Throughout 2020 I have tried to travel as much a possible considering travel has been greatly restricted. There were some sites I visited that were very disappointing and some that were much better than I had expected. I decided to make a ranking of every site I visited throughout the year, excluding anything in the Pensacola area. This was very difficult, and I kept rearranging this list before deciding to leave it like it is. I’m still unsure of the placement of some of these. Overall there are 50 sites, and I will include a small explanation with each one, but I can’t go into too much detail or this will be way too long. Below is my official ranking from worst to first:
50. Fort Mose
The history of Fort Mose in St Augustine is very fascinating because it’s considered the first “underground railroad” in the US, where escaped slaves would be given their freedom. But visiting was very disappointing because there’s literally nothing to see. They are hoping to develop it more in the future though.
49. Friendship Park
I flew out to California to visit this park in San Ysidro and claim my fourth corner of the country. Unfortunately the main part of the park was closed to visitors, and the area I was restricted to was nothing but dirt.
48. Fountain of Youth
The Fountain of Youth in St Augustine seems like it should be a must-see, but in reality, it’s a $20 drink of water that doesn’t even taste that great. The park is educational, so I could see it as a school field trip destination as some kids would like it. They have a lot of peacocks though, so that’s neat.
47. Muddy Creek Wetlands
The Muddy Creek Wetlands trail in Theodore, Alabama, was a little disappointing to me. While it wasn’t terrible, I wouldn’t go out of my way to visit it again.
46. Swinging Bridge Park
The Swinging Bridge Park in Dayton, Tennessee, is nice. But it’s just that- a swinging bridge.
45. Morrison Springs
I actually thought Morrison Springs in Ponce de Leon, Florida, was really nice. It’s a beautiful spring-fed lake that you can swim in. But it’s so ridiculously cold it’s hard to enjoy it.
44. Sunny Jim’s Ocean Cave
The view from this ocean cave is pretty cool. But to get down to it, you’ll likely be standing in a long, packed line waiting to get to the viewpoint in a hot, humid cave and then fight for a decent spot to take pictures from.
43. Gaslamp Quarter
The Gaslamp Quarter of San Diego is a nice area to walk around. But it’s mostly bars and clubs, which I’m not really interested in.
42. Historic Downtown Dayton
I really liked exploring downtown Dayton and seeing fall colors for the first time. But there really isn’t much to do other than tour the courthouse, which to be fair, I didn’t even do that.
41. St George Street
St George Street is the most popular street in the historic downtown area of St Augustine. It’s lined with many shops and tourist attractions. The oldest wooden schoolhouse in the US can be found here, along with the original gates of the city.
40. Plaza de la Constitución
At one end of St George Street is Plaza de la Constitución, the oldest public park in the US. There are a lot of historic events that occurred in this park, including possibly the most influential protest during the Civil Rights Movement.
39. Lightner Museum
The Alcazar Hotel was built by Henry Flagler to help develop the St Augustine area and bring in tourism. Today it is an art museum. The outside is very nice, but I never went inside due to changed hours from Covid.
38. St Augustine Lighthouse
The lighthouse is nice, but if you’ve ever visited a lighthouse before, it’s nothing too special. The view from the top is nice.
37. San Ysidro Port of Entry
The border crossing between San Ysidro, California, and Tijuana, Mexico, is considered to be the busiest land border crossing in the world. There’s a lot going on here all the time. I crossed into Mexico by car and then came back to the US on foot to avoid getting caught in the long lines.
36. Grand Staircase-Escalante
I only drove through this area on my way from Capitol Reef to Bryce Canyon. It was a breathtaking drive though! I wish I could’ve actually visited this park, but I didn’t have the time for that.
35. Village Point Park Preserve
This park in Daphne, Alabama, has some beautiful areas. It includes an old cemetery and a beach, but the rest of the trail isn’t too special, except the boardwalk I walked which was technically off limits.
34. Natural Bridge
Natural Bridge is an arched rock formation on the edge of Bryce Canyon. There’s a nice overlook next to it, but it’s kind of a long drive from the Bryce Amphitheater and it’s just an overlook.
