Thank you for subscribing!
Got it! Thank you!

4 Ways to Hike National Parks Across the U.S.

What's the best trail for you and your family? That's a question only you can answer, but let me toss out some options that cover a wide range of abilities and landscapes.

There are thousands and thousands of miles of hiking trails across the National Park System. You've got trails that climb mountains, that circle mountains, trails that wander along beaches, and trails that cruise across slickrock. What's the best trail for you and your family? That's a question only you can answer, as there are so many variables. But let me toss out some options that cover a wide range of abilities and landscapes:

Arches National Park is one of my favorites, just because the setting is so bizarre. It's as if it was pulled from the Flintstones cartoons from the 1960s, what with rock arches, windows, turrets and fins. A great way to experience this landscape is to walk through it, and one of the best trails for this winds through Devils Garden. From the Devils Garden Trailhead you can cruise along a mostly level sandy path that leads past Tunnel Arch and Pine Tree Arch to the iconic Landscape Arch. From there you can retreat to your car if time is short, or, if not, head on past the remains of Wall Arch, which collapsed in August 2008, all the way to Double O Arch. There you have a choice of backtracking or, if you're adventurous, taking the "primitive trail" back to Landscape Arch. This trail skitters along sandy washes, across sandstone fins, and through winding passages along the base of sandstone reefs.

One of the best ways to view Acadia National Park is from on high. While you can drive to the top of Cadillac Mountain, it's much more enjoyable to walk up. Take the mountain's South Ridge Trail (you can find the trailhead just south of the Blackwoods Campground entrance, and you'll slowly climb through a forest of evergreens and out onto a granite landscape that offers incredible views of Frenchman Bay and the island-dotted Atlantic Ocean. Just shy of 7.5 miles roundtrip, the park lists this as a strenuous trail, but if you pace yourself and any youngsters you won't have any troubles. And when you reach the summit, you can stop into the snack shop for a lemonade! If pounding surf, not views, are your priority, take the Ocean Trail, which leads you across Sand Beach and along the park's rocky cliffs to Thunder Hole, a crack in the rocks that thunders with pounding surf at high tides.

Olympic National Park is rife with hiking possibilities. You can head to the Pacific Coast and find a number of beaches to roam; Rialto Beach is a particular favorite of many because of the sea stacks just off-shore that are constantly slammed by waves that seem to explode in frothy fury. A somewhat more private hike, one that kids will love, is the Cape Alava/Sand Point Loop. While this can be a long, multi-day affair for backpackers, day hikers find the initial leg that winds 3.1 miles along a cedar-plank boardwalk through coastal marsh and grasslands a great choice. Pack a lunch to enjoy near the surf and you've created a 6.2-mile roundtrip trek. Another great option, and another popular choice for kids, is the Hall of Mosses Trail that winds through the Hoh Rain Forest. The loop takes only about 40 minutes to complete and leads you through a verdant, emerald rainforest. Pay attention and you can spot unusual banana slugs inching their way along the forest floor, while higher up in the limbs of moss-coated trees are epiphytes -- plants that grow on other plants and pull their nutritional needs from the circulating air.

Want a multi-day trek that's easy on the back? Consider hiking to one of the historic chalets in Glacier National Park. These rustic, native-rock structures were built in the park's high country back in the 1910s to cater to horse rides that hauled visitors across the park. The Sperry Chalet (www.sperrychalet.com), found above Lake McDonald, is the more upscale of the two, what with running water, meals, and rooms with single or double beds. The Granite Park Chalet (www.graniteparkchalet.com), which is set alongside the Highline Trail 7.6 miles from Logan Pass is decidedly more rustic, having only bunk beds and a community kitchen where you make your own meals. No time for an overnight? Park your rig at the Logan Pass Visitor Center lot and head down the trail to Hidden Lake. This mostly gentle trail winds for 3 miles, roundtrip, across an alpine hillside that in summer is awash with colorful wildflowers and shaggy mountain goats that graze contentedly while visitors snap their pictures. The payoff is a platform from which you can gaze down upon the lake.

Kurt Repanshek is the author of several national park guidebooks, including National Parks With Kids. You can get a daily dose of national park news, trivia, and commentary by visiting www.nationalparkstraveler.com. This site tracks "Commentary, News, and Life in America's Parks." Follow National Parks Traveler on Twitter at www.twitter.com/parkstraveler.

Talk with fellow Frommer's travelers on our Outdoor and Adventure Travel Message Boards today.


advertisement