Alaska, Hawaii & US Territories National Parks
Alaska
Denali
Centered on Mount Denali, the tallest mountain in North America, the interior of Denali National Park is serviced by a single road leading to Wonder Lake. Denali and other peaks of the Alaska Range are covered with long glaciers and boreal forest. Wildlife includes grizzly bears, Dall sheep, caribou, and gray wolves.
We camped inside the park at Riley Creek and Teklanika Campgrounds. We spent additional nights at the Denali RV Park. We enjoyed hiking numerous trails including: the Horseshoe Lake Loop, the Savage Alpine Trail, the Teklanika River Loop, and explored the subalpine area around the Teklanika campground. We recommend using the bus system to tour the interior of the park, as cars are not permitted past Savage River, which is only the first 15 miles of the 92 mile park road. We took the bus to Wonder Lake. We also visited the sled dog kennels.
National Parks Website: Denali National Park & Preserve
Gates of the Arctic
Gates of the Arctic National Park is the country’s northernmost park and protects an expanse of pure wilderness in Alaska’s Brooks Range and has no park facilities within the park boundaries. The region is home to Alaska Natives who have relied on the land and caribou for 11,000 years. We visited the Gates of the Arctic Visitor Center which is located on the Dalton Highway, which is a rough unpaved road starting north of Fairbanks and continuing to Prudhoe Bay. We left our RV in Fairbanks at the River’s Edge RV Park and traveled north via our jeep, staying at the Coldfoot Hotel. This multi-day trip takes you north of the Arctic Circle. Access into Gates of the Arctic requires either a 5 mile hike from the Dalton Highway, or transportation by plane.
National Parks Website: Gates of the Arctic National Park & Preserve
Glacier Bay
Glacier Bay contains tidewater glaciers, mountains, fjords, a temperate rainforest, and is home to large populations of grizzly bears, mountain goats, whales, seals, and eagles. When discovered in 1794 by George Vancouver, the entire bay was covered by ice, but the glaciers have since receded more than 65 miles. Our only visit to Glacier Bay was a flight over top of the enormous glaciers and gorgeous mountains. We stayed in Haines, Alaska at the Haines Hitch Up. We took the air tour with Mountain Flying Service out of Haines.
National Parks Website: Glacier Bay National Park & Preserve
Katmai
This park on the Alaska Peninsula protects the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes, an ash flow formed by the 1912 eruption of Novarupta, as well as Mount Katmai. Over 2,000 grizzly bears come here each year to catch spawning salmon. Other wildlife includes caribou, wolves, moose, and wolverines. Tourists flock to the famous Brooks Falls to watch the grizzlies fishing for salmon as they swim upstream. During our 2016 trip, Karla visited Hallo Bay in Katmai National Park via Alaska Bear Adventures involving a short flight from Homer, Alaska in a small Cessna plane to view brown bears in their natural habitat. We were staying on the Homer Spit at the Heritage RV Park. We also spent several days staying at the Baycrest RV Park, located high on the bluff above Homer. We would like to visit the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes on a future trip.
National Parks Website: Katmai National Park & Preserve
Kenai Fjords
Located near Seward on the Kenai Peninsula, Kenai Fjords National Park park protects the Harding Icefield and at least 38 glaciers and fjords stemming from it. The only area accessible to the public by road is Exit Glacier; the rest must be viewed or reached from boat tours. We stayed just outside of town at the Stoney Creek RV Park. We hiked the trail to Exit Glacier. We also took a boat tour to view the fjords. The two larger companies offering boat tours are Kenai Fjords Tours and Major Marine Tours. Both offer a variety of tour options. We reserved with Kenai Fjords Tours for their “9 hour Northwestern Fjord Tour” which is the longest tour offered. It is touted as a wildlife and glacier cruise which travels through the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge. We spotted orca “killer” whales, humpback whales, steller sea lions, seals, sea otters and thousand of nesting birds including tufted and horned puffins, murres, oyster catchers,
National Parks Website: Kenai Fjords National Park
Kobuk Valley
Kobuk Valley is NOT accessible by car. We have not yet visited Kobuk.
Kobuk Valley protects 61 miles of the Kobuk River and three regions of sand dunes. Created by glaciers, the Great Kobuk, Little Kobuk, and Hunt River Sand Dunes can reach 100 feet high and 100 °F, and they are the largest dunes in the Arctic. Twice a year, half a million caribou migrate through the dunes and across river bluffs that expose well-preserved ice age fossils.
National Parks Website: Kobuk Valley National Park
Lake Clark
Lake Clark is NOT accessible by car. We have not yet visited Lake Clarke.
The region around Lake Clark features four active volcanoes, including Mount Redoubt, as well as an abundance of rivers, glaciers, and waterfalls. Temperate rainforests, a tundra plateau, and three mountain ranges complete the landscape.
National Parks Website: Lake Clark National Park & Preserve
Wrangell – St. Elias
Over 8 million acres of mountainous country—the largest national park in the system—protects the convergence of the Alaska, Chugach, and Wrangell-Saint Elias Ranges, which include many of the continent’s tallest mountains and volcanoes, including the 18,008-foot Mount Saint Elias. More than a quarter of the park is covered with glaciers, including the tidewater Hubbard Glacier, piedmont Malaspina Glacier, and valley Nabesna Glacier. We stayed at the Kettle Lake wild camp site to visit the eastern side of the park where we hiked the Skookum Volcano Trail and the Caribou Creek Trail. We accessed the western portion via the town of McCarthy where we visited the Kennicott Mine and hiked on the Root Glacier.
National Parks Website: Wrangle-Saint Elias National Park & Preserve
Hawaii
Haleakalā
The Haleakalā volcano on Maui features a very large crater with numerous cinder cones, Hosmer’s Grove of alien trees, the Kipahulu section’s scenic pools of freshwater fish, and the native Hawaiian goose. It is home to the greatest number of endangered species within a U.S. National Park. We visited Haleakalā during our January 2012 trip to Maui. The 10,023 foot volcano dominates the view as the highest point on the island. Many visitors travel in a tour group (such as Bike Maui or Maui Sunriders) that drives you up to the top of the crater for sunrise and then returns you to the base of Haleakala at 6,500 ft where you get to ride a bike the rest of the 23 miles down, enjoying the scenery enroute. Visitors to Maui should also take in a Luau (there are many to choose from) and drive the road to Hana.
National Parks Website: Haleakalā National Park
Hawaii Volcanoes
This park on the Big Island protects the Kīlauea and Mauna Loa volcanoes, two of the world’s most active geological features. Diverse ecosystems range from tropical forests at sea level to barren lava beds at more than 13,000 feet. Mike visited the Hawaii Volcanoes on the Big Island around the age of 18 with his parents. It is on our list of places we would like to visit together. He enjoyed his trip and remembers that they warn not to wear leather hiking boots as they will get cut up on the lava.
National Parks Website: Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
American Samoa
American Samoa
American Samoa is NOT accessible by car. We have not yet visited American Samoa.
The southernmost national park is located on three Samoan islands and protects coral reefs, rainforests, volcanic mountains, and white beaches. The area is also home to flying foxes, brown boobies, sea turtles, and 900 species of fish.
National Parks Website: National Park of American Samoa
United States Virgin Islands
Virgin Islands
We have not visited the Virgin Islands.
This island park on Saint John preserves Taíno archaeological sites and the ruins of sugar plantations from Columbus’s time, as well as all the natural environs. Surrounding the pristine beaches are mangrove forests, seagrass beds, and coral reefs.
National Parks Website: Virgin Islands National Park
