| 31 | Arkansas | Hot Springs | 34.51°N 93.05°W | April 20, 1832 | 5,549.75 acres (22.5 km2) | | Hot Springs was established by act of congress as a federal reserve on April 20, 1832, as such it is the oldest park managed by the National Park Service. Congress changed the reserve's designation to National Park on March 4, 1921 after the National Park Service was established in 1916. Amid some controversy, using 1921 as its official established date is inconsistent considering Yellowstone and other parks still readily use their pre-National Park Service dates, yet were not officially national parks at the time of their establishment. |
| 32 | Michigan | Isle Royale | 48.10°N 88.55°W | April 3, 1940 | 571,790.11 acres (2,314.0 km2) | 14,56 | The largest island in Lake Superior is a place of isolation and wilderness. Along with its many shipwrecks, waterways, and hiking trails, the park also includes over 400 smaller islands within 4.5 miles (7.2 km) of its shores. There are only 20 mammal species on the entire island, though the relationship between its wolf and moose populations is especially unique. |
| 33 | California | Joshua Tree | 33.79°N 115.90°W | October 31, 1994 | 789,745.47 acres (3,196.0 km2) | | Covering large areas of the Colorado and Mojave Deserts and the Little San Bernardino Mountains, this exotic desert landscape is populated by vast stands of the famous Joshua tree. Great changes in elevation reveal starkly contrasting environments including bleached sand dunes, dry lakes, rugged mountains, and maze-like clusters of monzogranite monoliths. |
| 34 | Alaska | Katmai | 58.50°N 155.00°W | December 2, 1980 | 3,674,529.68 acres (14,870.3 km2) | 30,896 | This park on the Alaska Peninsula protects the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes, an ash flow formed by the 1912 eruption of Novarupta, as well as Mount Katmai. Over 2,000 grizzly bears come here each year to catch spawning salmon. Other wildlife includes caribou, wolves, moose, and wolverines. |
| 35 | Alaska | Kenai Fjords | 59.92°N 149.65°W | December 2, 1980 | 669,982.99 acres (2,711.3 km2) | 270,666 | Near Seward on the Kenai Peninsula, this park protects the Harding Icefield and at least 38 glaciers and fjords stemming from it. The only area accessible to the public by road is Exit Glacier the rest must be viewed from boat tours. |
| 36 | California | Kings Canyon | 36.80°N 118.55°W | March 4, 1940 | 461,901.20 acres (1,869.2 km2) | 502,268 | Home to several giant sequoia groves and the General Grant Tree, the world's second largest, this park also features part of the Kings River, sculptor of the dramatic granite canyon that is its namesake, and the San Joaquin River, as well as Boyden Cave. |
| 37 | Alaska | Kobuk Valley | 67.55°N 159.28°W | December 2, 1980 | 1,750,716.50 acres (7,084.9 km2) | 16,875 | Kobuk Valley protects 61 miles (98 km) of the Kobuk River and three regions of sand dunes. Created by glaciers, the Great Kobuk, Little Kobuk, and Hunt River Sand Dunes can reach 100 feet (30 m) high and 100 °F (38 °C), and they are the largest dunes in the Arctic. Twice a year, half a million caribou migrate through the dunes and across river bluffs that expose well-preserved ice age fossils. |
| 38 | Alaska | Lake Clark | 60.97°N 153.42°W | December 2, 1980 | 2,619,733.21 acres (10,601.7 km2) | 16,1 | The region around Lake Clark features four active volcanoes, including Mount Redoubt, as well as an abundance of rivers, glaciers, and waterfalls. Temperate rainforests, a tundra plateau, and three mountain ranges fill in the remaining landscape. |
| 39 | California | Lassen Volcanic | 40.49°N 121.51°W | August 9, 1916 | 106,372.36 acres (430.5 km2) | 432,977 | Lassen Peak, the largest plug dome volcano in the world, is joined by all three other types of volcanoes in this park: shield, cinder dome, and composite. Though Lassen itself last erupted in 1915, most of the rest of the park is continuously active: numerous hydrothermal features, including fumaroles, boiling pools, and bubbling mud pots, are heated by molten rock from beneath the peak. |
| 40 | Kentucky | Mammoth Cave | 37.18°N 86.10°W | July 1, 1941 | 52,830.19 acres (213.8 km2) | 522,628 | With more than 400 miles (640 km) of passageways explored, Mammoth Cave is by far the world's longest cave system. Subterranean wildlife includes eight bat species, Kentucky cave shrimp, Northern cavefish, and cave salamanders. Above ground, the park provides recreation on the Green River, 70 miles of hiking trails, and plenty of sinkholes and springs. |
