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Best forest destinations in North America

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Monteverde and Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserves
Mist, Wildlife and Cloudy Magic
8.4
Hanging bridges in the Santa Elena and Monteverde reserves cross high above the cloud forest, a forest that is wrapped in mist most of the year and covered in moss, ferns and orchids. The resplendent quetzal, a bird with long green tail feathers, is often seen between January and April.
Highlights:
  • 🦜 Spot rare resplendent quetzals among misty trees
  • 🌉 Walk the hanging bridges for canopy views
  • 🥾 Hike through Monteverde Cloud Forest's biodiversity-rich trails
Corcovado National Park
Costa Rica’s Wildest Rainforest Frontier
8.2
Howler monkeys roar at dawn from the tall trees, scarlet macaws call from the beach almond trees and the air under the canopy is thick and wet with the smell of leaves and rain. The park on the Osa Peninsula is a wild lowland rainforest where tapirs, jaguars and four kinds of monkeys live.
Highlights:
  • 🐢 Watch endangered sea turtles nesting on remote beaches
  • 🌌 Camp under the stars at La Sirena Ranger Station
  • 🥾 Hike Corcovado’s diverse trails through rainforest and coastline
Redwood National Park
Home of the World’s Tallest Trees
8.3
Along the foggy coast of far northern California, the park has coast redwoods that rise more than 350 feet, among the tallest trees on earth. Fern Canyon, a narrow gorge with walls covered in ferns, is a short walk from the beach where elk graze.
Highlights:
  • 🥾 Walk the scenic Karl Knapp Trail near Big Tree Wayside
  • 🍃 Explore Fern Canyon’s prehistoric fern-covered walls
  • 🌲 Hike the Tall Trees Grove, home to towering redwoods
El Yunque National Forest
Tropical rainforest paradise in Caribbean
7.7
In the Luquillo Mountains of northeastern Puerto Rico, this is the one tropical rainforest inside the United States national forest system. Trails lead past waterfalls such as La Mina and through cool green shade under tall palms and giant ferns, while the tiny coquí tree frog sings loudly after dark.
Highlights:
  • 🥾 Explore El Yunque Peak trail, a challenging rainforest hike
  • 🌄 Climb Mt. Britton Tower for panoramic rainforest views
  • 🌊 Hike to the stunning La Mina Falls and swim
Olympic National Park
Untamed Wilderness, All in One
8.5
Moss hangs from the maples in the Hoh Rain Forest, where the air smells of wet cedar and the loudest sound is dripping water. This is a rare temperate rain forest, which means heavy rain and cool air, while Roosevelt elk often rest in the ferns.
Highlights:
  • 💧 Visit Sol Duc Falls and enjoy the tranquil waterfall
  • 🌲 Explore the lush trails of the Hoh Rainforest
  • 🏞️ Hike to Hurricane Hill for breathtaking panoramic views
Tikal National Park
Lost Mayan City in the Jungle
7.8
Unlike many Maya sites set in open fields, the temples here rise out of dense jungle, with Temple IV standing more than 200 feet high above the treetops. Howler monkeys, toucans and coatis move through the forest around the plazas while visitors who climb Temple IV at dawn watch mist rise from the canopy.
Highlights:
  • 🐒 Discover wildlife including monkeys and colorful toucans
  • 🏛️ Explore the Great Plaza surrounded by towering pyramids
  • 🌳 Climb Temple IV for a breathtaking jungle canopy view
Tortuguero National Park
Wildlife and Waterways Adventure
7.8
From July to October green sea turtles come ashore at night to lay eggs on the long beach of this park. Only licensed guides lead visitors to watch the nesting, a rule that keeps the nests safe. Behind the sand there is wet lowland forest where jaguars, tapirs and sloths live.
