4 Reasons to Visit One of the Least Visited National Parks in America

1. The park is absolutely gorgeous- whether you like deserts, mountains, or caves this park has it all. There are several peaks in ther Great Basin National Park that are good for hiking and photography. The main mountain in the park is known as Wheeler peak and stands tall at 13,063 feet. Near the main mountain are some of the most beautiful alpine lakes I have ever seen on a relatively easy hike. 

2. Unlike some of the most popular parks that boast 10 million visitors a year the Great Basin National park has less than 100,000 visitors a year so it is perfect for quiet hiking and secluded camping. The park has 6 campgrounds with a total of about 100 campsites. For other accommodations there are a few small motels and RV parks in the town of Baker but for a nicer hotel or groceries you would need to go to the town of Ely about an hour away from the national park. 

3. The Great Basin National park has one of the most unique and unknown cave systems in America. Although the cave is only roughly 2 miles long its formations and crystals are some of the best and the most unique in the world. The Lehman cave system has the most abundant accumulation of formations known as cave shields and cave turnips both of these are a wonder to geologists because they do not know why they form. 

4. Another one of the wonders that the Great Basin National Park offers is a some of the oldest trees in the world. They are known as the Bristlecone pines and some are 6000 years old. The most popular way to get to the pines is a trail that is 3 miles long and is a small day hike. These trees are unique because they only grow very high up around 11,000 feet. The Bristlecone pines are also unique in their shape and size they can be twisted around in all sorts of shapes and are all very unique.