ventureswithvictoria

Jan 78 min read

One Day Wonders: 14 National Parks you can "do" in a day

While ideally you would have more than one day to experience a national park, sometimes time is limited. As I always say, one day in a park is better than no days in a park! Here are a few within the continental US that you can get a good gist of if you’re short on time.

Dry Tortugas National Park

This is a great park to visit if you’re short on time but not short on funds. A small island off the coast of Key West, Dry Tortugas can only be accessed via ferry, private boat, or seaplane. Ferry tickets often sell out weeks or months in advance but you can arrive early and get in a standby line for a chance to hop on the same day. At $220 per adult ($205 with an Annual Pass) though, this ferry trip is not cheap. Highlights of this park include a Civil War-era fort with a prison famous for holding Samuel Mudd, pristine snorkeling, coral reefs, birding, and white sand beaches.

Pro tip: if you are taking a last-minute trip or couldn’t get ferry tickets ahead of time, there is a standby procedure that you can do for a chance to get on that day’s ferry. At the ferry terminal, a standby list goes up at 0630 and is first come first serve. They announce around 0730 who got off the list. I arrived around 0545 and was the third person in line and also the last to get on the ferry from the list, but this is completely random and the number of people who get off the list will vary by day. Check out their page for more information.

Hot Springs National Park

While Yellowstone is famously known as the US’s first national park, the preservation of Hot Springs actually predates Yellowstone’s national park (est. 1872) status by 40 years as the nation’s first area to be federally preserved to protect its natural features. As word got out about these thermal springs in the late 1800s to mid-1900s, many flocked to this area to take advantage of its supposedly healing properties, including several famous mobsters. Tour the Fordyce Bathhouse Museum to see how it would’ve looked during its prime before strolling down Bathhouse Row to admire the area’s architecture. Be sure to check out the Hot Water Cascade where you can touch the thermal water. Take a hike in the surrounding mountains (I liked the Goat Rock Trail) before relaxing with a beer or root beer made with thermal water at the Superior Bathhouse, the National Park Service’s only brewery. If you have an extra half day or want to skip the hiking, consider paying for a traditional bathing experience at the Buckstaff Bathhouse, the only continuously operating bathhouse in the park.

Congaree National Park

Often confused with a swamp, South Carolina’s Congaree National Park contains and protects the largest remaining old growth bottomland/floodplain hardwood forest in the US. Explore the park’s abundant biodiversity by hiking the Boardwalk Trail, taking a kayak or canoe down the waterways, or, if you’re lucky, watch the park’s synchronous fireflies in early summer (spots awarded through lottery only). I haven’t had a chance to visit this park yet but I’m hoping to in 2025!

Bryce Canyon National Park

Too often overshadowed by neighboring Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon is an incredible park that packs a punch for its size. It's most famous for its orange-colored hoodoos, tall, thin rock spires created by millennia of erosion by rain and free-thaw cycles. I previously wrote an entire day-long itinerary in this blog post so go check that out!

Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park

The Black Canyon of the Gunnison may not be the most famous canyon in the US, but it is certainly one of the most unique. The Black Canyon of the Gunnison in Colorado is so steep and narrow that some parts of the bottom only receive 33 minutes of sunlight per day. Similar to the Grand Canyon, the park is divided into North and South Rims but exploring one side is enough to give one a sense of the grandeur of this canyon. Most explore the South Rim as it has many overlooks and short hikes that are generally accessible to most visitors. Some of my favorite activities there are watching the sunrise at the Painted Wall, hiking the Oak Flat Trail which dips slightly below the canyon rim, and driving the steep East Portal Road down to the river. If there in winter, join one of the guided snowshoe hikes!

Badlands National Park

I feel like visiting South Dakota’s Badlands is a classic All-American road trip stop right up there with Mount Rushmore. Filled with its namesake colorful rock formations, the park is great for every park visitor, with multiple overlooks and roadside stops as well as some short but unique hikes like the Door, Window, and Notch trails, all conveniently starting from the same parking lot. Don’t miss sunrise and sunset as that is when the colors in the rocks really pop!

Wind Cave National Park

If you’re already in the area visiting Badlands, might as well pop over to visit Wind Cave National Park too! Poor Wind Cave doesn’t get the same acclaim as some of the other “cave parks” like the intricate Carlsbad Caverns or the massive Mammoth Cave, but it’s still worth a day-long visit. Wind Cave is best known for its “boxwork,” which are delicate formations created from thin lines of calcite that intersect to form a honeycomb-like pattern. This boxwork is incredibly rare with it being most abundant in Wind Cave. The park also has a large bison herd that roams freely as well as several above-ground trails. I would recommend doing the scenic drive plus a hike in the morning (I enjoyed the Rankin Ridge trail), then a cave tour in the afternoon.

Pro tip: book your cave tour tickets in advance as they can sell out in the summer. Also check the park’s website to make sure the elevator into the cave is operational as it closes not infrequently for repairs.

