| NATIONAL PARKS QUICKLINKS |
Trail Mix: Great November Hikes in the Central U.S.
Your region's go-now guide: Perfect days in Indianapolis, Minneapolis, and Tulsa.
Trail Mix: Central
Your region's go-now guide
Local Hikes
Jump-start your hiking season on these spring-ready trips from around the country.
Local Hikes: Midwest
Hike these long trails in Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Kansas, and Oklahoma, and head south to Texas to see Horned Lizards.
Local Hikes: Midwest
Discover east Texas's longleaf pine forest; see the Boundary Waters on foot.
Readers' Choice: Southeast
Your favorite parks, weekend getaways, peak ascents, campsites, and more in the southeast.
Trip Finder: Great Plains
Your favorite Great Plains hikes—from dayhikes to weekenders to multiday trips.
Readers' Choice: Great Plains
Your favorite parks, weekend getaways, peak ascents, campsites, and more in the Great Plains states.
Local Hikes: New Hikes Near You
Our army of reader-reader scouts mapped 59 local hikes from South Carolina to Northern California. See their favorites, then learn how to download tracklogs and waypoints.
Local Hikes: Midwest
See moose, bag a high-desert peak, and sample a quiet long trail. (Click linked trips for GPS waypoints, photos, and more.)
Midwest Readers' Choice Hikes
Mississippi river vistas, ocean-size grasslands, and guaranteed solitude.
Readers' Choice Midwest Hikes: Nachusa Grasslands, IL
Explore a vast, trail-free prairie.
Readers' Choice Midwest Hikes: Aurora Borealis Isle Royale NP, MI
See the country's best light show.
Readers' Choice Midwest Hikes: Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge, OK
Bushwhack into what very well might be the quietest spot in America.
Readers' Choice Midwest Hikes: Effigy Mounds National Monument, IA
Climb to views of the mighty Mississippi River.
Readers' Choice Midwest Hikes: Ice Age Trail, WI
Thru-hike one of the country's least-known National Scenic Trails.
Midwest Reader Map Team
Readers' Choice Midwest Hikes: Garden of the Gods to Lusk Creek Canyon, Shawnee NF, IL
Hike the River-to-River Trail over rugged ridges, through narrow canyons, and into small caves.
Weekend Planner: Quick Escapes
Get big views and rack up long miles with these close-to-home adventures.
High Points: Black Mesa, Oklahoma
Welcome to this delightfully weird world of extremes.
Best Backpacking In Oklahoma
Oklahoma/Arkansas's Ouachita Trail
The little-known Ouachita Trail ranked third among the long trails for solitude.
Robbers Cave: A Bandit's Oasis In Oklahoma
Follow Jesse James's footprints to a land of shady valleys and cool, clear lakes.
Chickasaw National Recreation Area, Oklahoma
Western prairie meets eastern forest in the land of healing waters.
Oklahoma's Charons Gardens Wilderness
The bare rocks of Oklahoma's Charons Gardens will haunt and delight hikers.
Beech Creek Natural Area
Oklahoma's own Tennessee awaits intrepid hikers.
A Trail Of True Grit
The Ouachita Mountains sheltered outlaws and gave John Wayne something to crow about. But it's not until you hike the 223-mile Ouachita Trail that you realize this country is the stuff of legend.
