East Coast Leg 3: NYC to Washington D.C.

When you reach New York City, see a different side of the city with a mile and a half walk along The High Line. What makes the High Line so cool is that it's an elevated walking park that was built atop an unused section of the New York Central Railroad!

Then, just 20 minutes later you'll come to the World's Largest Lightbulb in Iselin. It's got that fun, kitschy roadside attraction quality to it, and makes for a pretty cool photo-op. A guided tour will only set you back $5.

After the hustle and bustle of NYC, head over to New Brunswick, NJ's serene and lush Bamboo Forest, which is open year round. The bamboo grow to be in excess of 30ft in height, and the walk through the garden is the perfect way to relax after driving, or to just stretch your legs. I-95 doesn't spend a ton of time in New Jersey, but it's at least worth getting out of the car here, and it's pretty close to the highway.

New Jersey is also a hotbed for fossil finds. The teeth and vertebrae of goblin sharks, mackerel sharks, crow sharks, angel sharks, sawfish, rays, drumfish, and, my favorite, saber-tooth salmon can be found at Marlboro's Big Brook Park. Remains of Mososaurs (which are late Cretaceous marine lizards), mollusks and Belemnites (which were squid-like cephalopods) can also be found. If you didn't already know, the continent's very first (nearly) complete dinosaur skeleton was discovered not in the West, but right here in New Jersey. It helps to look up the different kinds of fossils from some of these creatures, or to see what kinds of fossils can be found at these sites, so you have a good idea of what to look for when you start hunting.