01-07-2025
Six underrated national parks worth visiting
Write to us at
. To subscribe,
.
TODAY'S STARTING POINT
With Independence Day this week kicking off the summer vacation season, travelers and the travel industry are asking,
The US set a record last year, with 332 million visits to
the 433 national parks, monuments, historic sites, memorials, seashores, and more that
'Our nation's national parks are barreling towards a crisis,' an advocacy nonprofit,
Advertisement
(
A side note:
The administration posted signs at the parks asking visitors to report any information they saw that was 'negative about any past or living American,' part of Trump's order that federal institutions be scrubbed of references to historic racism and sexism.
The Interior Department says the parks will be ready, although the Coalition warns that visitors may see more trash, fewer educational programs, less access to park features, and potentially fewer rangers to help keep them safe.
Advertisement
Long lines, traffic, and packed parking lots are already so common that some of the most popular parks, such as Yosemite in California (4.1 million visits in 2024) and Zion in Utah (4.9 million) are
However, there is an alternative to elbowing through crowds at the most popular parks: Visit the obscure ones.
Some parks may lack the obvious comeliness and marketing firepower of the Grand Canyon (4.9 million visits) or Yellowstone (4.7 million), but they are still among America's greatest places.
My wife and I have visited 45 of the 63 national parks, the crown jewels of the Park Service's holdings. That experience allows me to recommend some off-the-beaten-path destinations.
Here is my entirely subjective list of the four most underrated national parks with annual visits of fewer than 1 million, plus two nearby lesser-known parks:
Lassen Volcanic National Park, California
(358,000 visits in 2024)
The park's namesake, Lassen Peak, is a 10,457-foot volcano that erupted in 1915. Lassen NP has some Yellowstone-style geothermal features, while receiving fewer than 10 percent of the more famous park's annual visits. A trip to Lassen pairs nicely with a side excursion to California wine country.
A wild horse near Peaceful Valley Ranch in Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota.
Jack Dura/Associated Press
Theodore Roosevelt National Park, North Dakota
(733,000 visits)
North Dakota,
Advertisement
Channel Islands National Park, California
(263,000 visits)
This park consists of a handful of islands off the coast of Ventura, a ferry ride from the mainland. We ferried to Santa Cruz Island and backpacked across it over two mellow days. Along the way we saw dozens of island fox, an adorable, kitten-sized species that seems too tiny to be real. Views from the island are unspoiled and dramatic, the way the whole coast might have looked before the invention of the condo.
Carlsbad Caverns National Park, New Mexico
(460,000 visits)
Maybe my favorite underrated park in the system — so far. It's scraggly on the surface, but 750 feet or so underground, the park's cave system is otherworldly. Electric lights delicately illuminate natural features of the caves, while maintaining a dark environment with just enough brightness to walk through without mangling yourself. People speak in reverent whispers down there, like they are visiting a great cathedral during services. A little advance planning is necessary; the park uses a timed-entry reservation system, though when I checked recently, no days within the next month were entirely sold out.
Guadalupe Mountains National Park, Texas
(226,000 visits)
It's easy to combine Carlsbad Caverns on a trip with two other lesser-known national parks in the neighborhood. One is Guadalupe Mountains, a hiker's park with almost no roads and home to Texas' highest mountain — 8,751-foot Guadalupe Peak.
Advertisement
A photographer at White Sands National Park in New Mexico.
David Zalubowski/Associated Press
White Sands National Park, New Mexico
(702,000 visits)
The other is a former national monument that leveled up to national park in 2019. White Sands is a massive set of rolling gypsum dunes, startlingly white and bright and weird.
If you do this epic Southwest road trip,
might as well stop in the
Am I missing an underrated national park?
.
🧩
4 Across:
88°
POINTS OF INTEREST
By Ian Prasad Philbrick
'A heavy burden on taxpayers':
Springfield, Massachusetts's third largest city, has paid more than $11 million
State budget:
Massachusetts lawmakers sent their spending plan for the next fiscal year to Governor Maura Healey's desk — the first time in nearly a decade
Market Basket:
Two executives loyal to the grocery company's ousted CEO visited two stores to thank retiring employees.
Advertisement
Police sergeant:
A Boston Police Department sergeant
LA lawsuit:
The Trump administration sued Los Angeles, alleging that its 'sanctuary' policies violate the Constitution by thwarting immigration enforcement. (
Kilmar Abrego Garcia:
The Salvadoran immigrant who was mistakenly deported and then returned to the US will remain in federal custody until at least mid-July, a judge ruled. Abrego Garcia's lawyers asked to delay his release to avoid giving the Trump administration a chance to deport him. (
Sanctions relief:
Trump lifted US sanctions on Syria to help its new government, which overthrew Bashar al-Assad's dictatorship last year. (
Idaho shooting:
The authorities named a 20-year-old male suspect in the fatal shooting of two firefighters near Coeur d'Alene, saying he set a fire to lure first responders before killing himself. (
Diddy trial:
Jury deliberations appear to be off to a rocky start. In a note, jurors told the judge that one juror 'does not follow' the judge's instructions. Deliberations are set to continue today. (
Campaign finance:
The Supreme Court agreed to hear a Republican challenge to restrictions on how much political parties can spend in coordination with federal candidates. (
BESIDE THE POINT
💍
The Big Day:
His medical residency left little time for dating. So
📷
As he sees it:
On Broadway in Chelsea,
Advertisement
✍️
;(
The semicolon has long had its detractors. Now the punctuation mark seems to be going extinct. (
📺
Speaking of overlooked:
There are a kajillion TV shows to choose from. Here are 15 good ones that
🔭
Out there:
NASA's James Webb Space Telescope appears to have discovered a new exoplanet, dubbed TWA 7 b, which orbits a star outside our solar system. (
😎
Fun in the sun:
The Globe asked readers to name their favorite family-friendly beaches.
😋
🤢
Mixed reviews:
The durian, a Southeast Asian fruit, is alternately prized ('it elevates your spirit') and reviled (like 'a dead body out in the sun') for its smell and taste. One writer visited the world's mecca for the controversial fruit. (
Thanks for reading Starting Point.
This newsletter was edited by
❓ Have a question for the team? Email us at
✍🏼 If someone sent you this newsletter, you can
📬 Delivered Monday through Friday.
Mark Arsenault can be reached at
