National Parks USA Road Trip

Three months and 15,000 miles around the United States. Follow the ultimate American road trip, visiting beautiful National Parks and raising money for JDRF. See how diabetes behaves while living in a car, hotel rooms, and a tent under the stars.

Posts

First impressions of America, from an outsider-insider

DAY 1 — On Day 1 of this epic road trip, my reverse culture shock upon returning to the US asserted itself in some embarrassing ways. People still vape!

High winds block access to Channel Islands National Park

DAY 3 — Fierce winds canceled all boats at Channel Islands National Park, but the visitor center was still worth it. And my blood sugars finally improved today.

L.A. glitz, meet the San Bernardino Mountains

DAY 5 — The Hollywood sign, a motel made of wigwams, an alpine lake picnic and a dusty desert drive, all within in a few hours. Plus some encouraging blood sugar signs.

Sun, moon, and cacti: Joshua Tree National Park

DAY 6 — Camping plans didn't work out but Joshua Tree National Park gave us everything: sunset, full moon, cactus gardens, wildlife... and those insane trees.

The whole world in two hours, courtesy of Southern California

DAY 6 — From a dusty little box canyon to lush green vineyards to a low saline sea to wild, unforgiving desert sand dunes, southern California said goodbye in style.

A lizard beckons us towards ancient desert petroglyphs

DAY 8 — On a side trip to see some ancient Native American petroglyphs in southern Arizona, I met a lizard and got a great blood sugar reading thanks to a kindly cactus.

Cactus vs. sky at Organ Pipe

DAY 9 — I had both the lowest and highest blood sugars of the trip so far at Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, but it was still an extraordinary camping experience.

The art of Ajo and chilly desert observatories

DAY 9 — Roller-coaster blood sugars didn't diminish the excitement of an artists' oasis in the Arizona desert and a vast collection of observatories high above an Indian reservation.

Hot insulin and tall cacti in Saguaro National Park

DAY 11 — Keeping insulin cool in Saguaro National Park is a challenge but worth the trouble: these cartoonish and gigantic cactus plants are an unbelievable sight.

Why you should get the hell off the interstate

DAY 11 — Longer, less-efficient, slower, and much more beautiful: small highways are definitely better than big interstates when you're on an epic road trip like this one!

Sand-blind at White Sands National Monument

DAY 12 — I was blinded by the sun's glare and my BG was a little high but an afternoon at White Sands National Monument was like a mesmerizing trip to some alien beach.

The diabetes cowboy in Carlsbad Caverns National Park – yeehaw!

DAY 13 — Intense exercise directly after an insulin shot is daunting, but I got through it almost perfectly on a trip to wondrous Carlsbad Caverns National Park.

Guadalupe Mountains NP, good BGs and spectacular stars

DAY 14 — Spending the night in a tent in Guadalupe Mountains National Park not only straightened out my diabetes for the day, it gave me a stellar sky show.

Winds blow BG higher in Big Bend National Park

DAY 18 — Despite some hardships – natural, human, and diabetic – camping in Big Bend National Park was one of the most restful nights of the road trip so far.

Remember the San Antonio Missions National Historical Park

DAY 21 — A tour of The Alamo and San Antonio Missions Natural Historical Park was a nice change of pace from the scenic Parks so far on this trip. Too bad about that BG though.

Nothing like swamp-walking to fix high blood sugar

DAY 23 — The tale of a walk deep into the Louisiana swamp, surrounded by frogs, dragonflies, alligators, and a downright enjoyable sense of creepy foreboding.

Oh the diabetic rage in Apalachicola National Forest

DAY 26 — Perfect blood sugars before bed didn't last the night tent camping in Apalachicola in NW Florida. And I didn't handle it gracefully, temperamentally speaking.

Uncaring seagulls at Canaveral National Seashore

DAY 29 — I ended up with an extremely high blood sugar today, and it was because of a stupid mistake. Thankfully, Canaveral National Seashore was awesome enough to distract me.

An American history lesson at Castillo de San Marcos NM

DAY 30 — You can get a completely non-boring, hands-on (and ears-on) history lesson at Castillo de San Marcos NM, a fort in St. Augustine, Florida. Even nicer in perfect weather, too.

All trees and no mosquitos in Congaree National Park

DAY 31 — On a visit to Congaree NP the weather couldn't have been better or the wildlife more behaved. We even got off the walkway and ventured into the swamp primeval.

The lower and greener side of Great Smoky Mountains NP

DAY 38 — There may indeed be great and smoke-colored mountains 'round these parts but the green and moist underneath is a charming alternate look at GSMNP.

A tour of Mammoth Cave without a blood sugar check

DAY 40 — I was worried how my blood sugar would behave on a tour of Mammoth Cave National Park in Kentucky. Help was eight hours away but it all went pretty smoothly.

What do you mean diabetics can't soak in Hot Springs National Park?!

