Matt and Karen Smith, a couple of college sweethearts, embarked on a journey to visit every US national park in 2010. The Smiths, both 63 years old, met at college in Kansas and shared their love for hiking and wildlife. After raising three children and becoming empty-nesters, they decided to use their savings to explore the beauty of the country’s national parks.
Their adventures took them to remote locations like American Samoa and north of the Arctic circle. They documented their experiences in emails to their friends, Bob and Sue, which eventually turned into their first book “Dear Bob and Sue.” Today, they share national parks content on Instagram and their podcast.
As summer approaches, many Americans plan to visit a US national park. Last year, over 325 million people visited at least one of the national parks in the US. With such high numbers comes crowds, but according to Matt and Karen Smith, there are ways to avoid the throngs of tourists.
In this article, we will share some tips from the Smiths on how to avoid crowds at national parks. We hope that these tips will help you make the most of your trip while avoiding the crowds that can sometimes detract from the experience.
