Sequoia National Park

“A grove of giant redwood or sequoias should be kept just as we keep a great and beautiful cathedral.”
—President Theodore Roosevelt

ADDRESS: California
AREA: 631 square miles
ESTABLISHED: September 25, 1890
ELEVATION RANGE: 1,370 to 14,494 feet
ENVIRONMENT: Old growth forest

Sequoia National Park is home to giants: immense mountains, deep canyons, and groves of magnificent sequoias. The stars of the park are General Sherman, the world’s largest tree that is about 275 feet tall and 2,700 years old … and Mount Whitney, the highest point in the lower 48 states.

Yosemite National Park

“It is by far the grandest of all the special temples of Nature I was ever permitted to enter.”
—John Muir

STATE: California
AREA: 1,169 square miles
ESTABLISHED: October 1, 1890
ELEVATION RANGE: 2,127 to 13,114 feet
ENVIRONMENT: Alpine wilderness

Yosemite is a shrine to the beauty of nature … and a testament to mankind’s desire to preserve one of America’s most majestic landscapes for future generations. The park is renowned for awe-inspiring waterfalls, towering sequoia trees, iconic sights such as El Capitan and Half Dome, and about 90 species of mammals.

Acadia National Park

“National parks are the best idea we ever had. Absolutely American, absolutely democratic, they reflect us at our best rather than our worst.”
—Wallace Stegner

STATE: Maine
AREA: 74 square miles
ESTABLISHED: July 8, 1916
ELEVATION RANGE: 0 to 1,530 feet
ENVIRONMENT: Atlantic coast

Located mainly on Mount Desert Island, Acadia was the first National Park established east of the Mississippi River. It highlights the rugged Maine coastline as well as the tallest mountain on the U.S. Atlantic coast—but it also features woodlands, lakes, and the legendary Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse.

Arches National Park

STATE: Utah
AREA: 120 square miles
ESTABLISHED: April 12, 1929 ELEVATION RANGE: 4,085 to 5,653 feet
ENVIRONMENT: High desert

Arches is a wonderland of spectacular rock formations, including more than 2,000 natural stone arches as well as soaring pinnacles and balanced rocks that defy the laws of gravity. Delicate Arch is the park’s most famous arch, while Landscape Arch has the longest span (306 feet) of any arch in America.

Everglades National Park

““There is nothing so American as our national parks... . The fundamental idea behind the parks... is that the country belongs to the people, that it is in process of making for the enrichment of the lives of all of us.”
—President Franklin D. Roosevelt

STATE: Florida
AREA: 2,357 square miles
ESTABLISHED: May 30, 1934
ELEVATION RANGE: 0 to 20 feet
ENVIRONMENT: Tropical wetlands

The largest subtropical wilderness in the United States, Everglades covers more than 1.5 million acres in southern Florida. It is a vital habitat for wildlife—from the endangered manatee and crocodiles in the swamps to the rare Florida panther in the forests and more than 360 species of birds.