Maine boasts one of the most rugged, scenic, and civilized coastlines in the country. Where else can you eat a fresh lobster roll in a meadow of purple lupine overlooking rocky headlands that dive under a blanket of deep Atlantic blue? While Acadia visitors flock to Mount Desert Island, we suggest you park on the mainland at Stonington and hop the mail boat or sea kayak out to Isle au Haut. This 5,400-acre island is half private and half park land with a quiet little town fit inside. Rent a bike and explore the mellow dirt roads that course through the island's lush green interior and overflow onto wonderfully exposed, sunny, rocky shore carved smooth by the glaciers that once inched their way across the entire coast.

Where to Sleep

Rent a Cottage
Lookout Inn, 207/359-2188 or thelookoutinn.biz. Not only does this spot offer individual cottages, but set on a grassy peninsula on the coast of mainland Maine, it overlooks islands you might pass on your way to Isle au Haut. Bonus: The restaurant serves one of the area's finest meals.

So You're Not Into Roughing It
Keeper's House Inn, 207/460-0257 or keepershouse.com. Here's your chance to stay in a historic lighthouse inn on the edge of a national park with lobster boats circling the waters while a gourmet meal cooks in the kitchen. It's all here on Isle au Haut. The longtime owners rent one room in the house, plus an independent cottage.

You Love Camping
Duck Harbor campground, 207/288-3338 or nps.gov/acad. Acadia National Park operates this Isle au Haut spot, which has the cozy (for camping) option of renting a lean-to shelter so you don’t need a tent, just a sleeping bag and pad. The cocktail hour stroll from the campsite to the water nearby is the real bonus.

Where to Eat

Isle au Haut has limited dining so here are some mainland selections.

Breakfast Starters:
Lily's Cafe, 207/367-5936. Try the omelet of the day.

Après Hike:

Whale's Rib Tavern, 207/348-5222 or pilgrimsinn.com. Part of Pilgrim's Inn, this rustic-elegant tavern's warmth might make you long for winter, though the view of green grass and a mill pond will snap you back to summer and your hearty plate of seafood, meat, or homemade dessert. Reservations recommended.

Down-home Lobster

photography: David Hanson

Yellowstone got the hot springs, geysers, bison, more central location, and crowds. That left Glacier—tucked into Montana's temperate, remote northwest corner and spilling into Canada—with majestic mountains, sapphire rivers, and long, valley-filling lakes. In early summer, the vivid green bases of the mountains erupt in flowers every color of the rainbow. Guided hikes, horseback rides, red bus tours, and organized river floats mean you can experience the park however suits your mood. The surrounding towns offer saloons, historic diners, and younger coffee houses with a couple of upscale dining options that inspire a good cleaning up after a day in the park. And when you want a little Aspen swankiness, Whitefish has the scene to satisfy (though it's still wonderful Montana, where nothing gets too pretentious).

Where to Sleep

Rent a Cottage
Glacier Outdoor Center, 800/235-6781 or glacierraftco.com/cabin.htm. One- to two-bedroom log cabins are a half mile from the park's west entrance and near restaurants (if you don’t get domestic in your cabin’s kitchen).

So You're Not Into Roughing It:

You Love Camping:

Where to Eat

Breakfast Starters:

Park Café and Grocery, 406/732-4482 or parkcafe.us. The wait on the porch is well worth the home-cooked breakfast and grill fare. Don't leave without a piece of pie—the huckleberries likely just came from the mountains.

Our Picnic Pick:

Brownie's Grocery and Deli, 406/226-4426. A simple grocery store with all the basics plus home-baked bread, pastries, and bagels.

Après Hike:

Serrano's Mexican Restaurant, 406/226-9392. Trust me, at some point on the trail your mind will wander to overflowing tacos and cold margaritas. Serrano's will satisfy.

Tupelo Grille, 406/862-6136 or tupelogrille.com. This inventive Cajun and Southern cuisine restaurant, set in an upscale backdrop, is one of the reasons Whitefish has become the hippest town in the Glacier area.

photography: National Park Service

Why Go Now?
This remote, relatively unknown region hides a fascinating, unique landscape. In Travels with Charley, novelist John Steinbeck says of the area: "It was so beautiful that I stopped near a thicket of dwarfed and wind-warped cedars and junipers, and once stopped I was caught, trapped in color and dazzled by the clarity of the light." Few natural sites surprise the first-time visitor like the crumbling, fantastical shapes—like massive drip castles—tucked into the calmly swaying expanse of prairie land. Plus, just a few hours west, the Black Hills rise out of the Badlands, inviting exploration of rock spires, clear lakes, cool forests, and main-street-strolling towns.

Where to Sleep

Rent a Cottage
Audrie's Bed & Breakfast, 605/342-7788 or audriesbb.com. Just outside Rapid City, this B&B rents seven separate cottages at surprisingly low prices.

So You're Not Into Roughing It

State Game Lodge and Resort, 800/658-3530 or custerresorts.com. It's not the Ritz, but the stone and timber architecture feels grand, and the rooms are comfortable. Choose from lodge rooms or creekside cabins, all with an ideal location for easy access into the Black Hills.

photography: David Hanson [B "So their I was, at the back door to Badlands National Park"] [BR] [LINK "Read the full story" "http://cottageliving.com/cottage/travel/article/0,21135,1097165,00.html"]

Where to Eat

Breakfast Starter

Dry Creek Coffee, 605/574-3500 or drycreekcoffee.com. Strong coffee and warm baked goods set the day straight on your way through Hill City to explore the Black Hills.

