What's your favorite National Park?

If you’re driving all the way from Florida, you should check out Guadalupe Mountains National Park as well. Its a great park with some really nice hikes.

 

Ok, where to start, this will be a solo trip camping out of the back of my Tacoma. I have a sleeping platform build and an ARB awning with awning room if I need it. I prefer disbursed camping to established campgrounds but know this is limited in the NP.

I have a friend who was there last year who told me about the Windows trail and to stay in the Chiosos Basin campground for any hikes in that part of them park. I’ll just ordered a couple of hiking BBNP books that were linked earlier or in a different thread I found.

I know I want to drive River Road, Glenn Spring, Black Gap. I know about the Mariscal Mine, Santa Elena canyon and I want to go to the Boquillas border crossing and take the row boat across the river. The other interesting places you mentioned I don’t remember hearing about.

My friend stayed a couple of days in Terlingua so I know it’s on the rough agenda. I think he recommended the Starlight too.

The BB Ranch State Park is very interesting sounding because of the more undeveloped nature of it, sounds sort of like Death Valley which is another place I want to go to. I don’t have a lot of specifics about the SP so any info you have on it will be greatly appreciated.

I would like to go to Guadeloupe Mountain while I’m out there but I don’t know how my time allotment will work out. If you have any suggestions for that park please post them up. I’ll add them to my bucket list. Lol

 

Camp sites are a bit limited at Guadalupe. Sites for RVs are basically on a paved parking lot. There are BLM campgrounds nearby that might be more to your liking.

 

So my embedded comments are only visible if you expand the dialogue box…oops.
The Big Bend is an incredible place. Let me know if you have more question. Feel free to pm me if you’d like to have a phone call.
Andy

 

Thanks for all the info, I’ve had the NP website open in a separate tab for about a week, still going over it. It seems a lot of the disbursed campsites are first come/first served and you have to register at the Ranger Station. Makes planning the east to west route difficult (that was my idea too).

I didn’t think about hunting season in the SP. I need to call them and find out about closed areas during the end of the year.

Let me do some more research and firm up some things, I’ll DM you if needed. Thanks again!

 

We camped at Guadeloupe in 1986. Rained all night with high winds. Every tent in the campground blew down but ours. Rangers came at 7 in the morning and asked if we were staying or leaving. The dry wash was about to overflow the banks and wash out the road. We just made it out in time. On the other side of the mountain the sun was out.

 

Of the 63 national parks, I've been to 30 of them. Ranking them is tough because I like different parks for different reasons, but the two worst are easy:

1) Yellowstone
2) Zion
3) Yosemite
4) Glacier
5) Grand Canyon
6) Canyonlands
7) Mammoth Cave
8) Olympic
9) Sequoia
10) Arches
11) Great Sand Dunes
12) Joshua Tree
13) Death Valley
14) Bryce Canyon
15) Acadia
16) Redwood
17) Rocky Mountain
18) Capitol Reef
19) Grand Teton
20) Theodore Roosevelt
21) Kings Canyon
22) Great Basin
23) Petrified Forest
24) Crater Lake
25) North Cascades
26) Black Canyon of the Gunnison
27) Great Smokey Mtns
28) Shenandoah
62) Indiana Dunes
63) Gateway Arch

 

You have Grand Teton too low imho, but you also have Gateway Arch waaaaaay too high. That it gets the NP designation is ridiculous.

 

DV 13???? WHAT!!! How where did you see??????? what did you not see?

 

To be fair, I only spent a two days in Grand Teton and didn't really get into the backcountry. The list is weighted heavily on my personal experience there, but also considering the possibility of future exploration.

And yea, I am actively mad that Gateway Arch is a Natl Park. It doesn't fit any of the criteria. Just make it a Natl Monument or whatever. Thankfully I didn't go out of my way to visit (almost did get mugged though - don't visit at night and keep your head on a swivel!!!)

 

My wife isnt much for tent camping, but we did get above Inspiration Point and beyond the crowd which was nice. Also went with a canoe and got on String Lake before anyone else, and Leigh Lake with 1 other guy. Those top GT for me. Assuming you'll get down to the White Sands/Guadalupe/Carlsbad loop sometime, dont miss Bandolier NM. Its the flipside of a monument that should be a NP

 

Actually, it was the Jefferson Natl Expansion Memorial before it was elevated to Natl Park status.

I've been to 8 of your top 28 and both of the ones you rank last. The thing about Natl Parks is there's something special about each and every one of them. Yes, the Gateway Arch is small, but it's also accessible to lots of people- and has some interesting history. Not to mention, the architecture is AMAZING!

Indiana Dunes is a diverse ecosystem. It's known as the birthplace of ecology! Also another park that is accessible to many people. I'm not knocking any of the top parks you listed. It's just that many of those are difficult for lots of us to get to.

 

Acadia: Especially the Schoodic Peninsula and Isle au Haut areas of the park.

 

New Mexico is high on my list for next time I'm out west. Already have Bandolier saved on my map along with many other places in the southwest. West Texas too, I'd like to see Big Bend and Guadalupe.

Good note on the accessibility, I just prefer parks with amazing natural features and and extensive backcountry to get off the beaten path. Gateway Arch is none of that.

Indiana Dunes though, ecology aside its a small park with industry always visible along the shoreline.

I enjoyed visiting all the national parks I've been to, but some are in a different league than others.

 

I just made reservations to camp at Dry Tortugas. There was a single spot left for the camp gear aboard the ferry, so I took it. Looking forward to spending a night out there and will probably qualify as my most "remote" campsite if you consider distance from civilization and not proximity to a few other campers.

 

Yosemite

 

I cant make anyone love indiana dunes national park but… the thing that makes it special is the science.

Ecology was “found” here. The idea of succession was discovered in the dune and swale ranges. I think its important. But its a checkerboard park that is spread out amongst steel mills now.

I've worked in 5 national parks as a ranger now so each is special for its own unique way.

 

Mount Rainier...

 

Crater Lake...

 

Great Smokey Mountains is criminally low on this list. What a spectacular and beautiful place! Definitely gets crowded in the 'main' parts of the park, but the backcountry is remote and wild and wonderful.