The 100 Best Affordable Vacations (41 page)

Although cyclists often take a week or more to cover the entire length, it’s easy to carve out a few day trips. Some visitors favor the northern end near Nashville, which features rolling mountainous terrain that’s beautiful in the fall. Charles Cather has taken groups of Boy Scouts biking on the trace for years. He says the worst hill is at the start, and he advises his troop to walk up the incline. After that, it is rolling terrain for 60 miles to the Meriwether Lewis Campground.

“You might grind it out going up hills, but you really enjoy it coming down,” he says. Tip:
Loveless Café
(8400 Hwy. 100, Nashville, 615-646-9700), near the start of the trace in Nashville, is famous for its biscuits, perfect for carbo-loading before the trip.

Other sections have different appeal. Perhaps the easiest part is a 100-mile section south of Kosciusko, Mississippi, Oprah Winfrey’s hometown, where non-campers can stay in the
Maple Terrace Inn B&B
(300 N. Huntington St., Kosciusko, 662-289-5353,
www.mapleterraceinn.com
, rates from $95). The trace passes by a cypress swamp draped in Spanish moss, and it adjoins a lake for about 15 miles. Then it leads through Jackson, Mississippi, although it’s so wooded you might never realize you’re passing through a busy capital city. Along the trace, cyclists find drinking-water stops about every 15 miles. There are three general campgrounds along the route and five bicycle-only facilities. Although you can find bed-and-breakfasts, motels, and private campgrounds near the route, they may be several miles from the trace, which will feel much farther after a long day of biking, so it’s best to make reservations.

As you navigate the trace, you’ll soon become an expert in mileposts. The park is numbered from south to north. Must-stops include the four visitor centers: Mount Locust, at mile marker 15.5, is home to the only “stand,” or historic inn, remaining on the trace, preserved as a museum; Ridgeland, just north of Jackson, is at mile marker 102.4; the Parkway Headquarters in Tupelo, at mile marker 266; and Colbert Ferry, at mile marker 327.3, offers fishing, boating, and birding.

Of course, you can always drive the trace and bike for short sections, too. About a dozen shops along the way rent bikes, and some will even let you ship your bicycle to them and they’ll assemble it for you. Find a list at
www.scenictrace.com
.

HOW TO GET IN TOUCH

Natchez Trace Parkway,
2680 Natchez Trace Pkwy., Tupelo, MS 38804, 800-305-7417,
www.nps.gov/natr
.

zip through the canopy

HOCKING HILLS, OHIO

Aerodynamically, the bumblebee shouldn’t be able to fly, but the bumblebee doesn’t know it so it goes on flying anyway.

—
MARY KAY ASH, FOUNDER OF MARY KAY COSMETICS (1918–2001)

51 |
Blame it on bumblebees, Superman, Tarzan, or Peter Pan—when it comes to childhood fantasies, nothing quite measures up to the idea of flying.

Unfortunately, the laws of physics still rule. For human mortals, zip lines are the compromise, allowing you to literally fly at dozens of miles per hour—but with the protections of sturdy steel cables, harness, and helmet. Until a few years ago, though, most zip-line operations were located in the rain forests of the Caribbean and Latin America. Now you can find them in Alaska, aboard cruise ships, and in the continental United States.

All those safety measures add up—which means zip lining is never cheap. But if you choose a cost-conscious location where you can limit your other expenses, it can be part of a budget-friendly vacation. And Ohio’s Hocking Hills region, about 40 minutes south of Columbus, is just such a place.

