Located in the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada Mountains in east central California, Yosemite National Park is a world treasure. It is not only a World Heritage Site, but is well known for its granite cliffs, amazing Sequoia groves, and epic waterfalls. While most people who visit Yosemite National Park spend the most time in Yosemite Valley, there’s much to explore beyond. Rock climbers from all over come to climb El Capitan, a granite rock formation that is larger than the tallest skyscraper stacked on top of itself. Regardless of the time of year that you visit Yosemite, there’s plenty to do. Going to the park in the winter months means plenty of snow and great for cross-country skiing. Also, during this time there are quite a few culinary adventures at the Park as well. Summer is the most popular time as most of the Park is accessible and there are plenty of wildflowers to see. There’s plenty of do including biking, fishing, hiking, climbing, horseback riding, rafting, and swimming. The following are some events that happen in the valley: Vitners Holiday Sessions – November – December Bracebridge Dinners – December Chef’s Holiday Sessions - January

Yellowstone National Park is located primarily in the U.S. state of Wyoming, although it also extends into Montana and Idaho. Yellowstone was the first national park in the world, and is known for its wildlife and its many geothermal features, especially Old Faithful Geyser, one of the most popular features in the park. It has many types of ecosystems, but the subalpine forest is dominant. Native Americans have lived in the Yellowstone region for at least 11,000 years. The region was bypassed during the Lewis and Clark Expedition in the early 19th century. Aside from visits by mountain men during the early-to-mid-19th century, organized exploration did not begin until the late 1860s. The U.S. Army was commissioned to oversee the park just after its establishment. In 1917, administration of the park was transferred to the National Park Service, which had been created the previous year. Hundreds of structures have been built and are protected for their architectural and historical significance, and researchers have examined more than 1,000 archaeological sites. Yellowstone National Park spans an area of 3,468.4 square miles (8,983 km2), comprising lakes, canyons, rivers and mountain ranges.Yellowstone Lake is one of the largest high-altitude lakes in North America and is centered over the Yellowstone Caldera, the largest supervolcano on the continent. The caldera is considered an active volcano. It has erupted with tremendous force several times in the last two million years. Half of the world's geothermal features are in Yellowstone, fueled by this ongoing volcanism.Lava flows and rocks from volcanic eruptions cover most of the land area of Yellowstone. The park is the centerpiece of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, the largest remaining, nearly intact ecosystem in the Earth's northern temperate zone. Hundreds of species of mammals, birds, fish and reptiles have been documented, including several that are either endangered or threatened. The vast forests and grasslands also include unique species of plants. Yellowstone Park is the largest and most famous megafauna location in the Continental United States. Grizzly Bears, wolves, and free-ranging herds of bison and elk live in the park. The Yellowstone Park Bison Herd is the oldest and largest public bison herd in the United States. Forest fires occur in the park each year; in the large forest fires of 1988, nearly one third of the park burnt. Yellowstone has numerous recreational opportunities, including hiking, camping, boating, fishing and sightseeing. Paved roads provide close access to the major geothermal areas as well as some of the lakes and waterfalls. During the winter, visitors often access the park by way of guided tours that use either snow coaches or snowmobile.

