This blog will briefly describe the parks that I have visited that are managed by the National Park Service. It will eventually include all the National Parks, Monuments and Historic Sites plus a few others. I started the visits about a year ago so I have a few post to catch up on.
We visited Pinnacles NP located in California in July 2025. It was too hot to do anything with warning signs not to hike between 10AM and 5PM. We did a quick drive around and left. We’ll go again when it’s cooler maybe when we visit Yosemite again when there is more water in the falls.
We visited Sequoia NP located in California in July 2025. Sequoia has crowding issues similar to Yosemite but if you use the shuttle you can get to where you want without much trouble. We went to the General Sherman tree, hiked in the Giant Forest Grove, climbed Moro Rock, hiked the Crescent Meadow trail and hiked to Tokopah Falls. I found the hike around Crescent Meadow to be the most interesting as there weren’t many people, there were lots of large trees, lots of flowers and a bear, marmot and deer. We did not go to Mineral King as we didn’t have time for that.
We visited Kings Canyon NP located in California in July 2025. Not as crowded as Yosemite but still plenty of things to do. Driving down into the canyon is well worth the trip and it didn’t seem that all that many people did it. Perhaps the main attraction is the General Grant tree which is near the visitor center at the top of the canyon. There were several campgrounds at the top of the canyon and at the bottom. They were all full so if you are planning on camping reserve well ahead of time. The walk around Zumwalt Meadow is where we saw several bears.
We visited Yosemite NP located in California in July 2025. If you want to avoid the crowds go at some other time of year, not sure when that would be. If you are just entering the park for the day you must have a timed entry pass which can be purchased on rec.gov well in advance. You can enter before 6AM or after 2PM without a pass. If you have reservations to stay in the park you don’t need a pass. We wanted to camp but were unable to get reservations so we stayed at the tents in Curry Village which weren’t as bad as I thought it would be. You can’t leave any food in your car so everything has to be carried to the bear box outside your tent. There is no cooking allowed in your tent or near your tent. If you don’t want to pay a lot of money to eat in one of the restaurants then you have to pack up your food and drive to a picnic area and hope you can find a parking space when you get back. The only way to get around the valley is to use the shuttle as finding a parking space is a nightmare.
We entered the park from the east as we had been to Devils Postpile earlier. We had lunch at the Whoa Nellie Deli in Lee Vining. Which is different from when we were there 20+ years ago but still good. We spent some time in Tuolomne Meadows where we had hoped to camp but the campground was still closed for construction.
We took in all the sites in the valley including a guided tour of the Ahwahnee Hotel which was very interesting giving the history of the hotel and showing some of the rooms on the first floor. I spent most of one day hiking to the top of Yosemite Falls which was well worth the effort, if you go, go as early in the morning as you can as the trail is blazing hot in the afternoon. I started at 7AM and wished I had started an hour earlier. On an earlier trip here I hiked to Half Dome but didn’t feel I needed to do that again. There is a lottery now to hike it.
We drove to Glacier Point which is a little less crowded than the valley. We hiked to Sentinel Dome, Roosevelt Point and Taft Point from the Sentinel Dome trailhead. It’s a good hike with not a lot of effort. No water available so be prepared. We also stopped at the Mariposa Grove on the way out of the park. They were having shuttle bus issues that caused a long wait in the sun to get to the grove.
We visited Devils Postpile NM located in California in July 2025. To access the park you have to take a shuttle bus from Mammoth Mountain Ski Area that will drop you off at various locations. During less busy times of the year you can drive into the park. We took the bus to the ranger station and hiked the short trail to the Devils Postpile. We continued on to Rainbow Falls, the trail goes through an area that has recently burned where there is no shade and it was very hot. We hiked back to Reds Meadow Resort where we got cold drinks and waited in line for the shuttle back to the parking.
We visited Yellowstone NP located mostly in Wyoming in February 2025. The only way to visit Yellowstone in winter is on a guided tour, either by snowmobile, snow coach or XC skiing. Our tour was with the park concessionaire and it went very well. The size of the group was limited to 10 people and there were only eight in our group. We flew into Bozeman, MT and took the hotel shuttle for the night. The tour picked us up the next day at the hotel and drove us to Mammoth Hot Springs where we spent two nights and then to Old Faithful for two nights then back to Mammoth Hot Springs for one night and then drove us to the airport in Bozeman. Our days were spent driving around looking for wildlife and stopping and getting out whenever something was spotted. Our driver/guide was excellent and well informed and knew where to stop and look for wolves and other wildlife. Temperatures were not as cold as they could have been so it wasn’t a problem stepping out of the snow coach to view wildlife or take a hike.
Reservations were made for us each night for dinner, breakfast was a buffet and lunch was provided each day in the snow coach. We knew every day where we were to meet and at what time. And amazingly everybody was on time each day. There are other companies that offer similar trips but I don’t know if they stay in the park or drive in every day. Snowmobile trips looked to me like they could be a very chilly option. There is a XC skiing company that stays in heated yurts but you have a smaller area of the park in which to travel.
We visited Obed WSR located in Tennessee in June 2025. There is lots of things to do on the water and a few on land. We visited the Lily Bluff Overlook area where we did a couple of short hikes.
We visited Big South Fork NRRA located in Kentucky and Tennessee in June 2025. The park covers a large area and we only scratched the surface of places to go. There are miles of trails to hike and opportunities to travel on the river. You could spend a lot of time here if it was your only destination.
We visited Stones River NB located in Tennessee in June 2025. This was an extremely bloody battle lasting several in December 1862 and January 1863. The Union was finally victorious in defending the supply lines along the Nashville Pike. There is a self guiding auto tour with many stops and short walks describing the battle.
We visited Fort Donelson NB located in Kentucky and Tennessee in June of 2025. The Confederates occupied the fort and with large guns also controlled the Cumberland River. Union forces came up the river with gunboats and also with troops to attack from the land. Due to the Confederates occupying the high ground they were easily able to defeat the Union gunboats. However, the attack from land by Union troops was successful and the fort was occupied by Union troops.
The visitor center was closed with a temporary facility in a small trailer. There is a short self guided auto tour with stops showing various parts of the fort.
National Park Sites Visited 