Saratoga National Historical Park
Location: Saratoga Springs, New York
Length of visit: 2 hours
Major draws: Museum, film, driving tour, cannons
Strenuosity: 1 out of 10
Cost/Fees: Free
Additional considerations: Interpretive signs not right along the road like on most battlefield driving tours
Description: This battle was considered the turning point of the American Revolution and one of the most important in world history. It also has nice views.
Fort Stanwix National Monument
Location: Rome, New York
Length of visit: 2 hours
Major draws: Reconstructed fort, best Visitor Center in the NPS
Strenuosity: 1 out of 10
Cost/Fees: Free
Additional considerations: Parking is limited
Description: After FDR protected this very first historic site within the NPS in 1935, Fort Stanwix was finally reconstructed in the 1970s after demolishing the existing buildings. Visitors today will surely agree it was worth the effort, as were the updates in excellent Visitor Center.
Women’s Rights National Historical Park
Location: Seneca Falls, New York
Length of visit: 2 hours
Major draws: Museum, historic buildings, free tours
Strenuosity: 1 out of 10
Cost/Fees: Free
Additional considerations: Not open all 7 days of the week
Description: The first women’s rights convention was held here inside Wesleyan Chapel in 1848 where participants drafted the Declaration of Sentiments. The film and museum were last updated in the 1980s, but still leave the visitor with plenty to think about.
Eternal Flame Trail—Chestnut Ridge Park
Location: east of Buffalo, New York
Length of visit: 1 hour
Major draws: Fire and water
Strenuosity: 4 out of 10
Cost/Fees: Free
Additional considerations: Multiple stream crossings on trail
Description: You’ve never seen anything like this waterfall—a continuous flame is fed by natural gas that leaks out of the rocks behind a veil of water. Access by steep half-mile trail into canyon.
Cave of the Winds
Location: Niagara Falls, New York
Length of visit: 1 hour
Major draws: See and feel the waterfall, free sandals
Strenuosity: 2 out of 10 (mostly handicap accessible)
Cost/Fees: $17 per adult
Additional considerations: You might get wet even under a poncho
Description: The cave area is no longer accessible due to safety concerns, but you can still feel the power of Bridal Veil Falls on the wooden platforms that have to be rebuilt after every winter.
Niagara Falls State Park
Location: between Lake Erie and Lake Ontario
Length of visit: 1 hour to full day
Major draws: Waterfall, aquarium, Maid of the Mist boat tour
Strenuosity: 1 out of 10 (handicap accessible)
Cost/Fees: Free to enter, parking is $10 per day
Additional considerations: Avoid crowds by arriving early or late
Description: Considered one of the seven natural wonders of North America, the falls attract many international tourists (not just from Canada). The falls are lit up at night and there is also a seasonal fireworks display at 10 p.m. at the first State Park in the U.S. (1885)
the Henry Ford Museum
Location: Dearborn, Michigan
Length of visit: full day
Major draws: Museum, Ford automotive factory tour
Strenuosity: 1 out of 10
Cost/Fees: Ticket prices vary depending on combination
Additional considerations: No photography inside Ford factory
Description: The museum has more than Model Ts; there are trains, planes, steam engines, the Rosa Parks bus from Montgomery, and Lincoln’s chair from Ford’s Theatre. We highly recommend you add a bus ride to the modern Ford Rouge Factory to your ticket as it is one of the coolest places we’ve been on pretirement.
River Raisin National Battlefield Park
Location: south of Detroit in Monroe, Michigan
Length of visit: 1 hour
Major draws: Museum, film on battle
Strenuosity: 1 out of 10
Cost/Fees: Free
Additional considerations: Americans actually lost this battle
Description: This small skirmish during the War of 1812 was not a significant turning point, but the ensuing massacre of hospitalized American POWs did inspire much hatred of Native Americans. The NPS tried to make it kid-friendly by creating a stuffed animal of Major Muskrat with multiple costume options, however they did not fit Wondon.
Perry’s Victory and International Peace Memorial
Location: South Bass Island in the middle of Lake Erie, Ohio
Length of visit: 5 hours
Major draws: Scenic views, visitor center film, black squirrels
Strenuosity: 2 out of 10
Cost/Fees: Free for museum, $5 per person for elevator to top of tower or free with America the Beautiful pass
Additional considerations: South Bass Island only accessible by boat
Description: On a sunny day the views from the top of the 352-foot tall memorial tower across Lake Erie are splendid, including the shoreline of Canada and the roller coasters at Cedar Point. Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry not only had the best name in the War of 1812, his naval victory here was a turning point.
The Ohio State University Football Game
Location: “The Horseshoe” in Columbus, Ohio
Length of visit: 9 hours
Major draws: All brass band (TBDBITL), 104,000+ fans
Strenuosity: 3 out of 10
Cost/Fees: Free for Skull Session, ticket prices vary
Additional considerations: Rains sometimes during game
Description: Our first ever game at Ohio Stadium was memorable with a humid and sweaty Skull Session, a second quarter downpour, a halftime lightning delay, and a postgame “halftime” show.
