Enjoy a National Park Vacation

TRAVELING IN THE AMERICAN WEST

Enjoy A National Park Vacation

By Alan LeStourgeon

If you are planning a National Park vacation you might want to consider one or a few of these top 10 National Parks listed below.

There are many National Parks to visit, but the parks listed below are the most scenic and most popular of all the National Parks and recreation areas.

I can personally attest to the beauty and grandeur of all 10 of these favorite National Parks. They are truly the best natural recreation areas the United States has to offer.

Spending your vacation in the great outdoors is a much better alternative than staying cooped up in a hotel room or visiting touristy theme parks.

Petrified Forest courtesy National Park Service.

A National Park vacation is an incredible way to treat yourself and your family to the beauty of God's creation.

These top 10 National Parks below offer a vast array of activities for the entire family. Some of those activities include hiking, biking, camping, rock climbing, mountain climbing, whitewater rafting, tubing, horseback riding, snow skiing, bird watching, fishing, and much more.

As you can see you will never run out of things to do on your National Park vacation.

Here are my top 10 recommended National Parks for your vacation:

Acadia National Park

Located on the rugged coast of Maine, Acadia National Park encompasses over 47,000 acres of granite-domed mountains, woodlands, lakes and ponds, and ocean shoreline.

Crater Lake National Park

Crater Lake is located in Oregon and is famous for the intense blue color of its waters and for its spectacular views. There are steep 1,500' to 2,000' drop offs all around the lake...simply beautiful.

Grand Canyon National Park

The beauty of Grand Canyon is beyond compare. When you first lay eyes on its magnificence it will take your breath away. You are completely humbled by it's immense beauty and size and there is truly no place like it on earth.

Grand Teton National Park

Located in northwestern Wyoming , Grand Teton National Park is home to stunning mountain scenery and a diverse array of wildlife.

Great Smoky Mountain National Park

Ridge upon ridge of endless forest straddle the border between North Carolina and Tennessee in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, one of the largest National Park areas in the Eastern United States. It is also the most visited National Park.

Mount Rainier National Park

Mt Rainier National Park was established in 1899 and covers 235,625 acres (97% is designated Wilderness). Includes Mount Rainier (14,410'), an active volcano encased in over 35 square miles of snow and ice. The park contains outstanding examples of old growth forests and subalpine meadows.

Petrified Forest National Park

Petrified Forest National Park is a surprising land of scenic wonders and fascinating science. The park features one of the world's largest and most colorful concentrations of petrified wood and the multi-hued badlands known as the Painted Desert.

Rocky Mountain National Park

Established on January 26, 1915, Rocky Mountain National Park is a living showcase of the grandeur of the Rocky Mountains and my favorite National Park vacation site.

Yellowstone National Park,

In 1872, President Ulysses S. Grant signed a law declaring that Yellowstone would forever be "dedicated and set apart as a public park or pleasuring ground for the benefit and enjoyment of the people." Maybe one of the most famous National Parks and the home of Old Faithful.

Yosemite National Park

Yosemite National Park embraces a spectacular tract of mountain-and-valley scenery in the Sierra Nevada, which was set aside as a National Park in 1890. Yosemite was made famous by Ansel Adams' spectacular black and white photography.

Spending your next vacation in one or many of these National Parks will be a treasure and the memories will certainly last a lifetime.

Added May, 2006

About the Author: Alan LeStourgeon operates a vacation rental web site where you can find comfortable vacation cabin rentals, recreational and hiking vacation information and information on log cabin decor.

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Morning Glory Pool at Yellowstone National Park,

Jon Sullivan, June, 2003.

This image available for photographic prints HERE!

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