Whether you鈥檙e looking for a riverside treehouse or a log hideaway in the mountains, there is an ideal weekend retreat聽not too far away.
West
Sierra Nevada, California
In just three hours from the San Francisco Bay Area, you can find yourself smack in the middle of nowhere in the eastern Sierra. The new聽聽hotel聽(camping from聽$45, cabins from $200)鈥攚hich used to be called Sorenson鈥檚 Resort but聽reopened this summer under new ownership鈥攊s spread across 165 acres along the west fork of the Carson River, south of Lake Tahoe. Choose between 30 quaint and revamped cabins, seven yurts, a restored 1951 Spartan trailer, and 13 campsites聽(cabins from $200; camping from $45). Hiking along the Pacific Crest Trail, mountain biking, and soaking at聽聽are all within an hour鈥檚 drive of the property.
Northwest
Stanley, Idaho
Most people visit Stanley鈥攁 nine-hour drive from Portland, Oregon, or six hours from Salt Lake City鈥攖o ride the area鈥檚 extensive network of mountain-biking trails, including聽the popular 11.5-mile Elk Mountain聽Loop, as well as to paddle the Salmon River聽and fish and swim聽at Redfish Lake. (I go for the pecan sticky buns at the .) Stay in one of ten聽log cabins at 聽(from $150), where you can play cornhole on the lawn with a聽backdrop of the Sawtooth Mountains.
Mountain West
Cuchara Valley, Colorado
Southern Colorado鈥檚 Spanish Peaks have all the draws of the Rockies鈥攗nspoiled views, endless trails, mountains to summit鈥攂ut none of the crowds. Check out the small towns of La Veta and Cuchara, which are about three hours south of Denver by car, for hiking,聽mountain biking, and an artsy-meets-ranching Old West vibe. Book one of the nine historic cabins at the 聽(from $105), a 100-acre estate in the Cuchara Valley.
Southwest
Taos, New Mexico
Stay at the聽40-acre 聽(from $89), the only large-scale goji berry farm in the U.S.,聽which also grows other fruits and vegetables and raises free-range chickens, goats, and alpacas in northern New Mexico鈥檚 Sangre de Cristo Mountains. The site鈥檚 ten聽historic cabins, which are heated with wood-burning stoves and powered by solar electricity, are named after the famous writers who once stayed here, like D.H. Lawrence and Aldous Huxley. You鈥檒l find plenty of hiking trails, hot springs, and rafting nearby.
Midwest
Cobden, Illinois
Two hours southeast of聽St. Louis, or five hours south of聽Chicago, Cobden聽is a gateway to , home to sandstone cliffs, over 400 miles of trails, and one of the state鈥檚 most Instagrammed聽attractions, the rock pillars of . Overnight聽in聽one of five 聽(from $95)鈥攚ell-appointed chalets with massive windows and vaulted ceilings鈥攖o be minutes from the hiking trails and outdoor wine-tasting rooms along the .
Southeast
Landrum, South Carolina
罢丑别听 (from $125) sits on a 12.5-acre property less than an hour from聽Greenville, South Carolina,聽and Asheville, North Carolina. A restored 19th-century log cabin, it鈥檚聽the ideal base camp聽for biking and hiking in the surrounding Blue Ridge Mountains. The main cabin sleeps up to four in two bedrooms, while a studio apartment with its own entrance is perfect for a couple. Or rent the whole thing for up to eight people.
Northeast
Taberg, New York
At the聽 (from $79), located 50 minutes from Syracuse, New York, stay聽in one of seven accommodations, ranging from treehouses and knotty-pine cottages to a renovated school bus. A former hunting camp turned nature sanctuary, this 60-acre riverfront property has tubing, swimming, or angling聽on Fish Creek, as well as swimming at Oneida Lake and trekking聽in the Adirondacks, both of which are聽within an hour鈥檚 drive.