Hey Our Campfire Unplugged Friends!
🏕️ The Best of Summer Travel Without the Crowds
Smart travelers in 2025 are skipping the traffic jams at national parks—and choosing park-adjacent adventures instead. Think state parks, national monuments, BLM land, or even local gems just outside the park gates.
Some of our favorite alternatives:
- Custer State Park → Just as epic as the Badlands (and fewer people!) Read our Custer article »
- Big South Fork (TN) → A quiet cousin to Red River Gorge.
- Land Between the Lakes (KY/TN) → Massive, underrated, and full of family fun.
- Michigan’s Upper Peninsula → Waterfalls, wildlife, and wide open spaces—perfect for families craving fresh air and fewer crowds.
💡 Bonus: These places are often closer to home—perfect for a weekend getaway or summer micro-vacation.
✅ Planning Tip: Use RV Travel GPT to build a custom park-adjacent itinerary—fast!
3 ChatGPT Prompts for Park-Adjacent Planning
- “What are some lesser-known state parks or forest areas within 2 hours of [your city] that are great for hiking and RV camping?”
- “Plan a 3-day weekend adventure with activities near but not inside [name of a national park].”
- “I want to visit a beautiful outdoor destination near [city or region], but avoid big crowds. Can you build me a fun itinerary?”
🎙️ Mike on the Mic: Our Story, RV Life & the Creator Journey
Big news—Mike was featured on the Peanut Butter and Mountains Podcast!
In the episode, he shares how our RV travels turned into a content creation journey that changed our family life—and even made him better at his day job.
“To really live the lifestyle of freedom, you have to have assets that generate money for you—when you're not doing something.”
“This has given me an outlet to unlock a level of creativity that… in traditional accounting, you don't really get.”
We also talk about using AI to streamline content, the power of documenting your adventures, and how UGC (user-generated content) is opening doors to amazing travel experiences.
🎧 Listen to the episode here »
🚐 Want to trade your PTO days for unforgettable memories?
Learn how creating simple, authentic videos of your travels can lead to free gear, brand collabs, and special access—all while giving your family fun memories to look back on.
👉 Check out Chad’s Outdoor Creator Academy—on sale now for just $48! (Note - we may make a small commission if you purchase Chad's course from our link)
🌳 New Post: KOA Streetsboro Review
We visited Cuyahoga Valley National Park over Memorial Day weekend, and while we’re still finalizing our full park recap, our Streetsboro KOA campground review is live!
- Family-friendly vibes ✅
- Awesome pool & weekend activities ✅
- Quick drive to CVNP & Cleveland ✅
- Only downside? Campsites packed with too many cars—but overall, a solid choice for exploring the area.
📍 Read our Streetsboro KOA Review »
📝 Stay tuned next week for our full Cuyahoga adventure!
As always, we’d love to hear from you—Where are you headed next? Any favorite park-adjacent gems we should know about?
Happy Camping!
Mike
Our Campfire Unplugged
mike@ourcampfireunplugged.com
Follow Our Adventures Across Social Media! 📲
We LOVE using YouTube and TikTok (no crazy dances from us!) to scout new places before we visit—and we share tons of travel tips, campground reviews, and fun shorts from our adventures too!
We would love your support:
🎥 Subscribe to our YouTube Channel
🎵 Follow us on TikTok
👍 Join us on Facebook
