Top 10 National Park Sites of the North Atlantic Region

If you ever find yourself in a visitor center run by the National Park Service, you may notice a stamping station at the ranger desk or gift shop desk. This is part of the National Park passport stamp program, in which you can collect stamps to remind you of when and where you have been in the National Park system. As someone who loves exploring the national parks, I am obsessed with making sure I get my National Parks passport stamp before I leave any location. With over 400 national park sites in which you can collect a stamp from, Eastern National (the company that runs the passport program) has divided these sites into nine different geographic regions throughout the country. My home state of Connecticut belongs to the North Atlantic Region, which also includes the states of Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island and Vermont. I’m at the point in my travels where I have visited all of the parks in the North Atlantic region and it’s a region with an immense sense of history but also some areas of notable natural beauty. Here are my top ten favorite parks in the region:

10. Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site

Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site gives you an inside glimpse into what aristocratic society in America was. The tour of the mansion is interesting to see the glitz and glam of it all, but the best part of the park is what is outside. One hiking option in the park leads you to Bard Rock, which is a nice place to picnic, read a book or do some other relaxing activity right on the Hudson River. Another hiking option brings you through the rather large formal gardens before returning to the parking lot by a road right next to a cascading creek.

9. Weir Farm National Historical Park

Weir Farm is the only park in the National Park system that is located entirely in my home state of Connecticut. Being only a 25-minute ride from my home also makes it easily accessible. The park honors J. Alden Weir, who brought the impressionism art style to America, and it preserves his summer home and some of his family’s art studios. Touring the art studios is a lot of fun to see the wide range of styles this family of artists dabbled in, but once again it’s one of the hikes available in this park that makes it memorable. The Weir Pond Trail travels from the Weir House to a pond in the neighborhood. On my numerous times around this trail, I have seen turkeys, deer, ducks and fish so it’s a great place to see the park’s wildlife.

8. Saint-Gaudens National Historical Park

Saint-Gaudens is another art centric park as it preserves the home and studios of famed American sculptor, Augustus Saint-Gaudens. What makes this park a step above Weir Farm for me is that much of the art on display here are sculptures, including a replica of the Robert Gould Shaw & Massachusetts 54th Regiment Memorial (the real one is in Boston African American National Historic Site). I just find sculptures to be a much more visually appealing form of art than most other forms. The park also has some nice trails and some stunning views of Mount Ascutney, one of Vermont’s tallest peaks.

7. Sagamore Hill National Historic Site

Sagamore Hill preserves Theodore Roosevelt’s home on Long Island. It’s a great place to have both indoor and outdoor adventures. If you do the tour of the home, you get to see Teddy’s rather unique sense of style (remember he was a big game hunter) and if you tour the museum that is also within the park, you will get to see a surprisingly large number of artifacts from the former president’s career. If you prefer to do something outside, you can take a hike from the park that leads you right into Oyster Bay National Wildlife Refuge.

6. Longfellow House - Washington’s Headquarters National Historic Site

The defining characteristic of the North Atlantic region is the immense amount of history located here. No park captures that more than the Longfellow House - Washington’s Headquarters National Historic Site. Here you can learn about the family history of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow while also learning about the siege of Boston that began the Revolutionary War because the Longfellow family house just also happened to be the same exact building that George Washington took as his headquarters during the campaign. The tour here is a must because the park ranger can guide you through such a unique and long set of American history. Before you go in for the tour make sure to take a few minutes to relax in the gardens. The home is just as beautiful outside as it is in, which is quite surprising for a place within the Boston metropolitan area.

5. Federal Hall National Memorial

Federal Hall preserves the first seat of power in our nation’s history under the Constitution. It was here that George Washington briefly ran the government before moving to Philadelphia and then finally Washington DC. The park has some rather interesting artifacts including the bible that Washington was sworn in on as president. The park also functions as the headquarters for all of the parks in the New York City area so you will find a wealth of information here. The George Washington statue outside is a rather iconic portion of the world-famous Wall Street too.

4. Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site

Just down the road from the Vanderbilt Mansion is another fantastic park in our National Parks system: Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site. The park is quite similar to Sagamore Hill in that you can explore FDR’s home, check out his presidential library and check out some pretty neat hiking trails that lead you up to a body of water (in this case the Hudson River). However, what makes this a step up is that by being the first presidential library ever established this is a much more organized park. You can also take the Hyde Park Trail on location here and turn it into an over ten-mile hike that feels more substantial than most of the hiking trails in the area.

3. Cape Cod National Seashore

Here on the list is where we really start venturing into the natural world. Cape Cod National Seashore protects the furthest out portions of Cape Cod, where you can explore pitch pine forests, sand dunes and marshes. It’s a unique ecosystem, even though you’re never really far away from civilization so you can always enjoy a nice meal when you are done exploring for the day. The Great Island Trail is the highlight of the park as you can catch a beautiful sunset after looking for the remnants of an old tavern that whalers used to frequent.

2. Appalachian National Scenic Trail

With one trailhead being only twenty minutes from my house, the Appalachian National Scenic Trail is my local park. Yet the park is not exclusive to the North Atlantic region as it also travels through the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast regions. The trail is a hiker’s paradise as you can go for as long or as little as you want. You just want to walk for ten minutes on a boardwalk? You can do that here. You want to go on a weeklong backpacking trip? That’s exactly what this trail is known for. The Connecticut portion also has quite a few places to catch a nice sunrise or sunset (Bear Mountain and Ten Mile Hill being the highlights). There are just so many great experiences that you can conjure up on this trail.

1. Acadia National Park

The North Atlantic region has only one national park proper and it’s absolutely the crown jewel of the region. Acadia preserves a set of coastal habitats in Downeast Maine. Once again, it’s a hiker’s paradise (but mostly of the day hiker variety) as you can do a nice leisurely stroll next to the ocean or a heart pounding excursion up a cliffside with only rungs and ladders keeping you from falling to your death. The park features not one, but two great campsites and the gateway town of Bar Harbor is arguably the best for any national park (you must get a lobster dinner here). Whether you try your hand at sea kayaking or get up early to catch the sunrise on Cadillac Mountain there are so many ways to create a memorable experience here.