Nepal Travel Book:: US:: Jan 27 2015::
Grand Canyon. Great Smoky Mountains. Yellowstone. Yosemite. You’ve heard of, or maybe even traveled to, our nation’s most popular national parks, from Acadia’s rock beaches to Rocky Mountain’s snow-capped peaks. But the United States is home to 59 national parks, many of which are off the beaten path.Entrance to all national parks is free on President’s Day weekend. So avoid the crowds, cars, and noise of the popular parks — famously called “National Parking Lots” by Edward Abbey — and get your dose of the great outdoors at one of these lesser-known national park destinations.
1. Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, Colorado
Tucked away in Colorado’s southwestern corner, the sheer scale of this 48-mile-long canyon takes most visitors by surprise. Sculpted by the Gunnison River over 2 millions years, the canyon walls are nearly 2,000 feet tall, with near-vertical drops down to the river. Trails along the north and south rims wind through pinyon-juniper forests and gambel oak thickets typical of the Colorado Plateau. Hiking within the canyon is limited to experienced rock climbers willing to make their own route — there are no maintained trails to the bottom and crumbling rock makes the climbing difficult. Even if you’re not a climber, the views from the rim alone are worth a trip. Don’t miss the much-photographed painted wall, it’s the tallest cliff in Colorado at 2,250 feet high.
2. Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona
The park is famous for its vast quantities of petrified wood, often in massive pieces that still look like tree trunks on a forest floor. These fossilized trees date back to the Late Triassic period, more than 200,000 million years ago. Petrified wood isn’t the only fossil found here — paleontologists have uncovered several fossils of dinosaurs and other dinosaur-like animals. While the red, grey, and cream-colored rocks of the park may look like a barren desert, in between the mesas lies a grassland ecosystem. Visitors should watch for herds of pronghorn antelope, which are a common sight within the park. Geocachers can test their skills searching for three hidden geocaches, while history buffs can drive part of historic Route 66, which runs through the park.
3. Congaree National Park, South Carolina
This 27,000-acre park protects the largest intact stand of old-growth bottomland hardwood forest remaining in the entire southeast. Because much of this forest was spared when industrial logging swept throughout the southeast, visitors can catch a glimpse of the ancient forests seen by early explorers. In fact, Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto passed through the area in the 1540s. Congaree is especially famous for its trees. More than 75 different species are found within the park’s borders, including several champion trees — the tallest or largest of their species. Ancient bald cypress trees tower above winding waterways and sloughs, which are best explored by canoe or kayak. More than 30 miles of trails cross the park, too, but lookout for creeks and occasional flooding.
4. Great Basin National Park, Nevada
Just across the border from Utah, this park captures the best of the basin and range topography that covers much of Nevada. Dominated by sagebrush, the Great Basin ecosystem is under threat from invasive cheatgrass. Native to Europe, Asia and Northern Africa, cheatgrass spreads quickly, is extremely flammable, and is difficult to eradicate. The park also contains Wheeler Peak, one of the state’s tallest mountains. An 8.6-mile long trail to the summit offers a tough hike and outstanding views. Hiking on the mountain also offers a chance to see one of the oldest living organisms on earth — the bristlecone pine. One of these trees, nicknamed Prometheus, was cut down as part of a scientific study in 1964. Researchers later discovered that the tree had 4,900 growth rings, meaning that it was nearly 5,000 years old. (Bristlecone pines grow so slowly and in such harsh conditions that they don’t always grow a ring each year.) At the time, it was the oldest living bristlecone pine ever identified.
5. Lassen Volcanic National Park, California
Lassen Volcanic is a geology enthusiast’s dream: bubbling mud pots, boiling pools of water, steaming ground, and volcanic vents are found throughout the park. You can also find all four types of volcanoes: shield, plug dome, cinder cone, and composite. As its name suggests, this park is powered by volcanic activity deep beneath Lassen Peak. The southernmost volcano in the Cascade Range, Lassen Peak forms part of a chain of volcanic hotspots around the entire Pacific Rim. Visitor’s needn’t worry about being caught in an eruption: the last one occurred in 1915, and the hotspot only erupts every few thousands years.
