Baker — Travelrags

OutsideJul 27, 2026

Great Basin Is One of the Most Underrated National Parks. And It’s Only Hours From Zion.

Just hours from crowded Zion, this quiet park offers a truly remote escape with colossal peaks, subterranean caves, and some of the darkest skies in the country. Our contributor Joe Baur says about the difference: a rock concert versus a meditation retreat.

12 things in this story

Baker Creek TrailheadSightParking lot for Baker Creek Loop trail
Baker Creek LoopTrailRunnable singletrack dirt with rocks, passes white firs
Snake RangeSight60-mile-long mountain ridge with four of Nevada's highest peaks
Johnson LakeViewpointLake in the valley, tempting descent too steep
Stargazer InnMotelHost Liz Woolsey turns pizza oven off at 7 p.m.
Great Basin National ParkSightPark with 77,000-plus acres, off the tourist path
Great Basin CaféRestaurantTravis Mason-Bushman has coffee here
Lehmann Creek TrailTrail6.4-mile out and back, accessible year-round
Wheeler PeakSightSummit at 13,000 feet
Woolsey's Bristlecone General StoreMarketDoubles as reception for the Stargazer Inn
Baker LakeAirport
Elsewhere
Normandy American CemeterySightColleville-sur-Mer, FranceJames Woolsey was Director of Visitor Services here

Read the full piece at Outside →