We're talking about a vacation this summer so we can plan ahead. My mother (who will pay for it) said she'd love to go to Yellowstone, but it looks like it's about a 24-hour drive for us. Still, I like the idea of going to a national park. We're in Indiana, so this image shows about the limits of where we're willing to drive. Maybe 14-15 hours at most, which puts most of the ones in the image in range.
However-
• We've already been to Indiana Dunes and Gateway Arch.
• My daughter is scared of caves, so Mammoth Cave is out.
Out of the rest, which would you most recommend so I can suggest it to my mother?
Is there anything not in Indiana that is within this area that you think is more worth visiting than a national park that also would take a decent amount of time to visit and see different things? (Not a city, obviously.)
Any advice appreciated. Thanks!
Note on Yellowstone, Grand Teton is just south of it, and is much smaller, but significantly more dramatic (If you expect to summit anything there without a ski lift, good luck).
As for the east coast, New River Gorge WV is very active with guided activities, last I checked. One of the good places for rafting, also the Greenbank National Radio Observatory is within a days drive. If the Virginia(s) is your direction, in addition to the national parks, you also have the estates of some of americas founding fathers in the area, along with old battlefields that are open to the public, if history is on the menu. I would argue that the best park for hiking on the US east coast is White Mtn. State Forest in NH. Middle of ski country for the winter and summer is peak hiking for the best section of the AT (the Presidentials will kick you and your cars ass, Mt. Washington is up there and you can drive to the weather facility at the top)