>>2645610>Glacier as a destination but probably Indiana Dunes as a stop on the way.I live right by the Indiana Dunes. Make sure you go to the STATE park, not the national park. The state park is much better. It's older than the national lakeshore by several decades (and the national "park" by almost a century) and has the most impressive natural scenery. As a local I'm glad the national park is there for variety and additional hiking opportunities, but a first-timer should definitely go to the state park. They even tell you that at the national park's visitors center, which is tellingly located just a mile down the road from the entrance gate to the state park. Do Trails 8 and 9.
By the way, Glacier is my favorite national park. You might also want to stop at Devil's Tower National Monument in WY, since that's on the way.
>>2646040>Probably different funding model that the politicians from the area favored over other designations.There are a lot of protected areas run by the NPS that aren't technically "parks" and therefore aren't on OP's map, but that are just as good as some of the official parks. I just went to Sleeping Bear Dunes in Michigan (pic related), and it's honestly better than the Indiana Dunes even though it's merely a national "lakeshore"--which the Indiana Dunes was too up until a few years ago. Seems like a bunch of places I've visited were recently upgraded to "park" status, including New River Gorge and White Sands.
