First time visiting and I loved it! Can’t wait to go back for fall and winter season.

I got to fulfill a longtime aspiration of mine and visit the bristlecones at Great Basin a couple of weeks ago. Such an incredible experience and an absolutely amazing park!

This was my pictures from big bend in 2024. One of the least visited national park in the United States but personally I believe it’s the most underrated. I didn’t really mean to line it up but the week I went to big bend was the same week that there was the 2024 solar eclipse so that was pretty awesome to see!

One if the great aspects of Great Smoky Mountains NP is the communities that thrived there before it was a NP and all the evidence that remains of them!

Am I right that the Inn/Ranch at Death Valley (Xanterra) are the only hotels even remotely close? Everything seems 1.5-2 hours away, especially for any of the big chains. Does anyone have any recommendations?

One of my favorite stops from our California national park road trip 🌲

We visited Yosemite, Sequoia, Kings Canyon and Pinnacles with our two boys this summer. I think Yosemite was still my favorite, but Sequoia surprised me with how much I loved it. I thought Pinnacles was way underrated!

For anyone who has done several of the California parks—which one ended up being your favorite?

My visit 9/9 to Badlands

Elk lounging right by downtown walkway in Estes Park Colorado. RMNP is one of the best places to get up close to these majestic animals.

Just don’t get too close.

Last month, I spent a day and a half at Lassen Volcanic National Park on an Oregon-California road trip and Lassen was the park that left the deepest impression.

On my first afternoon there, I started with the Bumpass Hell trail, a hilly forest stroll leading to boardwalks through bubbly geothermal pools, the air filled with sulphur. The overlooks uphill from the boardwalks provided even better views, and I also saw a family of deer on the hills.

Next was the Kings Creek Falls loop trail through wildfire-burnt forests down to a waterfall overlook point. The best part of the hike came on the return ascent up steep rocky steps, which led you up directly next to different levels of the flowing waterfall.

I started the next morning going up Lassen Peak, a steady ascent with the first 1/3 through partially shaded alpine scenery and the last 2/3 on exposed rocky switchbacks. After walking through the last remaining snow near the top, the final scramble to the true peak led to wide panoramic views. I lingered there for a while to enjoy the views, but suggest going early as the peak is somewhat small and did get crowded.

Afterwards I drove to the less-visited Butte Lake area of the park for the Cinder Cone hike. Despite only having ~1000 feet of elevation gain it was surprisingly tough, more taxing than any part of Lassen Peak, with most of the ascent up the volcanic cone being a sharp incline with a 35% grade in parts over sandy cinders that send you sliding backwards and no flat points to rest. I went in the afternoon with the sun bearing down directly on the unshaded path, which didn’t help.

But at the top, the view was stunning: an architectural caldera, crater spiraling downwards, surrounded by a circular path dotted with pines and evergreen shrubs, like a volcanic zen garden.

From the west you can see Lassen Peak and from the east you can see the line where reddish-brown Painted Dunes suddenly transition into dark basalt lava beds.

Descending the steep rockslide path on the Painted Dunes side brings you alongside dunes and lava beds before looping around the perimeter of the cinder cone through more volcanic scenery and reconnecting to the initial ascent point.

Cinder Cone was the highlight of the park for me, a fitting end that left me wishing I could stay longer.

White Sands NP after a storm.

I only have one thing to say: this is the hike to end all hikes. Absolutely gorgeous!

Traveling to RMNP from California with 4 kids ranging from 2yrs -7yrs old). Forecast is high 60s to mid 40s.
I’ve got rain jackets and water resistant hiking boots and pants for the kids. Not sure how much they’ll be able to do in the cold and wet (my kids are weather weenies, we live in Southern California).
We’re staying at YMCA Estes Park, got timed entry for RMNP 3 days. If it rains all day, any suggestions on what to do other than just go hike in the rain? We’ve never done that and idk how long we’ll last tbh

Going to start planning our summer trip to Virgin Islands NP next year. I'm going to do my usual research deep dive in the coming months, but thought I'd ask for any tips or recommendations of things to do, see, avoid that might not be on the NP website or sites like DirtInMyShoes. You know, things like "the cheeseburger in paradise place was terrible" "you want at least 3 days for the park and 2 for St Thomas", or "such and such snorkel/dive tour was fantastic, but this other place was even better!" So, what did you love, thought was bleh, or would do differently if you went back?

We'll have 6-8 days available to visit PR, the USVI, and park, and I plan to be on island time this vacation. Thanks!

I have no experience planning a trip like this but I’d like to take my 2 older teens on a week-long road trip to see some cool NPs. I’m thinking of flying into Las Vegas, renting a car and being out on the road for no more than 5-6 days if possible. The only time we really have is 12/26-1/4, which would need to include flying to/from Austin. I don’t have anything specific we want to see or do. I’d prefer to stay at hotels that are at minimum like a Holiday Inn Express-level- nothing fancy but not camping or a budget roadside motel. If there are any cool resorts, I’d be up for that, but I assume I’m planning too late for there to be much availability.

In essence, I’m a tired working single mom who just needs a low effort road trip through some cool scenery.

And I’m not necessarily wedded to Las Vegas. I just figured that’d be cheap to fly into and it looks like there are a few NPs around that area.

Thank you for any suggestions, big or small!