Debate is currently raging over America’s national parks and when they should — and shouldn’t — be free to enter. Perhaps it’s a good time to step away from the noise and discover the unsung heroes of the country’s outdoor landscape: its state parks.

They’re home to some of the USA’s most beautiful terrain, many are free to enter, and they’re generally far less crowded than their national park counterparts.

In Ohio there is a stunning gorge system waiting to be discovered, and in Pennsylvania hiking trails that weave past 22 waterfalls. A thundering “black water” cascade awaits in West Virginia, while Arkansas offers a park perched on top of a mountain, and in Missouri there’s an extraordinary series of chutes and plunge pools carved through volcanic rock.

Elsewhere, there’s everything from natural sandstone arches to cinematic river panoramas, and a cliff crowned by a ruined castle that looks worthy of fairytale Bavaria to enjoy free of charge.

These are the 12 most exciting state park, all free to enter — though note that you may just have to pay to camp or for cabin stays.

1. Hocking Hills State Park, Ohio

Hocking Hills State Park’s photogenic Old Man’s Cave area (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

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Hocking Hills State Park, 12 miles southwest of Logan, is 2,356 acres of cinematic landscape — woodland, cliffs, thundering waterfalls and eye-catching rock formations you can explore via around 25 miles of marked hiking trails. Some, such as the Ash Cave Gorge Trail, are wheelchair accessible.

The big-ticket geological attractions include the iconic Old Man’s Cave gorge system, the 700-foot-wide Ash Cave and the photogenic waterfall Cedar Falls.

And as you wander the pathways, you may spot wild turkeys, coyotes, barred owls and eagles, perhaps even a bobcat.

If you’d like to stay overnight, Hocking Hills State Park Campground has 156 tent and RV sites, with pitches from around $25 per night. The park also rents one and two-bedroom cabins, with prices from around $100 per night.

2. Ricketts Glen State Park, Pennsylvania

The 94-foot-tall Ganoga Falls, the tallest waterfall of the 22 in Ricketts Glen State Park (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

At Ricketts Glen State Park, in northeastern Pennsylvania, around 26 miles of hiking trails weave through 13,000 acres of scenery peppered with no fewer than 22 waterfalls, including the 94-foot Ganoga Falls, the tallest in the park and the centerpiece of the 7.2-mile Falls Trail.

This classic route takes in 21 of the 22 waterfalls, as well as plunge pools, mossy ravines, rock-cut stairways and pockets of old-growth woodland.

Animals to watch for along the way include river otters, pileated woodpeckers and black bears — common in the region but generally shy.

You can take to the water, too, with kayaking, canoeing and paddle boarding permitted on Lake Jean.

For overnight stays, tent and trailer campsites start from around $15 per night, with cabins from about $61.

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3. Blackwater Falls State Park, West Virginia

Blackwater Falls in Blackwater State Park gets its dark hue courtesy of tannic acid from fallen hemlock and red spruce needles (Visit The USA)

Blackwater Falls State Park, in the Allegheny Mountains of Tucker County, is named after its signature cascade, where water stained by tannic acid from fallen hemlock and red spruce needles plunges 60 feet into a rocky gorge. It’s one of West Virginia’s most spectacular sights and is easy to access, as there’s a large parking lot near the main overlook.

But this park begs to be explored on foot. There are around 20 miles of trails that meander through atmospheric woodland that’s home to snowshoe hares, black bears, bobcats and white-tailed deer. And in the winter there’s an epic “magic carpet” sled run, with a conveyor transporting riders to the top of a sledding hill.

The park has 65 tent and trailer campsites from around $30 per night, and cabins from around $150.

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4. Natural Bridge State Resort Park, Kentucky

Natural Bridge State Resort Park’s stunning natural bridge (Kentucky Tourism)

The marquee attraction and namesake feature at Natural Bridge State Resort Park, set beside the Red River Gorge canyon system, is a vast natural sandstone arch spanning 78 feet that’s perched on a ridge several hundred feet above the valley floor.

There’s a viewpoint nearby from where you can take the perfect photo of the awe-inspiring sight. And those who don’t want to tackle the leg-burning 45-minute hike from below can ride the charmingly retro Sky Lift chair to a platform a short distance away.

In the surrounding forest you might spot chipmunks, raccoons or cottontail rabbits — or even a very rare Virginia big-eared bat. Cast a line in one of the two lakes and you might reel in a largemouth bass or sunfish.

Campsites at Natural Bridge cost from $27.

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5. Fall Creek Falls State Park, Tennessee

Fall Creek Falls plunges 256 feet over a cliff edge into a tranquil pool below (Tennessee Tourism)

Fall Creek Falls State Park, located about 62 miles north of Chattanooga, is named for one of the tallest free-fall waterfalls in the eastern U.S., which thunders out of thick woodland and plunges 256 feet over a cliff edge into a tranquil pool below.

Train your viewfinder on the sight from above via the Gorge Overlook Trail, or from the base by hiking along the Base of Fall Creek Falls Trail.

The 30,000-acre park is far from a one hit wonder, though. Cane Creek Falls and Piney Falls are also picturesque, and there are around 30 miles of hiking trails that criss-cross biodiverse terrain where you can expect to see big brown bats, salamanders and forest songbirds.

For overnight stays, there are over 200 campsites, with many basic tent and RV sites starting around $30 per night.

