National Parks In Arizona – If you like dramatic landscapes, long hikes, and interesting history, you should put almost all of Arizona on your list of places to visit. In Arizona, there are a lot of national parks and monuments that show how the land, history, and native cultures have changed over time. Some natural areas are known worldwide, whereas others are hidden gems you may not have heard of yet. Can you guess how many national parks are there in Arizona? There are 2 times more national parks and monuments in Arizona than any other state.
Contents
Grand Canyon National Park
National Parks In Arizona
The Grand Canyon is Arizona’s most well-known and visited park, but that doesn’t make it any less beautiful. Visitors are always amazed by this canyon’s maze-like paths, beautiful colors, and wide range of hikes for people of all skill levels. Since the South Rim is much more developed and busy, this is where guided tours and museums are held all year long.
The North Rim is farther away and has more privacy, so hikers love it between spring and fall. You can make a weekend trip out of this trip by rafting down the Colorado River, hiking down into the canyon, or staying in a Grand Canyon lodge.
Petrified Forest National Park
National Parks In Arizona
This is not true for petrified wood, which turns wood into stone over time. At Arizona’s Petrified Forest National Park, you can see a huge amount of petrified wood, the colorful landscape of the Painted Desert, and fossils of ancient animals, including dinosaurs. This is a great place to wear hiking boots and go wherever you want without following a trail.
Saguaro National Park, Tucson
National Parks In Arizona
There are many kinds of cacti in North America, but perhaps none are as well-known as the saguaro. These tall, statuesque cacti can live for several hundred years and weigh several tonnes. You can easily get to the Saguaro National Park from Tucson and pick which of the two parts to see. There are plenty of trails in the park, but in the summer, you should stay out of the sun at midday and bring a lot of water because it is a desert. In late May, this park is a great place to go to see the beautiful flowers on the cacti.
Walnut Canyon National Monument, Flagstaff
National Parks In Arizona
Native Americans built their homes out of stone, rock, and even into the sides of cliffs in many of Arizona’s national monuments. Walnut Canyon is a lovely canyon where more than 80 old homes are hidden in the rocks. From Flagstaff, it’s easy to get to this national monument. A paved, one-mile loop trail goes by many of the homes.
Montezuma Castle National Monument, Camp Verde
National Parks In Arizona
The town of Camp Verde and the Montezuma Castle National Monument is between Flagstaff and Phoenix. This site isn’t very big and has few trails, but its impressive and well-preserved cliff dwelling, built around the year 700, makes up for that. Historians think that after a long drought, Native people moved out of this house to look for a better place to live.
Wupatki National Monument, in Flagstaff
National Parks In Arizona
There are a lot of national monuments near Flagstaff, Arizona, and Wupatki is another great one to see. This historic site is just north of the city. It has several pueblos built long ago out of the reddish-brown sandstone from this area.
This place is also close to Sunset Crater National Monument, so visiting both on the same day is fun. Around 1085, this volcano erupted, forcing the Native people to leave. They later came back and built the majority of the pueblos that you can still see today.
Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, Ajo
National Parks In Arizona
Organ pipe cacti are a rare type of cactus in North America. The best place to see them is outside of Ajo in Arizona. This national monument is an International Biosphere Reserve, and ranger-led hikes and educational programs at the theatre can teach you more about the tough plants and animals that live here.
There is a nice, well-kept campground where you can stay for a weekend and see amazing sunsets and tall cacti in every direction. This park is also close to the border with Mexico, so you can even go to another country.
Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Chinle
National Parks In Arizona
Canyon de Chelly, a sacred site, is also worth seeing if you visit Chinle. This is right in the middle of the Navajo Nation, where you can see amazing views and canyons where people used to live. The Navajo Tribal Land Trust runs this monument, so you must hire a Native American guide to take you through the canyon.
