10451 Best Sights in USA

Near the parking lot at the southern entrance of the park, this area has tables, drinking water, and restrooms.

Ever since the Disney film Frozen hit the jackpot, Disney's theme parks have been mining the blockbuster with character meet and greets, entertainment vignettes, a ride, and this show, which packs the house up to 10 times a day. The comical emcees are two costumed "Royal Historians" of Arendelle, who pepper their Frozen story narration with witticisms. Animated segments of the film accompany the narration on a giant screen, and live actors portray Anna, Elsa, and Kristoff convincingly as they interact with the historians and audience. Song lyrics are displayed on two additional video screens, and everyone sings along to the film's playlist, especially the Academy Award–winning "Let It Go" and the sweetly melodic "Do You Want to Build a Snowman?". For people with disabilities: Wheelchair accessible. A large theater makes this is a great option for the afternoon.

A beautiful and surreal crystal-clear stream runs through this underworld of grottoes and natural chimneys. This cave was a source of flint for Native American arrowheads and later served as a clandestine site for moonshine production. A stereophonic sound system adds to the experience. Pack a jacket even if it's sweltering outside. Temperatures inside the cavern hold steady year-round at 58 degrees.

Soak up Hot Springs’ rich history on a free, self-guided tour of the largest and most opulent bathhouse on Bathhouse Row. The Fordyce, which operated from 1915 to 1962, is now the park's visitor center and museum, where you can pick up trail maps, speak with helpful park employees, and get an insightful glimpse into the Golden Age of bathing. Extensively restored, the Fordyce features marble throughout, beautiful stained-glass ceilings, period rooms, and hydrotherapy equipment dating from the early 20th century. A 15-minute video in the first-floor theater covers area history. Audio devices for people of low vision or blindness are available for interpreting exhibit hall panels on the first and second floors.

Park at a dedicated lot to disembark on a wildflower-rich, 0.2-mile trail. Easy to access for all skill levels, this glacial valley overlook offers views of ice-blue pools (the Gorge Lakes) framed by ragged peaks.

Of the handful of trails in the Bartlett Cove area, this is the shortest and easiest. It's a 1-mile round-trip route that starts just across the road from Glacier Bay Lodge and travels through the rain forest and along the beach. Boardwalks make up the first half of the trail, allowing those using wheelchairs to access the two viewing platforms that overlook a pond where moose can sometimes be spotted. Daily guided walks with a ranger are also offered. Easy.

This 0.6-mile loop trail offers views of the Bates Old River, an oxbow lake left behind when the Congaree River changed course. The new-growth forest can be thick and muddy, so despite the short distance, it's not ideal for families. Moderate.

The town's history and the logging industry that helped put Forks on the map in the early 20th century, earning it the prestigious nickname of "Logging Capital of the World" by the 1970s, are explored in this extensive indoor-outdoor museum. A pair of life-size figurines working a massive crosscut saw through an even more massive log marks the entrance, and artifacts include antique logging vehicles, chain saws and other equipment, historical dioramas, displays of furnished pioneer cabins, and samples of trees commonly harvested in the area's forests, including Western hemlocks, Douglas firs, and Sitka spruces. Today, the timber industry has declined, and tourism and other businesses, including nearby correctional facilities, have provided jobs. 

Built in 1884 as a private home for a local businessman, the Former Governor’s Mansion was turned into an official residence in the 1890s. North Dakota’s incumbent governors lived here until 1960, when it was converted into office space. From 1975 to 1984 it was restored, with different parts of the house reflecting different eras in its history. Today this elegant building serves as a museum and contains political memorabilia, period furnishings, and a permanent exhibit that details the transition from horse-and-buggy days to the modern automobile.

Inside a converted warehouse are an 1898 Renault coupe, Amelia Earhart's immaculately maintained "Goldbug," and a Big Boy steam locomotive, among other historic vehicles. Other exhibits in this eccentric museum consist of antique bicycles, cable cars, and even experimental car-planes. This trivia-laden showcase is outside of the downtown loop: Go north on Brighton Boulevard; the museum is adjacent to the Denver Coliseum on the south side of I–70.

As part of America's North Pacific defense during World War II, Kodiak was the site of an important naval station, now occupied by the Coast Guard fleet that patrols the surrounding fishing grounds. Part of the old military installation has been incorporated into this park north of town. Self-guided tours take you past concrete bunkers and gun emplacements, and trails wind through moss-draped spruce forest. There's a highly scenic overlook, great for bird and whale watching, and inside a bunker a volunteer group runs the Kodiak Military History Museum. There are also eight campsites and five RV hookups.

History buffs and nature lovers alike won’t want to miss a trip out to Fort Abraham Lincoln State Park, a 30-minute drive from Bismarck. The erstwhile fort at this park was Custer’s final base before his last stand at the Battle of Little Bighorn; portions of the fort and the commander’s house have been rebuilt and can be visited today. A popular attraction within the park is the On-A-Slant Indian Village, a reconstructed Mandan Tribe village that stood on a downward-slanting parcel of land in the park until the 18th century. For those wishing to stay overnight in the park, there are two cabins, two tipis, and a campsite.

