90,000 Annual Visitors: Great Basin National Park, Nevada
Thanks to its extreme elevation changes, Great Basin National Park offers a wildly diverse array of flora, fauna, and geographic wonders for visitors to explore, including deserts, playas, mountains, fossils, springs, caves, glaciers, and Bristlecone pines — one the oldest species of tree on the planet. Famous for their twisty, ancient, windswept trunks, these strange, slow-growth trees appear in isolated groves just below the tree line, thriving in some of the harshest conditions on earth.
After you’re done marveling at 4000-year-old trees, plumbing the depths of ancient caves, and conquering the gnarly off-road trails near the park — be sure to camp out in the area for at least one night to stargaze. Far from any major cities, Great Basin National Park boasts some of the clearest, most dazzling night skies North America has to offer.