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My vote is for the Dolly Sods/Cannan Valley/Blackwater Falls area of West Virginia.
Pretty much all of West VA except the panhandle should be a National Park. It's already a national treasure. it is the most beautiful state in the Republic.
Location: I roam around. Spend most my time in the West or the Northwoods.
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I am surprised there is not a National Park somewhere on the bluffs of the Mississippi River. It could be MN, WI, IA, IL.... it is a gorgeous area and one that frames the most important river in the country.
I am surprised there is not a National Park somewhere on the bluffs of the Mississippi River. It could be MN, WI, IA, IL.... it is a gorgeous area and one that frames the most important river in the country.
There was a big push (including a book) by some guy to use a big Wisconsin chunk and Call it "Driftless Rivers National Park" Driftless Rivers
It's a very unique and unknown-to-most area, though I'm not sure it's placed where it would be a draw, and the amount of farming (half or so farms, half forests) might turn off those in search of "true" wilderness. I love the area, and consider it the Midwest's best kept natural secret.
There are many off-the-beaten-trail areas in the country that are as spectacularly beautiful as many of the national parks but for one reason or another have avoided acquiring park status.
What area do you think deserves to be a national park, but isn't yet?
I'll kick this off with:
Red River Gorge (Kentucky/Tennessee)
An impressive collection of hundreds of arches, natural bridges, sandstone cliffs and other rockforms. It's as if someone scraped out a chunk of Utah's landscape and dropped it in the southeastern climate with trees and humidity growing over it.
The eastern US is underserved by national parks. I think this would be a very logical addition, since it would be very different from all the other eastern parks we currently have, and it's a rare and precious type of scenery. And in this case it could bring much deserved tourism to an area that needs it.
One of the reasons that it may not be a National Park is because it is already a State Park.
However a State Park can sometimes be changed to a National Park if the state is willing to give up control. For instance, Saratoga Battlefield, originally a New York SP, was turned into Saratoga National Historical Park in 1938.
Here are a couple of possibilities that I can think of in the Northeast. Some of them may already have NNL status but not Federal control:
Maine - Baxter State Park to Baxter National Park
New York - Adirondack State Preserve to Adirondack National Preserve
New York - Niagara Falls State Park to Niagara Falls National Landmark
New York - Letchworth State Park to Letchworth Gorge National Landmark
New Jersey - Wharton and other NJ State Forests to Pine Barrens National Preserve
Pennsylvania - Ricketts Glenn State Park to Ricketts Glenn National Landmark or Park
Pennsylvania - Tioga State Forest (Pine Creek Gorge) to Pine Creek Gorge National Landmark
In addition, White Mountain National Forest in New Hampshire and perhaps parts of Green Mountain National Forest in Vermont could be upgraded to National Park status.
There was a big push (including a book) by some guy to use a big Wisconsin chunk and Call it "Driftless Rivers National Park" Driftless Rivers
It's a very unique and unknown-to-most area, though I'm not sure it's placed where it would be a draw, and the amount of farming (half or so farms, half forests) might turn off those in search of "true" wilderness. I love the area, and consider it the Midwest's best kept natural secret.
I agree. While it isn't wilderness, there is a lot of wide open space because the land is farmed, state parks, or state natural areas. It has everything...scenery, very ancient history, biological diversity, and geological diversity.
NASA trains astronauts here. More training just ended last week. It's truly a different geology and setting most than most have seen.
Most tourists driving to Yellowstone National Park (YNP) from Idaho Falls don't know Craters of the Moon exists. An easy day trip from Idaho Falls regardless if visitors are driving the entire trip to YNP or fly into Idaho Falls and rent a car to go see the lava formations.
Those who try to add Jackson Hole, WY and /the Grand Tetons to a YNP vacation would be surprised how different Craters of the Moon is from Jackson Hole.
Check it out if you haven't seen it, some prefer to spend their entire vacation here.
MSR
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