National Park and Hiking Tips

Hiking Vacation Travel Tips

My family has been on many hiking trips and I put together a list of things that we use regularly on our hiking vacations. Some of these items are seasonal depending on the destination and time of year. I am also including some tips that we have learned along the way that might make things easier for you on your next trip no matter where your next hiking destination will be.

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What you need…

Backpacks

I would recommend a good hiking backpack. Look for a breathable back, a chest and waist strap, space for a water reservoir, and a pole attachment is nice to have. I used this regular North Face Backpack on our first hiking vacation which was doable, but my neck and shoulders felt the brunt of not having good hiking backpack. Believe me, if you are planning on some good hiking, it is worth it to have a good pack. I have two hiking packs depending on the weather and how much storage I need. For more clothing storage in colder temps (hats, gloves, etc.) I use this Osprey Sirrus 36L backpack and 3L water reservoir. For smaller load in warmer weather, I use this Gregory Maya 22L Backpack and this Gregory water reservoir. My husband uses this Osprey Talon 22L backpack and 3L water reservoir. Remember, good packs can also be used when you are skiing to store snacks and water or if you go to an amusement park or zoo. The children also have their own smaller packs with water reservoirs. This obviously depends on the age of your children and their cooperation. When they were younger, we carried their extra water reservoirs in our packs. My daughter uses this Osprey Raven 14L backpack, and my son uses this Osprey Talon child size pack.

Water Reservoirs

The water reservoirs are a must, in my opinion. We use the Osprey 3L or 2L reservoirs and have had great luck with these. We all carry these in our backpacks and it is much more comfortable vs carrying a bunch of plastic water bottles or heavy stainless water bottles. We typically buy gallons of filtered water at the grocery (wherever we are) and fill our reservoirs daily and we keep additional water in the car. That is 12L of water a day for 4 people with just the water reservoirs. I have also found that is helpful to have covers for the ends of the tubes, the bite valve, the part you drink from. When you put your pack down, that darn tip always gets in the dirt or sand so these Osprey bite valve covers help tremendously. For hiking in the heat, having cool water is much more refreshing than warm water so we also have a couple of these Osprey Insulated packs which help keep the water cold in the summer and the tube cover and bite valve cover can be used in the winter and when you are skiing to prevent the water in the tube and bite valve from freezing. It is also good to have a cleaning kit to clean them after your trip.

Boots and Socks

Good hiking boots and socks are a must. I suggest you go to a store near you to try on a few different brands to find what is most comfortable for you. Buy them, wear them around and break them in before your trip. My daughter and I went with these Oboz Hiking Boots, we both have wide feet so the men’s sizes fit better than the women’s sizes. My husband went with the Lowa Hiking Boots. My son, went with the Merrell Hiking Boots. We all are huge fans of Darn Tough full cushion wool hiking socks.

Traction cleats are something you should consider if there is snow and ice. Depending on the difficulty in your hiking, you will need a different type of cleat. There are heavy duty cleats that have more of a spike that “dig in” for the hikes that might be more moderate to difficult like these Yaktrax Heavy Duty Spikes, or if you just need something with a bit of grip you can purchase cleats like these Yaktrax Walk Traction Cleats.

Walking Sticks

Adjustable walking sticks help you walk and hike safely, efficiently, and also give you a better workout. Trust me when I say you will be passing people left and right using these. They are not just for people out of shape or for older people, they are just smart to have. They protect your joints, aid in balance, improve your posture, improve your endurance, help you go up and downhill more quickly, build more muscles, and help you burn more calories. It is best, when traveling, to purchase sticks that collapse down to a more packable size. You also need to purchase the correct height, so be aware of that. My daughter and I use the Black Diamond Women’s Z Poles my husband uses the Men’s Black Diamond Z Poles and my son uses the Black Diamond Kids First Strike Poles.

Clothing

Layers, layers, and more layers! For warmer weather, you should have a waterproof rain jacket and pants. For colder weather, a waterproof ski coat and a water resistant top layer for pants. In the cold, you will start out wearing more then shed layers as you warm up. You will need a few base layers to change/wash as you go. For your upper body, base layer, then Fleece for a water resistant second layer then a water proof ski coat or rain coat (depending on temps). For the legs, a base layer and then water resistant pants like these Fjallraven pants as well as Kuhl pants as a lighter outer layer pant.