The largest coastal fortress in the United States can be found at this park, which hosts Newport's annual folk and jazz festivals and sailing events like the Ocean Race. The nonprofit Ft. Adams Trust offers a varied schedule of guided tours of the fort, where soldiers lived from 1841 to 1950. Tours take in the fort's overlooks and underground tunnels, as well as its impressive walls. The views of Newport Harbor and Narragansett Bay are exquisite. The park also includes a 2.5-mile walking path, the Sail Newport marina, where boating lessons and rentals are available, and Eisenhower House, the summer White House of President Dwight D. Eisenhower.

One entrance price buys access to three great places to visit on the Fort Apache Reservation. The Fort Apache Historic Park harks back to cavalry days with horse barns, parade grounds, log cabins, and officers' homes. The Apache Cultural Center & Museum explains the history, culture, and artistic traditions of the Apaches, and sells local crafts and books. Kinishba Ruins National Historic Landmark is a partly restored sandstone pueblo, and the only Native American site on the reservation open to visitors.

Once the largest military reservation west of the Mississippi, Fort Assinniboine was established in 1879 in the aftermath of the Battle of the Little Bighorn. At its peak, the fort had more than 100 brick and stone buildings and nearly 500 men. The soldiers stationed here brought along their families, who lived on the post. As a result, the Victorian-era fort became a cultural center as well as a military one, hosting plays and dances along with parades and training exercises. The fort is now a museum, and many of the imposing buildings still stand, although they appear eerily deserted. In fact, a few are storage or administrative facilities for the Northern Research Agricultural Center. Others are open to public tours, which begin at the H. Earl Clack Memorial Museum.

In 1747, this timber fort overlooking the Connecticut River, 15 miles north of Walpole, served as an outpost on the periphery of Colonial civilization. That year fewer than 50 militiamen at the fort withstood an attack by 400 French soldiers, ensuring that northern New England remained under British rule. Today, costumed interpreters at this living-history museum cook dinner over an open hearth and demonstrate weaving, gardening, and candle making. The museum also holds reenactments of militia musters and the battles of the French and Indian War.

Established in 1866, Fort Bayard was built by the U.S. Army when it became clear that conflict between homeland Apaches and early Anglo and Spanish settlers would not easily abate. Company B of the 125th U.S. Colored Infantry was first in command, and hundreds of African-American enlisted men, or buffalo soldiers, made their mark here. A huge Fort Bayard Days celebration takes place annually, on the third weekend of September, and visitors can watch re-enactors and learn about this national historic landmark's later life as a groundbreaking tuberculosis research facility; bimonthly tours (reservations essential) are offered.

It's a bit of an outing to get to the site of Arizona's last battle between Native Americans and U.S. troops in the Dos Cabezas (Two-Headed) Mountains, but history buffs will find it an interesting hike with the added benefit of high-desert scenic beauty. Once a focal point for military operations—the fort was built here because Apache Pass was an important travel route for Native Americans and wagon trains—it now serves as a sobering reminder of the brutal clashes between the two cultures. The fort itself is virtually in ruins, but there's a small ranger-staffed visitor center with historical displays, restrooms, and books for sale.

A 1½-mile historic trail, moderately easy but rocky in some areas, leads to the visitor center and ruins. (Those with mobility issues can drive up to the visitor center.) Points of interest along the way include the remnants of an Apache wickiup (hut), the fort cemetery, Apache Springs (their water source), and the Butterfield stage stop, a crucial link in the journey from east to west in the mid-19th century that happened to be in the heart of Chiricahua Apache land. The alternate trail, looping back to the parking area, is higher and affords nice views of the ruins and surrounding hills.

A multiuse path, much of it flat and steps from the rocky and highly photogenic shoreline, stretches the length of Fort Bragg. An enjoyable section lined with benches created by local artists follows the coast north about 2 miles between Noyo Headlands Park in southern Fort Bragg and Glass Beach. You can continue into MacKerricher State Park from the beach.

Historians aren't sure how Mormons came to control Fort Bridger trading post. They may have purchased Fort Bridger from Jim Bridger and Louis Vasquez or forced the original owners to leave. As the U.S. Army approached during a conflict known as the Mormon War of 1857, the Mormons deserted the area and burned the original Bridger post. Fort Bridger was rebuilt and then served as a frontier military post until it was abandoned in 1890, and many of the military-era buildings remain. You can attend interpretive programs and living-history demonstrations during the summer, and the museum has exhibits about the fort's history. The largest mountain-man rendezvous in the intermountain West occurs annually at Fort Bridger over Labor Day weekend, attracting hundreds of buckskinners and Native Americans, plus thousands of visitors. The grounds are open daily, and the historic buildings are open in the warmer months.

