Our national parks are amazing places, but some of them can get insanely crowded during times such as spring break and summer.
If you’d like similar scenery but without all those crowds during peak times, please keep reading to get some great suggestions.
Mount Rainer vs North Cascades
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The North Cascades are mostly for hikers, so few locations in them ever get really busy. And if you do want something like Rainier, you can drive the Mt. Baker Scenic Byway, where you’ll see the namesake volcano that is the second most glaciated peak in the Lower 48 after Rainier.
Yosemite vs Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks
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The western portions of these parks can get very busy, but they still fall far short of Yosemite Valley congestion, and you can visit sequoia groves, view steep-walled canyons and valleys, and see lakes and streams. On the eastern side, access into the mountains is by foot only, so those areas are a good alternative to the busy high country in Yosemite.
Death Valley vs Mojave National Preserve
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This large preserve doesn’t have the variety and color that Death Valley does, but it’s practically empty in comparison. There are rugged desert peaks, towering sand dunes, wildly shaped Joshua trees, and more. You might also spy an endangered desert tortoise.
Glacier vs Sawtooth Range
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South of Glacier and west of U.S. 89 is the vast Bob Marshall Wilderness. Although most of it is accessible only to backpackers and horseback parties, there’s good access for day hikers via Teton Canyon northwest of Choteau. Trailheads there get you high into Montana’s Sawtooth Range, spectacular limestone peaks that guard the interior of “The Bob.”
Yellowstone vs Hot Springs State Park
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In the Wyoming town of Thermopolis, you’ll find Hot Springs State Park, home of the world’s largest active mineral hot spring. Also as in Yellowstone, you can view large herds of wildlife here. The park does get busy, but it sees nowhere close to the numbers and traffic that Yellowstone does.
Grand Teton vs Jedediah Smith Wilderness
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The side of the Tetons almost everyone experiences is the eastern one, and in the summer, there’s constant traffic, overflowing parking lots, and crowded trails. Did you know that on the other side of the park, adjacent to it, is a federal wilderness approached via small towns in Idaho? It’s foot-travel only to get into the Tetons this way, but the rewards are incredible.
Rocky Mountain vs Indian Peaks Wilderness
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Just south of RMNP and sharing a border with it is this wilderness area of high peaks and alpine lakes. The Indian Peaks get busy– so busy that you now need a reservation in some areas– but with limited parking and no through roads, the crowds are much more under control than they are in their neighbor.
Zion vs Snow Canyon State Park
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– About an hour west of Zion just outside Ivins, Utah, Snow Canyon is a lot like a mini-Zion for all its high red sandstone cliffs. It also has ancient rock art you can view, and it’s easier to find than the sites in Zion are.
Bryce Canyon vs Cedar Breaks National Monument
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Geologists can explain how these two places in Southern Utah are different, but to the average person, they’re much the same in the colors and shapes of the formations there. Most of Cedar Breaks is also above 10,000 feet in elevation, making it a welcome relief from the summer heat that defines most of the region.
Arches vs Capitol Reef National Park
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Capitol Reef, located about halfway between Arches and Zion, doesn’t have nearly as many arches as Arches NP does, and its cliffs and desert towers aren’t as tall. However, it has enough of both to capture your interest. Actually, Capitol Reef in some ways is the best national park in Utah because it has a bit of everything the other parks do without the same name recognition.
Grand Canyon vs Marble Canyon
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Geologically, Marble Canyon near Page in Arizona is the start of the Grand Canyon. It’s not close to being as deep and wide as the Grand proper is, but it gives you a sense of what it’s all about when you make a bridged road crossing of it. You can also hike a sandy trail down a side canyon to get into Marble Canyon itself and stand on the banks of the Colorado River, the architect of all of this.
Big Bend vs Big Bend Ranch State Park
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Big Bend Ranch State Park is just west of the national park. It isn’t as large and spectacular, and it doesn’t have as much diversity of scenery, but it’s still a big and beautiful place, and you might prefer its smaller crowds on holiday weekends and during times such as spring break.
Great Smoky Mountains vs Nantahala National Forest
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Great Smoky Mountains National Park, being within a day’s drive of some of the largest cities in the country and having easy, year-round access, is the most visited of our national parks. Just south of it in North Carolina is Nantahala National Forest, often referred to as the state’s waterfall country, and there are also peaks and granite domes like Looking Glass Rock to hike to the top of.
Everglades vs Big Cypress National Preserve
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Bordering the Everglades on its north side, Big Cypress in Florida has a lot of the same plant and animal species that you find in the national park. It also has designated off-road-vehicle routes that allow interior access that’s much harder to come by in Everglades NP.
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