Tuesday Quiz: Match Cities to U.S. Rivers

We are traveling through Minneapolis, Minnesota, which lies on the Mississippi River. This week’s Tuesday Quiz tests your knowledge of U.S. Rivers and the cities that lie on their banks. Can you match the correct city with its river?

Anything but Barren: Acadia National Park

In 1604 French explorer Samuel de Champlain sailed along the coast of today’s central Maine and noted an island that he called “Isle des Monts Deserts” because of the barren appearance of its mountains. Today, Mount Desert Island is the centerpiece of Acadia National Park. We found Acadia not to be a barren place, but a delightful patchwork of forest, mountain, lake, and seashore.

​On the Mountain Top: Shenandoah National Park 

Virginia’s Shenandoah National Park sits on the top of the Appalachian Mountains’ Blue Ridge Range. Skyline Drive runs for 105 miles through the park along the crest of the Blue Ridge, and the views from its 75 overlooks are more like those seen from a plane than a car. We spent four days in the park being awe-inspired and humbled by the views while hiking several trails, with a focus on Shenandoah’s waterfalls.

​A Hiking Paradise: Great Smoky Mountains National Park

One of the largest protected areas east of the Mississippi River, Great Smoky Mountains National Park is a hikers paradise lying in eastern Tennessee and western North Carolina. Within the park boundaries, there about 900 miles of hiking paths, including the famous Appalachian Trail. We spent a week hiking on a variety of trails and visiting four places in or adjacent to the 522,000 acre park.

​A Swampy Forest: Congaree National Park

Congaree is one of America’s newest national parks, becoming the 58th such protected area in 2003. Comprised of 26,276 acres, Congaree protects the largest intact old-growth bottomless hardwood forest in the U.S. We spent two days in the park’s swampy floodplain forest exploring several trails and camping in a primitive campsite.

Dry Tortugas National Park

A Day of Ferry, Fort, and Fish: Dry Tortugas National Park

A high-speed catamaran voyage of 70 miles each way along the Gulf of Mexico, exploration of a massive brick fort complete with a moat around it, and snorkeling underwater among the tropical coral and fish? We spent a day doing all of these things during our time in Dry Tortugas National Park, one of the remote parks in the lower 48 United States.

A Sailing Adventure: Biscayne National Park

Twenty-one miles east of the Everglades and just north of the island of Key Largo lies Biscayne National Park. It is the largest protected marine national park in the United States. With 95% of the park on the water, we booked a full-day sailing trip to travel across Biscayne Bay and set foot on one of its keys.