Top 5 National Parks
Out of all the Parks I’ve been to, here is a list of my top 5.
Yosemite
I’m fully aware of how dramatic this sounds… but I quite literally cried when I entered through the tunnel into Yosemite Valley. I camped the night before in my car in the Wawona campground, which by the way I was the ONLY one in the whole campground (December), and RACED down the road to try to beat the sun to Yosemite Valley. I stopped a few times on the side of the road because fog was rolling through the park and it was beautiful everywhere, and even with the stops I made it through the tunnel with minutes to spare. Tears came automatically as I took in the view, still in my car. The funny thing about this is I’ve never cried at something like this before, I was just so taken aback. I parked in the lot right after the tunnel and stood next to about 15 people with their professional cameras set up and ready to take photos of the first light hitting the valley.
Besides the view… Yosemite is surprisingly dog-friendly. This was a last minute trip for me so I didn’t hike half-dome, which is still a dream of mine. Even without a big ticket hike under my belt, this park was extraordinary. I took my dog on the lower Yosemite fall loop. and mostly drove around to take it all in. Will absolutely go back for half-dome.
Zion
This is a park that is well-known and hyped for a reason. Another park that, at one entrance, you enter through a tunnel into a beautiful valley (Do I have a type??). It is amazing and has views that are accessible to everyone, with the option of hiking the famous Angels Landing or the Narrows. I’ve been to Zion twice, and have hiked Angels Landing twice, and the Narrows once. The Narrows was honestly way scarier than Angels Landing because we went a few days after the park flooded, and they were worried about another flash flood through the Narrows, so we went but tried to get in and out as quickly as possible.
I camped in the park and the park shuttles are so convenient! During most of the year you have to use their busses to get up to most of the hikes, but they do make it so easy to navigate, so that part is easy, and also great to just hop back on after a long day of hiking.
Grand Teton
I love love this park. It has a great mix of great hikes, and easily accessible views. Carried my bear spray with me, but I only saw two moose (by the well-named moose pond) and a very nosy fox in my campsite. Camping here was easy and the Rangers were friendly and full of recommendations. Highly recommend waking up for sunrise to see the light hitting the tops of the Tetons. Bonus points that this park is immediately next to Yellowstone, which did not make this list, but is still a must see, especially if you make it all the way up to the Grand Tetons.
Grand Canyon (ONLY if you are going to hike into the canyon)
I do put a caveat on this one. While the view from the top of the Canyon is unreal, I think the Grand Canyon is meant to be hiked into. It is FILLED with tourists across the rim, and it is just a whole different experience once you start hiking down. Don’t get me wrong, Grand Canyon hikes are HARD and the elevation change is very serious, so please be prepared if you are going to do this.
I’ve been to both the North and the South Rim, the South rim being way more popular. I went to the North rim out of season and we saw only one person working and no one else… which honestly was a little spooky, but made the sunset dinner on the rocks even more peaceful.
Bryce Canyon
I actually only stopped at Bryce Canyon because it was on the way to other parks on one of my trips… and it ended up being one of my favorite parks. This park has such unique features, and with relatively short hikes, it is easy to take in the parks beauty. I think I liked this park so much because it felt like it had all the beauty and jaw-dropping features of some of the more main stream parks, but did not have the same amount of tourists / crowds.
Yosemite Valley right before the sunrise came over the valley.
At the top of Angels Landing in Zion National Park
The Grand Tetons during a fall sunrise
The hike down into the Grand Canyon, starting from the North Rim
