Favorite National Park

[bojangles808]

yosemite for me

 

[Houseminer]

Mt Rainier, the Olympics, the North Cascades and Mt St Helens all in WA are amazing for hiking. Crater Lake down in Oregon is beautiful and a must see IMO.

 

[huntineveryday]

Bryce Canyon for me.


Teton at sunrise is pretty amazing. The Wildlife in yellowstone is unreal. Zion was memorable. Grand Canyon worth a trip. While not a national park, Devil's Tower in the morning sunlight was a sight to behold.

But those hoodoos are breathtaking.

 

[WHALL]

This is very subjective as we all like different things. I think I have only been to 21 parks and my favorites are Glacier and Mt Rainier. This is mostly due to the hiking trails and I love the settings and geography of these. I have loved my visits to the red rock parks of Utah too but I really like the traditional mountain setting.

A few on my list that I know I will live are Acadia, Great Smokey Mountains, North Cascades and Olympic.

Zion is an amazing place, the desert is just so different and cool, always see sheep. Yellowstone is very close second and it’s 2hours from me. Thank you Theadore Roosevelt!!

 

[TheBootBowhunting]

Ill take Zion at #1 with Glacier a close 2nd.

 

[bowhiker88]

Bryce or Zion in fall or after the first snow. Seasonality can’t be overlooked. could be interesting hearing what people think is the best national park in the winter or summer

 

[jzeblaz]

Mine is Yellowstone, but I haven't been to a ton of them. Yosemite is a must, but it is crowded most of the year and that does take away from it. Planning to hit Joshua Tree and Grand Canyon for spring break this year and Glacier a little later. Zion is awesome, but we didn't give it enough time. We try to hit a new NP each year. Got in Tetons at the very end of last year and it was largely closed off due to snow and road closures, but was still amazing. NP are wonderful places, but many are overrun with people which does impact the experience quite a bit. +1 for going in the off-season, when possible. Sequoia/Kings aren't on many people's radars and easy to hit in a day trip from the Central Valley. Largest trees in the world live there.

 

[bluemaroon]

For me, my favorites are some already mentioned such as Teton, Bryce Canyon, Acadia and Zion.

Yellowstone is pretty cool but the crowds and shear number of tourists who have never spent much time outdoors or know how to act around wildlife is painful.

Also have to mention Capital Reef. The lack of crowds was amazing and we felt like we had the park to ourselves.

If we are including Canada, then Jasper has to be number one. I proposed to my wife up there on a hike way above a glacier with some Rocky Mountain sheep watching the celebration just below us!

 

[bluemaroon]

I agree about Guadalupe Mountains and Big Bend...probably not worth traveling a long distance to get to them, but if you're in the area they're definitely worth stopping by. I lived in Midland for a couple years also and did the Guadalupe Peak hike many times.

Not to side track the thread too much but @Mighty Mouse and @Luke S do you have any experience/feedback on the wilderness camps sites at Guadalupe Mountains NP?

I'm heading out there this weekend before a work trip to Midland/Odessa. I want to do some hiking and training for my upcoming Alaska hunt and I'd like to camp up on the mountain instead of down at the base by the visitor center.

 

[wyroberts]

Grand Teton for me. I’m partial being from Wyoming, but it typically has less traffic than Yellowstone. I’d recommend floating the Snake River.

 

[Mighty Mouse]

Not to side track the thread too much but @Mighty Mouse and @Luke S do you have any experience/feedback on the wilderness camps sites at Guadalupe Mountains NP?

I'm heading out there this weekend before a work trip to Midland/Odessa. I want to do some hiking and training for my upcoming Alaska hunt and I'd like to camp up on the mountain instead of down at the base by the visitor center.

I always stayed at the Pine Springs campground near the visitor center. There's a backcountry primitive campground part way up the trail to Guadalupe Peak, but I never camped there. I preferred to camp down below and day-hike/trail run up and down Guadalupe Peak.

 

[Fireflyfishing]

Statue of Liberty!

 

[bluemaroon]

Thanks @Mighty Mouse and appreciate the info on Guadalupe Peak

 

[chapman8523]

Wrangell St Elias, the largest and least crowded. Perfect.

 

[CMF]

We've been to 44 of the 63 since 2020 except Smokey Mountains we did earlier.

I couldn't pick a single favorite since they are so different. The obvious ones are mostly mentioned so I'll give some other perspective.

Most overlooked - Channel Islands, off the coast of California was nice, plan to snorkel and book a campsite well in advance...(it's ridiculous they were all booked up, but mostly empty)
Soaking in a hot spring at Big Bend in January is quite nice considering the weather elsewhere in the country that time of year. Same for Carlsbad and Guadalupe, camp outside on BLM and shoot quail and jackrabbits when you're not at the park.
Parks in the Northeast and Northwest are nice in the summer while parks in the Southwest are nice in Winter.
Plan your trip when crowds are lower. We did Yellowstone, RMNP, GC, and the 5 UT parks during covid in May of 2020. It was awesome, crowds were minimal. Just something to put on your radar when the next pandemic hits...
Also to beat the crowds, get there early, most people don't.
If you go to New River Gorge, check out the coal mine tour in Beckley.
If your kids are into any sort of water/snow ski/board sports, Sand Dunes in CO is a must.
If you go to Acadia in an RV check out Patten Pond Campground, great bass fishing.
The Redwoods and Sequoias are a must-see.
If you rockhound or have kids and go to Great Basin, checkout Garnett hill.

We still have to see Saguro, Death Valley, and the parks in MN, FL, AK, and HW.

 

[venus8892]

Olympic is mine. The wide variety of landscapes from rugged beaches to snow capped mountains to dark forests is truly unique. Even the ride to get there from the Seattle metro is memorable.

 

[Limit 7]

We are doing a cross country trip in 2 weeks to shoot the ASA in London KY.
One of the stops will be Yellowstone and Mount Rushmore, along with minor stops
along the way. Pretty excited. Up until this trip current favorite is Craters of the Moon
here in Idaho

 

[Snowhunter11]

We are doing a cross country trip in 2 weeks to shoot the ASA in London KY.
One of the stops will be Yellowstone and Mount Rushmore, along with minor stops
along the way. Pretty excited. Up until this trip current favorite is Craters of the Moon
here in Idaho

Make sure to check out Custer state park as well while near Rushmore. And badlands national park loop just takes you off the interstate heading west for a few hrs. A mini Yellowstone feel. My 2c