DAY 44 — A brochure warned diabetics not to take baths in Hot Springs National Park but I did anyway. I worried about my blood sugar the whole time but it went great.

Colorful ecotones in Chickasaw Nat'l Recreation Area

DAY 45 — There's a lot more to Oklahoma than fields and flatness. Chickasaw National Recreation Area taught me this, and also gave me a series of excellent blood sugars.

Wait, are those animals *real*?!

DAY 46 — I thought central Oklahoma was just 'okay'. The animals and vast fields of flowers in Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge turned my head around, and gave me perfect BGs to boot.

Strolling around Taos Pueblo, America's oldest community

DAY 49 — On a visit to Taos Pueblo I learned about an ancient American culture and figured out how to take insulin for a Tiwa Taco, sitting on a plastic chair in the cool dirt under the warm spring sun.

Too windy to hike at Great Sand Dunes National Park

DAY 50 — Great Sand Dunes National Park is great but on the day I went, the wind was so strong that hiking was discouraged. I mean, I tried, but man it was rough going.

How to get the most out of Black Canyon of the Gunnison without hiking

DAY 52 — Not only did I manage to see virtually all of Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, but the visit finally straightened out my blood sugars. Can't ask for more than that!

Harsh diabetic lessons at Mesa Verde

DAY 53 — Mesa Verde National Park let me down with regards to a campsite but the ancient history of the place taught me some important lessons, about life and about diabetes.

Canyon de Chelly, the trip's best surprise?

DAY 54 — In the obscure corners of America you can find some wondrous sites, but few are as amazing as Canyon de Chelly National Monument. Ever heard of it? I hadn't.

Drop what you're doing and go to Petrified Forest National Park now!

DAY 55 — Petrified Forest and the Painted Desert offer some of the strangest and most alien landscapes on the planet. And it's just a simple drive through the desert to see it all.

Blood sugar epiphanies at the edge of the Grand Canyon

DAY 58 — 90% of visitors to the Grand Canyon only see the south rim. We saw both rims, and on the south rim I had a grouchy epiphany about high blood sugar: forget about it.

The lower and upper reaches of Zion National Park

DAY 60 — I decided to skip Zion on this road trip because it's so packed with tourists. But I changed my mind and I'm glad I did: hiking in Zion was fantastic and as usual got my blood sugar down to where I wanted.

Among the mystical orange pillars of Bryce Canyon

DAY 61 — Bryce Canyon and its insane orange rock hoodoos are nothing like anything you've ever seen. This is truly a trip into the mystic.

A second emergency room visit, and the road trip hangs in the balance

DAY 62 — Yet again we had to make an emergency trip to a local hospital in Utah, and I fear that the rest of the trip may be in jeopardy. Health trumps adventure.

Nevada's desert: from alpine trees to the rings of Saturn

DAY 67 — Nevada's Great Basin National Park may be obscure but the night sky and the thick green alpine forests are worth a long drive through the desert to see.

Hot, high, and happy at the bottom of Death Valley

DAY 68 — There's a lot to see in Death Valley, and even if you want to spend most of your time in an air-conditioned car, you can do a lot. Here's how we handled one day there.

Blood sugar problems in the shadow of Earth's largest living things

DAY 71 — Stress was making my blood sugar high for days on this road trip. I hoped a visit to Sequoia National Park would relax my soul, and my diabetes.

To a canyon barely accessible by road

DAY 72 — The corner of Kings Canyon National Park you can see by car is pretty extraordinary, and today my blood sugars were (mostly) behaving as well.

Temperatures and blood sugars going up and down all day

DAY 74 — Only one high blood sugar on a visit to Lassen Volcanic National Park, whose main road was partially closed in June. Melting snow and boiling mud made it all amazing!

A place in America where ice freezes under hot volcanic rocks

DAY 75 — Hidden away in north California is scorched (and icy) Lava Beds National Monument, an amazing place where my blood sugars were humbled into behaving.

America's most beautiful lake closed for snow on a terrible BG day

DAY 76 — Southern Oregon showed me landscape so beautiful that I didn't even mind my BGs being terrible all day. Well maybe I minded a little...

Huge improvement in blood sugars under the redwood trees

DAY 78 — The trees were high in Redwood National Park but my blood sugar wasn't. It was just us, those ancient and oversized trees, and BGs in the 60s and 70s!

To lose all sense of time in the thick mists of the sea

DAY 80 — The north California coast may change your life even after a brief drive. But then again, is a "brief" drive through such a wonderland really possible?

The final National Park of the trip – man, it came so suddenly

DAY 83 — Pinnacles National Park is not the most spectacular place we've visited on this road trip but it was a subdued and pleasant end to this big ol' journey.

Support independent travel content

You can support my work via Patreon. Get early links to new videos, shout-outs in my videos, and other perks for as little as $1/month.

Your support helps me make more videos and bring you travels from interesting and lesser-known places. Join us! See details, perks, and support tiers at patreon.com/t1dwanderer. Thanks!