Top Parks

For me, naming the top two parks is easy – Yosemite and Glacier.  We’ve been to each of them several times and we’d go again in a heartbeat.  There are so many fantastic parks to visit, but for me, these two are the best by a good margin.  Click on the park name below and a window will open to our trip report for a play by play of our experience in that park.

Yosemite–  John Muir called Yosemite a “Temple of Nature.”  We call it our happy place.  Yosemite Valley has so much jaw dropping beauty in one place, it’s hard to do it justice with words or photos.  There are hikes for every ability and the views are easily accessible.  Now about the crowds…it’s tough if you’re a family whose only opportunity is the middle of summer.  It’s going to be packed.  But if you’re lucky and can visit in the Spring, during the week while the kids are in school, you’ll likely be treated to stunning blue skies and roaring waterfalls.

Glacier – Nearly everyone who visits Glacier National Park raves about the experience and has the park at or near the top of their rankings.  There are many parts of Glacier, each a bit different, but all incredibly gorgeous.  The typical visit includes West Glacier, Lake McDonald, Going to the Sun Road, and Logan Pass.  All of those are awesome, but there’s also Polebridge, St Mary, Two Medicine, Goat Haunt (via the sister park in Canada, Waterton Lakes), and my favorite, Many Glacier.  From Many Glacier, you can do some of the most incredible hikes in the world.

Tier 2:  Amazing Parks

Everyone Should See

These are definitely some of the best parks in the system.  If you are fortunate enough to visit, you will almost certainly take away incredible memories.  Click on the park name and a window will open to our trip report (if complete).

Katmai – While this park is beautiful too, it’s all about the BEARS!  Katmai’s Coastal Brown Bears (basically grizzlies, only larger) are like celebrities.  The rangers here are superstars.  It’s probably one of the best and hardest jobs in the NPS.  And for the visitors, it’s an experience of a lifetime.  You WILL encounter bears in the wild.  But they’re only interested in fattening up on the salmon that arrive at Brooks Falls so they can survive the brutal winter.  It ain’t cheap, but if you’re going to spend $, this one is worth it.

Wrangell-St Elias – There are so many gorgeous mountains here!  We’ve said that taking a cruise or driving to Denali is “Alaska for Beginners.”  This was our first experience with “Intermediate Alaska” that is more remote, but still has most of the amenities your typical visitor wants (ie The Potato restaurant).  The park is enormous and just taking in everything in the town of McCarthy and old Kennicott Mine is awesome.  You can hike on a glacier, see wildlife, go whitewater rafting, and just enjoy the remoteness of Alaska.

Bryce Canyon – Utah is very proud of its Mighty Five NPs.  Zion gets the most attention, but Bryce Canyon is our favorite of the five.  We’ve visited several times, despite it’s remoteness.  From a photography standpoint, it is exceptional.  And the Navajo-Queen’s Garden hike is one of our favorites.

Yellowstone – Our nation’s first official National Park is fantastic.  There are so many different things to love about Yellowstone.  While Old Faithful and the geysers get a lot of the headlines, I think the wildlife is my favorite.  Driving through Lamar Valley takes your breath away, there are so many bison with the occassional bear (and doing it on our scooter, Ruby Sue, introduces an element of danger).  I am still hoping to see a wolf on a future visit.  Rainy got to do Yellowstone in Winter which is just crazy beautiful.

Olympic – Olympic NP is definitely a top park.  Our first visit was a bit underwhelming as it was a particularly dry and smoky August.  But our visit in June 2024 was spectacular and included Hurricane Ridge, Hoh River Rainforest, Cape Flattery, and several of the park’s beaches.  They were all fantastic, but the beaches were our favorite with their seastacks, eagles, and almost zero people.

Zion – For many people, this is their favorite park and I understand why.  Angel’s Landing is amazing (we only got to Scout’s Lookout and it was too crowded to go up for us) and the Narrows might be my favorite hike ever.  Some say Zion is like Yosemite, but in color.  Sorry, nice try.  Not quite.  But it’s still a top 10 for me.

Grand Teton – It may not get all the pub of Yellowstone, but Grand Teton NP has many of the same great qualities plus a few extras.  The Tetons themselves are spectacular and Jenny Lake is just beautiful.  And the Cascade Canyon hike is one of the best we’ve done.

Mount Rainier – If you’re lucky enough to get favorable weather, the views of the mountain are one of the best “wows” in the system.  There are several great hikes around the Paradise Visitor Center and it’s not just the mountain and its many glaciers.  There are waterfalls and the summer flowers are fantastic.

Tier 4:

We’re Pretty Great Too

If you get a chance, these are great parks.  Most are incredibly beautiful, some perhaps a bit harder to get to.  You won’t be disappointed if you hit these up.

