The Open Road Photos - National Geographic

Spearfish Canyon, South Dakota
Photograph by Dan Westergren
South Dakota's Black Hills area, seen here near Spearfish Canyon, is a popular backpacking and day-hiking destination.
Black Hills, South Dakota
Photograph by Dan Westergren
A Mount Rushmore-scale version of this statue of Indian chief Crazy Horse is being blasted into the hill in the background in Black Hills, South Dakota.
Charleston, South Carolina
Photograph by Bob Sacha
Built circa 1760, St. Michael's Episcopal Church is the oldest church in Charleston, South Carolina. It was built on the site of a small wooden church that dated from 1680.
Middleton Place Plantation, South Carolina
Photograph by B Anthony Stewart
Middleton Place Plantation in South Carolina boasts what it calls the United States' oldest landscaped gardens. In bloom since 1741, the gardens are home to many of the hallmarks of Southern horticulture, including magnolias, azaleas, and Spanish moss.
Mount Hood, Oregon
Photograph by Bates Littlehales
Snow-covered Mount Hood, looming over much of northwest Oregon, is the state’s largest mountain. The mountain, a dormant volcano, last erupted in 1865.
Portland, Oregon
Photograph by Bates Littlehales
Approximately two million people live in the shadow of Mount Hood. A member of one of British navigator George Vancouver’s expeditions first documented its existence in 1792.
Rancho de Taos, New Mexico
Photograph by Dick Durrance II
An icon of Spanish Colonial architecture, the circa-1800 San Francisco de Assisi church in Rancho de Taos, New Mexico, has been an inspiration to artists such as painter Georgia O’Keefe and photographer Ansel Adams.
Near Taos, New Mexico
Photograph by Dick Durrance II
Native American culture thrives undiluted at centuries-old, visitor-friendly Taos Pueblo, just north of Taos. Here 200 Native Americans forsake electricity to live in one of the United States’ largest multistory pueblos.