stopping at Thunder Hole, Jordan Pond, Eagle Lake, etc), driving up Cadillac Mt, the highest point in America directly on the Atlantic seaboard, and hiking in the western part of the park. Some of the best hikes in the park include the Bubbles Trail, Beech Mt, and Wonderland. The Bass Harbor lighthouse in the southwest is also a major attraction. While Somes Sound has the claim of being the only fjord in the 48 states, it really isn't that impressive, though.

The Berkshires, in Massachusetts, where you'll find Tanglewood, a music center, as well as many state parks. I don't actually like the Berksires that much, I prefer Acadia

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Directions: northeastern USA

The Appalachian Mts are one of the world's oldest mountain ranges, having formed over 225 million years ago. The peaks of this range aren't particularly high, but the scenery is serene and still beautiful. The range starts in northern Alabama in the US and ends in New Brunswick/Quebec in Canada. The highest peak of the range, Mt. Mitchell, is in North Carolina and is about 6,600 feet high. In New Hampshire, in the White Mountains, Mt. Washington is the highest peak of the northern Appalachians. The Appalachian Trail, in the US, stretches over 1,600 miles along this mountain range from Katahdin in Maine to Mt. Springer in Georgia. Some of the ranges included in the Appalachians are the Blue Ridge, Alleghenies, Great Smokies, Green Mts, and White Mts. I've done most of my Appalachian travelling in Virginia. Some of the places I've visited that are not to be missed:

Shenandoah National Park, in Virginia, a narrow 195,000 acre park in the Blue Ridge Mts. The park is traversed by the 100-mile long Skyline Drive, a very scenic ridgetop road with vistas at every bend. There is good hiking in the park.

Vesuvius, in Virginia, is a gateway to some of the best hiking in the Blue Ridge. From the town, you can get easy access to both the Saint Marys and Adams Peak Wildernesses.

Wintergreen, in Virginia, is one of the best ski resorts in the Mid-Atlantic. The scenery is beautiful, and the resort accessible.

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Directions: Eastern USA and southeastern Canada

The West Coast of North America stretches thousands of miles form Mexico to Alaska; however, I've only visited two spots on it, one in Washington State and one in California. For most of it's length, the West Coast is backed by the Coast Range, which is sometimes very rugged and sometimes not, with elevations ranging from just a few hundred feet high in some areas to 18,000 foot Mt. St. Elias in Alaska. Here are the two regions of the west coast I've visited, summed up:

Olympic Coast: Beautiful wilderness coastline of seastacks, holes, tidepools and cliffs all in Olympic National Park, stretching for over 50 miles. Towns like La Push and Neah Bay dot the coastline. Great hiking and beaches: I recommend hiking to Cape Alava, Cape Flattery, Ruby Beach, and Second Beach at La Push.

Big Sur: Much more accessible and even more beautiful than the Olympic coast. CA Hwy 1 winds downs the Big Sur Coast, often following cliff edges. Mountains over 5,000 feet high drop straight to the Pacific Ocean here. You can also see hundreds of feet high cliffs and perilously high bridges. Great hiking, in the Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park. Nearby is Ventana Wilderness.

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Directions: Western North America

New York City is the largest city in North America and one of the major cities of the world. It is divided into five boroughs: Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, and Staten Island. The city has a total population of over 7 million and has one of the world's most impressive skylines.
NYC has no shortage of places to see and do:

Empire State Building- constructed in 1933, it was the tallest building in the world at the time. Today the 102-story skyscraper remains New York's tallest building and a very well known landmark.

Rockefeller Center- the city within a city, the vision of John D. Rockefeller. Includes the world-famous Ice-skating rink, Radio City Music Hall, and the Top of the Rock.

Chinatown- one of the largest Chinatowns in North America. Quite a large Chinese community, endless hours of fun.

World Trade Center site- where the twin towers of the World Trade Center once stood. They were once the tallest buildings in New York, but were destroyed during the terror attacks of September 11, 2001. Construction has began on the new Freedom Tower.

Statue of Liberty- a World Heritage Site. Lady Liberty stands in New York Harbor and beckoned immigrants during the early 20th century. Now she's not so friendly.

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Directions: Northeastern USA, in New York State

The Adirondacks are an eastern American mountain range that are geologically independent of the Appalachian Mountains. The rock that forms these mountains is actually part of the Canadian Shield; while the Appalachians are over 200 million years old and eroding, the Adirondacks are a young 20 million and still growing.

The Adirondacks are filled with lakes. Most famous are perhaps Lake Placid and Lake George; less famous but still beautiful are the Fulton Chain of Lakes and Blue Mountain Lake. There are also numerous other lakes: Indian Lake, Long Lake, Saranac Lakes, Elk Lake, Paradox Lake, and Ausable Lake are only a few. This mountain range is also the headwaters of the Hudson River which arises in the High Peaks region, home to the highest of the region's mountains, including 46 peaks over 4,000 feet.

Most of the Adirondacks are enclosed in 6-million acre Adirondack Park, the largest in the United States of America outside of Alaska. Hiking, biking, skiing, kayaking, and fishing are only a few of the many outdoor activity options available in the region. Although the mountains may not be quite as spectacular as those in western North America, this corner of the continent is well worth a visit.

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Directions: In upstate New York; about five hours from New York City or Boston, two hours from Montreal