America is rich in national parks that provide wonderful views, direct contact with wildlife, plenty of outdoor activities, or all at once. When trying to determine which one of them you would like to tour first, there are plenty of factors to consider, especially given that you might end up scratching your head and wondering how you could ever pick one. We’re here to give a suggestion. Especially if this is a topic that attracts you, you may have heard of the Mighty Five, the name given to the great five inter-connected Utah national parks. There are several other parks worth mentioning, so let’s get started.
#1 Capitol Reef National Park
If we were to start off with the most popular and famous of the parks, we definitely wouldn’t have kicked the list of with the Reef. This particular part is the least visited among the Mighty Five Utah national parks and the solitude it provides goes hand in hand with the raw, amazing landscape. The star of the Reef is the Waterpocket Fold, a stone wall flaunting some impressive Domes that showcase a utopia for escapism.
#2 Bryce Canyon National Park
The biggest attraction hits you right in the face the moment you walk the ground of the Bryce Canyon National Park. Displaying the largest gathering of hoodoos in the world, the park is a superlative in terms in landscape, providing a jaw-dropping view of the multi-colored structures that reside in its heart.
#3 Arches National Park
The name given to this trademark location among the Utah national parks isn’t accidental, directly referencing its trademark attraction. Arches offers to tourists the largest biggest density of stone arches in the world, currently standing at a grand total of 2,000 and even more. You can visit the famous Delicate Arch, the one printed on the Utah nameplate. You can snap a photo of the Landscape Arch, which managed to shatter records by being the tallest structure of its kind in the world. Or you can just seek them all out!
#4 Canyonlands National Park
Standing at the opposite end of the Capitol Reef, Canyonlands is one of the Utah national parks to be visited by all those with plenty of energy in their bones and plenty of time on their hands. It’s large enough to be divided in four sections: the rivers, the Maze, the I-SKY, and the Needles. For a truly unique experience, we recommend the suspended I-SKY above all rest.
#5 Zion National Park
Cruise alongside the Virgin River in a private shuttle that will lead you right into the heart of the rocky sanctuary provided by some of the world’s tallest stone walls. On top of it all, you will be awed by the incredible combination between the rock rawness and the liveliness brought by the flora embellishing the structures.
#6 Dead Horse Point National Park
If you happen to drop by Arches for a visit, then you might consider also going for a trip to the nearby-located Dead Horse Point Park, which is considerably more quiet, but just as scenic and photograph-worthy. It got its name from 19th century cowboys who used to herd mustangs on top of one of the cliffs, building fences around them. They’d pick the best horses out of the punch and free the others. Rumor has it that memory failed them on one particular day and all the locked up horses ended up dying.
#7 Kodachrome Basin National Park
Named by a National Geographic expedition team, the Kodachrome Basin Park is what Yellowstone would have looked like after an extended period of drought. There aren’t any basins per se, unless you count the dried out hot springs and thermal spots that solidified and gave birth to a particularly intriguing set of rocky structures.
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