India, April 4 -- If you're on a mission to visit some of the most underrated national parks across the U.S., you should probably have Petrified Forest on your radar. While a trip here will always be worthwhile, it's particularly fitting to visit this year. In 2026, the U.S. Route 66 Centennial Commission celebrates the 100th anniversary of the establishment of the "Mother Road." And Petrified Forest just so happens to be the only national park in the country that contains a section of Historic Route 66.

The remnants of the famed highway-including a line of now-weathered telephone poles-are far from the only things to see within this nearly 222,000-acre, semi-arid park. Petrified Forest National Park is best known for its plant and anima...