Behold this nation’s vast, beautiful, preserved park system, yours to explore! America has designated 63 national parks, from Alaska (home to 6 of the top 7 largest parks, and 8 total) to the Florida Keys and the U.S. Virgin Islands, 30 states plus 2 US territories. In total, there are 423 national park “sites” which also include monuments, seashores, preserves and historic landmarks.
The U.S. National Park Service was “founded in 1916”, but was actually first established by Congress in 1872 with the creation of Yellowstone National Park once President Ulysses S. Grant signed it into law. Then came Sequoia and Yosemite in 1890, and so on.
U.S. National Parks are open to the public, for a small fee. Parks are funded by three sources: 1st – the US Government which budgets billions annually (and occasionally cuts billions during recessionary times), 2nd – park entrance fees (your fee or membership) and 3rd – by private donations – often tax deductible (just like its infancy with Rockefeller money).
A Senior Lifetime Park Pass is $80, plus $10 in admin, so $90 once you are 62 and you’re free to roam about the most magnificent land masses in the U.S.! For everyone else, the National Park Pass is $85 for one year. Military, volunteers awarded more than 250 hours, and US 4th graders, receive a free park pass for a year.
The busiest parks, Glacier National Park and Yosemite National Park, bring in millions of visitors each year, Acadia in Maine and the Grand Canyon see plenty of people annually too.
This Bucket List of National Parks may reveal some Park names and places you’ve never heard of …but are well worth the visit! Alphabetical order …start checking them off travel friends!
Acadia National Park on Mt Desert Island Maine
American Samoa National Park in the U.S. territory covering 7 South Pacific islands
Arches National Park in Utah
Badlands National Park in South Dakota
Big Bend National Park in south west Texas near Mexico – The Rio Grande
Biscayne National Park in Florida’s Keys – islands and coral reefs
Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park in western Colorado
Bryce Canyon National Park in southern Utah
Canyonlands National Park in south eastern Utah
Capitol Reef National Park in Utah
Carlsbad Caverns National Park in New Mexico
Channel Islands National Park in the Pacific of California
Congaree National Park in South Carolina
Crater Lake National Park in Oregon
Cuyahoga Valley National Park in Ohio
Death Valley National Park in both California and Nevada
Denali National Park in Alaska
Dry Tortugas National Park in Florida – seven islands 68 miles west of Key West
Everglades National Park in Florida
Gates of the Arctic National Park in Alaska
Gateway Arch National Park in Missouri
Glacier Bay National Park in Alaska
Glacier National Park near Whitefish in Montana bordering Canada
Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona
Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming near Jackson Hole
Great Basin National Park in Nevada
Great Sand Dunes National Park of Colorado
Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee and North Carolina
Guadalupe Mountains National Park of Texas
Haleakalā National Park on Maui, Hawaii
Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park on the Island of Hawai’i – home to the world’s most active volcanoes – Kīlauea and Mauna Loa.
Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas
Indiana Dunes National Park in Indiana
Isle Royale National Park in Michigan
Joshua Tree National Park in California near Palm Springs
Katmai National Park in Alaska
Kenai Fjords National Park in Alaska
Kings Canyon National Park in California
Kobuk Valley National Park Alaska
Lake Clark National Park of Alaska
Lassen Volcanic National Park California
Mammoth Cave National Park in Kentucky
Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado near Purgatory at Durango
Mount Rainier National Park in Washington, near Crystal Mountain
New River Gorge National Park of West Virginia
North Cascades National Park of Washington
Olympic National Park of Washington
Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona
Pinnacles National Park in California
Redwood National Park in California
Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado
Saguaro National Park in Arizona
Sequoia National Park in California
Shenandoah National Park in Virginia
Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota
Virgin Islands National Park which preserves about 60% of the land of St John, USVI
Voyageurs National Park in Minnesota
White Sands National Park in New Mexico
Wind Cave National Park in South Dakota
Wrangell—St. Elias National Park in Alaska
Yellowstone National Park in 3 states – Wyoming, Montana, Idaho
Yosemite National Park of California near Mammoth Mountain and Lake Tahoe
Zion National Park in Utah
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