My 18 year old and I want to take a hiking trip together in November. I know this isn't the ideal time of year for hiking. Any suggestions? We live in Minnesota and are considering driving to the Badlands in South Dakota. Another option would be to fly to LA and drive to Bryce or Canyon Lands.

We are both fit and love hiking. Would the Badlands be freezing in November? Would we be better off spending money on flights and a car rental and heading south?

We are very open. She is on a gap year and wants to spend time with me--woo hoo!

How much time do you have?

I drove to Badlands from Minneapolis a few years ago and camped for several nights in early November. Weather was fine until the last day. Average high in November is 50. There aren't many trails in the park though. You'd probably want to visit the Black Hills on the same trip for some variety and different hikes.

You wouldn't want to fly to LA for Bryce or Canyonlands. Vegas is much closer. Bryce in November will be colder than Badlands and it is very small, so you'd want to combine with Zion National Park. Arches and Canyonlands will be slightly warmer than Badlands - average high is 56.

Other ideas:
Las Vegas - go to Death Valley
Phoenix - several options: Sedona/Grand Canyon, Saguaro National Park along with other things near Tucson, Chiricahua National Monument along with other things near Tucson
San Diego - Anza Borrego State Park

Yucatan Peninsula and Mayan Ruins
Ditto with Belize, but better. Rent a car. (English is national language due to Mahogany tree harvesting by England)
We visited most of them from north to south and east to west.
https://www.belize.com/top-ten-maya-sites-in-belize


Vaga
PS. We always picked up hitchhikers who then became our free tourist guides. All friendly people there.