From massive glaciers to sun-soaked beaches, national parks offer some of America’s wildest and most iconic landscapes.
North Cascades National Park, Washington Less than three hours by car from Seattle or Vancouver, North Cascades National Park is home to more than 300 glaciers and over 500 lakes and ponds. Scroll through to discover all the national parks in the United States.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Photographs byJonathan Irish
ByNational Geographic Staff
April 18, 2022
•35 min read
When the U.S. Congress established Yellowstone as the first national park in 1872, it was “for the benefit and enjoyment of the people.” Its founding marked the birth of the U.S. National Park System and eventually launched a worldwide movement to protect outdoor spaces and historical landmarks. Since 1904, some 15 billion visitors have explored the wild wonders of the U.S. parks.
In 2016, inspired by the National Park Service’s 100th anniversary, photographer Jonathan Irish visited every U.S. national park over 52 weeks.
“[National parks] are sacred and cherished places—our greatest personal and national treasures,” says Irish. “It’s a gift to spend a year adventuring and capturing incredible images and stories in some of the most beautiful places on Earth.”
Since Irish’s journey, the National Parks Service has designated four additional parks: the Gateway Arch in St. Louis; Indiana Dunes on Lake Michigan; White Sands in New Mexico; and New River Gorge in West Virginia. There are now 63 spaces to explore across the country. Celebrate National Park Week with images of these priceless national treasures, from the crystalline waters of Dry Tortugas in Florida to the deep, dark recesses of Kentucky’s Mammoth Cave.
Zion National Park, UtahOne of the most photographed views in Zion National Park is of Watchman Mountain from the Canyon Junction Bridge. Irish’s favorite spot is at the center of the bridge where the river leads the eye to the Watchman Spire in the background.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, Montana, and IdahoAmerica’s first national park, Yellowstone is home to wildlife from bears to bison and geological stunners such as hot springs and geysers. The Great Fountain Geyser, pictured here, erupts every 9 to 15 hours, shooting water up to 220 feet (67 meters) high.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Acadia National Park, MaineAvoid the crowds at Cadillac Mountain and see the first sunrise in the country at Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse, in the southwest portion of Acadia National Park.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Yosemite National Park, CaliforniaIrish says the best time to see a rainbow in Yosemite is at night during a full moon. To photograph these so-called moonbows, he recommends a wide-angle lens, a tripod, and a lens cloth (to continually wipe off the waterfall spray).
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Sequoia National Park, CaliforniaNestled in California’s Sierra Nevada mountains, Sequoia National Park is nearly 97 percent wilderness. It holds over 2,000 giant sequoia trees, including General Sherman Tree, the world’s largest tree, measured by volume.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Crater Lake National Park, OregonWizard Island, named for its resemblance to a sorcerer’s hat, juts into Crater Lake, the deepest lake in the U.S. The lake, which measures 1,943 feet in some spots, lends the park its name.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Grand Canyon National Park, ArizonaThe Grand Canyon National Park is a sprawling gorge of layers in pink, red, and orange hues, revealing millions of years of geological history.
Death Valley National Park, NevadaThe largest national park south of Alaska, Death Valley National Park is known for extremes: It is North America’s driest and hottest spot (with fewer than two inches/five centimeters of rainfall annually and a record high of 134°F), and has the lowest elevation on the continent—282 feet below sea level. (Photographing Death Valley’s starry skies shines a light on pollution.)
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Redwood National Park, CaliforniaWhen author John Steinbeck stood in the presence of redwood trees—the tallest living things on the planet—he described the sensation as a “cathedral hush.” Among the trees preserved in Redwood National Park are the oldest, largest, and tallest of coast redwoods.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Olympic National Park, WashingtonOlympic’s 73 miles of park coastline feature soaring cliffs, sea stacks, sandy beaches, rocky shores, and teeming tide pools.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Grand Teton National Park, WyomingSchwabacher Landing and Snake River, made famous by Ansel Adams, draw photographers and nature lovers to Grand Teton National Park. The park’s jewel-like lakes, blue and white glaciers, and naked granite pinnacles enticed more than 3 million visitors last year.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Everglades National Park, FloridaSprawling between South Florida’s Lake Okeechobee and the Gulf of Mexico, the Everglades is one of the world’s largest tropical wetlands and the third-largest national park in the lower 48 states.
Joshua Tree National Park, CaliforniaAt Joshua Tree National Park in California’s Mojave Desert, these tough, gnarled plants are threatened by climate change.
