True Beauty: A List of All 63 US National Parks
The best thing America has ever done was to protect our greatest natural resources in the form of National Parks and public lands. It’s truly our greatest idea. Inside is the full list of National Parks, all 63 of them, with a short blurb about each epic location.
Enjoy this list of all 63 National Parks in the United States.
Acadia National Park
Acadia offers a landscape of rocky shores, rich woodlands, and rugged mountains like Cadillac Mountain, the highest point along the North Atlantic seaboard. Visitors enjoy scenic drives, hiking trails, and the charm of Bar Harbor.
Location: Maine
American Samoa National Park
American Samoa National Park encompasses three islands—Tutuila, Ta‘ū, and Ofu—in the South Pacific, preserving tropical rainforests, coral reefs, and Samoan culture. Its rare mix of ecosystems includes stunning beachfronts, volcanic mountains, and untouched ocean habitats, making it a haven for snorkelers and hikers alike. The park also offers unique insights into the rich Polynesian culture, with local villages living in harmony with nature.
Location: American Samoa
Arches National Park
This park is a red rock wonderland with over 2,000 natural stone arches, spires, and an iconic landscape that is often seen in photographs and films. Arches offer countless panoramic views and a unique geological history.
Location: Utah
Badlands National Park
Known for its sharply eroded buttes, pinnacles, and extensive mixed-grass prairie, Badlands is home to rich fossil beds and significant mammalian fossils that date back millions of years. The park’s rugged beauty is a haven for photographers and hikers alike.
Location: South Dakota
Big Bend National Park
Big Bend is named for the large bend in the Rio Grande River and encompasses massive canyons, vast desert expanses, and a portion of the Chisos mountain range. This park is known for its natural resources and recreational opportunities like hiking, bird watching, and stargazing.
Location: Texas
Biscayne National Park
Primarily underwater, Biscayne protects coral reefs, islands, and shoreline mangrove forests in the northern Florida Keys. Its clear waters are ideal for snorkeling, scuba diving, boating, and fishing.
Location: Florida
Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
The park features a dramatic, steep-walled canyon carved by the Gunnison River, exposing some of the steepest cliffs, oldest rock, and craggiest spires in North America. It’s a popular spot for rock climbing and hiking.
Location: Colorado
Bryce Canyon National Park
It is famous for its unique geology, consisting of a series of horseshoe-shaped amphitheaters carved from the eastern edge of the Paunsaugunt Plateau. Bryce is known for its hoodoos—tall, thin spires of rock that protrude from the bottom of arid basins.
Location: Utah
Canyonlands National Park
This park offers a stunning landscape eroded into countless canyons, mesas, and buttes by the Colorado River and its tributaries. The park is divided into four districts: Island in the Sky, The Needles, The Maze, and the rivers themselves.
Location: Utah
Capitol Reef National Park
Capitol Reef is known for its colorful canyons, ridges, buttes, and monoliths. The park’s Waterpocket Fold, a 100-mile-long warp in the Earth’s crust, is a central feature, offering hiking trails through rugged, beautiful landscapes.
Location: Utah
Carlsbad Caverns National Park
Home to more than 100 caves, Carlsbad Caverns features one of the world’s largest underground chambers and countless formations. Above ground, the Chihuahuan Desert ecosystem covers much of the park.
Location: New Mexico
Channel Islands National Park
Encompasses five remarkable islands and their ocean environment, preserving and protecting a wealth of natural and cultural resources. Isolation over thousands of years has created unique animals, plants, and archeological resources.
Location: California
Congaree National Park
Preserves the largest tract of old-growth bottomland hardwood forest in the United States. The park is renowned for its giant hardwoods, towering pines, and rich biodiversity.
Location: South Carolina
Crater Lake National Park
Formed by the collapse of Mount Mazama thousands of years ago, this deep lake is known for its stunning blue color and water clarity. Visitors can drive around its rim, hike trails, or explore the lake by boat.
Location: Oregon
Cuyahoga Valley National Park
This park near Cleveland and Akron preserves rural landscapes along the Cuyahoga River. Points of interest include historic buildings, scenic waterfalls, and a network of trails.
Location: Ohio
Death Valley National Park
Known as the hottest, driest, and lowest national park, Death Valley offers a variety of landscapes, from snow-capped mountains to colorful desert canyons. Visitors are often surprised by the stark beauty of the desert.
Location: California, Nevada
Denali National Park and Preserve
Denali encompasses the tallest peak in North America, along with six million acres of wild land bisected by one ribbon of road. Travelers to this park are afforded the sight of wild animals in their natural habitats, including grizzly bears, caribou, and wolves.
Location: Alaska
Dry Tortugas National Park
It is known for its famous Fort Jefferson, beautiful blue waters, superlative coral reefs, marine life, and the vast assortment of bird life that frequents the area. It is accessible only by boat or seaplane.
Location: Florida
Everglades National Park
It is the largest subtropical wilderness in the U.S., protecting an unparalleled landscape filled with curious flora and fauna, including manatees, American crocodiles, and elusive Florida panthers.