33. Fruita
I wanted to like Fruita more than I did. It’s a small pioneer town found within Capitol Reef National Park in Utah. But Gifford Homestead, the main site within the town, was closed the day I visited, and the orchards weren’t ready to be picked, so there was nothing to do there.
32. Balanced Rock
The Balanced Rock is in Arches National Park. It’s cool to see. But it’s not as impressive to me as the other landmarks found within the park.
31. Capitol Reef Petroglyphs
The petroglyphs in Capitol Reef National Park are really cool to see. But the area surrounding it isn’t the best. There’s a small wooden observation area to view it from, and it’s right by a busy highway. I was hoping to be able to get a little closer too- I had to really zoom in to get this picture.
30. Castillo de San Marcos
Castillo de San Marcos is an old Spanish fort in St Augustine that has the distinction of never losing a battle. It switched hands peacefully several times but never lost. It’s also the oldest fort in the US. It was closed when I went, so I only saw the outside.
29. Park Avenue
Park Avenue in Arches National Park is a nice area where you can go backcountry hiking. I only walked a small portion of the trail because there were more iconic places I wanted to get to.
28. Zion Canyon Scenic Drive
Zion National Park is one of the most visited national parks in the US, and because of that, visiting it can be very difficult. To get into the canyon, you have to schedule a shuttle ride, but you can drive the scenic drive in a personal vehicle. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find parking, so I was never able to stop anywhere along this road.
27. Watchman Trail
Unlike the other trails on the Zion Canyon Scenic Drive that I couldn’t get to, this one started at the Visitor Center, so it was easy to access. It’s a nice trail where I got to see a ram running around. I didn’t hike the whole trail though because I had to make my shuttle departure time.
26. Zona Río
Zona Río is the business district of Tijuana. I loved what I saw, but I didn’t spend as much time there as I did in the other neighborhoods of Tijuana. All I did was visit a market and grab a taco, which was amazing.
25. USS Midway/Unconditional Surrender
My grandfather served on the Midway when he was in the Navy. It would be much higher on my list if I had toured it like I did in 2008. I’m including the area right next to it as well where you can see the Unconditional Surrender statue.
24. Roaring Creek Trail
Part of the Cumberland Trail in Dayton, Tennessee, the Roaring Creek Trail was very nice. But I visited shortly after a hurricane, and parts of it were flooded, so I didn’t get very far into it.
23. Falling Waters State Park
The waterfall here is the tallest waterfall in the state of Florida, and it’s unique because it falls into a sinkhole and then continues traveling underground.
22. Point Park
Point Park on Lookout Mountain in Chattanooga, Tennessee, is a nice park owned by the National Park Service. It shows how the area was a strategic location during the Civil War and has some cool views of the surrounding area.
21. Laurel Snow State Natural Area
This section of the Cumberland Trail in Dayton, Tennessee, is very nice. The trail follows a river with a rock wall on the other side. It’s a very peaceful area to walk.
20. St Augustine Beach
I visited two sections of St Augustine Beach, and both were very nice. I loved getting to drive my truck along one section and then walking along a less popular section.
19. Hickman Bridge Trail
The trail to Hickman Bridge is one of the most popular at Capitol Reef. I started out really liking this trail, but my opinion of it changed as I went farther into it. I actually got lost multiple times because of the poor signage along the trail, and I never actually found Hickman Bridge…
18. Canyonlands Overlooks
There are many different overlooks throughout Canyonlands National Park, and because they’re all so similar in my ranking, I’m including them together. (Shafer Canyon, Buck Canyon, Orange Cliffs, and Green River Overlooks). Each one is very nice and worth stopping at.
17. Capitol Gorge
This was my favorite hike in Capitol Reef. The hike takes you through a narrow slot canyon, and at one point, you can see names etched into the sides of the canyon, representing the Mormon pioneers that found the area. But it’s overshadowed by another narrow slot canyon I hiked.
