🍦 The sweetest detours of the summer

Howdy, friends, and welcome back to this week’s Roadtripper!

Can I just start by saying that I’m loving y’all’s feedback on the Pit Stop Polls?! ❤️

Here’s a quick rundown just for fun:

• 80%+ of y’all feel like the journey is the destination.

• ~50% of y’all are down to drive 6-8 hours in one day!

• And about 75% of our roadtripping crew is hitting the road primarily in search of scenic drives and nature parks.

Not only that, but you all have some awesome-sounding road trips planned, including:

• A couples’ road trip with the guys in one car and the gals in another – so fun!

• A road trip along the Avenue of Giants to the Pacific Northwest, chasing ice cream stops and waterfalls – 100% here for it.

• An Upper Peninsula tour to Mackinac Island – one of our own Daily Drop team members is also taking this road trip soon, and I’m not-so-patiently waiting for all the details to share with y’all.

• A road trip around Europe, with some cruises sprinkled in, for one big EPIC trip – Hi, I’d like to squeeze into your luggage, plz. 🙋‍♀️

And we’ve got quite a bit of experience behind the wheel, too – some of y’all have driven thousands upon thousands of miles, and one reader has racked up visits to 55+ national parks with more on the way!

Let’s hear it for our road-tripping readers out there doing the thing! As for me, I’m noting all the tips and route requests, so keep the feedback coming, y’all! 🎉

Now, we’ve got some ground to cover, so let’s get down to business. 🚗

🍦 The Route Report: Waterfalls and waffle cones
🏠 The Check-In: Book vacation rentals with points
🛑 The Pit Stop Poll: Themed Trips

🍦 The Route Report: Waterfalls and waffle cones

This week’s route is less one iconic route or drive, and more of a choose-your-own-adventure — which, honestly, is how all road trips should be.

Maybe I was inspired by the reader who’s hitting ice cream stops, maybe the summer heat has me melting, or maybe I have a major sweet tooth (it’s 100% this one).

As July is National Ice Cream Month, and this Sunday is National Ice Cream Day (both thanks to a 1984 Presidential Proclamation), I bring you a collection of my new favorite thing: Ice Cream Trails.

This is hardly an exhaustive list, but it’s a great place to start for a weekend road trip if you live in one of these areas or happen to be visiting this summer:

Scooped Ice Cream Trail — Pennsylvania

The state of Pennsylvania must have a massive sweet tooth — I mean, they’re the home of Hershey’s Chocolate — because they offer an annual trail to explore local creameries, complete with a passport and giveaways.

There are almost 60 creameries on this year’s list, all prioritizing using local Pennsylvania dairy and whipping up homemade batches and inventive flavors.

The Visit PA website has an entire directory of the farm-to-table and small-batch artisanal offerings, with robust descriptions of each creamery and some of the flavors they offer.

And they even have offerings for my vegan and lactose-intolerant friends, most notably at Bruster’s Real Ice Cream, Jerry’s Custard, and Ellwood Ice.

If you need a break between ice cream stops, check out Ricketts Glen State Park in Benton, PA, home to 22 beautiful waterfalls, hiking trails of varying difficulty, a lake for boating or relaxing onshore, and on-site camping opportunities.

Or head to Ohiopyle State Park in Fayette County for almost 80 miles of hiking trails, more waterfalls, kayaking, and whitewater adventure — if that’s your speed— and be sure to check out the natural waterslides in the summer months!

Maryland’s Best Ice Cream Trail

Pennsylvania’s southern neighbor takes their ice cream frenzy to a whole new level, with a statewide trail that pairs their local ice cream stops with nearby hiking trails — cause who doesn’t want a refreshing treat after a hike?? 😋

They have a digital pass so you can check in at each trailhead or creamery to earn points… that you can then redeem for fun prizes like trail-specific stickers, branded coffee mugs and hats. If you complete all the trails, you’ll be entered to win a State Park Pass.

And if you want to make a whole trip out of it, don’t miss Assateague Island National Seashore off the coast. This Atlantic barrier island has maintained some of its wildness and is home to pristine beaches, saltwater marshes, and wild horses.

Anyone else read Misty of Chincoteague growing up?? Well, this is the neighboring Maryland island.

If you’re sticking to the western side of the state, though, check out Swallow Falls State Park, a mountain park with a 53-foot waterfall — Maryland’s tallest — though advanced day-use passes may be required during summer.

Madison County Ice Cream Trail

Further north, this New York county boasts its very own ice cream trail with 15 locations, one of which serves ice cream nachos. 🤯

The list is comprised of local mom and pop ice cream shops, and there’s even a Craft Coffee Trail and a Haunted History Trail if your stomach is tapped out. 👻

Situated right in the middle of New York State, you could start a road trip exploring pretty much any region of the state from here.