Built in 1866 near the confluence of the Missouri and Yellowstone rivers, this military post was the site of Sitting Bull's surrender in 1881. In summer, you can take a self-guided tour of the restored officers' quarters as well as the unusual, sometimes humorous, tombstones in the soldiers' cemetery. The site grounds and adjoining Missouri-Yellowstone Confluence Interpretive Center are open year-round.

Spread over 130 acres along the St. Johns River 13 miles northeast of Downtown Jacksonville (via Route 113), this site is part of the vast Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve, which has both historical and recreational options. Exhibits explore first contact between the Timucua people and Europeans, and the waterways and shady paths offer hikes and pristine beaches.

The original fort was built in the 1560s by French Huguenots, who held what may have been the original Thanksgiving on the site. They were later slaughtered by the Spanish in the first major clash between European powers for control of what would become the United States. An oak-wood pathway leads to a replica of the original fort—a great, sunny place to picnic (bring your own food and drink), stretch your legs, and explore a small museum. There's a 1-mile, self-guided nature trail and wayside exhibits between the visitor center and the fort.

The Fort Caspar Historic Site re-creates the post at Platte Bridge, which became Fort Caspar after the July 1865 battle that claimed the lives of several soldiers, including Lieutenant Caspar Collins. A post depicts life at a frontier station in the 1860s, and sometimes soldier reenactors go about their tasks. Museum exhibits show the migration trails.

The museum entertains and informs visitors of all ages with interactive science, history, music, and natural history exhibits. The OtterBox Digital Dome Theater screens a mix of planetarium space shows and captivating educational films on its 35-foot dome screen. Also, meet the two resident black-footed ferrets. This is the only museum in the world to host these endangered animals.

This 618-acre park, part of the Lewis and Clark National Historical Park, blends so well into a rocky knob overlooking the river that it's all but invisible from land or water (U.S. 101 passes underneath, via a tunnel). The turn-of-the-20th-century military buildings offer great views of the river's mouth. In spring the slopes are fragrant with wildflowers, and there are 2 miles of hiking trails to explore the grounds. The interpretive center has displays on barracks life and Chinook Indian culture. Two historic buildings on the property are available for overnight rentals.

Experience colonial life at this former French outpost, where Mobile was born. Today, the city's French origins endure in its Creole cuisine and at this historic site. Roughly 150 years after the fort was destroyed, its remains were discovered during construction of the Interstate 10 interchange. A rebuilt portion houses the city's visitor center as well as a museum. Costumed guides conduct tours.

Established in 1846 as the last Hudson Bay Company trading post built in the United States, Fort Connah was used by traders until 1871, mostly for exchanging and acquiring furs, bison meat, pemmican (a mixture of tallow and dried meat usually made from bison, deer, elk, or moose), and bison skin saddle blankets. Of the original three buildings, one remains today; it's believed to be the oldest building still standing in Montana. You can't go inside, but a historical marker details events and inhabitants.

You may walk along peaceful woodland trails lined with native flora and fauna at this National Historic Landmark and important archaeological site. The fort dates to at least the early 1600s and is largely intact. At the visitor center a volunteer can explain exhibits about the Native American Corchaug tribe, who built the fort, and the early colonial settlers. Family and children's events are held here regularly.

Not far from the Camino Real Center, Fort Craig National Historic Site was established after the New Mexico Territory became part of the United States to prevent raids by the Apache and Navajo peoples and to secure the trade routes within the region. The growth of Socorro and what is now Truth or Consequences can be traced to the protection the fort provided between 1854 and the mid-1880s, when it was decommissioned. Battles west of the Mississippi River during the American Civil War were relatively rare, but in 1862 the Confederate army crossed the Rio Grande and headed to Valverde, north of Fort Craig, with the goal of cutting off the fort from the Union military headquarters in Santa Fe. Confederate forces first were sent into retreat but later won a few battles and made the Union forces withdraw. The rebels later occupied Santa Fe for a few months. Today, signs describe the various buildings and solitary life at the outpost, where only a couple of masonry walls and numerous foundations remain. Historic markers are very informative, however, and a well-maintained gravel trail winds among the ruins. The roads to Fort Craig, which is about 35 miles south of Socorro, can become hard to pass during rainy weather. During the closest weekend to significant dates of February 21 and 22, historical reenactors re-create the Civil War Battle of Valverde and even "capture" the nearby city of Socorro in a grand finale.

The 1856-vintage Fort Dalles Surgeon's Quarters ranks among the state's oldest history museums. The first visitors came through the doors in 1905. On display in authentic hand-hewn log buildings, originally part of a military base, are the personal effects of some of the region's settlers and a collection of early automobiles. The entrance fee gains you admission to the Swedish log-style Anderson Homestead museum across the street, which also displays pioneer artifacts.