Arches National Park, UtahWith over 2,000 natural stone arches, Arches National Park is part of southern Utah’s extended canyon country, carved and shaped by weathering and erosion.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Great Sand Dunes National Park, ColoradoGreat Sand Dunes National Park, which contains the highest sand dunes in North America, provides stunning views in the shadow of the majestic Sangre de Cristo Mountains.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Dry Tortugas National Park, FloridaDry Tortugas National Park, located 70 miles west of Key West in the Gulf of Mexico, houses the 19th-century Fort Jefferson, pictured here. The park is also home to the third-largest coral barrier reef in the world and the only tropical reef in the continental U.S..
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Mammoth Cave National Park, KentuckyHidden under hills and hollows in Kentucky, Mammoth Cave National Park contains more than 400 miles of caves, including 10 miles of passages for guided tours.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Petrified Forest National Park, ArizonaWalking along the park’s trails, visitors can see hills made of bluish clay and the largest concentration of brilliantly colored petrified wood in the U.S.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Biscayne National Park, FloridaJust five miles from the heart of downtown Miami, Biscayne National Park protects the northern end of the Florida Reef, the longest stretch of mangrove forest on Florida’s east coast, the southern part of Biscayne Bay, and 50 islands of the northern Florida Keys in the Atlantic Ocean.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Mount Rainer National Park, WashingtonOne of the world’s oldest national parks, Mount Rainier became part of the federal system in 1899, shortly after its last eruption. It remains one of the most dangerous volcanoes in the world.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Virgin Islands National Park, St. John IslandThis pristine tropical reserve—covering almost two-thirds of St. John, plus 5,650 acres underwater—features a coral reef, more than 800 subtropical plant species, and crystalline Caribbean waters.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Shenandoah National Park, VirginiaLocated between the Shenandoah Valley in the west and the Piedmont region in the east, the park is an expanse of wooden hollows and breezy summits, waterfalls and mountain streams, more than 500 miles of hiking trails, and nearly 80,000 acres of designated wilderness—all just 75 miles from Washington, D.C.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Carlsbad Caverns National Park, New Mexico More than 119 caves are hidden beneath the surface of this national park in the Chihuahuan Desert. Cave scientists have explored at least 30 miles of passageways of the main cavern of Carlsbad, and the investigation continues. Visitors may tour three of these miles on a paved trail.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Cuyahoga Valley National Park, OhioNorth of Hale Farm is Cuyahoga Valley’s Everett Covered Bridge, a reconstruction of an 1870s structure that was destroyed in a 1975 flood. Irish says he enjoyed walking over the old bridge while imagining the hoof taps and footsteps that once echoed over the wooden planks.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Guadalupe Mountains National Park, TexasDramatically contoured canyons, sprawling desert scrub brush, and a profusion of wildlife and birds fill West Texas’ Guadalupe Mountains National Park.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Congaree National Park, South CarolinaCongaree National Park contains the largest intact tract of old-growth bottomland forest in North America. Boardwalk hikes and canoe tours are popular activities among the towering trees.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Saguaro National Park, ArizonaSaguaro National Park takes its name from the largest cacti in the United States. The park, which flanks Tucson, is home to millions of the cacti, which can grow up to 50 feet tall.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Kings Canyon National Park, CaliforniaHiking into Paradise Valley offers some of the best views in Kings Canyon National Park. Irish backpacked into the valley and spent the night along the river. He says it was one of the most peaceful and beautiful camping spots of his trip.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Great Basin National Park, NevadaGreat Basin’s Wheeler Peak, at just over 13,000 feet high, is home to a large grove of bristlecone pine trees, some of the world’s oldest trees.
Glacier Bay National Park and Reserve, AlaskaA humpback whale breaches the waters of Icy Strait. The National Park Service has monitored whale populations in Glacier Bay since 1985.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Kenai Fjords National Park, AlaskaGlaciers, earthquakes, and ocean storms have shaped Alaska’s Kenai Fjords for centuries, resulting in constantly changing terrain.
Denali National Park and Reserve, AlaskaLarger than the state of New Jersey, Denali National Park and Preserve is a vast wilderness that is mostly untouched by human hands. On a good day, the park’s famous—and often notorious—clouds will part to reveal the great massif of Denali, the tallest peak in North America at 20,310 feet high.
Wrangell St. Elias National Park, AlaskaA ring of snow and debris, the remains of an avalanche, surrounds the 125-foot-long, six-mile-long Bagley Icefield in Wrangell St. Elias National Park. To capture its massive scale, Irish took photographs from an airplane.
