Fledge
USA

National Parks

63 parks, from Yellowstone's geysers to the Everglades

Grand Prismatic Spring, Yellowstone

Grand Prismatic Spring, Yellowstone. Photo via Wikimedia Commons.

The US national park system, founded with Yellowstone in 1872, is the best idea America ever had. The headline parks need timed-entry reservations in summer now; the $80 America the Beautiful annual pass covers them all.

All 63 national parks are listed below, state by state.

Grand Prismatic Spring, Yellowstone
YellowstoneWyoming · Geysers, bison, the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.
The Grand Canyon from Hopi Point
Grand CanyonArizona · The South Rim's classic viewpoints.
Y
YosemiteCalifornia · Granite cliffs and giant waterfalls.
Angels Landing, Zion National Park
ZionUtah · Angels Landing and the Narrows.
Mountain lake in Glacier National Park
GlacierMontana · The Going-to-the-Sun Road.
An alligator in Everglades National Park
EvergladesFlorida · Airboats and alligators.
A
AcadiaMaine · Cadillac Mountain sunrise.
Kīlauea, Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
Hawaii VolcanoesHawaii · Kilauea's lava fields.
Delicate Arch, Arches National Park
ArchesUtah · 2,000+ natural stone arches, including Delicate Arch.
The Bryce Amphitheater, Bryce Canyon
Bryce CanyonUtah · The hoodoo-filled Bryce Amphitheater.
C
CanyonlandsUtah · Island in the Sky mesas and the Needles district.
C
Capitol ReefUtah · The Waterpocket Fold's orchards and slot canyons.
Grand Teton National Park
Grand TetonWyoming · The jagged Teton Range above Jackson Hole.
The Rockies in Rocky Mountain National Park
Rocky MountainColorado · Trail Ridge Road and Longs Peak.
M
Mesa VerdeColorado · Ancestral Puebloan cliff dwellings.
G
Great Sand DunesColorado · North America's tallest dunes against the Sangre de Cristos.
B
Black Canyon of the GunnisonColorado · A narrow, shadowed gorge nearly 2,000 feet deep.
G
Great BasinNevada · Wheeler Peak, Lehman Caves and ancient bristlecone pines.
D
Death ValleyCalifornia / Nevada · Badwater Basin, Mesquite Dunes and Dante's View.
J
Joshua TreeCalifornia · Twisted yuccas and boulder piles in the Mojave.
C
Channel IslandsCalifornia · Remote island wilderness, reached by boat.
The General Sherman Tree, Sequoia National Park
Sequoia and Kings CanyonCalifornia · The General Sherman Tree and deep canyon country.
L
Lassen VolcanicCalifornia · All four volcano types in a single park.
P
PinnaclesCalifornia · Talus caves and California condor country.
R
RedwoodCalifornia · The world's tallest trees.
P
Petrified ForestArizona · Triassic fossil logs scattered through the Painted Desert.
S
SaguaroArizona · Giant saguaro forests around Tucson.
The Big Room, Carlsbad Caverns
Carlsbad CavernsNew Mexico · The Big Room and the evening bat flight.
The gypsum dunes of White Sands
White SandsNew Mexico · Gypsum dunes you can sled down.
Santa Elena Canyon, Big Bend National Park
Big BendTexas · The Chisos Mountains in the Chihuahuan Desert.
G
Guadalupe MountainsTexas · Texas's highest peak and fossil-reef canyons.
Bathhouse Row, Hot Springs National Park
Hot SpringsArkansas · Historic Bathhouse Row and thermal waters.
Badlands in Theodore Roosevelt National Park
Theodore RooseveltNorth Dakota · Badlands, bison and the Maltese Cross Cabin.
Badlands National Park, South Dakota
BadlandsSouth Dakota · Eroded spires over the largest protected mixed-grass prairie.
W
Wind CaveSouth Dakota · Rare boxwork formations, with bison above ground.
V
VoyageursMinnesota · A watery maze of lakes on the Canadian border.
I
Isle RoyaleMichigan · Wolves and moose on a remote Lake Superior island.
I
Indiana DunesIndiana · Dunes, wetlands and prairies on Lake Michigan.
C
Cuyahoga ValleyOhio · Brandywine Falls between Cleveland and Akron.
Inside Mammoth Cave, Kentucky
Mammoth CaveKentucky · The world's longest known cave system.
The Great Smoky Mountains
Great Smoky MountainsTennessee / North Carolina · America's most visited park: misty ridges and synchronous fireflies.
C
CongareeSouth Carolina · Old-growth bottomland hardwood forest.
B
BiscayneFlorida · 95% water: coral reefs and mangrove shoreline.
D
Dry TortugasFlorida · Fort Jefferson, 110 km west of Key West, reached by boat or seaplane.
G
Gateway ArchMissouri · The 630-foot Gateway Arch in St. Louis.
Skyline Drive, Shenandoah National Park
ShenandoahVirginia · Skyline Drive along the Blue Ridge.
The New River Gorge Bridge
New River GorgeWest Virginia · The Gorge bridge and world-class whitewater.
Sunrise over the Haleakalā crater
HaleakalāHawaii · Sunrise over the summit crater on Maui.
Mount Rainier reflected in Reflection Lakes
Mount RainierWashington · The glaciated volcano towering over Seattle.
The Hoh Rainforest, Olympic National Park
OlympicWashington · The Hoh Rainforest, Hurricane Ridge and wild Pacific coast.
N
North CascadesWashington · Jagged alpine peaks and more than 300 glaciers.
Crater Lake with Wizard Island
Crater LakeOregon · The deepest lake in the US, in a collapsed volcano.
Denali reflected in Wonder Lake
DenaliAlaska · North America's highest peak and its wildlife.
K
Kenai FjordsAlaska · Tidewater glaciers reached by boat from Seward.
A tidewater glacier in Glacier Bay
Glacier BayAlaska · Calving glaciers in the Inside Passage.
Brown bears at Brooks Falls, Katmai
KatmaiAlaska · Brown bears fishing at Brooks Falls.
L
Lake ClarkAlaska · Volcanoes, salmon and bears, reached by bush plane.
W
Wrangell-St. EliasAlaska · America's largest national park: four mountain ranges.
G
Gates of the ArcticAlaska · No roads, no trails: pure Brooks Range wilderness.
K
Kobuk ValleyAlaska · Great Kobuk Sand Dunes and the caribou migration.
V
Virgin IslandsU.S. Virgin Islands · Two-thirds of St. John: beaches and reef bays.
N
National Park of American SamoaAmerican Samoa · Rainforest, coral reefs and Samoan villages.

Browse all destinations ›