9 Stunning Views from California's National Parks

A throwback to bygone California, the Channel Islands are secluded gathering places for both wildlife and humans who cherish invigorating escapes from big-city life.

Death Valley is the largest national park in the Lower 48, has recorded the world's highest temperature (134ºF), and nets less than two inches of rain a year. It also features the lowest point in North America, the Badwater Basin, which is pictured here.

The signature spiny tree with the upturned branches accounts for the park's name, but the enduring appeal of Joshua Tree National Park derives from its wide-open desert spaces spiced with arid mountain ranges and fantastic boulder formations.

Located in west-central California, Pinnacles National Park offers 32 miles of hiking trails and an impressive roster of fauna. It's also America's newest national park!

Sequoia is the United States’ second oldest national park and includes the most visited sequoia tree grove, Giant Forest, as well as the world's largest living tree, General Sherman.

Originally part of the Grant Grove National Park, Kings Canyon National Park offers a series of beautiful sights, espeically during a spellbinding summer drive along its Scenic Byway.

Granite monoliths and domes, towering sequoia groves, sweeping grassy meadows, plunging waterfalls, and rampaging creeks and rivers merge in Yosemite, one of America's most treasured national parks.

One of the least discovered parks in the western United States, Lassen Volcanic National Park is a real-world laboratory that shows how landscapes evolve over time following a major volcanic eruption.

While giant trees get top billing, Redwood is much more than supersize flora. The park also protects 37 miles of pristine Pacific coast, wild rivers and streams, rich wildlife populations, and relics of pioneer days.