Valley View Overlook Trail
Valley View Overlook Trail is an easy 0.8-mile scenic in-out dirt route through a forest of cacti in Saguaro National Park, outside of Tuscon, Arizona.
Category National Park Service
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Artists Drive Scenic Loop
Explore Death Valley National Park's colorful hillsides along the 9-mile one-way Artists Drive.
Badwater Basin
Walk along the lowest elevation location in North America, 282-feet below sea level, at Badwater Basin in Death Valley National Park.
Cades Cove
Explore the 11-mile loop around the historic log buildings, postcard-perfect views, and local wildlife of Cades Cove.
Mountain Farm Museum
The Mountain Farm Museum is an oasis of calm in the chaos of the Great Smokey Mountains, America's most visited National Park. Located on the North Carolina side of the park, this living history museum doesn't experience the same traffic density as similar attractions like Cades Cove. The Museum shares a parking lot with the Oconaluftee Visitor's Center with plenty of easy parking.
Delicate Arch Trail
Call it "Cowboy's Chaps", "Old Maid's Bloomers", or "Salt Wash Arch", the Delicate Arch is Arches National Park's largest freestanding arch.
Double Arch Trail
We wing things. That's what we do. I've made a map of places we would like to go to and then base our routes on our final destination and what mapped points fall between our current location and destination. Exactly how our trip plays out each time is something we play by ear. In this case, we had ten days to travel to Oregon. Half way in, we discovered that we would be swinging by Arches National Park. Arches ranks as one of the most exciting National Parks that neither of us has ever visited. So, of course, we went.
Devil’s Garden Trail
The Devil's garden boasts a notably high concentration of arches, spires, and fins (narrow rock walls) in Arches National Park. Between the main loop and its many offshoots to iconic spots such as the landscape arch and the Double O Arch, hiking the Devil's Garden Trail can take anywhere from 1.9 to 7.9 miles with easy and difficult routes. If you are only going to make one spot in the Devil's Garden, it should be the Landscape Arch.
Zapata Falls Campground
Most cars tackle the rough and rocky route to Zapata Falls for Zapata Falls, a relatively short but technically complicated hike/wade to an enclosed waterfall. In fact, there is even a parking lot at the base of the road, allowing hikers with low clearance cars to park and hike to the trailhead. But, for those with high clearance rigs and tolerance for profoundly bumpy roads, there is also a campground with breathtaking views.
Yosemite Valley
Most pictures that you see of Yosemite are of and from the Yosemite Valley. This haven in the Sierra Mountains is flanked by El Capitan, Half Dome, and numerous other dramatic monoliths. It's no surprise that everyone wants to come here. But I do mean EVERYONE. Even in the fall, as we were, driving through Yosemite Valley is one extended traffic jam. Finding a parking spot is borderline Sisyphean. When we finally found a parking lot with space, we either walked or rode the bus. It's a beautiful place but the crowds are overwhelming.