I had never been to Arizona — now the 35th state I have checked off my race to all 50 — so you can imagine my excitement as I first laid eyes on the sign that read: “The Grand Canyon State Welcomes You”. My main objective was to visit that gargantuan hole in the earth that has entranced visitors for centuries. So, after finally making a stop at the damn dam and a nearby overlook of Lake Mead, I instructed the Google Maps machine to take me to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon.
Read MoreWhile the big wigs like the Grand Canyon and the Great Smoky Mountains draw in millions of visitors every year, there are some parks out there that are lucky just to bring in a fraction of that. Make no mistake, however: these often overlooked parks are no less spectacular than their more popular counterparts.
Read MoreYou've heard of Yosemite, Yellowstone, and Zion. You could name in which state you'd find the Grand Tetons, the Grand Canyon, and the Great Smoky Mountains. But the most-visited national parks constitute just a fraction of the beautiful federally-protected lands that you can visit in the United States.
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