Admire the Great Plains, Toadstool Park’s crazy formations, and enjoy swimming, horseback riding, hiking, the Museum of the Fur Trade, and Ogallala National Grassland.
U.S. 20 from Gordon to Crawford puts you through Nebraska’s Pine Ridge Country. The 67-mile trip takes about 1-1/2 hours non-stop. The scenery of the Great Plains on a Nebraska drive is some of the best anywhere in the entire United States.
Begin driving in the town of Gordon. Head west on Route 20 toward the towns of Hay Springs and Rushville. Both have oasis-like parks and historical museums. A side trip north from Crawford will bring you at Toadstool Park where you’ll discover some of the wildest formations anywhere across the Great Plains. To the southwest, Read more . . .
It seems everything in Nebraska is along straight lines, and you only have very few curves in this tour. It is scenic, though, as you follow The Oregon Trail and the North Platte River much of the way. Begin your drive in Ogallala and head northwest on U.S. 26 for 129 miles to Scottsbluff. Ogallala used to be the terminus for the famous Texas cattle drives, so its history is full of rowdiness. There is a scenic Boot Hill Cemetery on 10th Street. Ash Hollow State Park, 3 miles before Lewellen, has some fascinating rock formations and is the sight of the first battle of the Indian Wars in 1854 (Bluewater Battlefield). Chimney Rock National Historic Site marked the end of the grasslands for the Oregonians on their trek west. It is now brightly illuminated at night (What progress!). 
U.S. 61 to Herman is a trip through the center of Missouri wine country west of St. Louis. The drive begins at the August A. Busch Memorial Conservation Area, which offers more than 16,000 acres of fishing, hunting, biking, and hiking. Drive west on Route 94 toward Defiance. A 5-mile drive on Route F will take you to the Daniel Boone House. Returning to Route 94, you will see the 200-mile KATY Trail for hiking and biking. Get in wine country west of Defiance.
The drive from Salem to Eminence on Route 19 is a 44-mile, 1-hour travel and is best driven in the spring through fall. The tour winds through farm country and upland forests. You will see lots of gorgeous panorama everywhere along this drive, as you slice through a small portion of the Ozarks. As you travel south from Salem on Route 19, several side streets will take you into parts of the gigantic, 1.5 million-acre Mark Twain National Forest. Route 19 climbs the Ozark Plateau on its way to the Current River and its southern stream, the Jacks Fork River, part of the Ozark National Scenic Riverways. 
Duluth may not be everyone’s idea of a perfect vacation destination, but it’s a great starting point for this spectacular experience in Minnesota’s North Country. You can head out along the rugged Lake Superior coast on Route 61 where rocky shores, lighthouses, waterfalls, and steep cliffs cause you to consciously pull your eyes away from the scenery to watch the road.