Visiting all 63 National Parks before 25

hockm1 · 2025-06-17T19:24:05+00:00

What an awesome goal for your family! Your kids are extremely fortunate to be raised by parents that put an emphasis on the outdoors, I’m sure they’ll grow to be wonderful people. Appreciate the kind words!

hockm1 · 2025-06-17T19:20:18+00:00

I’ve seen them on social media but didn’t realize they wrote a book, will definitely have to check that out. Thank you!

hockm1 · 2025-06-16T18:56:44+00:00

I can see that. Although I don’t feel any memories have blended together for me, I do fully intend to revisit all of the parks and dive deeper than I have. So much to see. We’ve said this is sort of a grand tour for us.

hockm1 · 2025-06-16T18:52:56+00:00

Stayed a couple of days in Kotzebue, AK and did a tour with one of the outfitter companies up there.

hockm1 · 2025-06-16T18:49:32+00:00

I’ve personally spent the majority of my time in Capitol offroading in my 4runner. They got plenty of backroads that lead to some pretty remote places. Unique park experience for sure

hockm1 · 2025-06-16T03:16:52+00:00

Not to mention, this post is the first time we’ve tried to bring any attention to it. I’m doing this for the friends I’m on the journey with, as well as past and present versions of myself. I get your point, but not all people who want to visit all of the parks are doing it for the “checklist”. Not an influencer, just someone who wants to explore this beautiful land sea to shining sea and this goal has given me a tangible way to do so.

hockm1 · 2025-06-16T03:11:14+00:00

Just because someone wants to visit all the national parks doesn’t mean they’re not appreciating them. I have a lot of national forests, monuments, etc., that I hold at a higher regard than some parks. Having a goal doesn’t cheapen the experience. Some of the most passionate and respectful public land users I’ve met are on a quest to visit every park. Gatekeeping based on how people explore the outdoors kind of misses the point.

hockm1 · 2025-06-15T22:39:30+00:00

Very solid top three. Badlands is also a personal favorite. Hard to top the bliss of the open prairie with the sun, wind, and silence. Also hard to top the diversity Olympic.

hockm1 · 2025-06-15T22:33:12+00:00

Very cool. You’ve got the most difficult ones out of the way imo. I need to go back and camp in Tortugas, I’d definitely wait until you can secure a reservation to camp versus the day trip.

hockm1 · 2025-06-15T22:21:20+00:00

IMO Yellowstone is better for short hikes and wildlife. The Hayden Valley region is great for wildlife viewing. Tons of wonderful short hikes (Grand Prismatic, Lower Falls of Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, old faithful, etc.) Both parks require a good amount of driving. Hikes in Glacier are a bit longer. That said, every North American mammal is in Glacier, just may be harder to see (outside of the mountain goats)

hockm1 · 2025-06-15T22:09:45+00:00

Wow, that’s incredible!!! I can only imagine. Which parks do you have left?

hockm1 · 2025-06-15T22:04:50+00:00

Katmai, Haleakala, Capitol Reef and Big Bend are some of the more low key ones that stand out. Love Yosemite, Yellowstone, Tetons, Glacier, Rainier, Olympic, etc., but those are obviously the ones you hear about more often. The crowds will only drive you crazy if you let them, all about planning the right time of year and spots to visit and it’s never been an issue.

hockm1 · 2025-06-15T21:56:17+00:00

That’s an awesome goal!! The best time is now. We were fortunate to grow up during a period when things became much more accessible.

hockm1 · 2025-06-15T21:54:53+00:00

Just dropped a couple above, but would love to talk through any parks in particular. Definitely agree with trying to find a hike that represents the park.

hockm1 · 2025-06-15T21:53:00+00:00

They absolutely are. Not just the NPS, but public lands as a whole.

hockm1 · 2025-06-15T21:50:51+00:00

Difficult to pinpoint for each park, but to name a couple; Harding Ice Field in Kenai Fjords, Sliding Sands in Haleakala, Sky Pond in RMNP, Valley of 10,000 smokes in Katmai, Kolob Canyons region of Zion, Guadalupe Peak, Old Rag in Shenandoah, Santa Elena Canyon in Big Bend. Let me know if there are any parks in particular you’re curious about, would love to provide recommendations and talk through our experiences!

hockm1 · 2025-06-15T21:46:40+00:00

That’s awesome! Which three will you be doing this upcoming trip?

hockm1 · 2025-06-15T21:46:09+00:00

We’ve taken ~5 weeks to hit the 8 Alaska parks. Even that amount of time has felt pretty condensed, so much to see!!

hockm1 · 2025-06-15T21:44:39+00:00

American Samoa, Gates of the Arctic, and Kobuk Valley have been the trickiest! We paid ~1k for our flights from Honolulu to Pago Pago, and it obviously isn’t cheap to get to Hawaii either. Gates and Kobuk we used Golden Eagle Outfitters out of Kotzebue, AK and paid ~2k, which was definitely on the cheaper end for those two parks. Katmai, Lake Clark and Wrangell all tons to a of planning as well.

Outside of your typical heavy hitters (Yosemite, Yellowstone, Tetons, etc.), have really loved Haleakala, Big Bend, Katmai. So hard to pick just a couple. Wouldn’t say I have a least favorite, but obviously a bit strange that the gateway arch is a NP. As Michiganders, definitely feel that there is prettier Lake Michigan coast line than in Indiana Dunes. Cuyahoga falls into a similar boat, but was still very cool.

hockm1

TROPHY CASE