| 41 | Colorado | Mesa Verde | 37.18°N 108.49°W | June 29, 1906 | 52,121.93 acres (210.9 km2) | 501,563 | This area constitutes over 4,000 archaeological sites of the Ancestral Puebloan people, who lived here and elsewhere in the Four Corners region for at least 700 years. Cliff dwellings built in the 12th and 13th centuries include the famous Cliff Palace, which has 150 rooms and 23 kivas, and the Balcony House, with its many passages and tunnels. |
| 42 | Washington | Mount Rainier | 46.85°N 121.75°W | March 2, 1899 | 235,625.00 acres (953.5 km2) | | Mount Rainier, an active stratovolcano, is the most prominent peak in the Cascades, and is covered by 26 named glaciers including Carbon Glacier and Emmons Glacier, the largest in the continental United States. The mountain is popular for climbing, and more than half of the park is covered by subalpine and alpine forests. Paradise on the south slope is one of the snowiest places in the world, and the Longmire visitor center is the start of the Wonderland Trail, which encircles the mountain. |
| 43 | Washington | North Cascades | 48.70°N 121.20°W | October 2, 1968 | 504,780.94 acres (2,042.8 km2) | 23,865 | This complex encompasses two units of the national park itself as well as the Ross Lake and Lake Chelan National Recreation Areas. The highly glaciated mountains are spectacular examples of Cascade geology popular hiking and climbing areas include Cascade Pass, Mount Shuksan, Mount Triumph, and Eldorado Peak. |
| 44 | Washington | Olympic | 47.97°N 123.50°W | June 29, 1938 | 922,650.86 acres (3,733.8 km2) | | Situated on the Olympic Peninsula, this park straddles a diversity of ecosystems from Pacific shoreline to temperate rainforests to the alpine slopes of Mount Olympus. The scenic Olympic Mountains overlook the Hoh Rain Forest and Quinault Rain Forest, the wettest area in the continental United States. |
| 45 | Arizona | Petrified Forest | 35.07°N 109.78°W | December 9, 1962 | 93,532.57 acres (378.5 km2) | 836,799 | This portion of the Chinle Formation has a great concentration of 225-million-year-old petrified wood. The surrounding Painted Desert features eroded cliffs of wonderfully red-hued volcanic rock called bentonite. There are also dinosaur fossils and over 350 Native American sites. |
| 46 | California | Pinnacles | 36.48°N 121.16°W | January 10, 2013 | 26,605.73 acres (107.7 km2) | 196,635 | Named for the eroded leftovers of a portion of an extinct volcano, the park is famous for its massive black and gold monoliths of andesite and rhyolite, which are popular with rock climbers, and a hiker's paradise of quiet trails crossing scenic Coast Range wilderness. The park is home to the endangered California condor (Gymnogyps californianus) and one of the few locations in the world where these extremely rare birds can be seen in the wild. Pinnacles also supports a dense population of prairie falcons, and more than 13 species of bat which populate its talus caves. |
| 47 | California | Redwood | 41.30°N 124.00°W | October 2, 1968 | 112,512.05 acres (455.3 km2) | 429,166 | This park and the co-managed state parks protect almost half of all remaining coastal redwoods, the tallest trees on earth. There are three large river systems in this very seismically active area, and 37 miles (60 km) of protected coastline reveal tide pools and seastacks. The prairie, estuary, coast, river, and forest ecosystems contain a huge variety of animal and plant species. |
| 48 | Colorado | Rocky Mountain | 40.40°N 105.58°W | January 26, 1915 | 265,828.41 acres (1,075.8 km2) | | Bisected north to south by the Continental Divide, this portion of the Rockies has ecosystems varying from over 150 riparian lakes to montane and subalpine forests to treeless alpine tundra. Wildlife including mule deer, bighorn sheep, black bears, and cougars inhabit its igneous mountains and glacier valleys. Longs Peak, a classic Colorado fourteener, and the scenic Bear Lake are popular destinations, as well as the famous Trail Ridge Road, which reaches an elevation of more than 12,000 feet (3,700 m). |
| 49 | Arizona | Saguaro | 32.25°N 110.50°W | October 14, 1994 | 91,439.71 acres (370.0 km2) | 673,572 | Split into the separate Rincon Mountain and Tucson Mountain districts, this park is evidence that the dry Sonoran Desert is still home to a great variety of life spanning six biotic communities. Beyond the namesake giant saguaro cacti, there are barrel cacti, chollas, and prickly pears, as well as lesser long-nosed bats, spotted owls, and javelinas. |
