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Joshua Tree - One of the most beautiful, interesting, and unique desert landscapes in the country. Awesome for rock climbers of any skill as well.
Channel Islands - This is a bias, as the park is only a 2 hour boat ride from the nearest marina to my house. It's not very well known (I believe this is the least visited national park in the country?), but totally interesting. Half of the park is actually underwater, and it has a compelling natural history as well. Home to the 13,000 year old Arlington Man, which up until recently, were the oldest human remains found in North America. Also was home to several colonies of the Pygmy Mammoth, which can be found no where else in the world and stood only 5 feet tall.
Redwood - Magical. Completely alien world and the size of the trees is something you can only understand by seeing them for yourself. When I went I felt as if dinosaurs could appear at any moment. Also extremely quiet. Spent an evening camping there once and while sitting outside as it started getting dark there was complete silence. No animals, bugs, rustling, trees blowing, etc. Nothing.
Great Sand Dunes- There's something magical about the San Luis Valley, I can't explain it. The tallest sand dunes in North America on high desert ringed by jagged ranges in every direction. The dunes themselves can be finicky- if you go at the wrong time, everything you own will be filled with sand- but it is an absolutely giant playground with plenty of space to spread out. And very few rules about how you have to play....
Capitol Reef- Off the beaten path, Capitol Reef has many components of the other national parks in UT, but gets far less traffic. And that means something to me- I love me some UT geology, but on our last few visits, Arches and especially Zion felt far too crowded. Capitol Reef still has that of that raw, quiet scenery and energy of the area, but with a level of solitude you won't find in the other parks these days.
North Cascades- Alright, I'm biased- NCNP is the closest park to me, but it's not nearly as busy as Rainier or even the Olympics. It has a very rugged, frontier-ish feel, and I love the fact that you can transition from temperate rain forest to jagged peaks and glaciers to drier ponderosa forests and eventually shrub-steppe scenery to the east.
Of the ones I have been to Great Sand Dunes. It is the only time I have felt like I was on a different planet. Rising out of the high desert shrubbery along the Sangre de Cristo Mountains are the highest sand dunes in North America. The dunes rise up to 750 feet high.
When I lived in Colorado I went there three times. I couldn't get enough of it. It is the must see place in Colorado. Each time I had family come visit me I took them on a little road trip down there. Why? You have to see it to believe it, and after you see it the experience will stick with you forever. It isn't a zoo like Rocky Mountain Park and the views of the San Juans in the distance and nearby Blanca Massif and Crestones are more beautiful than anything on the Front Range. Black Canyon was cool, but it wasn't as memorable as the dunes.
Of the ones I want to visit: Isle Royale, Wrangell St. Elias, and North Cascades. Isle Royale because you are on an island in the middle of Lake Superior in pristine wilderness with moose and wolves. Wrangell-St. Elias because I want to see Mount St. Elias rise over 18,000 feet in person, hike the various glaciers, and do some amazing ice climbing. North Cascades for its raw beauty. It takes me back to my trip to the Argentine Lake District.
Arches - Otherworldly rock formations, beautiful red sandstone desert setting with an amphitheater view of surrounding mountains and canyons, and of course the arches. Landscape Arch, Double Arch, and Tower of Babel were personal favorites.
Yellowstone - Mammoth hotsprings, Grand Prismatic Spring, hundreds of geysers and other volcanic forms, plus canyons, waterfalls, and some pretty good mountains too. Enough stuff for 3 national parks.
Black Canyon of the Gunnison - An underrated park that I felt like propping up. Tacked it on to a trip to other things and very glad I did! Pure vertical domination is what this canyon is all about. Very different in character from the other large canyon parks. Colorado has 5 great parks--all of which I've been to, and most people would probably list one of the others as their favorites, but I think this might by my personal favorite. The Painted Walls and Devil's Point were some of the highlights.
Great Smoky Mountains - The best eastern park. The Jumpoff+Charlie's Bunion, The Chimneys, Mt LeConte. Some of the most extreme eastern wilderness. Ruggedness bathed in lushness.
I tried to make this thread yesterday and moderator said there already was one, and my apologies to moderator! I nominated Arches, Olympic, and Hawaii Volcanoes, the latter of which inspired my post, having visited it recently. I've been to 19 of 63. Also, since this thread was created, four additional monuments have become National Parks. I believe 4 have been added since: New River Gorge, Whites Sands, Indiana Dunes, and Gateway Arch.
Slightly disappointing would be Guadalupe Mountains and Gateway Arch.
Glacier and Olympic have been my personal favorites. Zion is nice, Badlands are nice and underrated, Yellowstone is cool if you like animals. I was disappointed with Rocky Mountains and the Grand Canyon.
Yellowstone: wildlife, geology
Grand Tetons: those mountains and lakes
Great Basin: unique sky island ecosystem with amazing vistas, Lehman Caves, that dark night sky camping at 10,000'
As a photographer, I have a few favorites but Grand Canyon in winter is very nice. Canyonlands is great. Sequoia, Kings Canyon, and Redwood for big trees. Great Sand Dunes is fabulous. Mesa Verde is amazing. I like less crowded National Monuments as well.
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