Highlights:
  • 🦜 Spot monkeys and toucans in the dense jungle canopy
  • 🛶 Glide through rainforest canals on a guided canoe tour
  • 🐢 Watch green sea turtles nest on the beach at night
Tofino
Wild Pacific, Rainforest, Endless Waves
8.1
Compared with a typical beach town, this one has huge old cedars and hemlocks growing almost to the sand, so surfers paddle out in front of dark green rain forest. Walks in Pacific Rim National Park, like the Rainforest Trail boardwalk, pass trees hundreds of years old.
Highlights:
  • 🐋 Go whale watching in Clayoquot Sound waters
  • 🥾 Explore Pacific Rim National Park Reserve trails
  • 🏄‍♂️ Surf the waves at famous Chesterman Beach
Algonquin Provincial Park
Lakes, forests and wildlife in serene wilderness
9.1
The Highway 60 corridor has short lookout trails with views over maple, birch and pine forest that turns red and gold in late September. Paddlers on the park's many lakes often hear loons at dusk while moose feed in roadside ponds in early summer and wolves can be heard howling on August nights.
Highlights:
  • 🏕️ Camp under starlit skies in designated sites
  • 🦌 Spot moose and deer along the scenic riverbanks
  • 🥾 Hike the rugged trails of Algonquin's backcountry
Calakmul Biosphere Reserve
Ancient Maya Ruins in Pristine Jungle
7.7
Early mornings are when spider monkeys, toucans and howler monkeys are most active in this huge tropical forest, which is among the largest protected areas of its kind in Mexico. The dry months from December to April are easier for climbing the Maya pyramids that rise above the treetops.
Highlights:
  • 🐦 Join birdwatching tours for over 300 species
  • 🌳 Explore dense jungle trails with diverse wildlife sightings
  • 🗿 Climb ancient Mayan pyramids in Calakmul ruins
Morne Trois Pitons National Park
Volcanic wonders in pristine rainforest
8.0
On the volcanic island of Dominica in the eastern Caribbean, this World Heritage park has green rain forest on steep peaks, hot springs and the Boiling Lake. Hikers need a full day for the trail to the lake, which passes steam vents and rivers, while the Emerald Pool is a short walk away.
Highlights:
  • 💦 Explore the twin Trafalgar Falls and natural hot springs
  • 🏞️ Swim beneath the 50-foot cascading Emerald Pool waterfall
  • 🌋 Hike the challenging trail to the Boiling Lake
Mount Rainier National Park
A Majestic Volcano and Wild Beauty
8.2
The mountain became a national park in 1899 and its lower slopes still have old growth forest, with Douglas fir, western hemlock and red cedar trees hundreds of years old. The Grove of the Patriarchs is a short walk among giant cedars on an island in a river.
Highlights:
  • 🌼 Explore Spray Park’s wildflower meadows and Spray Falls
  • 🌊 Visit scenic Reflection Lakes and admire Rainier’s reflection
  • 🌄 Hike the Skyline Trail for iconic Mount Rainier views
Arenal Volcano National Park
Lava Trails, Rainforest and Epic Views
8.4
After a day of hiking through rain forest at the foot of the Arenal Volcano, it is a local habit to soak in hot springs warmed by the volcano. Trails cross old lava fields where toucans, coatis and howler monkeys live. The cone rests quietly today after an eruption period that ended in 2010.
Highlights:
  • 🌄 Enjoy spectacular volcano views from multiple lookout points
  • 🌿 Explore rainforest biodiversity on the El Ceibo circuit
  • 🌋 Hike the Las Coladas trail over old lava flows
Juneau
Glaciers, whales and wild Alaska
8.3
Locals treat the Tongass National Forest as a backyard, hiking mossy spruce and hemlock trails right from town and picking blueberries in late summer when the days are still long. The Tongass is the largest national forest in the United States while Mendenhall Glacier is a short drive away.