Location: Florida
Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve
This park and preserve are largely wilderness with no roads or trails, where visitors can really feel the absence of civilization. The park’s wild landscapes stretch across valleys, rivers, mountains, and the Arctic tundra.
Location: Alaska
Gateway Arch National Park
Celebrates the design and construction of the Gateway Arch, a symbol of the United States’ westward expansion. The park includes the arch, a museum, and historic buildings that tell the story of the city of St. Louis.
Location: Missouri
Glacier National Park
Glacier National Park in Montana is home to pristine forests, alpine meadows, rugged mountains, and spectacular lakes. With over 700 miles of trails, it is a hiker’s paradise for adventurous visitors seeking wilderness and solitude.
Location: Montana
Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve
Glacier Bay offers a unique experience of glaciers, forests, and wild coastlines in Alaska. It is a living laboratory for exploring the impacts of climate change and a hotspot for whale watching and kayaking.
Location: Alaska
Grand Canyon National Park
Known globally for its overwhelming size and intricate and colorful landscape, the Grand Canyon is unmatched in the incomparable vistas it offers to visitors on the rim. Hiking down into the canyon provides an entirely different, immersive experience.
Location: Arizona
Grand Teton National Park
Grand Teton National Park boasts majestic mountains, pristine lakes, and extraordinary wildlife. The Teton Range stands monumentally with the Snake River winding at its feet, offering hiking, camping, and spectacular photography opportunities.
Location: Wyoming
Great Basin National Park
Situated in Nevada, Great Basin National Park features the solitude of the desert, the smell of sagebrush after a thunderstorm, the darkest of night skies, and the beauty of Lehman Caves. It is also home to the ancient bristlecone pines.
Location: Nevada
Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve
This park contains the tallest sand dunes in North America, providing a surreal landscape of sand peaks in the heart of the Colorado Rockies. The park also offers diverse environments, from dunes to forests and alpine lakes.
Location: Colorado
Great Smoky Mountains National Park
America’s most visited national park, this park straddles the border between North Carolina and Tennessee and is renowned for its plant and animal life, the beauty of its ancient mountains, and remnants of Southern Appalachian mountain culture.
Location: North Carolina, Tennessee
Guadalupe Mountains National Park
This Texas park features one of the nation’s most pristine wilderness areas. It includes Guadalupe Peak, the highest point in Texas, and the scenic McKittrick Canyon, filled with beautiful fall foliage.
Location: Texas
Haleakalā National Park
This park on Maui preserves the outstanding volcanic landscape of the Haleakalā Crater, an ancient shield volcano, as well as rainforests and the desert-like area on the coast. It’s a popular spot for sunrise views.
Location: Hawaii
Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park
Located on the island of Hawaii, this park offers a unique, close-up look at an active volcano system where lava seeps from fissures in the earth. The park also provides insights into the island’s formation and native ecosystems.
Location: Hawaii
Hot Springs National Park
Known for its 47 thermal springs, this is the oldest federal reserve in the USA, predating even Yellowstone as a protected area. The park features historic bathhouses and walking trails along its picturesque mountains.
Location: Arkansas
Indiana Dunes National Park
Located on the southern shore of Lake Michigan, Indiana Dunes offers more than sand dunes. The park also includes forests, prairies, wetlands, and a diverse range of plant and animal life, making it a choice location for bird watching and hiking.
Location: Indiana
Isle Royale National Park
Accessible only by boat or seaplane, Isle Royale is a remote island cluster in Lake Superior, offering unspoiled wilderness, solitude, and adventure. It’s a great place for kayaking, hiking, and spotting wildlife, including wolves and moose.
Location: Michigan
Joshua Tree National Park
The park is named for the bristled Joshua trees and offers a fascinating variety of plants and animals that make their homes in the unique landscape of the Mojave and Colorado deserts. It’s also an incredible dark sky sanctuary allowing up mindblowing astrophotography opportunities.
Location: California
Katmai National Park and Preserve
Famous for the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes and its brown bears, this park offers dramatic volcanic landscapes and abundant wildlife. It’s a premier destination for bear-watching, particularly at Brooks Falls.
Location: Alaska
Kenai Fjords National Park
This park protects the fjord-riddled coastline of the Kenai Peninsula. It offers some of the best sightseeing for glaciers and marine wildlife, with opportunities for sea kayaking and hiking.
Location: Alaska
Kings Canyon National Park
Adjacent to Sequoia National Park, Kings Canyon is home to some of the deepest canyons in the United States, huge mountains, rugged foothills, and vast caverns. The scenic Kings River and giant sequoias highlight the park’s rugged terrain.
Location: California
Kobuk Valley National Park
Kobuk Valley is famous for the Great Kobuk Sand Dunes and caribou migrations. It’s one of the most remote national parks in the U.S., offering unique Arctic adventures.
Location: Alaska
Lake Clark National Park and Preserve
Lake Clark is a pristine wilderness of turquoise lakes, steaming volcanoes, and towering peaks. It offers excellent opportunities for solitude, fishing, hiking, and encountering wildlife.
