For outdoor destinations, we Americans love our mountains, lakes, rivers, and beaches. It’s easy to overlook all the forests that surround or lie within these places. Let’s take a look at some of our best forests to explore, from big to small, many of which are about so much more than the trees!
Tongass National Forest, Alaska
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This forest of 165 million acres is larger than some states. Although a lot of logging and other commercial activities take place there, it still has vast expanses of wilderness that provide excellent habitat for wildlife. Within the national forest are also glaciers and ice fields.
Hoh Rain Forest, Washington
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This temperate rainforest is in Olympic National Park. The trail through it is mostly flat and easy, and you have a good chance of seeing wildlife. Vibrant green moss covers the tree trunks, and the trail through it provides a long access route to Mount Olympus, the glaciated mountain king of the park.
Redwood National Park, California
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The redwoods are the world’s tallest trees, growing to 350 feet in height. Redwoods grow in a lot of places in California, but Redwood National Park is the largest preserve for them. Another nice thing about Redwood National Park is that it’s not all trees; there are miles of Pacific shoreline where you can wander and check out driftwood and tidal pools.
Muir Woods National Monument, California
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If you’re near San Francisco, this is a great alternative to Redwood National Park since it’s much closer. It does get extremely busy, but the redwoods are still majestic. Should you want a little ocean fix like at Redwood NP, spectacular Point Reyes National Seashore isn’t far away.
Giant Forest, California
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Relatives of the redwoods, giant sequoias aren’t quite as tall, though they can grow to 300’. In mass and girth, though, the giant sequoias are the world’s largest trees. The Giant Forest in Sequoia National Park is a grove of sequoias containing 5 of the world’s 10 largest trees, including the General Sherman Tree, the very largest. There’s also a fairly short trail out to an outcrop called Moro Rock that has great views of the High Sierra.
Inyo National Forest, California
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The Owens Valley splits Inyo National Forest into sections. On the western side, the national forest runs south approximately from Yosemite National Park along the eastern flanks of the Sierra Crest. Within it are two federally protected wilderness areas and endless opportunities for hiking, fishing, camping, rock and mountain climbing, and more.
Ancient Bristlecone Forest, California
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The other side of Inyo National Forest includes the White Mountains and the Inyo Range. Within the Whites are bristlecone pines, which thrive only at high altitudes and in harsh conditions in certain parts of the West and Southwest. Continuing the trend of California being a place of superlatives for trees, bristlecones are the world’s oldest and longest-living organisms, and the older they are, the more weathering turns them gnarled and polished. The oldest, the Methuselah in Schuman Grove, nearly 4900 years old, and rangers keep its identity secret to protect it from vandalism. In the higher, more austere Patriarch Grove, you’ll find the Patriarch, the world’s largest bristlecone. In the groves, you’ll see tiny saplings that are already older than a human lifespan and giants that were saplings when the Egyptian Pyramids were built.
Joshua Tree National Park, California
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Joshua trees are actually not trees but rather are members of the yucca family, related to cactuses, and they are the largest of the world’s yuccas. This national park has a large and excellent population of them, and their branching arms give each one a unique shape.
Saguaro National Park, Arizona
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Made iconic by Hollywood Westerns, giant saguaros are the tallest cactuses in the United States, reaching 40’. The best time to see them is in May when their large white flowers bloom. Rare winter snows also can accentuate them beautifully.
Shoshone National Forest, Wyoming
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One of several spectacular national forests in Wyoming, Shoshone is vast and many people’s favorites. Within are much of the dark, rugged Absaroka Range and parts of the northern eastern, and southern Wind River Range, and several designated wilderness areas protect the best of these ranges. The Shoshone lies mostly east and southeast of Yellowstone National Park.
San Juan National Forest, Colorado
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The San Juans are Colorado’s largest and arguably most spectacular mountain range. San Juan NF contains most of the range as well as several wilderness areas and other recreational sites, plus a wealth of old mining ruins. The area is especially known for its profuse summer blooms of Colorado columbines, the state flower, and for the intense fall colors when aspen leaves turn a brilliant gold.
Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park, Michigan
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Also known as the Porkies, the Porcupines are a range of low forested mountains near Lake Superior on Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. This wilderness area is an outstanding area to enjoy hiking, camping, lakes, waterfalls, and more.
Nantahala National Forest, North Carolina
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Mountain peaks, incredible fall colors, rushing mountain streams, and waterfalls are the hallmarks of Nantahala. In fact, this region of western North Carolina is called “Waterfall Country” for the numerous falls there. Nantahala is an excellent recreational alternative to the very busy Great Smoky Mountains close by.
White Mountain National Forest, New Hampshire
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This national forest contains the highest peaks in New England, which are also the highest Eastern peaks north of North Carolina. The Whites make a great escape from the muggy summers of the lowlands, and of course, no other place is as dazzling in the fall as New England is. Several peaks in the Whites rise beyond timberline and have expanses of delicate alpine tundra atop them.
The 30 Most Beautiful Places in the World That Everyone Must See
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There’s no way you could ever come up with a definitive list of the world’s most beautiful places. However, if you ask around, some places come up a lot more frequently than others do.
The following are some of the places that people mention over and over again, not in any particular order.
30 Breathtaking Places You Must See Before You Die
The Two Best Scenic Wonders in Each of the Mountain States
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The Mountain States– Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico– have some of the wildest and most rugged landscapes in the United States. Because they’re so big, it can take a lot of time to visit them, so it helps to be able to plan for some specific destinations.
Following are our choices for the top two must-see outdoor locations in each of these seven states.
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