Tips for Visiting National Parks

Some of Jared Buker’s earliest travel memories are visits to National Parks in Utah when he was a child, especially Arches National Park in Moab.

“My parents always preferred bringing my sister and me to National Parks over theme parks and tourist traps,” said Buker, who is now a Travel Consultant with Lincoln Gap Travel in Lincoln, Vermont. “National parks, whether a new park to me or not, are always nostalgic, and I love to take in as much of the park as possible, even if it is a fairly short visit. I love that they are protected, yet accessible to everybody.”

Arches National Park has always remained his favorite park, although he has several runners-up, including Badlands, Theodore Roosevelt, Canyonlands, and Yellowstone.

“My favorite site to see in Arches is Delicate Arch, which is a very special formation,” he said. “In fact, my sister and I sprinkled some of my grandfather's ashes under Delicate Arch. Much to my grandfather's (likely) amusement, the ashes blew back into our faces. Delicate Arch made a huge impression on me, and the scenery always reminded me of the Looney Tunes scenery that Wile E. Coyote and the Roadrunner played cat and mouse in.”

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If you are traveling to a national park for the first time, Buker suggests that you plan ahead:

“If you are visiting a park that features a cave, such as Mammoth Cave or Wind Cave, check in advance to see if reservations are needed. If you are a senior, be sure to obtain a Golden Age Passport, which has a nominal one-time fee but gives you unlimited visits to all National Parks, National Monuments, National Seashores and National Lakeshores, as well as half-price camping in US government owned & operated campgrounds, including in Parks & Monuments, National Forests, Army Corps of Engineers and BLM lands.”

Buker also advises keeping an open mind: “There can be large crowds, road construction or, in some of the major parks such as the Grand Canyon and Yosemite, limitations on how many visitors during the busy season. Many parks allow you to pre-reserve campsites. Some of the major parks use concessionaires for their campgrounds, hotels and dining.

It’s better to stay in campgrounds actually run by the park service, or just outside of the park in a National Forest campground.

“They are usually smaller and definitely not as crowded, but also fill up quickly,” Buker added.

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If you are traveling with children, he advises scoping out any official swimming areas and enjoying a picnic while the kids splash in the surprisingly warm water of the river.

“Don't squeeze too much into a day,” he said. “Even for me, there is such a thing as scenery overload. Give yourself a chance to enjoy each site rather than rushing around like a maniac. These parks are meant to enjoy at leisure and shouldn't become stressful.”

The fact that park entrance fees are going to go up can make some travelers stressed out.

“I am mixed about these fees,” said Buker. “I have seen firsthand that much of the infrastructure in our parks is crumbling, but I also believe that the parks should be open to everybody. Our parks deserve full funding, and I would rather see my tax dollars going there than about anywhere else.”

Last year, on the 100th Anniversary of the National Park Service, Buker visited both of those caves, along with Mount Rushmore National Memorial (also part of the Park System) with his parents and nephews in one day, Devil's Tower National Monument the day prior, and Badlands National Park the next day.

“I can't recall seeing anything similar in any of those parks, despite how close they all were to each other,” he said.

“The only thing similar about our National Parks is that they are all National Parks, and the similarities end there,” he said. “For example, Jewel Cave National Monument and Wind Cave National Park are both located in the Black Hills of South Dakota about an hour apart. I thought that they would be similar experiences, but they are totally different: Different formations, different cave systems, totally different feelings.”

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Buker also has a few final tips:

—Don’t over plan.

—Don't visit on summer weekends or summer holidays (or fall weekends for parks known for foliage).

—Don't do it all in one day.

—Don't skip the Visitor's Center.