Our Picnic Pick

Main Street Market, 605/341-9099 or themainstreetmarket.com. In the Badlands, where you won't find much in the way of groceries, the all-natural, all-gourmet selection of health foods is a welcome oasis to travelers in need of a granola fix.

Après Hike

Sage Creek Grill, 605/673-2424. Visit Mount Rushmore, then take a 20-mile drive to this restaurant in Custer, where you'll find huge salads, hearty soups, and creative sandwiches.

Firehouse Brewing Company, 605/348-1915 or firehousebrewing.com. Microbrew beer, burgers, and a patio—any questions?

photography: David Hanson

Under blue skies and in mild summer temps you reap the benefits of months of rain and dampness—lush moss gardens, towering cedar groves, warm beaches, crazy wildflowers. Olympic also offers the variety-pack of life zones: wilderness beaches wild with salt spray, rocky headlands, and scattered sea stacks; temperate rain forests with more shades of green than a Crayola factory; high mountain spines at Hurricane Ridge; and even glaciers in the high alpine zone. Miles of trails crisscross valleys and over ridges, and no roads bisect the park, leaving the interior to some of the world's largest trees. A long weekend circumnavigating this park feels like exploring the far edge of the globe where a rough sea meets its match in a rich forest and stout fist of mountains.

Where to Sleep

Rent a Cottage
Quileute Oceanside Resort, 360/374-5267 or quileuteoceanside.com. It’s all about location. The one-, two-, and three-bedroom cabins are simple, but with the wildest coastline in the lower 48 staring you in the face, who wants to spend the day inside? Plus, the resort is run by the local Quileute Tribal Council.

So You're Not Into Roughing It

On the lake: Lake Crescent Lodge, 360/928-3211 or lakecrescentlodge.com. Rent your own cottage beside the Historic Lodge on the shores of glacially carved Lake Crescent. Sitting on the lodge porch sipping a cocktail as the sun sets between the lake's western ridges . . . magic.

On the coast: Kalalock Lodge, toll-free 866/525-2562 or visitkalaloch.com. This grand park hotel is situated on the edge of the continent overlooking the dramatic sea stacks and pounding Pacific surf. Choose from lodge rooms or separate units lined up along the cliff edge.

You Love Camping:

Elwha, Sol Duc, Hoh, and Graves Creek campgrounds, nps.gov. It's tough to recommend only one: They're all tucked up on one of the river-paralleling access roads poking into the park, and all offer a campsite canopy of 200-foot-tall trees bigger around than your tent.

Where to Eat

Breakfast Starters

First Street Haven, 360/457-0352. Port Angeles favorite for a slow breakfast or a coffee pick-up. The omelets are a perfect pre-hike choice.

Granny's Cafe, 360/928-3266. This classic diner, just outside Port Angeles on your way to Lake Crescent, is an institution.

Our Picnic Pick

Sunny Farms Country Store, 360/683-8003. Best place on the peninsula for fresh produce, fancy breads, cheeses, baked goods, and meats.

Après Hike

Lake Quinault Lodge Dining Room, 360/288-2900 or visitlakequinault.com. While all the park lodges have dining rooms, many consider the Quinault's to be the finest. You'll find quality steaks, pastas, fresh salmon, and halibut.

photography: Jason Miller

By national park standards, Isle Royale's tourist tally of 23,000 is small. In June, July, or August, you'll likely find manageable "crowds," as well as great weather. North of Michigan's Upper Peninsula lies this lesser-known getaway—a favorite of backpackers, kayakers, and world-weary jet-setters who seek unspoiled splendor. That light human touch shows in Isle Royale's roadless landscape. About 50 miles from end to end and laced with more than 165 miles of trails, the island offers boggy and rocky terrain, plus breathtaking lake views (and fabled resident wolf packs and moose). Isle Royale's wild solitude isn't its only appeal. While Windigo on the west end lures backpackers bent on roughing it, Rock Harbor on the east offers the beauty of the great outdoors—and a warm bed at night.

Where to sleep

Rent a Cottage
Rock Harbor Lodge Cottages, 906/337-4993 or rockharborlodge.com. Choose a housekeeping cottage at the Rock Harbor Lodge, along with a European meal plan, which lets you pay for meals separately at the dining room or the small café. Plus, you get half-day canoe use.

So You're Not Into Roughing It:

Naniboujou Lodge, 218/387-2688 or naniboujou.com. On the mainland, the Naniboujou Lodge just north of Grand Marais, Minnesota, and about a 40-mile drive to the ferry in Grand Portage, offers elegantly rustic rooms and a decidedly high-end dining experience in its Great Hall. Decorated in the designs of the Cree Indians, the Great Hall has been restored to its original splendor and boasts a 200-ton native rock fireplace.

You Love Camping

Windigo campground and other Isle Royale campsites. This ferry landing is also a good spot for camping with facilities. Or you can pitch your tent at a designated campsite along a trail—just make sure you check out the regulations.

Where to Eat

It's fairly simple on the island: Bring your own or enjoy your meals from the Rock Harbor Lodge—the only other option.

Breakfast starters

Fill up in the Rock Harbor Lodge dining room, where you'll find standard breakfast fare for appetites large or small.

our Picnic pick

Heading out for a stroll? Fill out a sack lunch request (you'll find the form in your room at the Rock Harbor Lodge) the night before, and enjoy it on the trail. The Lodge will substitute it for a meal if you're staying under the American plan.

Après hike

Head to the dining room for a world-class dinner, or simply grab a quick bite at the café before watching the sun set over the harbor.