Most underrated national parks (live, horse, places)

[kidphilly]

From a history standpoint in combination with beautiful contryside Valley Forge and Gettysburg have a great combination

[EastSideMKE]

Mesa Verde National Park (U.S. National Park Service)

I nominate Mesa Verde in SW Colorado. I'm not an outdoorsy person at all, which is probably why I liked Mesa Verde so much, because it's a hybrid between a national park and a history museum. Mesa Verde is the only national park where the main purpose is to "preserve the works of man." There are several extremely well preserved Pueblo cliff dwellings in the park, even some that you can walk through. Really a very cool place.

[vanburen81]

Originally Posted by jjacobeclark

Mesa Verde National Park (U.S. National Park Service)

I nominate Mesa Verde in SW Colorado. I'm not an outdoorsy person at all, which is probably why I liked Mesa Verde so much, because it's a hybrid between a national park and a history museum. Mesa Verde is the only national park where the main purpose is to "preserve the works of man." There are several extremely well preserved Pueblo cliff dwellings in the park, even some that you can walk through. Really a very cool place.

Mesa Verde is a very good national park for non-outdoorsy people. Mamouth Cave and Carlsbad Caverns are also good national parks for people who aren't interested in climbing mountains or canoeing across lakes.

[st. louie louie]

Hovenweep

[jknic]

I think Gateway National Park (or maybe it's by a different name and a national recreation area) is highly underrated (namely Sandy Hook, which I have only been to in the "off" season), with the exception of the parts including the statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, which I think are a little over rated.

[BPerone201]

Originally Posted by Ghengis

Badlands NP...

Now that's unique!
I would of never expected something like that in SD.

[BPerone201]

Delaware Water Gap, NJ/PA


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[knrstz]

Originally Posted by BPerone201

Delaware Water Gap, NJ/PA

Beautiful pictures. I don't think it's actually a national park but it's definately beautiful enough to be one.

[BPerone201]

Originally Posted by knrstz

Beautiful pictures. I don't think it's actually a national park but it's definately beautiful enough to be one.

Yea, true.
It's a national "recreation" area, but most of it is like the pics I posted.

[BjhMachine]

Good idea for a thread. With much of the national travel site's attention focused on the big parks - Yellowstone, Yosemite, Grand Canyon, I think its important to point out those lesser-known parks that fall under the radar. Living in Pennsylvania, the Big Three listed above are clearly the most talked about "national parks in the West" to visit.

My wife and I did a trip through southern Utah in 2008 to Zion, Bryce, Capitol Reef, Arches, and Canyonlands. What an amazing trip. I think my favorite was Arches for the unique hikes, but Zion and Bryce are also fantastic. (Angels Landing, anyone?) I think the isolation of some of these parks hurts the national exposure. Arches is simply a LONG way from any major population center. Zion is a great day trip from Vegas.

Additionally, Acadia NP in Maine is special and I personally think Shenandoah NP is a gem for those lucky people in the DC area that only have a short drive to enjoy it.