Camping Tourist has a post somewhat misnamed – 10 America’s Most Spectacular Day Hikes
I like their choices, however.
Mt. Katahdin, Baxter State Park, MaineCoyote Gulch, Escalante Subdistrict, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Utah
Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, Naples, Florida
Grayson Highlands State Park, Virginia
Lost Coast, King Range National Conservation Area, Northern California
Maroon Bells Snowmass Wilderness, White River National Forest, Colorado
Mount St. Helens, Washington
Na Pali Coast State Wilderness Park, Kauai, Hawaii
Wrangell St Elias National Park, Kennecott District, Alaska
Half Dome, Yosemite National Park, California
click through for details and photos – America’s Most Spectacular Day Hikes

As an aside, I note that the text from that post has been stolen and reposted on several other sites.
That’s a shame.


beautiful photo
Not an unreasonable list. Have done 7 of them. The list would have been quite different had they not made an effort at geographic distribution; most of the hikes would have been out west, but I like it this way. Corkscrew Swamp for example, is a clever and worthy addition. The only glaring error is not including Zion NP, which is easily on the top ten world list.
Right you are Buzz. If only for Angel’s Landing and Virgin Narrows, Zion could be named the very best day hiking destination in the world.
I couldn’t agree more. Without a hitch Zion should be in the top 10.