The weather has turned for the better and you can feel the strong sun rays of summer. The summer season is just around the corner in the US national parks. Which parks will you be visiting?
The summer season offers some of the most striking views of the national parks, but it also introduces the wave of crowds. As you plan your summer trip, remember to plan ahead for crowds and to adjust your plans.
Sometimes fighting the crowds are necessary, because several stunning national parks in the north are only accessible during the summer season. Many high-elevation areas are covered in snow and don’t offer access in the winter (or even early Spring!).
Summer offers you the highest possibility of accessing all the nature trails on your list (and with better weather conditions.)
Why I Know Something About This
During our Grand Adventure in Summer 2024, we visited over fifteen national parks.
We adjusted our schedule to devour the most beautiful and natural places during a time when they were easily accessible to us.
Summer.
The list below is a collection of the parks that we visited, and that we enjoyed the most!
US National Parks To Visit In Summer
From Colorado to Wyoming, Washington, Alaska, and Oregon, these are our favorite epic national parks to visit during the summer.
Let’s dig into it!
Rocky Mountain National Park
The national park is home to sixty mountain peaks over 12,000 feet (3,658 meters). It has ice covered mountain peaks, meadows, and even a mountain tundra.
As it’s one of the most popular parks, timed entry into the park is required between 9:00 and 15:00. However, if you’re determined and well organized, it’s possible to get an entry pass even during the height of summer.
My absolute favorite moment from the visit was driving up the Trail Ridge Road, which takes you up and over some of the highest points in the park.
It’s here where the forest disappears and you can see an Elk and a Yellow-Bellied Marmot or two. Watching the Marmot go about its daily life is very entertaining to watch!
In the valleys, you can catch a glimpse of roaring rivers and waterfalls, which is what we saw starting at the Bear Lake Trailhead.
From this starting point, you can hike to Nymph Lake, Dream Lake, and Emerald Lake. It’s a straight-forward hike and not particularly difficult. But it offers epic views and everything you’re looking for in mountain scenery.
Grand Teton National Park
The park that I fell in love with at first sight.
Grand Teton National Park offers snow-capped glacier peaks reflecting into crystal, clear mountain lakes – who wouldn’t want to hike near those!
I loved this national park. Every angle, stop, and landscape was breathtaking, and I enjoyed it immensely. However, don’t tell too many people about its beauty (because its big sister – Yellowstone National Park – gets most of the attention! Let’s keep it that way.)
It’s hard to put into words my love for this national park, but I’m happy that we spent four full days in the park.
It was the perfect amount of time to not feel rushed but to have seen most of the important hikes like the Leigh and String Lake Trailheads, Taggart Lake Trailhead, and Schwabacher Road.
If you want to skip the crowds and avoid the Shuttle boat on Jenny Lake, hike from String lake Trailhead along Jenny Lake and to Hidden Falls and Inspiration Point.
It’s worth the view!
Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park is a park that includes everything that you’ve been told (and more). It’s one of America’s most busy parks, therefore, you get a wide-mixture of different people visiting the park from all over the world.
On the other hand, the park is funky, stinky, and unlike any park that you might visit in the United States. The thermal pools and mud pits were something to behold, and the colors that came out of these geothermal wonders are beautiful.
When it came to hiking, my favorite hiking trails weren’t those ‘tourist hotspots’ at all.
The favorite hiking trail for me was the Lone Star Trailhead that took us through the forest and alongside a calming river. You can see the Lone Star Geyser erupt about every four hours, but we didn’t stay for the show.
The Wapiti Lake Trailhead took you over the Yellowstone grass fields and to a backcountry lake – truly magical!
Mount Rainier National Park
My first glimpse of Mount Rainier was from the Seattle harbor.
I had read that it was possible to see this beautiful volcanic mountain all the way from the city, but I wasn’t simply looking for it. One simple turn – and WOW!
This park has begun my love affair with the Pacific Northwest. Rainier has it all – mountains, lakes, and dense rainforests.
I wanted to see the park in all its forms, so we spent two days driving around the North entrance.
The first day, we hiked Antler peak and the Sourdough Ridge Trailhead. It offers striking views of the mountain peaks and vista views. It’s also very easy (which is a plus for me)! We even saw a mountain goat (however, he wasn’t very happy to see us).
We also enjoyed the Naches Peak Loop Trailhead, which really offered everything from mountain lakes, to forest, and striking views of Mount Rainier.
To enjoy a total contrast from the Alpine mountains, the valleys of Rainier are a different world. It’s here where the trees are tall and the moss covers the earth (Silver Falls East Trailhead).
Olympia National Park
Nestled along the coast, Olympia National Park is one of Washington’s other famous national parks.
This park offers coastal vibes and rainforests! Olympic National Park is drenched in over 12 feet of rain a year, making it one of North America’s last remaining examples of a temperate rainforest.
From Western Hemlock to Douglas-fir and Sitka spruce trees, this park makes you feel like you’re walking through Jurassic Park (as quoted by my husband).
We did this park in a day (which I don’t recommend) with my favorite hikes including Marymere Falls Trailhead, Moments in Time Trailhead, Ancient Groves Main Trailhead, Sol Duc Falls Trailhead, and Rialto Beach.
Yes, that is all possible in one day!
Kenai Fjords National Park
Planning a trip to Alaska, include this national park on your must see list. About a two hour drive from Anchorage, Kenai Fjords is where the ice, mountains, and the sea collide.
The Harding Icefield feeds nearly 40 glaciers in this area (some accessible and not!). This was truly the most awe-inspiring moment of all as you saw glacier after glacier around you.
I felt like there were two major ways to see this national park. Firstly, by ice, the most accessible hike was the Exit Glacier hike. Other glaciers are accessible by water.
Secondly, by sea, the Caines Head Trail Head is within the Alaska State Parks, it’s a beautiful and easy hike through the rainforest and to the sea. We even saw salmon spanning in the river!
Denali National Park
It’s an epic tundra park with high glacial peaks. It was mind blowing traveling through Denali.
We saw moose, elk, and a giant brown bear. The park doesn’t have a huge selection of trails, but we enjoyed the ones by the park entrance.
Many don’t get to experience Denali as she’s mostly covered by clouds. It rained and had the first snow of the season when we visited. It was mid-August! However, we were super lucky with a bright, sunny day on our very last day to see Denali.
This is one park that is truly only experienced in the summer in this capacity.
Crater Lake National Park
It’s the last national park on this list, but it’s not the least bit small.
Crater Lake is a massive volcano, having erupted thousands of years ago and sunk into a gigantic lake. It’s not only very deep, but the crystal blue water reflects back into the bright sunlight.
This park is usually snowed in during the winter with little road access. It’s accessible for families and you can make easy hiking tours around the rim.
Enjoy summer in these national parks
The summer season isn’t without epic views. After visiting over fifteen national parks in 2024, many of these parks were only accessible during the warmest months of the year.
Plan ahead for the summer that is inching forward in your calendar — and check out these epic national parks to visit during the summer!
It’s important to travel in a sustainable and respectful way towards local communities and natural places. I love writing about the places that I see, but I recognize the negative impact that travel has on our planet. I’m not perfect, but I put considerable effort into reducing my impact from my travels. If you love this topic, I’d love to discuss it with you!
