The night sky is breathtaking here-yet another reason to spend a couple of nights. Major Death Valley highlights include the Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes, the views from DanteвЂ™s View and Zabriskie Point, Golden Canyon and ArtistвЂ™s Drive.ДЄdditionally, Death Valley is also an official International Dark Sky Park. While many visitors simply drive through the park and pay a quick visit to places like Badwater Basin, the lowest point in North America, I recommend stretching your visit to two or three days. Besides a number of campgrounds, the rest of this park is basically desert wilderness. There are only a couple of developed areas in this massive park-Stovepipe Wells and Furnace Creek. If youвЂ™re looking for a national park near Los Angeles to really escape the crowds, thereвЂ™s no better place than this. The largest national park in the continental U.S., Death Valley National Park encompasses a wide variety of landscapes.ДЇrom seemingly endless salt flats and huge sand dunes to snowcapped mountain peaks, barren badlands, hidden canyons and even volcanic craters, Death ValleyвЂ™s scenery is nothing short of spectacular. This is one of AmericaвЂ™s most spectacular national park roads and an absolute must-do on a Los Angeles national parks road trip. The magnificent Generals Highway connects Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks. In Kings Canyon National Park, you can also hike among towering trees, specifically at Cedar Grove and Grant Grove, which is home to General Grant, the worldвЂ™s second-largest tree.ДЄdditionally, this park comprises one of AmericaвЂ™s deepest canyons-Kings Canyon is more than a mile deep. This massive tree grows in the appropriately called Giant Forest, which is home to no fewer than five of the worldвЂ™s ten biggest trees.ДЄdditionally, Sequoia is home to Mount Whitney, which with its height of 14,505 feet is the highest mountain in the continental U.S. In Sequoia National Park, you can see General Sherman, the largest living tree on the planet. In terms of natural variety, few parks can match what Sequoia and Kings Canyon have to offer. These twin parks lie side by side in the southern Sierra Nevada Mountains, about 4 hours by car from L.A. Some of the most popular national parks around Los Angeles, Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks are two separate parks that are administered together by the National Park Service. ItвЂ™s also particularly popular among scuba divers and sea kayakers. ItвЂ™s no surprise that this island national park near Los Angeles is one of the best national parks for wildlife viewing. Orcas, blue and fin whales are less common, but can occasionally be spotted in summer.

On a boat ride from the mainland, youвЂ™re almost certain to spot common dolphins, while California sea lions, harbor seals, gray whales and humpback whales are regular sights as well. From micro-plankton to blue whales, animals of all kinds and sizes are present here. Located at the meeting point of warm subtropical and cool northern ocean currents, these waters burst with life.

ItвЂ™s the surrounding waters, however, that harbor the biggest biodiversity. Those include three endemic mammals-the cute Channel Islands fox, deer mouse and spotted skunk-and one reptile-the island fence lizard. Over 2,000 species of plants and animals live in Channel Islands National Park, which is sometimes referred to as the вЂњGalapagos of North AmericaвЂќ. This beautiful archipelago lies just off of the Southern California coast, a relatively short boat ride from Ventura. Channel Islands National ParkД§0 miles + boat ride (1.5 + 2 hours from L.A.)ДЇive of the eight Channel Islands are protected as Channel Islands National Park, the nearest national park to Los Angeles. in 5 hours or less.ДЄ couple of these parks can be visited on a day trip, while the rest requires at least one overnight to make to most of your visit.ДЄdditionally, you can also combine some-if not all-in one epic road trip to the Southern California national parks near Los Angeles. If the notoriously congested traffic cooperates, you should be able to get to these awesome California national parks near L.A. The following national parks are within easy driving distance from the city. No fewer than seven of them are pretty easily accessible from L.A. California is, after all, the state with most national parks in America-nine to be exact. Situated on the coast of Southern California, Los Angeles makes for a great base for national park road trips. Other Cities Near State & National Parks.Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks.

7 Best National Parks Near Los Angeles, California.Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, CO.Great Smoky Mountains National Park, NC/TN.

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