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Guest Post by Jason Mueller-mobilerving.com
Experienced RV-ers have their favorite national parks they love to visit. With 423 of them, visiting them all could prove to be difficult. Our nation’s National Park Service has been entrusted to care for these national treasures since 1916. It’s because of their hard work that the parks are so amazing.
If you’re an RV-er and love to spend time in nature, doing so in one of the many national parks spread across the country is something you must do. Deciding which ones to put on your bucket list is the most difficult part. Each one has its own charm and appeal. Here’s a list of the five most amazing national parks that you should visit when RV’ing.
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Yosemite National Park
A 60-mile drive from Fresno brings you to Yosemite National Park in central eastern California. It has it all; massive granite cliffs, glaciers, waterfalls, and groves of sky-high sequoia trees. You can stroll through beautiful open fields or go for a challenging hike through its almost 750,000 acres of wilderness.
Remember: Bring binoculars or a camera with a telephoto lens
There’s a possibility that you’ll spot bighorn sheep, black bears, mule deer, and mountain lions while you’re there. Yosemite is within the Sierra Nevada Mountains and is incredibly diverse with wildlife. Coyotes are plentiful and it’s not uncommon to hear the packs yelping off in the distance. One of this park’s biggest attractions is El Capitan, a huge granite vertical rock formation on the north side of Yosemite Valley. This is not to be missed.
In Yosemite National Park, Half Dome is one of the most popular hikes. A steep, strenuous 14-16 mile hike from Yosemite Valley leads to Half Dome, at an elevation of 4,800 feet. In addition, hiking poles and comfortable shoes are highly recommended. A beautiful hike with amazing views. A permit is required.
Yosemite National Park is RV-friendly. You’ll find 10 campgrounds that can accommodate RVs, but reservations are necessary. Be aware there aren’t hookups for sewer, electricity, or water, so you’ll need to prepare for that. Generators are permitted, however, only during designated hours. If you enjoy RV’ing in national parks, Yosemite is a great choice because of its proximity to Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks. Contact www.a1autotransport.com/rvs/ to have your RV ready for pickup and transport.
Grand Canyon National Park
One of the most popular and well-known national parks is Grand Canyon National Park. Located in northern Arizona, about 75 miles from Flagstaff, this World Heritage site is popular with the RV crowd. The canyon covers more than 1.2 million acres and has to be seen to be believed.
Most visit the canyon from its south rim, but the north rim also offers spectacular out-of-this-world views. The south rim is open year-round and is lower in elevation than the north rim, which is only open from May through October. The rest of the park is rugged, although it does have many accessible hiking trails for visitors of all athletic abilities.
Grand Canyon Village on the south rim has an RV campground and is open year-round, complete with all hookups. Reservations, although not mandatory, are suggested to ensure they’ll have a spot for you. If you’d like to visit the north rim, its RV campground is open from May 15 through October 31. Reservations are highly recommended. Unlike the south rim, the north rim campground does not have any hookups.
Yellowstone National Park
Another amazing national park is Yellowstone. It’s one of the biggest national parks in the world, covering over 3,400 square miles. Yellowstone is located in Wyoming, but parts of it extend into Montana and Idaho. Not only is it the first official national park in the country, but it’s also a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
There’s so much to see in Yellowstone that it’s difficult to see everything without an extended stay. Its biggest attraction is the many thermal basins that include hot springs and geysers. Old Faithful—the most popular of the geysers—was the first one in the park to be given a name. Bison, elk, moose, and grizzly bears make the park their home and are seen often.
Yellowstone is an RV-er’s dream with many different campsites to choose from. Most don’t have full hookups for sewer, water, and electricity, so check ahead before settling on one. Fishing Bridge Campground has full hookups and is accessible from the east entrance of the park. There are also many RV campgrounds just outside of the park.
Rocky Mountain National Park
Located approximately 70 miles from Denver is Rocky Mountain National Park. The park covers over 260,000 acres, which are then surrounded by another 250,000 acres of National Forest. If you like mountains with high peaks and never-ending forests, this is the national park of your dreams.
The Continental Divide runs north-south through the park. An interesting fact worth noting is that the waters on the western side of the park all flow toward the Pacific Ocean while those on its eastern side flow toward the Great Plains. There are over 60 mountain peaks in the park, with elevations over 12,000 feet. If you enjoy having your head in the sky, Rocky Mountain National Park delivers.
The park has many campgrounds that are RV-friendly located all over its massive expanse. Be aware that RV campgrounds located inside the park don’t have hookups. There are, however, several campgrounds located nearby that do provide this service.
Acadia National Park
Acadia National Park, located in Maine on the Atlantic Coast, has over 47,600 acres to explore. This national park is quite unique compared to other national parks. Located within its borders are 26 mountains and 26 lakes or ponds, making it a hiker’s dream with 120 miles of trains to be explored.
Nearly 20% of the park is designated as wetlands. A popular destination is Thunder Hole, a rock formation that creates a thundering boom as the waves from the Atlantic roll in and force air and water up through the cavern. Unlike some national parks, Acadia is very dog-friendly.
Acadia National Park has a few RV-friendly campgrounds to choose from. Some have water and sewer hookups, but all have clean restrooms and hot showers. Many also provide free shuttle bus service to popular park destinations and local communities.
Final Thoughts: National Parks Are a Natural and Awesome Choice for RV’ing
These five national parks are top choices to visit. If you’ve chosen a must-see national park but driving your RV there is out of the question, there is a solution. You can have the experts in RV transport get yours to the desired location, eliminating the need to drive hundreds of miles to get there.
What are your 5 favorite National Parks you think of visiting when RV’ing? Please share in the comments below.