Lake Clark – The gateway to the park is a town called Port Alsworth and there is a idyllic lodge there called The Farm Lodge where you can take daytrips to all sorts of amazingly beautiful places.  Our day at Twin Lakes was one of the most beautiful places ever.

Denali – The park was originally founded to protect the wildlife in the area.  Getting a clear day or hour so you can see the mountain makes it all worthwhile.  Throw in some moose, grizzlies, and caribou and you’ve got an awesome visit.

Acadia – The east coast doesn’t have tons of majestic parks like out west, but Acadia is an excellent park, especially in the fall.  Great hikes, beautiful lakes, and be sure to grab some popovers.

Hawaii Volcanoes – There are lots of things to see and do around the Kiluea volcano.  And if you’re lucky and there’s an eruption going on, you’ll be treated to something extraordinary.  We hit the jackpot on one visit and got to witness a spectacular Mauna Loa eruption.

Redwood – This is really a combined National and State Park.  Seeing the gigantic coastal redwood trees as well as the beautiful California coast is a special treat.  You can drive as well as hike amongst these 300+ foot marvels.

North Cascades – We visited this park twice, once along the Highway 20 Skagit River area and once on a trip to Stehekin via Lake Chelan.  The turquoise color of the lakes is breathtaking.  There are beautiful views and wonderful hikes, but Stehekin is something special.

Glacier Bay – Most people visit Glacier Bay while on an Alaska cruise which is great.  Another option is flying into Gustuvus and staying at the lodge.  Either way, seeing the park from the water is the way to go and it’s incredible.

Kenai Fjords – This is one of the three (out of 8) Alaska parks that you can drive to.  On land, you can visit the Exit Glacier coming off the Harding Icefield.  That’s neat.  The best part is taking a boat tour to see the glaciers in action (calving) and the abundant wildlife.

Canyonlands – There are three main districts to Canyonlands:  Islands in the Sky, The Needles, and The Maze.  The Islands in the Sky is the easiest to visit and and sits above the rim.  Our trip was a short one with some great vistas, but we need to return and try to venture below the rim.

Great Smoky Mountains – Believe it or not,this is the most visited National Park in the system.  I’m not sure how they count “visitors” as there are major roads that locals must drive through even if you’re not visiting the actual park.  Anyway, it’s a great park with good hikes, wonderful fall colors, and lots of wildlife.  Although frequently crowded, driving Cades Cove is really fun.

Carlsbad Caverns – There are a handful of parks that are centered around caves and Carlsbad is by far the coolest.  The Big Room isn’t just big, it’s enormous.  And wildly colorful and amazing.  The audio tour is a great supplement to walking through and you can also do ranger led hikes to more remote parts of the cave.  Go!

Kings Canyon – Kings is managed jointly by the Park Service along with neighboring Sequoia.  They both have groves of giant sequoias, but Kings also has the canyon which is a beautiful riverside drive.  Few visitors actually make it all the way to the canyon, but it’s super peaceful with nice hikes.

Joshua Tree – J-Tree as it’s known is a really fun park.  The actual Joshua Trees are kind of wacky, Dr Seuss looking plants.  I think the rocks are the coolest part of the park, especially at night in the frame of amazing night skies.

Badlands – At first, Badlands looks and sounds pretty desolate.  But it’s really a cool, very photogenic park.  The colors, especially around dusk are spectacular and there’s decent wildlife, as long as you count prarie dogs.

Capitol Reef – Probably the least known/visited of the Utah parks, Capitol Reef has nothing to do with ancient oceans.  It got its name from the domes in the park that resemble the US Capitol and the cliffs that made early western travel difficult.  Regardless, it’s a beautiful park with great hikes (we only did one unfortunately) and a small early Mormon town, called Fruita where there are still many groves.  And they have pie.

Tier 5:

REALLY GOOD Parks

Like the others on earlier lists, these are also great parks.  We had fun visits, many great hikes, and tons of cool photos.  Probably a notch below those above in terns of natural beauty or variety of activities, but definitely worth a visit if you can.

New River Gorge – This is the most recent addition to the collection of National Parks and New River Gorge is a lot of fun.  There’s a stunning bridge, some great hikes, and the whitewater rafting was a blast.

Haleakala – The most popular activity here is sunrise at the peak, which requires an advance ticket to get up the mountain.  If the weather is right, the views are excellent.  We loved the sunrise, but sunset was just as beautiful and way less crowded.  And we’re always supportive of NOT WAKING UP AT 3AM.

Channel Islands – Although close to LA, these islands are a world away and show what SoCal would look like without irrigation.  Most people visit Santa Cruz island and the sea kayaking is fun.  Overnighting at the campground cool as you get to see some decent night skies.  We saw a Space X launch which was eerie.

