US Nationwide Parks to Go to + Locations to Skip, From Frequent Traveler

There’s a lot to like about Acadia Nationwide Park in Maine.

Acadia Nationwide Park is thought for its fall foliage and nice mountaineering trails. It is also the primary location to see the dawn within the continental United States from October 7 to March 6.

Although all of this stuff play an element in why I frequently return to Acadia, what I really like probably the most is the park’s rugged shoreline and proximity to Bar Harbor.

Drive, stroll, bus, or bike simply 1.3 miles from the quaint city of Bar Harbor, and also you’re in one of many nation’s most scenic nationwide parks.

The park’s modest measurement can also be a blessing in disguise. You’ll be able to both rapidly see the highlights or spend an extended time at every cease with out feeling rushed or overwhelmed, which, for me, has created a stronger connection to the park.

There’s at all times one thing new to find at Wyoming’s Grand Teton Nationwide Park.

Grand Teton Nationwide Park in Wyoming was one of many first I visited solo. From the second the Teton Vary got here into view by means of my windshield, I knew it could be the place I’d return to greater than every other.

With difficult hikes, distinctive, jutting mountain peaks, and crystal-blue alpine lakes, this park at all times has one thing new to find.

Grand Teton is near Jackson, Wyoming, and is the one nationwide park with a business airport fully inside its boundaries. I really like that the park feels distant however is comparatively straightforward to go to.

There’s a lot to do in West Virginia’s New River Gorge Nationwide Park.

West Virginia’s New River Gorge was named the 63rd US nationwide park in 2021. Although its standing modified only some years in the past, I’ve already visited a number of occasions and plan to return.

This park is definitely accessible and has actions and wonder to impress even probably the most well-traveled park customer.

I like to recommend spending the day mountaineering, driving, and even white water rafting on this beautiful and distinctive a part of the nation.

Nonetheless, I most likely will not return to Gates of the Arctic Nationwide Park in Alaska.

Alaska’s Gates of the Arctic Nationwide Park is an unimaginable sight to see. Encompassing greater than 8.4 million acres of land fully north of the Arctic Circle, the second-largest US nationwide park can also be the least visited — with simply 11,045 guests making the trek in 2023.

Getting there may be a part of the journey, as there aren’t any roads or established trails to enter the park. Due to this, although, I needed to e-book a sequence of three flights to get there — the final of which price $1,750 roundtrip.

Although it was positively value seeing the unimaginable landscapes of the Brooks Vary, due to the logistics and value, I most likely will not be visiting greater than as soon as.

I liked my time in Alaska’s Katmai Nationwide Park, however there are a couple of causes I most likely will not return.

One of many final parks I visited was additionally one I used to be most enthusiastic about: Katmai Nationwide Park in Alaska.

Although I liked my time mountaineering and observing the massive inhabitants of brown bears, I more than likely will not return due to prices and logistics.

Much like different parks in Alaska, no roads join it to different elements of the state, so guests should fly or boat in. I flew to King Salmon, Alaska, on a constitution airplane after which to Brooks Falls on a seaplane for a complete of $1,350.

One more reason I am glad I visited simply as soon as is as a result of it actually is a wilderness park, with a lot of it being backcountry and fewer than 6 miles of maintained trails. On the finish of the day, I am not comfy exploring bear nation alone as a solo traveler.

Visiting the Nationwide Park of American Samoa was a once-in-a-lifetime alternative.

The Nationwide Park of American Samoa is extraordinary and distinctive, not simply as a nationwide park but in addition merely as a vacation spot.

The park, which is the one Nationwide Park Service web site south of the equator, will eternally be one in all my favourite distinctive national-park journeys. Although I would like to return, it is unlikely I’ll due to logistics. In any case, the park is among the most distant within the US.

Solely two flights make the almost six-hour journey from Honolulu to Pago Pago, American Samoa, every week — and every roundtrip flight prices not less than $1,000.

Planning can also be a bit complicated from there, as there’s little tourism infrastructure. However there’s one thing very particular to me about having what can precisely be described as a once-in-a-lifetime journey.