At many tourist destinations around the United States, the best things on vacation are free.
By JAMES T. YENCKEL
Published May 30, 2004
[AP photos]
Hike Mt. Rainier in Washington.
Cross the Mississippi on a ferry in New Orleans.
Tour a museum in Washignton, D.C.
Take a ferry in North Carolina’s Outer Banks.
How can a family keep travel costs down? Take advantage of the many free attractions along the way. In the past year, I've driven thousands of miles in search of such bargains.
I'm amazed by the variety of freebies - you're likely to find something to suit nearly everyone's get-away-from-it-all needs. Here is a baker's dozen to consider, all in prime vacation destinations:
Wriggling ecology lesson
A favorite is the summer salmon show at the Sawtooth Fish Hatchery in Stanley, Idaho, at the base of the magnificent, snow-tipped Sawtooth Range. It's exciting, wet and - parents take heed - highly educational.
Huge ocean-going Chinook salmon return in summer to spawn in central Idaho's Salmon River. En route, they are trapped briefly at the fish hatchery. Every morning, a team scoops the latest arrivals out of a holding pool one by one, gives each an antimicrobe injection - sort of like getting a marine flu shot - and sends the fish on its way.
The goal is to boost the Chinooks' much depleted numbers, but the big silvery fish, weighing 20 to 40 pounds, don't see it this way. Can they have spied the needle? They put up a vigorous fight, flipping and wriggling to escape. Some manage to slip out of the net, but only briefly.
The procedure usually lasts an hour and makes for a great reality show, a memorable lesson in ecology. You are invited to watch up-close - beware, you could get splashed - and it won't cost you a penny.
The salmon are hoisted from the holding pool beginning at 9 a.m. daily in the summer. Peak season typically is the third week of June through mid July, but the action can last through Labor Day.
True, it's brief, but you do get to sea. Free ferries, each carrying up to 30 cars, link Cape Hatteras with Ocracoke Island in North Carolina's Outer Banks.
Savor the salty breezes on the 40-minute passage each way. Service is provided year-around; in summer, ferries depart to and from Ocracoke every 30 to 60 minutes from 5 a.m. to midnight.
For more information, call toll-free 1-800-293-3779; the Web site is www.ncferry.org
Gala concert
Enjoy music every night. The John F. Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., routinely presents the world's premier artists at sometimes lofty prices. But nightly at 6, the Millennium Stage in the center's foyer plays host to an eclectic schedule of hourlong concerts. Folk music one night, opera the next. Dance, rock, blues, Cajun. No tickets, no reservations.
Sit back and soak for as long as you like at the indoor-outdoor State Bath House at Hot Springs State Park, in the historic central Wyoming town of Thermopolis. Lockers and showers are free, too. Just bring a bathing suit and towel.
Soar toward the sky. High in the Rocky Mountains, the former mining town of Telluride, Colo., is a popular winter ski resort and summer outdoor recreation center. Climb aboard an eight-passenger gondola for a free, 13-minute ride from Old Telluride at the foot of the slopes to Mountain Village, perched high above. Daily, 7 a.m. to midnight.
Follow in the footsteps of an expert. Study the glaciers at Mount Rainier, Wash. Explore ancient cliff dwellings at Mesa Verde, Colo. Catch a glimpse of elk, moose and maybe a bear at Yellowstone in Wyoming. Most national parks schedule a variety of ranger-led walks that are both educational and fun. Head for the visitor center at each park to sign up.
Fine wine sipping
Many of California's finest Napa Valley wineries charge $3 to $5 to sample their vintages. Not for us budget folks. Instead, seek out up-and-coming wine centers, where tasting is free. In the West, make it Northern California's lovely Amador County vineyards in the Sierra foothills. In the East, northern Virginia provides Blue Ridge views with its reds and whites.
For more information, call Amador toll-free at 1-888-655-8614; www.amadorwine.com For news on the Blue Ridge, call toll-free 1-800-828-4637; www.virginiawines.org
Mississippi River cruise
Well, a mini cruise, anyway. Paddlewheel steamboats ply the Mississippi out of New Orleans. But they charge for you to come aboard. For a free trip, hop aboard a car ferry at the end of Canal Street next to the French Quarter.
Operating continually, the ferries cross the Mississippi in 5 to 10 minutes. But you can stay aboard as long as you like, taking in views of the heavy freighter traffic upriver and down.
No, you don't jump; you hear true tales from those who do.
In historic Winthrop, Wash., the North Cascades Smokejumpers Base claims title as the birthplace of smoke jumping, fighting forest fires by parachuting into difficult to reach areas. Impromptu 60-minute tours are given daily; just show up. Talk to a smoke jumper, check out the gear, see the parachute-rigging room, climb aboard the twin-engine plane that's ready to go with 10 minutes' notice.
Nope, not Celine Dion at Caesars Palace. That kind of Las Vegas show ticket can easily take you into triple figures. Instead, take in the hotel casino freebies on the Strip.
Outside Bellagio, watch the dancing waters on the hotel's huge lake. At the Mirage, a mock volcano erupts every 15 minutes, flames and smoke shooting into the sky. On Treasure Island's doorstep, 17th century pirates clash with scantily clad beauties in "Sirens of TI" - sound, lights and fury at 6, 8 and 10 p.m.
Rough it, and camp for free. In many state and national parks and forests, a reserved campsite can cost up to $25 a night or more. But on some public lands, including national forests, wildlife refuges and Bureau of Land Management acreage, "dispersed" camping is permitted at no cost. Set up your tent practically anywhere, but remember to bring water and dig your own latrine.
For more information, go to www.recreation.gov or call the state or national park you want to visit.
Capital museums
Imagine days of museum-hopping for free. The National Mall in Washington, D.C., is dotted with some of the country's most important museums. None charges an entrance fee. See a Leonardo da Vinci at the National Gallery, spacecraft at the National Air and Space Museum, the original Star-Spangled Banner at the National Museum of American History, dinosaur fossils at the National Museum of Natural History.
Delight your eyes; stimulate your brain. A stroll up Santa Fe's winding, milelong Canyon Road is a dazzling immersion in first-rate contemporary sculpture. A giant metal bird perches in a tree. A fantastical creature of many colors peers from behind a bush. At least 60 art galleries are in close proximity, and at many, the art spills outdoors.
For more information, call 505 982-1648; www.santafegalleries.net Freelance writer James T. Yenckel was chief travel writer at the the Washington Post for 16 years.