Dry Tortugas – On our 2019 trip, Dry Tortugas was the answer to both – which was the best and worst park on the trip?  It’s a beautiful, unique park that’s a challenge to get to.  Very few people choose to camp overnight, but we did, which was both awesome and not.  Pretty much everyone has gone back on the boat, so you get the place to yourself.  But when we were there, it was an oppressive, windless, hot night.  Oh yeah, and then the rats came out.

Everglades – Another large park that tells a great story of conservation, Everglades has great wildlife with the variety of birds and of course, alligators.  We loved the tour at Shark Valley.

Mesa Verde – Most National Parks are recognized for their natural beauty, but Mesa Verde is recognized for its cultural significance.  The ancient Puebloans have an amazing and mysterious history and this park does a great job educating and preserving the respective structures.

Black Canyon of the Gunnison – One of the lesser known parks, Black Canyon has some really tremendous views from around the rim.  It suffers from a Grand Canyon complex, but it’s really a cool park in its own right.

Lassen Volcanic – This park has lots of variety.  From the signature (dormant) volcanic peak, to Manzanita Lake and the Bumpass Hell hydrothermal features, you can sample it all here.

US Virgin Islands – St John in the US Virgin Islands is known for its stunning beaches.  The National Park here covers about 2/3 of the island and includes history lessons of the brutal sugar plantations and slave trade.  Fun beach time, but eye opening.

Shenandoah – Shenandoah is a great hiker’s park and driving Skyline Drive is beautiful.  We did Shenandoah before we bought our RV and enjoyed staying at Skyland Big Meadows.

Great Basin – You’d never guess, but this park has a glacier.  In Nevada!  Well, it does for now.  It also has 3000 year old Bristlecone Pines that are among the oldest living things on the planet.  This is a relatively unknown park that has some good high elevation hikes, a cave, and awesome night skies.

Isle Royale – This is an island in the middle of Lake Superior.  Not many people visit, but those who do, definitely love it.  They have some incredible backpacking opportunities, but we stayed at the Rock Harbor Lodge and hiked/toured that area.  Fun!

Theodore Roosevelt – Yes, there is an actual connection to Teddy Roosevelt here as one of his early visits to the Dakotas was likely the genesis of his environmental activism.  The park itself has great wildlife with lots of bison and some gorgeous wild horses.

Petrified Forest – Another unique park with the largest concentration of petrified wood on the continent.  It’s paradise for geology nerds which meant I loved it.

Pinnacles – This is also one of the newer parks and was formed to help protect the condors that were released here.  The “pinnacle” formations are neat and the hike through the park was good.  It can get especially hot here.

Congaree – I think the experience here is highly dependent on the weather and mosquitos.  We got lucky with a cool, misty day that made for some good hikes. 

Mammoth Cave – This cave is very different than Carlsbad as there is a sandstone caprock that blocks most of the moisture that other caves get.  As a result, there aren’t many stalactites or stalagmites, just miles and miles of darkness.  

Wind Cave – The Black Hills of South Dakota are spectacular.  You have Mt Rushmore, Crazy Horse, Custer State Park, and Wind Cave National Park.  As caves go, it’s ok, but you must visit the Black Hills sometime.  Take a week, it’s worth it.

TIER 7:

THE REST

Not all National Parks can be Yosemite or Glacier.  These last few, in my opinion, don’t deserve the National Park label which is supposedly reserved only for areas with the most significant natural beauty and diverse ecosystems.  Don’t get me wrong, we had fun at all these parks, and the people who work there are fantastic, like all the parks.  In fact, we enjoyed the St Louis Arch so much, we’ve been twice.  It just shouldn’t be a National Park.  National Monument – yes.  Anyway, someone’s gotta finish last and that means you, Indiana Dunes.

St Louis Arch – The Arch had been a National Monument for years, and appropriately so.  But some political maneuvering got it included as a National Park in a recent bill.  But it’s a great visit.  The museum is an awesome historical presentation of westward expansion.  And a trip up to the top of the arch is a must.

Cuyahoga Valley – Cuyahoga has a great recovery/preservation story.  The river was so polluted back in the late 1960’s that it caught on fire.  It spawned the EPA and much of the environmental movement.  As a park, it’s kinda like a big county park.  Some nice hikes, bike paths, even a railroad.  If it weren’t a National Park, I wouldn’t go out of my way to visit.

Hot Springs – It was one of the early National Parks as people thought its springs were medicinal.  Today, not so much.  The history is cool, but for me, it’s not National Park worthy.  Perhaps a National Historic Place of some sort.

Indiana Dunes – The dunes along Lake Michigan are a very unique ecosystem and deserve protection… as a National Seashore (or shoreline or whatever).  We found that the adjacent State Park had better features/hikes than the National Park.  And the smokestacks of Gary, Indiana were the finishing touch that propelled Indiana Dunes into last place on my list.