National Parks of the Four Corners Quiz

Answer:

Of the four states, Utah leads the way with five national parks, all found in the southern half of the state. Zion with its stunning red rocks and slot canyons saw over four million visitors in 2019 and ranked fourth among all national parks in annual visitors. Bryce Canyon, known for its vast array of hoodoos, is the smallest of Utah national parks and was named after Ebenezer Bryce who first settled the area back in 1874. Arches, home to the famed Delicate Arch which can be seen on Utah license plates, has over 2000 documented natural arches, more per square mile than any other place on earth. Capital Reef was established as a national monument in 1937 and then later as a national park in 1971. Canyonlands, the newest of Utah's national parks, is also the largest in Utah and 23rd largest in the country at 1,366 square kilometers.

Utah's neighbor to the east, Colorado boasts the third most visited national park in the country in Rocky Mountain National Park. Established in 1915, Rocky Mountain also boasts one of the highest park elevations at nearly three miles at its highest and a mile and a half at its lowest point. If ancient structures and cliff dwellings interest you, Mesa Verde is the park for you. In service since 1906, Mesa Verde contains more than 600 cliff dwellings, some of which you may enter if accompanied by a park ranger. Home of the tallest sand dunes in North America, Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve can reach temperatures of 150° in summer. Be sure to take plenty of water if you visit. Black Rock of the Gunnison is the smallest of the four corners parks, coming in at 124.4 square kilometers.

The Grand Canyon headlines a trio of parks from Arizona. The second most visited park in the country in 2019, the Grand Canyon is also the most dangerous, accounting for 134 fatalities from 2007 to 2023, many due to extreme temperatures. Split into two separate and distinct districts found on the east and west sides of Tucson, Saguaro national park is named after the Sonoran cactus that can live for hundreds of years, reach heights of up to 60 feet, and weigh nearly two and a half tons. Arizona's Petrified Forest National Park is known for its numerous fossils, especially those of fallen trees from more than 200 million years ago.

Home of the Big Room, the largest cave chamber in North America, Carlsbad Caverns National Park was praised for its accessibility for those with limited mobility. The caverns were the backdrop to many of the underground scenes in the 1959 film "Journey to the Center of the Earth." Lastly, White Sands National Park, found in southern New Mexico, is the most recent of the fourteen parks listed here to be given National Park designation by legislation in 2019. The dunefield made of sand made from gypsum crystals is the largest of its kind on the planet.