I put together some tips on how to dress when exercising in the cold in this article. This would be what you would end up needing to wear once you have warmed up on a moderate-advanced hike after you shed your layers.

If you are hiking in the spring or summer, check the AllTrails App (mentioned below) for conditions. Some areas can be very buggy, swarms of bugs, not exaggerating. In addition to bug spray, we keep on hand some bug nets to cover our heads. I can’t tell you how many times we passed people and they commented how smart that was. It keeps them out of your eyes, ears, and mouth. There is also bug repellant clothing that is lightweight and you can throw it on if you get in a buggy area.

What to pack in your backpack…

You should also have an emergency kit in one of your packs in case something were to happen and you need to survive for a longer period of time, or if someone gets injured. The National Parks Service recommends you cover the 10 essential categories (click here to go to the NPS website) when packing an emergency kit. There are kits you can purchase, like this one, that contain most of what you need. Every single time we go on a hike, we have these 10 categories covered with the following items:

Maps (National Geographic Park Maps are waterproof and are the best), GPS (watch), compass
sunglasses, hats, sunscreen, bug spray
extra clothing, sealable waterproof bag, bug nets
headlamp
first aid kit including Tylenol
a flint or waterproof matches
a knife multitool (Leatherman)
food, extra grocery bag for trash (Leave Nothing Behind!)
water
space blankets
Bear spray or animal spray (location dependent) Note, you cannot fly with bear spray in your luggage, you will need to purchase it there. This should be easily accessible.
Hand wipes and hand sanitizer
Toilet paper, FUD (see below), Ziploc, and extra grocery bag

The day you do not have one of these items, is the day you will need them. Trust me when I say, that we have needed one or more of these items when only going on a “quick, easy hike.”

Park Tips

If you want to stay at any of the National Parks properties, you should book a year in advance. Be prepared to book as soon as they open up the dates for the following year. These properties are very convenient as far as location, but tend to be expensive and without many amenities. Some do not have any internet access or even TV’s in the rooms. This might be a good thing (unplugging from technology), but if you need to be in touch with work or family, keep this in mind when looking at lodging. We typically stay just outside of the parks. This is more driving and you risk lines at the entrances but we are early risers so we do not have any issues.
Check each Park’s website frequently for updated hours, alerts, road closures. Some of the National Parks are filling to capacity EARLY. For example, Arches closed by 11am every day (when we were there, off season) because they reached capacity. During busy season, this might be even earlier. If you get there too late, you may face long lines to enter, and they are at capacity, you will be turned around.

Plan to hit the most popular trails and sights FIRST THING and early! Parking lots fill up quickly and trails get very crowded. There is limited parking in most places for oversized vehicles (campers, etc.) so keep this in mind. If the parking lots are full, you might have to walk up to a mile to get to the trailhead. If you are hiking to a popular destination, plan to wait in line for that special photo for over an hour during busy times.
Restrooms- There are pit toilets at the trailheads at the more popular trails or sights. Regular toilets are typically found at the visitors center (with running water). There may or may not be toilet paper so bring your own! If you are a female, I would highly recommend looking into FUD’s (female urination devices). These are funnels that you can just slide in place without finding a tree, pulling your pants all of the way down, or sitting down on a pit toilet. I recommend the disposable cardboard ones as it’s kind of hard to wash them on the trail and they fold down flat. I keep these in my pack in a ziploc bag with toilet paper and an extra grocery bag. After using it, you put it in the grocery bag along with the toilet paper and seal it in the ziploc bag (leave nothing behind).
Some parks are now implementing crowd control on popular hikes and limiting the amount of people on the trails with tickets or a lottery system. Be sure to check the park’s website for updates and tips.
Most National Parks have poor cell phone service so you cannot always depend on a signal. On each park’s website, they list areas in the park where you are able to get better service in case you need to make a call or use your phone.
National Geographic Park Maps are a must for our family. Call me old school, but it is always good to have a waterproof physical map of the whole park. You can get an overall view of the park without zooming in and out on your phone or computer. All the trails are marked on the map with distances. There are also descriptions of the parks with some great information on these maps. I purchase these ahead of time, because I like to plan ahead of time, on Amazon but they are at all the visitors centers in the park. You can purchase them in bundles or individually.
If you have a Fourth Grader, your family can get into all National parks for FREE with the "Every Kid Outdoors" pass.
Each National Park has a visitors center. Some of these can be closed due to the pandemic, construction, or during the off season so check the park’s website for updates. The visitors center is where you can typically get your Jr. Park Ranger workbook for the kids and arrange for ranger let hikes (not taking place due to the pandemic). You can also get a National Park Passport (which in hindsight, I wish we would have done). For each park you visit, you can get a stamp in your passport… it’s pretty cool. We collect the retro postcards which we plan to put in a nice matted frame. We also collect stickers from vacation destinations and stick them on our garage cabinets but you can make a fun frame out of these or sticker book.
GyPSy Guide is something I highly recommend! This is a company that provides GPS guided audio tours of some of the National Parks! It’s like having your own personal tour guide that plays automatically as you drive based on your location. “Hear fascinating behind-the-scenes stories about the history, geology, hikes, wildlife and cultural highlights that play automatically along the drive. The narration guides you to all the best things to see and do, as well as suggested side-trips, and includes local tips and itinerary plans.” You have the freedom to set your own pace, in your own vehicle. They provide recommendations and you can choose to spend time at places that interest you, and bypass those that don’t.
Many park destinations in the Western United States are near or located on Native American Indian Reservations. Their hours might have changed and their rules and regulations differ. Please check their specific website beforehand to ensure that they are open and you have reviewed their policies. For example, during the pandemic, many of their properties were closed.

