And the 10 least visited parks; the big cat species saved from extinction
 | PHOTOGRAPH BY KEITH LADZINSKI, NAT GEO IMAGE COLLECTION
| | Yellowstone may epitomize America’s great outdoors, but it’s just No. 5 on the list of the most visited U.S. national parks last year. Some of the Top Ten saw record visits because people wanted to get into nature—as COVID concerns dented U.S. travel abroad.
Visitors are drawn to the vastness and variety of what novelist Wallace Stegner once called America’s best idea. In all, the National Park Service’s 85 million acres contain more than 18,000 miles of trail and more than 43,000 miles of shoreline, Nat Geo reports.
Some visitors, with limited time or budgets, prefer somewhere close to home. Indiana Dunes National Park (pictured above), ranked No. 9, is an easy ride from Chicago.
Here are all 10 most popular parks. And, for those seeking solitude, here are the 10 least-visited national parks. (Below, in its glory, popular Great Smoky Mountains National Park.)
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PHOTOGRAPH BY GERD LUDWIG, NAT GEO IMAGE COLLECTION | | | |
 | | PHOTOGRAPH BY WILDLIFE GMBH, ALAMY | | | |
| | Where they fly: A slow shutter speed captures flight patterns of cone-headed bush crickets in Uganda. The crickets are hunted widely and are sold as a delicacy, photographer Jasper Doest shows in this eye-catching Nat Geo report. Overharvesting, habitat loss, and changing climate conditions are reducing their numbers, but captive breeding could improve food security, create new sources of income for farmers, and protect wild populations. | | | |
 | | PHOTOGRAPH BY IAN DAGNALL, ALAMY | | The greening of Pittsburgh: Can a Rust Belt city turn green? Not only has Pittsburgh (pictured above) successfully transitioned from the industrial age into the information age, the city is determined to make climate solutions a reality. Key to the transformation: including underrepresented groups often left out of the climate conversation. In the latest episode of our Overheard podcast, storyteller Matt Scott talks to an engineer, an architect, and a transportation manager working toward a more inclusive and equitable community.
Related: National Geographic Society announces climate storytelling partnership
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 | | Today, India is at a conservation crossroads. ... We have indeed succeeded in bringing back and recovering wildlife but it is also becoming increasingly challenging to do this work. | | | | Krithi Karanth | | Conservation scientist, Nat Geo Explorer | | |
 | | PHOTOGRAPH BY GETTY IMAGES/JOHNER RF | | Save your plants! Are troublesome critters making quick work of your summer veggies or petunias? Physical barriers are usually the most effective deterrent for common visitors such as deer and rabbits. That’s just one eco-friendly way to deal with the browsers and bloodsuckers who share our outdoor space. Here’s a few more tips.
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| Today's newsletter was edited and curated by Monica Williams, Heather Kim, and David Beard. Have an idea, a link, a gardening tip for us? Let us know at david.beard@natgeo.com. Thanks for reading! | | | |
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