So, what are and where are the 58 national parks? Here is a listing of the 58 currently existing national parks by state or territory with links listed so that you can access that site if you wish.  The parks that I have been to are highlighted in blue. I am listing only the 58 national parks, not the monuments, recreation areas, historical sites, etc. unless they are officially part of one of the 58 parks. Warning: this is a very long post!

ALASKA has 21 national park system sites, of which eight are national parks.

     Denali National Park & Preserve                                www.nps.gov/dena/index.htm
     Gates of the Arctic National Park & Preserve             www.nps.gov/gaar/index.htm
     Glacier Bay National Park & Preserve                        www.nps.gov/glba/index.htm
     Katmai National Park & Preserve                               www.nps.gov/katm/index.htm
     Kenai Fjords National Park                                        www.nps.gov/kefj/index.htm
     Kobuk Valley National Park                                        www.nps.gov/kobu/index.htm
     Lake Clark National Park & Preserve                         www.nps.gov/lacl/index.htm
     Wrangell-St. Elias National Park & Preserve               www.nps.gov/wrst/index.htm

AMERICAN SAMOA has 1 national park.
     National Park of American Samoa                             www.nps.gov/npsa/index.htm

ARIZONA has 26 national park system sites, of which three are national parks.
     Grand Canyon National Park                                     www.nps.gov/grca/index.htm
     Petrified Forest National Park                                   www.nps.gov/pefo/index.htm
     Saguaro National Park                                              www.nps.gov/sagu/index.htm

ARKANSAS has 8 national park system sites, one of which is a national park.
     Hot Springs National Park                                         www.nps.gov/hosp/index.htm

CALIFORNIA has 33 national park system sites, eight of which are national parks.
     Channel Islands National Park                                   www.nps.gov/chis/index.htm
     Death Valley National Park                                        www.nps.gov/deva/index.htm
     Joshua Tree National Park                                        www.nps.gov/jotr/index.htm
     Kings Canyon National Park                                      www.nps.gov/seki/index.htm
     Lassen Volcanic National Park                                   www.nps.gov/lavo/index.htm
     Redwood National Park                                             www.nps.gov/redw/index.htm
     Sequoia National Park                                               www.nps.gov/seki/index.htm
     Yosemite National Park                                             www.nps.gov/yose/index.htm

COLORADO has 17 national park system sites with 4 of them national parks.
     Black Canyon of The Gunnison National Park            www.nps.gov/blca/index.htm

     Great Sand Dunes National Park & Preserve             www.nps.gov/grsa/index.htm

     Mesa Verde National Park                                        www.nps.gov/meve/index.htm

     Rocky Mountain National Park                                 www.nps.gov/romo/index.htm

FLORIDA has 12 park system sites, three are national parks.

     Biscayne National Park                                             www.nps.gov/bisc/index.htm

     Dry Tortugas National Park                                       www.nps.gov/drto/index.htm

     Everglades National Park                                          www.nps.gov/ever/index.htm

 

HAWAII has 9 park system sites, two are national parks.
     Haleakala National Park                                           www.nps.gov/hale/index.htm
     Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park                               www.nps.gov/havo/index.htm

 

IDAHO has 9 park system sites and shares Yellowstone National Park with MT and WY.
     Yellowstone National Park                                        www.nps.gov/yell/index.htm

KENTUCKY has 5 park system sites, one is a national park.
     Mammoth Cave National Park                                 www.nps.gov/maca/index.htm

MAINE has 5 park system sites, one is a national park.
     Acadia National Park                                              www.nps.gov/acad/index.htm

MICHIGAN has 7 park system sites, one of which is a national park.
     Isle Royale National Park                                        www.nps.gov/isro/index.htm

MINNESOTA has 6 park system sites, one of which is a national park.
     Voyageurs National Park                                        www.nps.gov/voya/index.htm

MONTANA has 9 park system sites, two are national parks.

