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I vastly prefer the National Parks which offer



Llama Trekking !

I note that all of the complaining about national parks seems to focus on just certain of the 58 U.S. national parks. The popular ones (with heavy throngs of tourists). I'd suggest that if one can't find a favorite among those, consider some of these ...

1. Isle Royale. I haven't been (yet), but you're not going to run into any RVs out there.

2. Canyonlands. Get into The Maze and you won't find tourists or RVs (they stick to Island in the Sky and The Needles). It helps to have 4WD.

3. Capitol Reef. Have a 4WD vehicle and head north. But even the graded dirt road into Water Pocket Fold is little frequented.



4. Big Bend. As previously mentioned, stay out of the Chisos Basin and you have the entire million acres practically to yourself (counts adjacent Big Bend Ranch State Park). It helps to have a high clearance vehicle, or even 4WD.

5. Black Canyon of the Gunnison. Stick to the north side to avoid most tourists. Spend a night in the canyon to avoid virtually all tourists.



6. Channel Islands. Most tourists don't get past the visitor center on the mainland. Spend a night on one of the more distant islands. Definitely no RVs.



7. Congaree. Another one with which I have no personal experience, but no one has even heard of it, and tourists tend to stay out of the swamps.

8. Everglades. Just hike into the glades--but watch out for croc's and alligators (yes, both live there).

9. Death Valley. If you have 4WD, you can get away from the RVs. Camp in the mountains for cooler temp's in the summer.

10. Dry Tortugas. Spend the night, if they are permitting it (seems they turn this off and on).

11. Gates of the Arctic. I haven't been there, but 'nuff said.

12. Guadalupe Mountains. Despite being very close to a very popular park (Carlsbad Caverns), most folks don't even stop their RVs at this jewel. Spend a night or two in the mountains--I recommend Mckittrick Canyon.

13. North Cascades. The only road actually runs right between the northern and southern sections. Hike even a mile in to get away from 99.9% of visitors.

14. Redwood Canyon. My son and I arrived here on Friday afternoon, July 4th a couple years ago. Despite no reservation, and full campgrounds in the NP and the state parks, we secured a permit into Tall Tree Grove. We spent the night alone--no one to see at all the entire evening, night and next morning--with a hike through some of the very tallest trees in the world. It doesn't get much better than this ...

Great list, Mark.

Isle Royale is funny on the crowding dimension. It gets about the same number of backcountry campers as Yellowstone (14,000). Isle Royale has a very short season (July 15-August 31) because people avoid the skeeters. Isle Royale has only 160 miles of trails, while Yellowstone has over one thousand. Yellowstone has 300 backcountry sites, Isle Royale 230 (and those IRNP sites are grouped in campgrounds).

Bottom line: you're more likely to see people on the trails in IRNP than in Yellowstone, and much more likely to have to share a backcountry campsite.

But it's true there are no RVs, since there's only one way to get there: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7yfISlGLNU

The national parks of USA are beautiful places, but there are also some really gorgeous ones on other places.

Anybody here been to Serengeti?

My daughters are named Tenaya and Conness if that's a hint as to my favorite.

Lolli wrote:The national parks of USA are beautiful places, but there are also some really gorgeous ones on other places.

Anybody here been to Serengeti?

Wish I had had the chance. Amboseli is another one that is pretty amazing. Never made it to Masai Mara either.

Arthur Digbee wrote:Isle Royale is funny on the crowding dimension. It gets about the same number of backcountry campers as Yellowstone (14,000). Isle Royale has a very short season (July 15-August 31) because people avoid the skeeters. Isle Royale has only 160 miles of trails, while Yellowstone has over one thousand. Yellowstone has 300 backcountry sites, Isle Royale 230 (and those IRNP sites are grouped in campgrounds).

Yellowstone has grizzlies.

I haven't been drinking, but it's clear to me that everybody has their OWN list of Places to go.

Is something wrong with that? If everybody went to the same Parks, the Earth would become
"lop-sided" and spin out of control, colliding with another galaxy or alien spacecraft.

Just enjoy what you got! I envy all those who have easy access to a National Treasure, or
even an "international one," if they can afford the time and energy it takes to travel there.

Time is a-wasting, people. Enjoy ..

redneck wrote:

Arthur Digbee wrote:Isle Royale is funny on the crowding dimension. It gets about the same number of backcountry campers as Yellowstone (14,000). Isle Royale has a very short season (July 15-August 31) because people avoid the skeeters. Isle Royale has only 160 miles of trails, while Yellowstone has over one thousand. Yellowstone has 300 backcountry sites, Isle Royale 230 (and those IRNP sites are grouped in campgrounds).

Yellowstone has grizzlies.

I've had a lot more trouble from Isle Royale skeeters than from Yellowstone grizzlies.

I did a safari through Amboseli and Serengeti. We were conducting military flight operations in Somalia and the Arabian Sea, off the coast of Iran. Got a long port-o-call in Mombasa, Kenya, took advantage of the time to take a week-long safari.

The Serengeti


We flew from Mombasa to Amboseli and spent a couple of days driving around in Range Rovers. Then we flew into the Serengeti, spent a couple of days driving around in Range Rovers. It was bone-jarring, and either very dusty or very wet.

Kilimanjaro is out there in the coulds

Don't get out of the Range Rover! Don't get out of the fuckin' Range Rover!


Then we flew to another part of the Serengeti for a few more days. There was a great bar at a tent camp out in the middle of nowhere. Seemed very British. Finally flew back to Mombasa after about a week in the bush.

Sierra Ledge Rat wrote:I did a safari through Amboseli and Serengeti....

I'm truly jealous. Gorgeous pictures. --mark d.

Mark Doiron wrote:7. Congaree. Another one with which I have no personal experience, but no one has even heard of it, and tourists tend to stay out of the swamps.

Went there a few years ago in February. Great place; rangers were friendly, bugs were minimal, the trails were pretty cool, but the best part was when my buddy and I took a canoe down some of creeks and streams there; it was other-worldly.

Columbia, only 20 miles away (nearest hotels to the park) isn't a bad town either. I forget the name of the section (Four or Five Corners or something like that) has some pretty cool bars that are open till 4 AM.

anita wrote:yeah, like the national/provincial parks of Canada

Limited experience in Canada. Only been to Fundy, but the tides in that place are pretty amazing. Reversing Falls (not a National Park, I know) in Saint John's was pretty cool too.

Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Uganda.

Castlereagh wrote:
Limited experience in Canada. Only been to Fundy, but the tides in that place are pretty amazing. Reversing Falls (not a National Park, I know) in Saint John's was pretty cool too.

Dude you haven't really seen Canada yet. I urge you to visit western Canada an have your socks knocked ff.