Chittenango Falls State Park is located within Madison County, if you need a breath of fresh air between ice creams, and views of a 167-foot waterfall.

Just across the Onondaga County line in Fayetteville, NY is Green Lakes State Park, known for its rare glacial meromictic lake — meaning surface and bottom layers of water never meet — that takes on a startling Caribbean-blue during the summer months.

Perfect for swimming, hiking, camping, or just enjoying the views as you take a break from everyday life — and ice cream tastings.

New Hampshire’s Original Ice Cream Trail

Heading quite a bit further east, you’ll find New Hampshire’s own statewide ice cream trail sponsored by Visit New Hampshire.

With 69 locations, this trail boasts the most options on this brief list. They even have a comprehensive brochure mapping them out and breaking them down into regions, making it easy to visit the ones nearest you.

If you get a passport sticker at a minimum of 55 locations across the state, you can send off for a complimentary t-shirt.

And, I mean, 55 ice cream scoops in one summer is an accomplishment that might just be t-shirt brag-worthy. 🤷‍♀️

You will definitely need to burn off some of that sugar rush, though, so I’d suggest heading to Franconia Notch State Park in the White Mountains.

The park is home to Cannon Mountain, a state-owned ski area that owes its name to a cannon-shaped rock on the summit, as well as a historical site dedicated to the now collapsed Old Man of the Mountain.

Echo and Profile Lakes can be found in the northern parts of the park, and the Flume Gorge, a paid attraction, is a must-see in the southern region of the park, though The Basin, a massive glacial pothole, is a free alternative.

For a more challenging adventure, head to Mount Monadnock, in Jaffrey, NH, frequently claimed to be one of the most climbed mountains in the world (be sure to check weather conditions before hiking).

A note on earning rates

Alright, so we need to quickly talk about how you’re earning points on all this ice cream. This is Daily Drop, after all. 😏

Some shops may code as dining, in which case you could earn 3 or even 4x, depending on the card you use. But scoop shops in grocery stores or gas stations may have different results.

If that’s too much to keep straight, check out our Point Multipliers Cheat Sheet or keep it simple and earn a straightforward 2x miles on everything with the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card.

Bottom line (or bottom of the cone?)

These trails are just a few samplings of the sweet-centric weekend getaway ideas out there — in fact, I found similar routes in Oregon and North Carolina, plus a Vermont special worth checking out.

And finding nearby state parks is a great way to mix adventure with pleasure while rounding out the trip.

🏠 The Check-In: Book vacation rentals with points

Whether we’re headed to state parks or on the hunt for the state’s best scoop, sometimes adventure takes us off the beaten path and away from chain hotels, which can make redeeming points on stays difficult.

Not to mention, sometimes we just need more room to spread out than a hotel can provide — hello, roadtripping with kids. 😵‍💫

Fortunately, this is where Marriott Homes and Villas comes in.

The home rental branch of the hotel giant provides the opportunity to book vacation home rentals with Marriott Bonvoy points (or cash).

And they’re currently running a promotion that makes this even more enticing.

You’ll need to book by August 20th and stay by November 30th to save 10% off select home rentals — but this deal works for both cash and points stays.

After registering for the promotion in your free Marriott Bonvoy account, search for properties that show the 10% promotion discount, as not all rentals will qualify.

After you find a property you like, you can choose if you want to pay entirely in cash or points (if you have enough) or use your points to pay part of the balance.

For instance, this condo in Ocean City (just a 15-minute drive from Assateague Island National Seashore) is bookable for either $793 or 129,125 Marriott Bonvoy points, or you could pay with a combo of points and cash.

Just watch out for taxes and fees that can quickly add up in addition to the nightly price.

Marriott Homes and Villas can tend to be pricier, but if you find a good deal, this can be an opportunity to redeem points on vacation rentals.

If you choose to pay with cash, you’ll earn Marriott Bonvoy points and nights stayed will count towards Marriott elite status.

And if you have this card (which currently has its highest welcome offer of the year), you can earn additional Marriott Bonvoy points on those cash bookings.

If you’ve got a stash of UR points, MR points, or Bilt Points, they can be transferred directly to Marriott and used to book this offer as well — and they occasionally run transfer bonuses that could make this an even better booking option.

Our #1 travel card currently has a 100,000-point limited-time offer, if you’re looking for a great way to earn a lot of those transferable points (that you could use at Marriott… or many other travel partners).

🛑 The Pit Stop Poll: Themed Trips

Alright, go chase waterfalls and celebrate National Ice Cream Month, my friends.

And let me know if you have a local route or themed trail you love!

See y’all next week,

Katie Begnoche
Writer, Daily Drop
29.7604° N , 95.3698° W

With contributions by Sam Anthony.