Location: Alaska
Lassen Volcanic National Park
The park features a stunning volcanic landscape with hot springs, mud pots, and fumaroles. Its centerpiece, Lassen Peak, is one of the largest plug-dome volcanoes in the world.
Location: California
Mammoth Cave National Park
This park in Kentucky is home to the world’s longest cave system, offering more than 400 miles of surveyed passageways. Mammoth Cave is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and offers a rich history and unique cave tours.
Location: Kentucky
Mesa Verde National Park
This park protects some of the best-preserved Ancestral Puebloan archaeological sites in the United States, including cliff dwellings and mesa-top villages. It’s a window into the lives of the Ancestral Pueblo people who lived here for over 700 years.
Location: Colorado
Mount Rainier National Park
Iconic Mount Rainier stands as a symbol of the Pacific Northwest. The park surrounding the volcano offers old-growth forests and wildflower meadows. It’s a popular hiking, climbing, and photography destination.
Location: Washington
New River Gorge National Park
This park encompasses over 70,000 acres along 53 miles of the New River, a white-water river defined by rugged, steep, and intricately carved landscapes. It’s a haven for rock climbers, rafters, and bird watchers.
Location: West Virginia
North Cascades National Park
This park features jagged peaks topped by more than 300 glaciers, cascading waters in forested valleys, and a range of ecosystems. It is a prime location for hiking, mountaineering, and camping, largely untouched and wild.
Location: Washington
Olympic National Park
Olympic National Park offers three distinct ecosystems: rugged glacier-capped mountains, old-growth temperate rainforests, and over 70 miles of wild coastline. It’s a diverse and expansive wilderness sanctuary.
Location: Washington
Petrified Forest National Park
Known for its large deposits of petrified wood, the park covers a landscape of colorful badlands, plateaus, and mesas. It is also rich in fossils that date back millions of years.
Location: Arizona
Pinnacles National Park
Pinnacles is renowned for its rugged landscape and towering rock formations that are popular with climbers and hikers. The park is also home to the endangered California condor.
Location: California
Redwood National and State Parks
These parks are home to the tallest trees on earth, offering a stunning backdrop of forested mountains and vast prairies. They protect vast prairies, oak woodlands, wild riverways, and nearly 40 miles of pristine coastline.
Location: California
Rocky Mountain National Park
Just a few miles from Estes Park, this park offers spectacular mountain environments. Explore diverse ecosystems from the Great Plains to the Continental Divide and beyond.
Location: Colorado
Saguaro National Park
Named for the giant saguaro cactus, this park protects the cactus-filled Sonoran Desert landscape. It is split into two districts, each offering a variety of trails and picnic areas.
Location: Arizona
Sequoia National Park
This park is home to giant sequoias, including the General Sherman Tree, one of the largest trees on Earth. The dramatic landscape includes massive mountains, rugged foothills, deep canyons, and vast caverns.
Location: California
Shenandoah National Park
Shenandoah National Park is known for its rolling hills, cascading waterfalls, and spectacular vistas. The park’s Skyline Drive offers some of the best mountain views in the eastern United States.
Location: Virginia
Theodore Roosevelt National Park
Named after the U.S. President who championed conservation, this park features rugged badlands and winding rivers in North Dakota. It’s a habitat for wildlife, including bison, elk, and prairie dogs.
Location: North Dakota
Virgin Islands National Park
Covering much of the island of St. John, this park offers breathtaking shores, coral reefs, and trails through tropical forests. Historical ruins dot the landscape, telling the story of the island’s colonial past.
Location: U.S. Virgin Islands
Voyageurs National Park
This water-based park in Minnesota is known for its outstanding water resources and is popular for boating, fishing, and kayaking. Its landscapes are a network of pristine waterways and forested lands.
Location: Minnesota
White Sands National Park
This park in the Tularosa Basin of New Mexico is known for its dramatic landscape of rare white gypsum sand dunes. It is the largest gypsum dune field in the world.
Location: New Mexico
Wind Cave National Park
Famous for its complex and highly decorated cave system, Wind Cave is one of the oldest national parks in the U.S. Above ground, its mixed-grass prairie is home to bison, elk, and other wildlife.
Location: South Dakota
Wrangell–St. Elias National Park and Preserve
As America’s largest national park, it encompasses a stunning diversity of wild landscapes and majestic animals. The park includes mountain ranges, glaciers, and deep valleys where you can hike for days without seeing anther soul.
Location: Alaska
Yellowstone National Park
The first national park in the world, Yellowstone is famed for its geothermal features like the Old Faithful geyser and for its wild animals, including bears, wolves, and herds of bison and elk.
Location: Wyoming, Montana, Idaho
Yosemite National Park
Known for its waterfalls, deep valleys, grand meadows, and ancient giant sequoias, Yosemite is a treasure trove of majestic landscapes and is a hub for rock climbing and hiking.
Location: California
Zion National Park
Zion is characterized by its high plateaus, a maze of narrow, deep sandstone canyons, and the Virgin River flowing through the rugged landscape. Hiking in Zion can range from relaxing riverside walks to challenging cliffside scrambles.
Location: Utah
Until next time, adventurers, stay safe.
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