General Hiking and Travel Tips

Download the All Trails App on your phone or use their website to search for hikes and tips. You can filter by difficulty, elevation change, and distance. I would also recommend reading reviews on each trail. People post very frequently and you might get a heads up on how crowded it might be and the best place to park. It is also wise to check this the day before or a few days before your hike for trail closures, trail conditions (muddy, buggy, icy, etc.) so you can dress and pack accordingly.
WorkOutdoors App- Another App to consider if you don’t have a GPS watch or device but you have an Apple Watch. You can select areas on your phone of all the hikes you plan to do and upload them to your Apple Watch. This way, you can track your hike and ensure you are staying on the trail even if you do not have cell phone service. Some of these trails are rugged and primitive. This means there are no obvious signs telling you which way to go. You will sometimes have to look for cairns (man made stacks or piles of stones) that mark the trails. This App worked great for us and helped us stay on the trail more than once when we had no cell phone service.
Please follow the tips above when packing your packs and cover all your bases.
Each adult needs a decent backpack with a water bladder and plenty of snacks for the kids. We also pack some candy for the kids to use as incentive. The treats were used as rewards if they got to a certain destination.
If you are traveling during the pandemic or off season, many restaurants can be closed or have limited hours. On our travels, all of our lunches are packed lunches and dinners are usually from the grocery store (bagged salads, sandwiches, wraps, microwave meals). We typically purchase an inexpensive cooler at our destination or bring our backpack yeti as a carry on. We use this to store food items that needed to stay cold in between destinations.
If you plan on going to a restaurant or getting take-out, give yourself plenty of time to wait on a table or your food (like 90 minutes to 2 hours) especially during busy season. We usually try at least once for takeout and just end up hitting the grocery store for dinner.
Bring a packable tripod like this one with a phone attachment is very useful so you can set the timer and get some family pictures on your own without waiting for someone to come by.
Check the weather regularly and check conditions of hikes on the All Trails App. Some hikes are better to do when it is cloudy and/or raining because the main attraction is not a vista or view. You obviously don’t want to do all that work and hike to an outlook and not be able to see a thing. Those hikes should be saved for a clear day if you have the option. Some areas you should avoid completely when there is a chance of rain, like slot canyons. These are prone to flash floods. Be sure to also check the trail conditions (All Trails) to make sure there are no closures and for trail conditions so you can pack the right things and wear the correct footwear. Chance of rain? Have some wet bags in your backpack for items you want to keep dry including an extra pair of dry socks. Pack rain gear for everyone. Snow or icy trails? Bring the ice cleats for better footing and dress appropriately for the cold weather. Is the trail exposed (no shade or wind block)? Be sure to have more water to drink and pack those sunglasses, hats, sunscreen, and bring extra cover.
Each day, journal your hikes and experiences. Time goes by so quickly and if you are like me, you’ll forget some things and wish you would have written them down.

These are some things that we have learned along the way on all of our hiking vacations. Hopefully this will help you be prepared and enjoy all the outdoors has to offer. Never stop exploring!