Some of my personal favorites in the great outdoors:

Point Reyes National Seashore, California. Just one hour from my home, this park offers a unique and stunning combination of wilderness and ocean. With its pristine beaches, great wildflowers, great birding, lakes, cliffs and waterfalls plummeting down to crashing waves, and wildlife, I go there as often as I can! http://www.nps.gov/pore/

Yosemite National Park, California. Wildflower-filled meadows, sculpted granite peaks, ancient sequoia and pine forests, gushing waterfalls - all this and much, much more makes this one of my all time favorite places. http://www.nps.gov/yose/

The Middle Fork of the Salmon River, in Central Idaho. Located in the heart of one of the country's most remote wilderness areas, this great river offers sparkling skies, clear water and numerous rapids, spectacular and diverse scenery, beautiful wildflowers, white sand beaches, and wildlife including bighorn sheep and golden eagles. Rafting this river, which I did for the first time this past summer, was one of the best things I ever did - and I'm already planning a return trip! http://www.gorp.com/gorp/resource/us_river/id_middl.htm

Red Rock Canyon Country, southern Utah. An awesome and mysterious landscape, with fantastically beautiful red rocks against an endless blue sky. Remote and silent, this area offers panoramic vistas and countless arches, canyons, pinnacles and other land forms to explore together with all kinds of mammals, birds and other species to marvel at. One of the greatest wonders of our natural heritage. http://www.utah.com/destin/coloradop/cp.htm

Acadia National Park, Maine. Mountains and the ocean - two of my favorite things. Plus the hiking and climbing are great here and, with a little advance planning, it's easy to avoid the crowds. Definitely way up there in my top ten! http://www.nps.gov/acad/

  Published by the Natural Resources Defense Council -- contact us at nrdcinfo@nrdc.org