If you’re into hiking, waterfalls, bird-watching, beaver-watching, kayaking, crafts, archery, stargazing, prowling for night owls, feeding hummingbirds by hand—yes, you read that right—you’ll find it in the Hocking Hills region, home to nine state parks and forests. Entry to all is free. At
Hocking Hills State Park
(19852 Rte. 664S, 740-385-6842) at Logan, don’t miss the sandstone caves and the hikes leading to them; Ash Cave, Cedar Falls, and Old Man’s Cave are the most popular. Rock climbing and rappelling are allowed at
Hocking State Forest
(19275 Rte. 374, Rockbridge, 740-385-4402). Hummingbird feedings take place at
Lake Hope State Park
(27331 Rte. 278, McArthur, 740-596-5253) from mid-June through Labor Day on Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. Free naturalist-led stargazing programs are held during peak star showers in August and November at
Conkle’s Hollow
(24858 Big Pine Rd., Rockbridge, 740-385-6842)..

MORE PLACES TO RIDE A ZIP LINE

 
Forever Florida.
Near St. Cloud, Florida, 866-854-3837,
www.floridaecosafaris.com
.

 
Royal Caribbean’s
Oasis of the Seas
and
Allure of the Seas.
Included in the price of the cruise,
www.royalcaribbean.com
.

 
Scream Time Zipline.
Boone, North Carolina, 828-898-5404,
www.screamtimezipline.com
.

 
WildPlay.
Nanaimo and Whistler, British Columbia, Canada, 888-668-7874,
www.wildplay.com
.

Other cost-friendly pastimes include
Etta’s Lunchbox Café & Museum
(35960 Rte. 56, New Plymouth, 740-380-0736), where you can eat for less than $10 and wander around for free;
Paul Johnson’s Pencil Sharpener Museum
(740-753-4634, call for appt. & info) in Carbon Hill; factory tours at the
Columbus Washboard Factory
(14 Gallagher Ave., 740-380-3828,
www.columbuswashboard.com
) in Logan, which stages the annual Washboard Festival over Father’s Day weekend; the outlet store
Rocky Boots
(45 E. Canal St., Nelsonville, 740-753-3130,
www.rockyboots.com/OutletStores/
), where you can pick up gear as well as order a bison burger or ham loaf in the diner; taking a
glass workshop with artist Marco Jerman
(740-385-1384,
http://jermanartglass.com
, from $25); and excursions ranging from moonlight paddling trips to qigong clinics (about $25 each) from
Touch the Earth Adventures
(740-591-9094,
www.hockinghills.com/earthtouch/
).

Hocking Hills lodging ranges from state park campsites and cottages (nonelectric sites start at $18, cottages start at $65) to the wooden “gypsy” wagons and medieval cottages of
Ravenwood Castle
(800-477-1541,
www.ravenwoodcastle.com
, from $50 per night) to privately owned rustic cabins in the woods. Of the latter,
Getaway Cabins
(888-587-0659,
www.getaway-cabins.com
) and
Deerwatch Cabins
(740-385-7132,
www.deerwatch.com
) are good bets; rates start from around $95.

After all that, you won’t cringe to find out that canopy tours by zip line start at $80 per person at
Hocking Hills Canopy Tours
(10714 Jackson St., Rockbridge, 740-385-9477,
www.hockinghillscanopytours.com
). On a 2.5-hour tour, you’ll traverse five sky bridges and ten zip lines (one stretches 572 feet) linking platforms high in the trees. If that’s not high, fast, or wild enough, add on a super zip experience that will send you speeding up to 50 miles an hour along a quarter-mile-long line.

HOW TO GET IN TOUCH

Hocking Hills Tourism Association,
800-462-5464,
www.1800hocking.com
.

Ohio State Parks,
www.dnr.state.oh.us/parks
.

collect waterfalls

TUMBLER RIDGE, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA

From the waterfall he named her, Minnehaha, Laughing Water.

—
POET HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW,
HIAWATHA
(1855)

52 |
Researchers still debate the reason, but it’s a proven fact that we feel better around negative ions. You’ll find these charged air particles near water. Moving water is even better, and waterfalls are unbeatable. So there’s no doubt you’ll feel like a million bucks near Tumbler Ridge, Canada, at the foot of the Rockies in northeastern British Columbia. It’s home to literally dozens of falls.