Untamed Uncrowded Unforgettable

Sunset, May, 2001

Across the West: 12 great national parks and monuments where you won't have to stand in line

THEY ARE THE WEST'S untapped treasures, national park gems that get a fraction of the visitation seen by better-known destinations such as the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, or Yosemite. Yet these unheralded parks offer all the grandeur and drama of their more famous cousins: giants of the ancient forest, mysterious caves, sun-warmed islands, and geologic marvels. * This guide takes you to terrific but comparatively unknown parks--many get fewer than 100,000 visitors annually. Those parks that do get more visitors are typically larger, but even the busiest ones received less than a tenth of the 4,800,000-plus travelers who packed the Grand Canyon last year. * Keep in mind that weekend and holiday use will always be higher than midweek, and you'll have to plan ahead to get a camping space at some smaller destinations. But if you're craving a taste of nature along with a generous helping of solitude, our roundup of parks is a 12-course feast.

Canyonlands National Park, near Moab, Utah

Dramatically eroded from 527 square miles of colorful southeastern Utah sandstone by the Colorado and Green Rivers, rugged and remote Canyonlands is a geologic wonder. The park is sliced into four districts, of which the Island in the Sky, an elevated mesa, is the most accessible--you can view the canyon floor 2,200 feet below through Mesa Arch, or gaze into Upheaval Dome from atop kid-friendly Whale Rock. How you explore the rest of this rugged park--by foot, mountain bike, or raft--will be determined by your stamina and sense of adventure.

WHERE: The Island in the Sky district is 35 miles southwest of Moab via U.S. 191 and State 313.

WHEN: Open year-round; the weather is best in spring and fall.

COST: $10 per vehicle.

SERVICES: There's a visitor center in the Island in the Sky district (435/259-4712). Limited camping on a first-come, first-served basis at Willow Flat ($5). Nearby Moab has a full range of motels and cateries; contact the Grand County Travel Council (800/635-6622 or www.discovermoab.com).

ACTIVITIES: The easy 1/2-mile round-trip hike to Mesa Arch, located on the eastern lip of the mesa, begins 6 miles south of the Island in the Sky visitor center.

Bulbous Whale Rock--a towering sandstone formation longer than a football field that kids can scamper across--and its 1/2-mile access trail are a 5-mile drive west of the Mesa Arch parking lot.

Kurt Repanshek

REDWOOD NATIONAL AND STATE PARKS, Crescent City, CA

"Ambassadors from another time" is how John Steinbeck described redwoods in Travels with Charley. Redwood National and State Parks contains thousands of such ambassadors. In fact, it's home to some of the world's tallest and oldest trees.

Shaped like a gnarled finger, the park covers some 105,000 acres and 37 miles of coastline near the California-Oregon border. Redwood National Park is unique, as it's managed in concert with Prairie Creek, Del Norte Coast, and Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Parks.

Bisected by U.S. 101, the park is easy to zoom through. Take your time and the place will quickly reveal its wonders: herds of elk, misty canyons, ancient trees.

Ranger Philip Rovai suggests I take the scenic, winding drive down Davison Road for a short walk up Fern Canyon as well as for the likelihood of spotting Roosevelt elk. First I join him on a hike into magnificent Stout Grove, by the Smith River's teal waters. Towering above us are coast redwoods, or Sequoia sempervirens, which can live up to 3,000 years. "Stand next to a massive redwood and just look up--you feel small in the world, like when you gaze up at the stars at night," Rovai says.

WHERE: Along U.S. 101 north of Eureka.

WHEN: Open year-round; April through October is best.

COST: $2 day use.

SERVICES: For maps, visit the Redwood Information Center off U.S. 101 south of Orick (707/464-6101, ext. 5265). There are 335 campsites ($12; 800/444-7275). For lodging, contact the Crescent City/Del Norte County Chamber of Commerce (800/343-8300 or www.northerncalifornia.net).

ACTIVITIES: In Prairie Creek Redwoods, hike the .7-mile Fern Canyon loop. From U.S. 101, take Davison Rd. (unpaved, but drivable) 8 miles to its end; en route, you may see Roosevelt elk. The 1/2-mile Stout Grove Trail is off Howland Hill Rd. in Jedediah Smith Redwoods.

ORGAN PIPE CACTUS NATIONAL MONUMENT, Ajo, AZ

In the spring, a visit to Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument in southwestern Arizona provides a tonic for the senses. Clusters of tall green cactus--they really do look like parts of a pipe organ--cover broad hills that form a rocky pillow at the base of volcanic mountains. Being able to look across 517 square miles of the Sonoran Desert and see virtually no sign of human intrusion is a refreshing bonus.

Organ Pipe is quintessential Sonoran Desert terrain, a landscape of cactus and creosote bush interspersed with jagged mountains and laced with thickets of mesquite, ironwood, and palo verde trees. Most of the organ pipe cactus in the United States are found within the monument's borders.