On March 1, 1872, President Ulysses S. Grant signed the Yellowstone National Park Protection Act into law. This protection act made Yellowstone the world’s first national park. Since 1872, 63 parks in all 50 states have been designated as national parks. In total, the National Park Service (NPS) manages 433 individual sites which cover more than 85 million acres of land in the United States.

Arizona

The Grand Canyon (Williams) was designated a national park in 1919. It encompasses 1,218,375 acres or 1,904 square miles along the Colorado River. The Grand Canyon has layered bands of red rock revealing millions of years of geological history. The canyon is anywhere from 10 to 18 miles wide, and 1 mile deep. The elevation of the South Rim is 7,000 ft, with the North Rim having an elevation of 8,000 ft. When you are there, you can’t tell the difference! The park’s land is semi-arid and includes raised plateaus and structural basins.

Our Impressions: This was easily the busiest, least relaxing, most crowded National Park we have visited across the country. The most relaxing part was taking the train from Williams to the Grand Canyon. If we ever go back to the Grand Canyon, it will be to the North Rim.

Arkansas

Hot Springs National Park (Hot Springs) was designated a national park on March 4, 1921. It is the second smallest national park in the U.S. with only 5,550 acres. The area was first established as a federal reservation in 1832 to protect the geothermal spring water and associated lands. The reservation was the first time the federal government designated a natural resource for protection, actually predating Yellowstone National Park! It is sometimes difficult to know if you are in Hot Springs the city, or Hot Springs the National Park.

Our Impressions: This was the first time we had seen natural springs in person. You were able to hike to different hot springs locations. These areas were not as protected from the public as the hot springs are in Yellowstone National Park.

Maine

Acadia National Park (Bar Harbor) was established as the Sieur de Monts National Monument in 1916. It became the Lafayette National Park in 1919. In 1929, with the expansion to include Schoodic Peninsula, the park was renamed Acadia National Park. There are two versions of why the park was renamed. The formal reason was to honor the former French colony of Acadia, which once included Maine. The informal, or local folklore reason, says Acadia was renamed at the “request” of Louise Moore who would only donate the Schoodic Peninsula to the federal government if the French name of Lafayette was erased. Acadia NP is now 47,000 acres of land, with 10,156 acres within the boundaries of Bar Harbor. Its landscape is marked by woodland, rocky beaches and glacier-scoured granite peaks such as Cadillac Mountain, the highest point on the United States’ East Coast. Among the wildlife are moose, bear, whales and seabirds.

Our Impressions: Acadia NP is easily our favorite national park. It is the only park that offers beaches, hiking, and a rocky coast. While the nature, the rocky coast, the hiking trails and the wildlife viewing have not changed in the 50 years we have been going to Acadia, it has become ridiculously busy, tourist wise. For example, if you want to go to the top of Cadilac Mountain (and why wouldn’t you?), you must pay a fee and make a reservation.

North Dakota

Theodore Roosevelt National Park (Medora) was established as a national memorial park in 1947. In 1978 Congress redesignated the memorial park as a national park. In total, the park covers 70,446 acres in three sections: the North Unit, the South Unit, and the Elkhorn Ranch Unit. The Theodore Roosevelt National Park is the only U.S. national park named directly after a single person. There are two driving loops in the park.

Our Impressions: This NP is one of the least busy national parks we have visited. In driving the park loops, it was common to drive several miles before we saw another car! In addition to being amazed by the vast landscape, we couldn’t believe the amount of wildlife we saw! We encountered several herds of bison and wild mustangs roaming free.

Utah

Zion National Park (Springdale) is in southwestern Utah. Congress established Zion as a national park in 1919. It then added the Kolob Canyon to Zion NP in 1956. The two areas now encompass 148,733 acres. Zion is known for its steep red cliffs. Zion Canyon Scenic Drive cuts through its main section, leading to forest trails along the Virgin River. The river flows to the Emerald Pools, which have waterfalls and a hanging garden. The scenic drive can be challenging. It is only open to private vehicle traffic during the fall, winter and spring. Because Zion has gotten so busy, in the summer you have to take park busses (think packed cattle cars) to traverse the scenic drive. If you are not at the Visitors Center by 8 a.m., it is unlikely you will find a parking space (this is where the busses leave from).

Our Impressions: For a variety of reasons, we decided to avoid the “cattle car” option of seeing the park. Instead, we contracted with the Zion Jeep Tours to help us explore the parts of the park that are less traveled. It was well worth the money. It allowed us to see parts of the park we would never see in the heart of the park.

Wyoming

Yellowstone National Park (W. Yellowstone) was established in 1872 as the world’s first national park. It’s located in Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho. In total, Yellowstone National Park is 2,219,791 acres. This makes Yellowstone larger than the states of Rhode Island and Delaware combined! Yellowstone sits atop a volcanic hot spot. Yellowstone features dramatic canyons, alpine rivers, lush forests, hot springs and gushing geysers, including its most famous, Old Faithful. It’s also home to hundreds of spectacular animal species, including bears, wolves, bison, elk and antelope.

Our Impressions: This is one of the most visited parks in the country, but it didn’t feel that way when we were there. There is plenty of space to spread out. It is so trite to say pictures do not do the park justice, but it is true. The colors of the mineral pools are so vivid. Seeing a picture of Old Faithful is one thing, but also hearing it is another! This was our second favorite national park.

Summary

In all of our travels, we have only visited about one third of the 63 national parks!! We have many more to go! What have been our favorites? Acadia National Park, Yellowstone, The Grand Tetons and Theodore Roosevelt National Park.

If you enjoyed this blog on national parks, please also check out our blog on national monuments, national historic sites and national historic trails!

Since beginning our full-time journey to discover the country, we have found something to appreciate in every city and town we have passed through. We hope you enjoy reading about them as much as we have enjoyed discovering them!

Your partners in travel,
Kathryn and Dave
RVing Nomads

It’s a lifestyle

Thank you so much for reading this blog. If you enjoyed the content, please check out our other blogs at:
https://rvingnomads.com
https://relationshipsrelearned.com

To be notified of future posts, please enter your email address and click on the Subscribe button.

If you haven’t checked out our Special Places & Recommendations page, please do so. If you are in these areas, you may find these places as enjoyable and rewarding as we did!

No person, business or attraction has paid us for an endorsement. AI has not been used to create any of the content in this blog or website. All of the photos in this blog and website were taken by Dave or Kathryn Harrington.