16. Landscape Arch/Devil’s Garden
Landscape Arch is the largest natural arch in the world, so it’s impressive to visit. And the Devil’s Garden where it’s located is one of the cooler areas of Arches National Park. It’s a little lower on my list than it probably should be because I had dehydration and extreme leg camps while there, which really affected my experience.
15. Fremont Street
Fremont Street is known as the original Vegas Strip. It’s a cool place to walk around, and the neon lights acting as a roof over the street are very impressive. There’s also a zipline above the street that you can ride if you’re interested!
14. La Jolla Cove
La Jolla Cove is a beautiful beach in the La Jolla neighborhood of San Diego. Sea lions regularly come to rest here, and the waves are very impressive. To get down to the beach, you have to time it just right, or those waves will attack you!
13. Double Arch
Double Arch is one of the most iconic formations within Arches National Park. I was suffering from heat stroke when I visited it, but it’s still a beautiful sight to see.
12. Sunset Rock
Sunset Rock on Lookout Mountain in Chattanooga, Tennessee, is a really cool place to visit with amazing views of the surrounding area. The hike here from Point Park is beautiful!
11. Avenida Revolución
This neighborhood of Tijuana is very active. It’s the most popular part of the city to visit, and there’s a lot to see and do, including sampling street food and listening to local bands play. I loved everything about this area!
10. Sunset Cliffs
Sunset Cliffs in San Diego is one of the most beautiful places to watch the sunset in the country. The cliffs drop down to a beach along the Pacific, and it all glows orange as the sun sets. The best time for photoshoots here is actually about 20 minutes after the sun sets, down by the water.
9. Ruby Falls
Ruby Falls in Chattanooga, Tennessee, was much better than I expected. It’s the tallest and deepest underground waterfall in the US. My tour only consisted of 6 people overall, and because it was the first tour of the day, there were no other groups to fight with inside the cave. We had the falls all to ourselves, and it was awesome!
8. Playas de Tijuana
Playas is my favorite neighborhood of Tijuana. The coastline is beautiful, even though the water itself isn’t clean. The area along the border wall is very lively and has a fun energy. There’s a lot to see and do in this part of town.
7. Las Vegas Strip
I love walking the Vegas Strip and visiting each of the casinos along the way. Each one has its own theme and feels different from the rest. Caesars Palace, the Venetian, and Bellagio are a few of the highlights in my opinion.
6. Grand View Point
The Grand View Point in Canyonlands National Park is a very relaxing area to walk around. The views of surrounding canyons are amazing, and the breeze coming up from the canyons helps cool you off from the extreme heat in this area.
5. Torrey Pines State Reserve
Torrey Pines in San Diego is a very beautiful part of the country. I loved walking along the beach here and hiking the trails to the different overlooks. It’s definitely one of my favorite places visited this year.
4. Delicate Arch
Delicate Arch is the most iconic landmark in Utah. This is definitely a must-see in Arches National Park, but I’d recommend hiking it either in the early morning or late afternoon due to extreme heat in the middle of the day.
3. The Narrows
My favorite hike ever is The Narrows in Zion National Park. The entire hike is through the Virgin River, cutting through a narrow gorge in the Zion Canyon, and every turn offers a new perspective.
2. Mesa Arch
Mesa Arch in Canyonlands National Park has probably the coolest view I’ve ever seen. There’s a beautiful arch overlooking an adjacent canyon, and if you visit at just the right time, the sun causes the arch to glow. It’s an amazing sight that is only a half mile walk from the parking lot.
1. Bryce Canyon
I loved Bryce Canyon! I visited many different overlooks and also hiked down into it to see it from the bottom. Everything about Bryce Canyon impressed me, so it was easily my favorite place visited in 2020.
This was a crazy year, but I am thankful for the experiences I had while traveling this year, even if none of these were my original plans coming into it. I’ll definitely never forget 2020! I’ll be sharing a 2020 Overview next week, giving a recap of this crazy year, which I actually started back in February before we even knew how crazy it would become. Thanks for reading!
Tyler's Travels 