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Parks

Rating	Park	Links (site)	Notes
	Columbia River Gorge	Go Northwest U.S. Forest Service Washington State Tourism	The Columbia River Gorge, an 80-mile geologic wonder that forms the border between Oregon and Washington, is proof of Nature's unbridled strength. Glacial floods thousands of years ago carved this 1,200-mile-long river, which is the only sea-level passage to cross the Cascade Mountains. With cliffs rising as high as 4,000 feet, the Gorge acts as a funnel for North America's fourth largest river, whose tributaries include the mighty Snake River.
	Mount Rainier National Park	About American Park Network Area Parks Get Outdoors National Park Service National Park Outdoor Places Untraveled Road	Towering over Puget Sound, Mount Rainier is located 87 miles southeast of Seattle and is the most beloved landmark in the state. The park's rich conifer forests, waterfalls, glaciers, and abundant wildlife offer pleasures for hikers, climbers, and sightseers alike.
	Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Park	About Get Outdoors GORP Seattle Insider	Carved out of the Gifford-Pinchot National Forest in 1982, the 110,000-acre National Volcanic Monument allows scientists and visitors to see the changes in the landscape and the volcano. Within the monument's bounds, the environment is left to respond naturally to the disturbance. Observe how surviving plants and animals rise out of the ash, colonizing plants catch hold of the earth, and birds and animals find a niche in a different forest on the slopes of Mount St. Helens.
	North Cascades National Park	About Area Parks National Park Service National Park	Features the rugged beauty of the North Cascades – jagged peaks, deep valleys, cascading waterfalls and over 700 glaciers.
	Olympic National Park	About American Park Network Area Parks Get Outdoors GORP National Park Service National Park North Olympic Olympic National Park Tour - Byerly Olympic Peninsula	The park divides neatly into three major areas—the glaciered mountains and high country of the interior; the lush rain forest of the west-facing valleys; and the rugged wilderness coastline. It's a landscape that renders a quick visit nearly impossible. Since no road cuts all the way through the vast interior of the peninsula, the park remains a vast and subtle wilderness, suffused with a primordial and mystical spirit. Features magnificent waterfalls, wide alpine meadows sparkling with avalanche lilies, larkspur and Indian paintbrush, eerie moss-bearded forests dripping with fog, and cliff-lined beaches.

 
What Not To Miss:

Mount Rainier National Park