If Montana’s Parks Are Too Crowded, Try These Outstanding Places

Montana's National Parks are busy and only getting busier. According to the U.S. Census Bureau Montana is the second fastest growing state in the country. We are lucky enough to have two of the most spectacular national parks in Montana. Glacier and Yellowstone National Parks always rank among the best parks in the world and that makes them popular and crowded.

If You Want National Parks With The Fewest People

Glacier National Park is now on a reservation basis to go to the park. The days of just hopping in the car and taking a trip to the park are gone. Everyone is looking for tricks and tips to be able to spend time in the park, it is much more of an effort to enjoy Glacier these days. If you really want to get away from everyone, yet still enjoy a national park, here are the top five least visited national parks in the United States according to Thrillist. Make your plans now, and yes, there will be some major travel involved.

Number 5: Isle Royale National Park in Michigan. This park is on an island in Lake Superior. You will need to take a ferry to get to the park and it is closed from Nov. 1 through April 15th. So the good news is that it will be opening this weekend. There were 25,454 visitors in 2022.

Number 4: Lake Clark National Park and Reserve in Alaska. This park is remote and only accessible by boat or plane and another park that isn't open all year long. There are no roads. There are bears, there is salmon, there are lakes and there are few people. In 2022 there were 18,187 visitors to the park.

Number 3: Kobuk Valley National Park, Alaska. Three of the five least visited national parks are in Alaska. Kobuk, has dunes, tundra and lots of caribou. In 2022, there were 16,925 visitors to the park.

Number 2: Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve Alaska. This is a wild national park. There are no roads, no trails, no established campsites. There is 8.4 million acres of wilderness and animals to explore. There were 9,457 visitors in 2022.

Number 1: National Park of American Samoa. The least visited of all the national parks is a tropical destination located in the South Pacific. Islands, ocean and sun. Very different from all the other national parks on the list. Last year there were only 1,887 visitors to the park.

To Visit These National Parks You Really Have To Want It

You have to really want space and fewer people to take advantage of these options, since they all take an effort to visit. If you do visit these places you may be visiting some of the coolest places on the planet, with the added bonus of less people.