Canyonlands National Park, UtahThe sun peeks through Mesa Arch in Canyonlands National Park. The largest and most undeveloped of Utah’s national parks, Canyonlands offers backcountry adventures, scenic landscapes, and two major rivers.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Kobuk Valley National Park, AlaskaLocated in the Arctic region of northwestern Alaska, Kobuk Valley National Park spans a migratory route for more than half a million caribou.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Rocky Mountain National Park, ColoradoA two-hour drive north of Denver, Colorado, Rocky Mountain National Park’s unrivaled stretch of craggy, snow-capped peaks and 355 miles of hiking trails attract nearly 3.3 million visitors annually.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Gates of the Arctic National Park, AlaskaSituated entirely north of the Arctic Circle in Alaska, Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve is the northernmost national park in the U.S. Planning ahead is essential: there are no roads, no trails, and no campsites. Cell phones won’t work.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Lake Clark National Park, AlaskaRoughly 120 air miles southwest of Anchorage, Lake Clark National Park and Preserve, is home to volcanoes, rugged mountains, and salmon-filled waters.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Badlands National Park, South DakotaBadlands National Park is made up of jagged and striped rock formations. Before it was seized by the U.S. government in the 1920s, the land was inhabited and seen as sacred by the Oglala Lakota Sioux tribe.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Glacier National Park, MontanaA quick stop off of the famed Going-to-the-Sun Road brings visitors to one of the most popular stops in the park—the view of St. Mary Lake from Wild Goose Scenic Viewpoint. Together with Waterton Lakes National Park in Canada, Glacier National Park makes up the world’s first international peace park.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, ColoradoBlack Canyon of the Gunnison’s 2,250-foot-tall Painted Wall, Colorado’s tallest cliff, is a spectacle of pink granite bands slashing through dark metamorphic rock that are nearly two billion years old.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park, HawaiʻiTwo active volcanoes are within the bounds of this national park, Kilauea being one of the world’s most active. In 2018, Mount Kīlauea’s continued eruptions destroyed approximately 600 homes, as well as roads, farms, and ranches, on the Island of Hawaiʻi.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Mesa Verde National Park, ColoradoThe sun sets early on Cliff Palace, the largest of the ancient stone-and-mortar cliff houses tucked into the park’s canyon walls. The only way to experience the fine detail of the construction is on a ranger-guided tour.
Haleakalā National Park, HawaiʻiHaleakalā, which means “house of the sun” in Hawaiian, is one of the world’s largest volcanic craters and is a United Nations International Biosphere Reserve.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Capitol Reef National Park, UtahEscape the crowds by fording the shallow Fremont River (high-clearance vehicles only) and head out on a 58-mile dirt road loop into desolate Cathedral Valley, an austere landscape dominated by two sandstone sentinels, Temple of the Sun and Temple of the Moon.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
National Park of American Samoa, American SamoaOften overlooked, National Park of American Samoa (on U.S. territory) comprises 10 volcanic islands (five inhabited), five distinct rainforest communities, and two coral atolls (one inhabited).
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Channel Islands National Park, CaliforniaSanta Cruz Island (seen in the distance) is one of five isolated islands, along with 1,252 square nautical miles of surrounding sea, protected in this park.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Lassen Volcanic National Park, CaliforniaFrom 1914 to early 1915, Lassen Peak spewed steam and ashes in more than 150 eruptions. Now, the quieted volcano serves as a scenic backdrop to the park’s jigsaw-puzzle landscape of forest, lava beds, and lakes.
Photograph by Jonathan Irish
Pinnacles National Park, CaliforniaKnown for its spectacular rock formations, beautiful spring wildflowers, and large groups of endangered condors, Pinnacles National Park is a mecca for rock climbing and day hiking. It offers 32 miles of trails that climb through winding talus caves and shaded creeks.
Photograph by Bobby Model, Nat Geo Image Collection
Indiana Dunes National Park, IndianaThe park’s 15 miles of Lake Michigan beaches give way to impressive dunes, and blowouts, marshes, wetlands, and groves of black oak savanna and maple sugar trees. It became a national park in 2019.
Photograph by Jacqueline Kehoe
Gateway Arch National Park, MissouriGateway Arch National Park has been many things: a monument to Thomas Jefferson’s historic frontier, a commemoration of Lewis and Clark’s epic expedition—and, most recently, the U.S.’s 60th national park.
Photograph by Adam Olson, Alamy Stock Photo
New River Gorge National Park and Preserve, West VirginiaNew River Gorge National Park and Preserve spans more than 72,000 acres of wooded hills, deep ravines, and the Appalachian plateau. It was named the U.S.’s newest national park in 2020.
Photograph by MacDuff Everton, Nat Geo Image Collection
White Sands National Park, New MexicoWhite Sands National Park protects the largest gypsum dune on Earth, a remnant of bygone lakes and seas, a 275-square-mile basin that glitters white and stays cool to the touch. Visitors come to cruise the eight-mile Dunes Drive, hike one of the five established trails, or see the soft, translucent sand glow blue-white under a full moon.
Photograph by Derek Von Briesen, Nat Geo Image Collection
Editor’s note: This story originally published on May 30, 2017. It has been updated to reflect the current number of national parks.
