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The 4 Best National Parks for Older Women
Epic scenery — without the epic hikes!
Taggart Lake with a view of the peaks of Grand Teton and Teewinot Mountain, Wyoming
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I didn’t grow up as an outdoorsy girl. My childhood family vacations were spent at the Jersey Shore, but that all changed when I studied abroad in Australia. I hiked, sailed, kayaked, went scuba diving and fell in love with all things outdoors.
Hikers on Highline Trail at Logan Pass in Glacier National Park, Montana
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Then I had some epic adventures. I’ve hiked the Inca Trail, scaled Half Dome, slept at the bottom of the Grand Canyon and much more. After becoming a mom, I realized I didn’t have to rappel into a canyon to have a meaningful experience in nature. I happily traded Class V rapids for scenic floats and 10-mile hikes for half-mile strolls with my son.
Milky Way night sky in Joshua Tree National Park, California
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I still enjoy hiking and will always love stunning scenery, but the truth is, my knees are getting older! Those multi-mile hikes aren’t as easy as they used to be, but that doesn’t mean I’ve aged out of national park vacations.
Acadia National Park, Maine near Thunder Hole
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From scenic drives and lookouts to boat and jeep tours, many of the best sights of our amazing national parks don’t even require hiking boots. Any park can be a great trip for non-hikers, but these are a few of my favorites.
Welcome sign at Jenny Lake in Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming
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Glacier National Park, Montana
When I say nature is my happy place, I’m usually thinking about Glacier National Park. Everything about this place is just stunning.
The highlight of Glacier is the Going-to-the-Sun Road, and as the name implies, it’s a road, not a hike. There are glaciers, waterfalls, snow-covered mountains and alpine lakes, and you can see them all right from your car. Logan Pass is the highest point on the road, at almost 6,700 feet. If you want to walk, the Logan Pass Accessible Loop is a short but stunning 0.4-mile walk with views of the Continental Divide, or there’s a flat 3-mile loop that’s part boardwalk to Hidden Lake, one of those beautiful alpine lakes.
At dusk, it’s a totally different experience, all about spotting bears, mountain goats and other wildlife. There are also scenic boat tours on Lake McDonald and St. Mary Lake to take in the landscape from another vantage point.
It’s a popular place, and you need a reservation from the National Park Service to enter the park during peak season. It’s also not the most accessible. Glacier Park International Airport, near Kalispell, Montana, is about a 40-minute drive away.
Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming
The Grand Tetons aren’t as famous as their neighbor, Yellowstone National Park, but they should be. The view of the Tetons from Jenny Lake is truly a postcard-worthy sight.
You don’t have to climb the Tetons to appreciate them. There is a flat 7-mile loop around Jenny Lake, but even a half-mile stroll on this path provides stunning views with plenty of benches to soak it all in. The boat ride across Jenny Lake is also an easy way to enjoy these epic views. Schwabacher Landing is another flat, short, half-mile stroll with excellent views of the Tetons and a decent chance of seeing moose at dawn or dusk.
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You can fly right into Jackson, Wyoming, and the town of Jackson is a destination in its own right. It’s an intimate and adorable place with horse-drawn carriage rides, cute shops, fun restaurants and a theater that features free shows near the town square.
Joshua Tree National Park, California
This is one of the most underrated parks, in my opinion. Beyond its namesake funky trees, the Southern California desert landscape and unique boulder formations are perfect for leisurely exploring. It’s a small park, and you can see the highlights on a scenic drive through the park. If you are up for a stroll, the best hikes are short, like Hidden Valley (1 mile) and Arch Rock Trail (0.3 mile), where you can experience some of the massive rock formations amidst the Joshua Trees.
It’s also a certified Dark Sky Park, so the stargazing is amazing. There are Airbnbs with transparent bubble domes so you can literally sleep under the stars. It’s easy to combine Joshua Tree with a trip to Palm Springs, the Temecula wine region or San Diego.
Acadia National Park, Maine
If you’re looking for an East Coast park, Acadia, on the rugged coast of Maine, combines the best of beautiful views with mountains. You can drive directly to Cadillac Mountain for stunning panoramic views of the ocean and mountains at sunrise and sunset. You do need a reservation to drive there, so plan ahead. Fun fact: from October to March, Cadillac Mountain is the first place in the continental United States to see the sunrise.
A coastal park also means there are plenty of ways to see the gorgeous scenery by boat. You can take a sailing trip or go on an actual lobster boat. Speaking of lobster, the town of Bar Harbor is a great destination with cute inns, coffee shops and seafood restaurants. The Ocean Path trail in town is also an easy stroll if you want to get a few steps in, while admiring sea caves, cliffs, unique coves and picturesque beaches.
These favorites of mine show that national parks aren’t just for athletic hikers or backpackers. Leave the hiking poles at home and bask in views of some of the most breathtaking scenery in our country.
We all can benefit from getting outdoors and taking a few steps, and there’s no better place to do that than a national park. Bonus—if you’re over 62, the National Park Service offers a lifetime pass to every park for just $80 (or $20 a year).
With spring around the corner, it’s a great time to think about visiting those desert parks that are too hot in the summer, like Joshua Tree and the Grand Canyon. I’m planning trips to the Mighty 5 of Utah National Parks – Zion, Bryce, Capitol Reef, Arches and Canyonlands. There will be plenty of scenic drives, casual walks, jeep rides and even some Star Wars-themed glamping!
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