Help my friends and I find an outdoorsy place to spend a weekend that is logistically feasible (we're traveling from Atlanta, LA, and Pennsylvania).

January 21, 2012 10:07 AM

Help my friends and I find an outdoorsy place to spend a weekend that is logistically feasible (we're traveling from Atlanta, LA, and Pennsylvania).

It can be camping, or a national park, or hiking, or whatever. But it seems like our main challenge is the fact that we're coming from 3 different places and we only have a weekend, so it doesn't really make sense for us to fly somewhere and then drive 3 hours. It seems like we're looking for places close enough to a major airport that we can maximize hanging out time rather than travel time. Oh, and we are trying to be budget-conscious. Any ideas? Thanks.

posted by malhouse to Travel & Transportation (5 answers total)

The Hocking Hills of Ohio, about 50 kmiles south of Columbus.
posted by essexjan at 10:22 AM on January 21, 2012

Rocky Mountain National Park? It's about an hour and a half from Denver International Airport but you should all be able to get direct flights there.
posted by jabes at 10:31 AM on January 21, 2012

What time of year? Winter is (can be, anyway) beautiful in the Smokies but can create travel problems in the Rockies.
posted by workerant at 10:59 AM on January 21, 2012

Response by poster: Sorry, this would probably be summer or fall.
posted by malhouse at 11:00 AM on January 21, 2012

Sacramento is about 45 minutes from Donner Pass and great backpacking. Castle peak/ paradise lake is a killer weekend trip.
posted by fshgrl at 12:08 PM on January 21, 2012