5 Iconic National Parks Across the US & Canada
I recently got to cross off something from my bucket list - an EPIC road trip across the US and Canada to explore the amazing National Parks within the Rocky Mountains. With so much to see, I thought I would help other travelers by sharing my favorite THREE spots from EACH of the 5 parks (as well as some bonus areas in between) - Grand Teton, Yellowstone, Glacier, Banff, and Jasper.
I timed the trip mostly off of the Canada parks, as snow can make it difficult to explore. I settled on early August being the perfect balance of cool weather and best time for viewing.
Grand Teton National Park
Having started in Nevada and worked our way north, this was our first National Park .I’ll be honest, it wasn’t on my radar until I began my research, but it ended up being one of my FAVORITE spots. The stunning Grand Teton mountain range, to me, looks like the most ‘cliche’ mountain, with sharp snow-tipped peaks that are both intimidating and breathtaking. Almost everything you do in Grand Teton is about seeing Grand Teton in the background (from fields to lakes to rivers to wildlife).
This park is pretty easy to navigate, since the entire area is in a pretty flat region, with the mountain range pressed against the edge. There is really just one or two main roads running along it, so you can easily map out a series of stops and work your way through.
Here are three MUST SEE places and some tips about navigating them.
Some honorable mentions include:
Yellowstone National Park
This is actually my second time visiting Yellowstone, so you may want to refer to my first trip that was a bit more thorough. However, that trip was when there was still snow. I was excited to revisit in summer time for a very different vibe and to get to some new places.
So while I would still recommend areas like the Mammoth Hot Springs and Old Faithful (though a bit cliche and underwhelming), this trip will focus on what areas I enjoyed the most. I revisited several places (hot springs and waterfalls), while also finding several NEW amazing spots.
Some honorable mentions include:
Glacier National Park
NOW you are getting into deep mountain territory. This area is known for its Going-To-The-Sun scenic road, which basically runs through the entire park. The first ⅓ is at the bottom of the valley and runs past a lake and river. You then slowly work up up up the mountain and run along the top, before going back down again to another lake on the other end.
It was a bit overcast/rainy our first day here, but it eventually cleared up. Without a doubt there are several MUST do hikes and pulloffs here.
Some honorable mentions include:
Banff National Park
Finally you are in CANADA and at one of the most known and stunning National Parks of Canada. There are glacier-fed, unreal blue and turquoise lakes and rivers, with stunning mountain backdrops nearby and wildlife in abundance.
If you only visit one area on this entire road trip, I’d recommend Banff. You really do get to see a huge variety of stunning landscapes there. I’ve done my best to narrow it down to the best of the best. Ok, so I had to give you FIVE spots here, as Banff is SUCH a big area.
Some honorable mentions include:
BONUS Yoho and Kootenay National Park
You made it this far? You earned a surprise. Two MORE National Parks. Both of these are basically right next to Banff, each being their own valley that is a tangent. Many will reference these as being in Banff. It is worth considering the slight detour as some of these spots are absolutely stunning. What is nice is these are less explored from the main spots like Lake Moraine / Louise, and so it can be nice to escape the crowds.
I’ll give you five spots across both parks. Let’s look at Yoho first:
And here are your winning spots from Kootenay:
Bonus spot would be Radium Hot Springs - Disclaimer we did not go here, just passed by. We were only in Kootenay for half a day, but if you are interested in hot springs then that is a BIG pitch for Kootenay. Radium Hot Springs stands out as one of the most well-known.
Jasper National Park
With the wildfires of 2024 being so recent, our trip into this region was very limited. However, this does make it a perfect itinerary for those going after 2024 - as I can tell you from experience what still stands out and can be enjoyed.
This park is actually what inspired my ENTIRE road trip, as I had seen a photo that had the trifecta of landscapes - waterfall viewed slightly from above, showing the source river, with a huge mountain backdrop. I have photographed waterfalls ALL over America, and more often than not, your image is from below eye-level and you do not often capture the source river or the backdrop behind it.
So having several waterfalls out here with that vibe had high appeal to me. In hindsight, I’ll admit that Banff did have several locations with that trifecta - but Jasper has two in particular that are iconic.
Some honorable mentions include:
Featured Wildlife
I couldn’t really get into wildlife sightings as this blog focused on the best locations, but we saw a bunch of wildlife and have some amazing stories to share. So here are my favorite sightings, with their location and story.
Moose @ Moose Pond, Grand Teton
We planned out the optimal time to find moose, and across our entire trip, this one spot had the best chances (as far as not just random luck). It seemed like we weren’t going to find any, until we took a smaller path towards the pond, and in the silence - we heard munching! There was a small-ish female moose grazing just 20 feet from us. We spent about 45 minutes (keeping our distance, though it had spotted us and was unbothered) as it moved around, laid down, got up, grazed, and repeated. A very magical experience.
Black Bear @ Jenny Lake, Grand Teton
On our hike across the lake (via shuttle), I saw a bear down below when I was at Inspiration Point. I rushed down to get as close as safely possible (they say to hold your thumb outstretched and the animal should be no bigger than your thumb in your view). We followed it as it grazed on berries for about half an hour. Eventually it did make a slow-paced b-line for our trail and crossed over (getting about 15 feet away). Like the moose, it seemed unphased by people and very calm.
Herd of Elk @ Roadside River, Yellowstone
A common sight in Yellowstone, but it was great having them right in the river. It was very annoying that tourists would just walk literally RIGHT up to them (5 feet or less and with kids no less!), though they were super chill and unphased it is still a bad idea.
Squirrel @ Hidden Lake Overlook, Glacier
In the same hike, I couldn’t resist capturing this random squirrel buried in wildflowers. It made me so happy! Squirrels were very common around all of these regions, in some cases being almost balloons thanks to people feeding them (do NOT do this as they then won’t survive winter / will be crushed under foot; often by children).
Herd of Elk @ Snaring Road, Jasper
This was perhaps one of my favorite wildlife experiences. We were out around sunset trying to find wildlife, and on the road we found this HUGE herd of 30-40 elk. And for once, NO other people were there…yet. A few passed through but we stuck around, staying in the car for safety as the herd literally surrounded our car. In the silence, you could hear their munching, and occasionally, they would talk to each other with very beautiful voices.
What was your favorite?
That wraps up my ultimate Rocky Mountain road trip to these amazing National Parks. Comment below which one you are most excited about seeing in person - and don’t forget to bookmark this post for your trip!