     Glacier National Park                                             www.nps.gov/glac/index.htm
     Yellowstone National Park                                      www.nps.gov/yell/index.htm

NEVADA has 6 park system sites, two are national parks.
     Death Valley National Park                                     www.nps.gov/deva/index.htm
     Great Basin National Park                                      www.nps.gov/grba/index.htm

NEW MEXICO has 17 park system sites, one is a national park.
     Carlsbad Caverns National Park                             www.nps.gov/cave/index.htm

NORTH CAROLINA has 14 park system sites, one is a national park, the Great Smoky Mountains
National Park that is shared with Tennessee.
     Great Smoky Mountains National Park                   www.nps.gov/grsm/index.htm

NORTH DAKOTA has 5 park system sites, one is a national park.
     Theodore Roosevelt National Park                         www.nps.gov/thro/index.htm

OHIO has 11 park system sites, one is a national park.
     Cuyahoga Valley National Park                               www.nps.gov/cuva/index.htm

OREGON has 9 park system sites, one is a national park.
     Crater Lake National Park                                      www.nps.gov/crla/index.htm

SOUTH CAROLINA has 9 park system sites, one is a national park.
     Congaree National Park                                         www.nps.gov/cong/index.htm

SOUTH DAKOTA has 7 park system sites, two are national parks.
     Badlands National Park                                         www.nps.gov/badl/index.htm
     Wind Cave National Park                                      www.nps.gov/wica/index.htm

TENNESSEE has 12 park system sites, one is a national park shared with North Carolina.
     Great Smoky Mountains National Park                  www.nps.gov/grsm/index.htm

TEXAS has 15 park system sites, two are national parks.
     Big Bend National Park                                         www.nps.gov/bibe/index.htm
     Guadalupe Mountains National Park                     www.nps.gov/gumo/index.htm

UTAH has 17 park system sites, 5 are national parks.
     Arches National Park                                              www.nps.gov/arch/index.htm
     Bryce Canyon National Park                                  www.nps.gov/brca/index.htm
     Canyonlands National Park                                   www.nps.gov/cany/index.htm
     Capitol Reef National Park                                    www.nps.gov/care/index.htm
     Zion National Park                                                 www.nps.gov/zion/index.htm

VIRGIN ISLANDS has 5 national park system sites, one is a national park.
     Virgin Islands National Park                                www.nps.gov/viis/index.htm

WASHINGTON has 14 national park system sites, three are national parks.
     Mount Ranier National Park                               www.nps.gov/mora/index.htm
     North Cascades National Park                              www.nps.gov/noca/index.htm
     Olympic National Park                                       www.nps.gov/olym/index.htm

WYOMING has 11 national park system sites, two are national parks.
     Grand Teton National Park                                 www.nps.gov/grte/index.htm
     Yellowstone National Park                                 www.nps.gov/yell/index.htm

National Parks...as a vacation??

Hi! Thank you for visiting this blog! I will be periodically posting information about the national parks that I have visited along with pictures and stories about what you might find if you were to visit. First, a little background about me and how I came to love the park system and all that it has to offer. The national parks were not always a priority for my vacations. As a child, my family vacationed at the beach and that was my idea of a perfect vacation. I lived between Sevierville and Pigeon Forge, TN, at the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, so I visited there also, but never for more than a day at a time, and I had limited interest in any of the other parks. Then I married a man (John) whose family had driven across the country several times and seen many of the national parks. When Annie,our daughter, was born, he insisted on showing her some of these parks, and I finally agreed as long as I got to take my yearly beach vacation as well. (My idea of the perfect vacation did not include a two to three week road trip cooped up in a car for hours every day for days at a time.) However, I thought it only fair that I give it a try....for John and for Annie. With some substantial planning, we drove across the United States from Knoxville, TN to Salt Lake City, UT and beyond, eventually seeing nine national parks and one national monument that trip. It was so much fun that I was hooked. We have made it a priority to see national parks every summer since and this led to my goal of seeing all fifty-eight. They are all different and all have something to tell us about conservation, our world, our blessings, and ourselves if we will just be still and listen. Please join me as I continue on this journey of exploration and discovery. Hopefully you will be encouraged to explore and discover some of them for yourself. There are many wonders available. The official website for the national park system is www.nps.gov. Please feel free to comment on parks that you would recommend, tips and/or experiences from your visits, or request information about a park you are considering visiting. Together I know that we can make visiting the parks more enjoyable for us all through sharing information and ideas.