White Sands National Park

White Sands in Southeast New Mexico is a truly unique landscape of white sand dunes made from gypsum crystals. When my sister and I visited, we had an absolute blast sledding down the dunes on sleds we rented from the visitor center. We also spent the night among the dunes in one of the backcountry campsites which was not only an amazing way to stargaze but the only way to experience sunrise in the park as the park closes one hour after sundown. Currently as of 2024 the backcountry sites are closed for rehabilitation so be sure to check the park website for updates.

Petrified Forest National Park

Located right alongside Interstate 40 in Arizona, Petrified Forest is often considered a “drive through” park on family trips to the Grand Canyon or along Route 66. Famous for its colorful petrified wood among the Painted Desert, Petrified Forest is an absolute gem of a park that deserves more than a quick pass through. My favorite trails are the Crystal Forest loop and the Blue Mesa Trail. The park allows visitors to roam freely so you can explore to your heart’s content here. Be sure to leave the petrified wood where you find it to preserve the park for years to come.

Mesa Verde National Park

Mesa Verde in Southwest Colorado has some of the world’s most well-known cliff dwellings. Made over a thousand years ago by the Ancient Puebloans, these dwellings have stood the test of time thanks to their overhanging rock shelter and the construction methods used to create them. To see the main dwelling tours in a single day means a long day, but it is very doable with some planning. The three main cliff dwellings accessed by guided tour are: Cliff Palace, Balcony House, and Long House. There are other backcountry tours but the three main tours should be your focus if you only have one day and/or it’s your first visit. Start the day with the earliest Long House tour (9 or 9:30 depending on the time of year) as it’s the furthest away from the more visited areas of the park in the Wetherill Mesa area and as it involves the most walking (tour is about 2 hours long). If you have time before or after your tour you can hike the short one-mile Step House trail to see another small cliff dwelling. Try to book your next tour on the Balcony House, the park’s most adventurous tour involving climbing tall ladders and some crawling. Give yourself at least 2 hours between the end of the Long House tour and your Balcony House tour as it will take about 1.25 hours to drive between them. Your last tour of the day will be Cliff Palace, the most famous and the largest dwelling in the US. The afternoon sun hits the palace really nicely which makes for some great photos at the overlook. I booked the last tour of the day which gave me plenty of time to drive around enjoying the scenic overlooks and other smaller ruins beforehand.

Indiana Dunes National Park

About an hour drive east from Chicago, Indiana Dunes is an amazing oasis of nature outside the city. The park contains shorelines, dunes, wetlands, prairies, river systems, oak savannahs, and more, protecting one of the most biologically diverse areas in the country. The park shares its border with Indiana Dunes State Park which is also not to be missed as the state park has the famous “3 Dune Challenge” trail (Trail 8 and Trail 4 on the map) that takes hikers up and over the area’s three largest dunes. We also enjoyed the Dunes Succession Trail to West Beach as it offered great views over Lake Michigan and provided access to a surprisingly lovely beach. From birding to kayaking to fishing and more, this park offers more than most would think. If I lived in Chicago I would definitely be here all the time!

Pinnacles National Park

Pinnacles is probably one of the more underrated parks in the NPS, which is surprising as it’s only 2.5 hours south of San Francisco and 2.5 hours west of the Fresno area, making it a great day trip from the city or an easy add on to the classic Yosemite-Sequoia-Kings Canyon road trip. Pinnacles is an old volcanic field famous for its rhyolite rock spires as well as its unique talus caves which makes for really fun hiking and exploring. It also protects the endangered California Condor which in my opinion are the coolest birds ever. The park is separated into East and West sections, with the former being the most easily accessible from the major cities. Visitors in moderately good shape can experience most of the park’s highlights by hiking the High Peaks and Balconies Cave Loop which is about 9 miles with 1550 feet elevation gain. The Bear Gulch Cave and reservoir loop (Moses Spring and Rim Trail Loop on AllTrails) is about 2 miles and would make for a great late afternoon or sunset hike.

Mammoth Cave National Park

Who knew that the world’s longest known cave would be in Kentucky? Mammoth Cave is a fascinating place filled with rich history in addition to multiple options for exploration. For a one-day visit to the park, I would recommend picking 1-2 guided cave tours and hiking one trail. For the most bang for your buck, try to book the Grand Avenue tour, a four-hour cave tour that hits the highlights, focusing primarily on geology with some history as well. Other shorter but also great options include the Historic Tour, the Domes and Dripstones tour, and the Violet City Lantern Tour. For the adventurous souls, you can book the strenuous Wild Cave Tour during the main summer season. There are lots of hiking trail options but I really enjoyed going up to the Green River Bluffs overlook, seeing the River Stix Springs (check to see if open first), and the sinkhole. You can combine trails for as long or short of a hike as you want. If you have an extra day, consider either adding on additional cave tours or take a relaxing paddle on the Green River.

Arches National Park

While I think two days in this park is perfect for people whose priority it is to hike, most visitors can experience a lot of this park in just one day. Simply driving through the park showcases multiple scenic overlooks and roadside arches such as Double Arch, The Windows, and Park Avenue. With one day in the park, I would prioritize the Devil's Garden area due to its high concentration of arches and the hike to Delicate Arch along with driving the park road.