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6. Mount Magazine State Park, Arkansas

Mount Magazine State Park is draped over Mount Magazine, the highest peak in Arkansas (Zack Frank/stock.adobe.com)

Mount Magazine State Park is unlike any other: it is spread across the entire summit of a mountain — at 2,753 feet, the highest natural point in Arkansas — with visitor infrastructure, from trails to cabins, laced across a broad plateau rimmed by cliffs.

But don’t worry, you don’t have to mountaineer your way up there — you can ascend by car, then roam the roof of Arkansas.

Head to Cameron Bluff Overlook for sweeping views of the Arkansas River Valley. Chase butterflies — the park is home to 94 of Arkansas’s 134 known butterfly species, including the Diana fritillary, the state butterfly — or watch hang gliders launch from the ridges.

The park offers campsites from under $35 per night.

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7. Ohiopyle State Park, Pennsylvania

Ohiopyle State Park is a mecca for kayakers (Sherman Cahal/stock.adobe.com)

This 20,500-acre park in southwestern Pennsylvania offers top-drawer white-water rafting and kayaking along the Youghiogheny River, which tumbles past oaks, hemlocks and maples and barrels over the epic Ohiopyle Falls in the village of Ohiopyle. The stretch that follows — the famous Lower Yough — is the most thrilling part for paddlers.

Another must-see cascade, and a perfect picnic spot, is the 30-foot-high Cucumber Falls, reached via a short, family-friendly trail.

As you explore, you may glimpse chipmunks or beavers, and if you’re lucky — bald eagles soaring above the gorge.

The Kentuck Campground has around 200 campsites, with fees from about $26 per night. Cottages and yurts are also available from around $80.

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8. Johnson’s Shut-Ins State Park, Missouri

Johnson’s Shut-Ins State Park features an extraordinary series of river chutes and plunge pools (Visit Missouri)

The main attraction at Johnson’s Shut-Ins State Park, near the town of Lesterville in the Ozark Highlands, are the “shut-ins” — a series of chutes and plunge pools carved through volcanic rock that form an impressive natural water park in the Black River.

Between swims, you may glimpse bright green, yellow and turquoise eastern collared lizards resting on the rocks, or maybe even river otters gliding through the currents.

For grand panoramas, hit the Goggins Mountain Trail, and the Scour Trail for amazing views of the flood-sculpted river landscape and exposed pink volcanic bedrock.

There are around 45 campsites in the park, with prices starting from about $15 per night. Basic camper cabins are available from $75.

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9. Petit Jean State Park, Arkansas

Petit Jean State Park is located atop Petit Jean Mountain near Morrilton (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Petit Jean State Park is small but mighty, boasting one of the tallest waterfalls in Arkansas, bat-inhabited rock shelters, valley panoramas, forests and canyon descents into its 3,471 acres.

The signature landmark at the park — located atop Petit Jean Mountain near Morrilton — is Cedar Falls, where water gushes over a 95ft-high sandstone cliff into the canyon below.

The breathtaking cascade is reached via the two-mile Cedar Falls Trail, while the Seven Hollows Trail leads to unique rock formations and the Rock House Cave area. Native American rock art can be found near here in the sheltered bluffs.

There are around 120 campsites, with prices from about $20 per night. Cabins are available for those who prefer a more comfortable place to stay.

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10. Starved Rock State Park, Illinois

Starved Rock State Park is a wildlife mecca and home to 18 sandstone canyons (Illinois Office of Tourism)

Starved Rock State Park, about 90 miles southwest of Chicago, is celebrated for its 18 breathtaking sandstone canyons, many carved by glacial meltwater.

Wander among them and you’ll feel as if you’ve been warped out of Illinois and into the American Southwest.

The 2,630-acre park’s wildlife-watching credentials are also particularly impressive. You may spot species including bald eagles, great blue herons, owls, woodpeckers, warblers, white-tailed deer, river otters, beavers, red foxes and coyotes.

There are around 130 campsites at the park, with prices from $25, and rooms available from $160 at Starved Rock Lodge & Conference Center.

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11. Pikes Peak State Park, Iowa

Spectacular river valley views are on offer at Pikes Peak State Park in Iowa (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

If you only take one photo in 960-acre Pikes Peak State Park, snap the vista from its flagship viewpoint, Pikes Peak Overlook.

From this 500-foot bluff, you can frame a breathtaking panorama worthy of a movie poster across the Mississippi River Valley and the confluence of the island-dotted Mississippi and Wisconsin rivers.

The view is particularly striking during fall, and at sunrise and sunset. Elsewhere, there’s a tranquil boardwalk trail to Bridal Veil Falls and paths to Native American effigy mounds hidden in the woodland.

There are around 65 campsites, with prices from about $25 per night.

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12. Ha Ha Tonka State Park, Missouri

Ha Ha Tonka State Park has a fairytale atmosphere in part thanks to a ruined turn-of-the-century castle perched on a cliff edge (Visit Missouri)

A ruined early-20th-century European-style stone castle perched on a forested bluff above a turquoise arm of Lake of the Ozarks lends Ha Ha Tonka State Park a distinctly fairytale atmosphere. Suddenly, Missouri is looking a lot like Bavaria.

Other highlights that make this park, located near Camdenton, an exciting destination include the immense 300ft-wide Colosseum Sinkhole, Ha Ha Tonka Spring — which pumps out more than 58 million gallons of water daily — and a huge natural stone arch. Linking them all are 15 miles of trails.

Staying the night is unfortunately not possible, as Ha Ha Tonka is a day-use park with no camping facilities available for the general public.

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