Top 10 National Parks I Want to Visit
National Parks are one of the best things about this planet. While we can always do a better job preserving our environment, National Parks ensure the grandest and most unique locations will be maintained for generations to come. As a photographer they are hot spots, essentially giant flags waving us in. I have photographed Death Valley, Great Sand Dunes, and Rocky Mountain National Parks before so you won't find them on this list. Even though I make regular trips to Great Sands and Death Valley was another world that I would love to see again. This list is made up of the parks I've yet to visit. So here are the top 10 National Parks I want to visit.
10. Petrified Forest National Park
This park makes the list for its dark horse potential. While Petrified Forest may not have the grand scenes a lot of the more popular parks feature, it has a uniqueness that I could see my eye falling in love with. I tend to notice details in a landscape and this park is full of details. I think the crowds that flood the major parks can deflate the experience but Petrified Forest doesn't see the traffic of Yosemite or Yellowstone. I just have a feeling Petrified Forest National Park has some sneaky potential to become a favorite of mine.
9. Capital Reef National Park
Utah is full of National Parks and Capital Reef is the first of three on this list. Like most of the parks in Utah, Capital Reef features a brilliant red rock landscape. While it may not have the unique features of Bryce Canyon, Capital Reef is like a combination of Arches and Monument Valley. This park comes in at #9 because of the wide array of options from rock arches to canyons to valleys to rock outcroppings available.
8. Great Smoky Mountain National Park
One of the few National Parks east of the Mississippi, Great Smoky Mountain National Park is wilderness at its finest. Deciduous blanketed mountains, moss lined streams, and silent forest hiking land this Tennessee destination at #8. I grew up hiking in Wisconsin in a similar environment but Smoky Mountain looks like it was designed by painters. The landscape is so grand it's almost too flawless to be real. This would be a great place to find yourself in autumn.
7. Canyonlands National Park
The second National Park residing in Utah on this list is Canyonlands. Not very far from Capital Reef, Canyonlands is another red rock masterpiece. Offering endless panoramic spectacles, this park would be like crack for my eye. A wide array of rock formations can be found throughout the park especially in the Needles District. If I find my way out to Capital Reef, Canyonlands is an easy detour along the way.
6. Lassen Volcanic National Park
Lassen reminds me a bit of Death Valley National Park, in that it features some very unique landscapes. Molded by volcanic activity, the park features four different types of volcanoes. With features like sulfur vents and mud pots, the park is full of interesting sights but also has the classic waterfalls, lakes and forests. The park also features little traffic. Lassen sees a fraction of the visitors of other parks in the country which means it's easy to enjoy the landscape without having to fight the crowds.
5. Yosemite National Park
Yosemite is the pinnacle of the National Parks for a lot of people but the crowds bring it in at #5 on this list. Don't get me wrong, there is immense beauty in Yosemite but I've seen all the major sights in countless photos. I would love the challenge of finding a different vantage point but I'd have to navigate the hoards of photographers and that just thinking about that makes me anxious. If Yosemite has an off-season, that's when I'll go.
4. Olympic National Park
I'll be visiting my #4 National Park later this year. The Hall of Mosses trail was all it took to sell me on Olympic but then I heard about the tide pools. I have a weird obsession with the micro ecosystems that form in the rocks along the coast. The variety of sea life and the real life game of I spy make me feel like a kid in a candy store. Like my mom always said, you can look but don't touch.
3. Zion National Park
Zion marks the third and final National Park in Utah in my top 10. It all came down to the canyons for me. The colors that occur between the running rivers and the light filtering through the canyons it's a photographers dream. While the other parks in Utah would be fun to visit, Zion would be a challenge to accurately capture the colors and lighting. I can see the cards filling up already.
2. Glacier National Park
Pristine lakes galore, surrounded by towering mountain peaks, yes please. Glacier looks like heaven on Earth. Much like Smoky Mountains National Park, the landscapes in Glacier look surreal. This park isn't as much a photography trip for me as it is a nature retreat. The beauty of this park might make my camera obsolete, the experience alone could be all I wish to take from Glacier National Park.
1. Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
This one has to be timed right as the lava in the park isn't always flowing but to see an island actively being created would be amazing. We've all seen the pictures of the neon yellow and red lava spewing from the earth. I would love to experiment with the abstract contrast against the black rocks. Volcanic eruptions are not something to get up close and personal with but if you can watch the lava flow slowly from the earth, sign me up.
Were there any surprises? Let me know what your #1 National Park to see is?
10. Petrified Forest National Park
This park makes the list for its dark horse potential. While Petrified Forest may not have the grand scenes a lot of the more popular parks feature, it has a uniqueness that I could see my eye falling in love with. I tend to notice details in a landscape and this park is full of details. I think the crowds that flood the major parks can deflate the experience but Petrified Forest doesn't see the traffic of Yosemite or Yellowstone. I just have a feeling Petrified Forest National Park has some sneaky potential to become a favorite of mine.
9. Capital Reef National Park
Utah is full of National Parks and Capital Reef is the first of three on this list. Like most of the parks in Utah, Capital Reef features a brilliant red rock landscape. While it may not have the unique features of Bryce Canyon, Capital Reef is like a combination of Arches and Monument Valley. This park comes in at #9 because of the wide array of options from rock arches to canyons to valleys to rock outcroppings available.
8. Great Smoky Mountain National Park
One of the few National Parks east of the Mississippi, Great Smoky Mountain National Park is wilderness at its finest. Deciduous blanketed mountains, moss lined streams, and silent forest hiking land this Tennessee destination at #8. I grew up hiking in Wisconsin in a similar environment but Smoky Mountain looks like it was designed by painters. The landscape is so grand it's almost too flawless to be real. This would be a great place to find yourself in autumn.
7. Canyonlands National Park
The second National Park residing in Utah on this list is Canyonlands. Not very far from Capital Reef, Canyonlands is another red rock masterpiece. Offering endless panoramic spectacles, this park would be like crack for my eye. A wide array of rock formations can be found throughout the park especially in the Needles District. If I find my way out to Capital Reef, Canyonlands is an easy detour along the way.
6. Lassen Volcanic National Park
Lassen reminds me a bit of Death Valley National Park, in that it features some very unique landscapes. Molded by volcanic activity, the park features four different types of volcanoes. With features like sulfur vents and mud pots, the park is full of interesting sights but also has the classic waterfalls, lakes and forests. The park also features little traffic. Lassen sees a fraction of the visitors of other parks in the country which means it's easy to enjoy the landscape without having to fight the crowds.
5. Yosemite National Park
Yosemite is the pinnacle of the National Parks for a lot of people but the crowds bring it in at #5 on this list. Don't get me wrong, there is immense beauty in Yosemite but I've seen all the major sights in countless photos. I would love the challenge of finding a different vantage point but I'd have to navigate the hoards of photographers and that just thinking about that makes me anxious. If Yosemite has an off-season, that's when I'll go.
4. Olympic National Park
I'll be visiting my #4 National Park later this year. The Hall of Mosses trail was all it took to sell me on Olympic but then I heard about the tide pools. I have a weird obsession with the micro ecosystems that form in the rocks along the coast. The variety of sea life and the real life game of I spy make me feel like a kid in a candy store. Like my mom always said, you can look but don't touch.
3. Zion National Park
Zion marks the third and final National Park in Utah in my top 10. It all came down to the canyons for me. The colors that occur between the running rivers and the light filtering through the canyons it's a photographers dream. While the other parks in Utah would be fun to visit, Zion would be a challenge to accurately capture the colors and lighting. I can see the cards filling up already.
2. Glacier National Park
Pristine lakes galore, surrounded by towering mountain peaks, yes please. Glacier looks like heaven on Earth. Much like Smoky Mountains National Park, the landscapes in Glacier look surreal. This park isn't as much a photography trip for me as it is a nature retreat. The beauty of this park might make my camera obsolete, the experience alone could be all I wish to take from Glacier National Park.
1. Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
This one has to be timed right as the lava in the park isn't always flowing but to see an island actively being created would be amazing. We've all seen the pictures of the neon yellow and red lava spewing from the earth. I would love to experiment with the abstract contrast against the black rocks. Volcanic eruptions are not something to get up close and personal with but if you can watch the lava flow slowly from the earth, sign me up.
Were there any surprises? Let me know what your #1 National Park to see is?
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