| 50 | California | Sequoia | 36.43°N 118.68°W | September 25, 1890 | 404,051.17 acres (1,635.1 km2) | | This park protects the Giant Forest, which boasts the world's largest tree, General Sherman, as well as four of the next nine. It also has over 240 caves, a scenic segment of the Sierra Nevada including the tallest mountain in the contiguous United States, and Moro Rock, a photogenic granite dome. |
| 51 | Virginia | Shenandoah | 38.53°N 78.35°W | May 22, 1926 | 199,045.23 acres (805.5 km2) | | Shenandoah's Blue Ridge Mountains are covered by sprawling hardwood forests that teem with tens of thousands of animals. The Skyline Drive and Appalachian Trail run the entire length of this narrow park, along with more than 500 miles (800 km) of hiking trails passing scenic overlooks and cataracts of the Shenandoah River. |
| 52 | North Dakota | Theodore Roosevelt | 46.97°N 103.45°W | November 10, 1978 | 70,446.89 acres (285.1 km2) | 559,58 | This region that enticed and influenced President Theodore Roosevelt consists of a park of three units in the northern badlands. Besides Roosevelt's historic cabin, there are numerous scenic drives and backcountry hiking opportunities. Wildlife includes American bison, pronghorn, bighorn sheep, and wild horses. |
| 53 | United States Virgin Islands | Virgin Islands | 18.33°N 64.73°W | August 2, 1956 | 14,688.87 acres (59.4 km2) | 426,93 | The island of Saint John has rich human and natural histories. Taíno archaeological sites and ruins of sugar plantations from Columbus' time litter the coast. Past the pristine beaches are mangrove forests, seagrass beds, coral reefs, and vast algal plains. |
| 54 | Minnesota | Voyageurs | 48.50°N 92.88°W | January 8, 1971 | 218,200.17 acres (883.0 km2) | 239,16 | This park protecting four lakes near the Canadian border is a site for canoeing, kayaking, and fishing, and preserves a history populated by Ojibwe Native Americans, French fur traders called voyageurs, and ambitious gold-miners. Formed by glaciers, the region features tall bluffs, rock gardens, scenic islands and bays, and several historic buildings. |
| 55 | South Dakota | Wind Cave | 43.57°N 103.48°W | January 9, 1903 | 28,295.03 acres (114.5 km2) | 542,022 | Wind Cave is distinctive for its calcite fin formations called boxwork and needle-like growths called frostwork. The cave, which was discovered by a sound like that of wind coming from a hole in the ground, is the world's densest cave system. Above ground is a mixed-grass prairie with animals such as bison, black-footed ferrets, and prairie dogs. |
| 56 | Alaska | Wrangell –St. Elias | 61.00°N 142.00°W | December 2, 1980 | 8,323,147.59 acres (33,682.6 km2) | 74,722 | An immense plot of mountainous country protects the convergence of the Alaska, Chugach, and Wrangell-Saint Elias Ranges, which include many of the continent's tallest mountains and volcanoes, including the 18,008-foot Mount Saint Elias. More than a quarter of the park is covered with glaciers, including the tidewater Hubbard Glacier, piedmont Malaspina Glacier, and valley Nabesna Glacier. |
| 57 | Wyoming | Yellowstone | 44.60°N 110.50°W | March 1, 1872 | 2,219,790.71 acres (8,983.2 km2) | | Situated on the Yellowstone Caldera, the park has an expansive network of geothermal areas including vividly colored hot springs, boiling mud pots, and regularly erupting geysers, the best-known being Old Faithful and Grand Prismatic Spring. The yellow-hued Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River has a number of scenic waterfalls, and four mountain ranges run through the park. More than 60 mammal species, including the gray wolf, grizzly bear, lynx, bison, and elk, make this park one of the best wildlife viewing spots in the country. |
| 58 | California | Yosemite | 37.83°N 119.50°W | October 1, 1890 | 761,266.19 acres (3,080.7 km2) | | Among the earliest candidates for National Park status, Yosemite features towering granite cliffs, dramatic waterfalls, and old-growth forests at a unique intersection of geology and hydrology. Half Dome and El Capitan rise from the park's centerpiece, the glacier-carved Yosemite Valley, and from its vertical walls drop Yosemite Falls, North America's tallest waterfall. Three giant sequoia groves, along with a pristine wilderness in the heart of the Sierra Nevada, are home to an abundance of rare plant and animal species. |
| 59 | Utah | Zion | 37.30°N 113.05°W | November 19, 1919 | 146,597.60 acres (593.3 km2) | | Located at the junction of the Colorado Plateau, Great Basin, and Mojave Desert, this geological wonder has colorful sandstone canyons, mountainous mesas, and countless rock towers. Natural arches and exposed plateau formations compose a large wilderness roughly divided into four ecosystems: desert, riparian, woodland, and coniferous forest. |