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Lonely Planet Images	National spectacles Nearly 400 national parks can be found all across America, and feature breathtaking vistas, rock formations millions of years old, and more.

By Editorial Staff

updated 6:57 p.m. ET Aug. 16, 2006

If you prefer to visit with magnificent Mother Nature in (near) solitude, you'll find our favorite crowd-free national parks in the US and Canada every bit as dramatic as the big headliners, yet agreeably free of the usual mobs. We’ve laid out the details on how to take in the grandest of canyons from a little-known access point, and have proposed two further options in America’s heartland: a park boasting lunar-like landscapes and verdant prairies and another with one-of-a-kind vistas of sweeping sandstone arches. Tree-huggers will relish their seclusion at two ancient forests on both coasts, while water-lovers will delight in untamed Texan rafting adventures, snorkeling at an underwater Floridian marine park, or whale-watching on a Canadian cape. The more remote you go, the more likely you are to find that elusive solitude; to that end, we also highly recommend an archipelago dubbed the “Canadian Galapagos” and an island park home to the world’s tallest volcano and the Hawaiian goddess Pele.

Arches
Arches National Park, one of a quintet of stunning Utah national parks, may not attract the same number of visitors as the state’s more-accessible Zion or Bryce Canyon parks, but its surreal terrain of towering sandstone arches makes this Southern Utah wilderness wonderland one sensory experience not to be missed. Two particular arches reign supreme over the 2000-plus that dot the scene: Delicate Arch, a lone-standing arch whose likeness also embellishes Utah license plates; and the slender 300-feet-high Landscape Arch, the largest in the park.

Badlands
Situated in southwestern South Dakota, the Badlands National Park marries mixed-grass prairies with pinnacles, spires, canyons, and otherworldly buttes of varied colors and shapes to create a lunar-worthy landscape. The product of millions of years of erosion and deposits, this geological anomaly has the Sioux to thank for its name; they called it mako sika or "land bad,” in reference to how difficult it was to cross. Modern-day visitors will be relieved to know that a nicely paved road now connects the park’s nine scenic overlooks, trailheads, and visitor’s center.

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Big Bend
For a wild ride, thrill-seekers should raft down the unruly Rio Grande, the 118-mile-long river winding along the southern boundary of Big Bend National Park, one of America’s largest and least-visited national parks. Although named for the substantial bend in its roaring river, most of Big Bend’s acreage actually consists of arid desert expanses, giant canyons, and the Chisos mountain range – a terrain that has disgorged superb fossil specimens of ancient plants and dinosaurs.

Biscayne
Dive in and explore the ocean floor at this unique aquatic national park. The largest marine park in North America (at about 173,000 acres), Biscayne lies just 25 miles from Miami and sits on part of the world’s third-largest coral-reef system. Most of the park is accessible only by boat (kayak, canoe, or motorized tour); scuba diving and snorkeling excursions will help you get up close to the abundant underwater life.

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Cape Breton Highlands
Alexander Graham Bell, Cape Breton's famous resident, once said "I have traveled around the globe. I have seen the Canadian and American Rockies, the Andes, the Alps and the Highlands of Scotland, but for simple beauty, Cape Breton outrivals them all." His praise surely extended to the national park occupying its northern edges that’s home to the illustrious Cabot Trail. The park’s rugged coastline, forested plateaus, canyon views, and verdant highlands are marvelous to behold, as are vistas of frolicking whales and soaring bald eagles.

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