6. Capitol Reef National Park, Utah
Capitol Reef’s brilliant rock layers, spires, canyons, and arches are part of the Waterpocket Fold, a fold in the Earth’s crust nearly 100 miles long. Called a monocline, this geological formation is named after the pools of water that form throughout the rocks when rainwater erodes the sandstone. Pinyon-juniper forests are home to a wide variety of desert animals, including desert bighorn sheep and canyon bats, the smallest bats in North America. You might also catch a glimpse of the ring-tailed cat, a long-tailed relative of the raccoon that lives throughout the desert southwest. In many parts of the park, the soil is covered with a thin, crunchy, black crust. Called a biological soil, this crust is actually full of cyanobacteria, fungi, lichens, mosses, and algae. Horseback riding and pack trips are allowed inside the park, but check the list of approved trails before you saddle up.
7. Guadalupe Mountains National Park, Texas
About 265 million years ago, this national park was at the bottom of a vast tropical sea. The dramatic limestone formations visitors see today are actually a fossilized reef, which stretched 400 miles along the ancient seashore during the Permian Era. The park’s most recognizable feature is El Capitan, a towering cliff named for the Capitan limestone found in the park. Trails through the foothills offer a glimpse of the Chihuahuan desert ecosystem, with desert-dwelling plants like yucca, agave, and dramatic ocotillo. Other trails into the park lead to McKittrick Canyon, where a creek feeds an unexpectedly lush deciduous forest, famous for its fall color.
8. Great Sand Dunes National Park, Colorado
The tallest sand dunes in North America aren’t found at the beach. This national park has 30 square miles of undulating dunes, which formed about 440,000 years ago when winds piled sand from an ancient lake bottom into 750-foot tall dunes along the base of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. While the dunes may look barren, hundreds of animal species call the park home. Entomology enthusiasts should keep an eye out for the predatory Great Sand Dunes tiger beetle, one of six insect species endemic to the dunes. Great Sand Dunes National Park also includes mountains, alpine tundra, and wetland habitat called sabkha. These wetlands are fed by fluctuating groundwater, which leaves behind white alkali deposits, which are similar to baking soda. When you’re sick of hiking, try your skill at sandboarding and sand sledding on specially designed boards.
9. Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida
Nearly 70 miles off of Key West, the seven small islands that form Dry Tortugas National Park are the very end of the Florida Keys chain. You won’t find crowds here, as the park is only accessible by boat or plane. The ruins of Fort Jefferson dominate the park’s skyline. Built in the 19th century to protect the nearby shipping channel through the Gulf of Mexico, the fort’s construction was delayed by the Civil War, and then later abandoned. Offshore lies a network of thriving coral reefs, where snorkelers and divers can see multitudes of fish, sea turtles, and the occasional American crocodile. Surprisingly, the park is also a renowned birding hotspot. While few species reside year round, these small islands provide critical resting habitat for colorful neotropical songbirds migrating across the Gulf of Mexico between North and South America.
10. Voyageurs National Park, Minnesota
Anchored by three lakes, this park is a labyrinth of waterways, peninsulas, and islands spanning 340 square miles of Minnesota’s northern border. In fact, 40 percent of the park is water; the rest is forested with rock outcrops scraped clean by glaciers about 10,000 years ago. Voyageur’s forests are unique — the park lies at a transition point, where southern boreal forests of jack pine and spruce meet northern hardwood forests of maple, ash, and elm. Beavers are common along the waterways, while moose and gray wolves are spotted occasionally. The park is also home to a healthy population of bald eagles, and scientists band eagle chicks hatched in the park to help monitor the ecosystem’s health. Don’t let the northern snows deter you — winter activities include cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, and ice fishing.
Eager for more? Check out this interactive map from the National Park Service listing every national park, seashore, historic site, monument, and preserve.
