National Park Secrets: 10 Fresh Ways to Find Paradise - Outside Magazine
The National Park Service celebrates its 100th anniversary next year, meaning hoopla, poo-bahs, and crowds. If 2014 saw a record 292. 8 million park visitors, just imagine the chaos that a centennial year will bring. Even this year, parks are expecting record numbers. But you'll only get hounded by the hoi polloi if you don't know where to go. Start early with these adventures in ten classic—and should-be classic—parks. The park is a two-and-a-half-hour drive south of Anchorage and just ten miles from the harbor town of Seward. Go with Olympic Raft and Kayak , which is launching ten-mile trips through the lower dam site, including three miles of Class III–IV water ($54). A raft is the perfect vantage point from which to spot eagles and other wildlife and to view the... ) Now you can hike 2. 5 miles to Olympic Hot Springs, a handful of clothing-optional, rock-ringed pools in the fir and hemlock forest along Boulder Creek. For a longer trek, the Hoh River Trail on the park’s west end climbs 17. 4 miles from the Hoh. Source: www.outsideonline.com