Highlights:
  • 🐋 Go whale watching to see humpbacks in natural habitat
  • 🚠 Take the Goldbelt Mount Roberts Tramway for views
  • 🧊 Visit the stunning Mendenhall Glacier and Visitor Center
Vancouver Island
Untamed Beauty and Coastal Charm
8.0
Logging cut much of the island's old forest over the last century, but groves like Cathedral Grove in MacMillan Provincial Park still have Douglas firs that are more than 800 years old. Farther west, wide valleys of cedar and hemlock lead down to quiet coves where black bears search the shore.
Highlights:
  • 🐋 Whale watch from Victoria’s Inner Harbour
  • 🌲 Explore ancient rainforests in Cathedral Grove
  • 🌸 Stroll through the breathtaking Butchart Gardens
Glacier Bay National Park
Majestic glaciers and pristine wilderness
9.3
Summer, from June to August, has the longest days for boat trips up the bays. Glaciers have been shrinking here for about 250 years while willow, alder and young spruce and hemlock forest grow on the bare ground. Humpback whales and brown bears are often seen along the shore.
Highlights:
  • 🚣‍♂️ Kayak among tidewater glaciers in coves
  • 🏔️ Hike to Columbia Glacier viewpoint
  • 🐋 Cruise Inside Passage, spot humpback whales
Yosemite National Park
Nature's Grand Cathedral
8.5
In the Mariposa Grove, the red bark of giant sequoias glows in morning light while birdsong and wind high in the branches are the sounds you hear. The Grizzly Giant is thought to be about 2,000 years old. Yosemite Valley's waterfalls and pine forests are about an hour's drive north.
Highlights:
  • 💦 Marvel at Yosemite Falls, one of the tallest in North America
  • 🏞️ Hike to Glacier Point for one of Yosemite’s best views
  • 🧗‍♂️ Stand before the towering granite face of El Capitan
Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks
Home of the Giant Sequoias
8.0
Rangers ask walkers to stay on the paths because giant sequoia roots are shallow and easy to damage. Visitors follow the Congress Trail past the General Sherman Tree, the largest living tree on earth by volume. Nearby Kings Canyon has the General Grant Tree and a deep canyon with granite walls.
Highlights:
  • 🕳️ Explore Crystal Cave on a guided tour
  • 🧗‍♂️ Climb Moro Rock for breathtaking panoramic views
  • 🌲 Visit the General Sherman Tree, largest on Earth
Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness
Pristine lakes, untouched wilderness paradise
8.4
French Canadian fur traders called voyageurs paddled these lakes in birch bark canoes in the 1700s. Canoeists now follow the same water routes through pine and spruce forest, camping on rocky shores where motors are banned on most lakes and the night sky is dark.
Highlights:
  • 💧 Discover waterfalls like Devil’s Cascade and Johnson Falls
  • 🥾 Hike to Eagle Mountain, Minnesota’s highest point
  • 🛶 Go on an overnight canoe camping trip through lakes
Maine
Lobsters, Lighthouses and Lush Landscapes
8.0
Unlike the dry mountain forests of the West, Maine has damp mixed woods of spruce, fir, maple and birch. They cover roughly 90 percent of the state, which makes it the most forested state. Moose wade in lakes near Moosehead Lake while hikers climb Mount Katahdin, the end of the Appalachian Trail.
Highlights:
  • 🏖️ Visit the Portland Head Light, Maine’s iconic lighthouse
  • 🦞 Eat a freshly steamed lobster at a coastal shack
  • 🌄 Watch the sunrise from Cadillac Mountain in Acadia National Park
Great Bear Rainforest
Whispers of ancient pines and mist
About one in ten Kermode bear cubs here is born with a white coat. Western red cedars about 1,000 years old and Sitka spruces about 90 metres tall grow in the forest. A 2016 agreement protects 85 percent of the old growth from industrial logging. Wolves, grizzlies and salmon also live in the area.
Highlights:
  • 🛶 Explore ancient cedar tree groves on a canoe trip
  • 🐻‍❄️ Spot endangered Kermode bears during guided tour
  • 🏞️ Hike to the waterfall viewpoint in Great Bear Rainforest
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