Located 30 miles southwest of the city of Hilo on the Big Island of Hawaii, Volcanoes National Park contains a massive landscape that is home to one of the planet’s most active volcanoes, Kilauea. Kiluea has had more than 50 documented eruptions. The park is managed by the US National Parks Service (NPS) and is also a UNESCO World Heritage site. The park is one of the most popular visitor attractions in Hawaii and a hallowed place for Native Hawaiians. Besides the currently erupting Kilauea Volcano the park also contains the Mauna Loa Volcano which last erupted in 1984. Originally founded in 1916 as part of what was then known as Hawaii National Park, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is what remains after the portion of the park that was located on Maui island was split off as Haleakala National Park in 1961. This 333,000 acre park stretches from the summit of Mauna Loa to the ocean, contains over 150 miles of hiking trails (around and through the craters of ancient volcanoes) along with rainforests, desert landscapes, petroglyphs, a walk-in lava tube and a museum. The Mauna Loa is considered the world’s most massive volcano extending from 16,400 feet (4,170 m) meters below sea level on the ocean floor to 13,680 feet (4,170 m) meters above. This overall height, from the ocean floor to Mauna Loa’s peak, is greater than the elevation of Mount Everest. The park contains a high diversity of plant and animal life with 23 distinct vegetation types having been identified in the park, ranging from the very diverse tropical rainforest of 'Ola'a to the scrub and grassland of Ka'u and the alpine tundra of Mauna Loa. The plant life represents five major ecosystems. Native Hawaiian species found in the park include carnivorous caterpillars, happy face spiders, colorful Hawaiian honeycreepers, the largest dragonfly in the United States, crickets partial to new lava flows, endangered sea turtles and just one native terrestrial mammal - a bat. The park is also rich with archaeological remains, particularly along the coast with native villages, temples, graves, paved trails, canoe landings, petroglyphs, shelter caves and agricultural areas. Extensive ruins of stone structures dating back to 1275 are evident along with churches and schools built after the arrival of Captain James Cook in 1778 and then the Christian influences that started in the early 1800’s. Kilauea volcano currently produces enough lava per day to resurface a 20-mile-long, two-lane road. Pele, the volcano goddess who Native Hawaiians believe lives here, is very unpredictable, however, but the chance to watch Kilauea's lava flows meet the sea is but one of the reasons to visit. Among other attractions visitors will find: Crater Rim Drive- a 10 mile drive that circles Kilauea Caldera. Driving this loop will expose visitors to the park's main attractions: the Kilauea overlook, Jaggar Museum, Halemaumau Crater, Devastation Trail, Kilauea Iki Crater Overlook and the Thurston Lava Tube. The Thomas A. Jaggar Museum honors the man that pioneered the study of volcanology at Kilauea with geologic displays, maps and videos about the study of volcanoes. Halemaumau Crater, the legendary home of Pele. Thurston Lava Tube (Nahuku) is a 500-year old lava cave that was formed when an underground channel of molten lava drained from its cooled walls leaving behind a massive, hollow chamber. A tropical rainforest awaits visitors at the end of the tube. The Puu O’o Vent on Kilauea where lava floods underground tubes that dramatically empty into the ocean. Chain of Craters Road is a ¾ mile drive ending where a lava flow has overtaken the road. The Volcano House hotel overlooking Halemaumau Crater has been operating since it was a grass shack in 1846. Mark Twain once stayed here on his visit to Hawaii. Two international airports provide access to Hawaii island, Hilo and Kona International airports, each of which is also served by interisland carriers from Oahu, Maui and Kauai.

Death Valley National Park is a national park located east of the Sierra Nevada in the arid Great Basin of the United States. Parts of the park are in southern Inyo County and northern San Bernardino County in Eastern California, with a small extension into southwestern Nye County and extreme southern Esmeralda County in Nevada. In addition, there is an exclave (Devil's Hole) in southern Nye County. The park covers 5,262 square miles, encompassing Saline Valley, a large part of Panamint Valley, almost all of Death Valley, and parts of several mountain ranges. Death Valley National Monument was declared a U.S. National Monument in 1933, placing the area under federal protection. In 1994, the monument was redesignated a national park, as well as being substantially expanded to include Saline and Eureka valleys. It is the hottest and driest of the national parks in the United States. The second-lowest point in the Western Hemisphere is in Badwater Basin, which is 282 feet below sea level. The park is home to many species of plants and animals that have adapted to this harsh desert environment. Some examples include creosote bush, Bighorn Sheep, Coyote, and the Death Valley Pupfish, a survivor of much wetter times. Approximately 95% of the park is designated as wilderness. Its wilderness area covers 4,774 square miles , making it the largest in the Lower 48 states, and the sixth largest in the United States overall. Death Valley National Park is visited annually by more than 770,000 visitors who come to see its diverse geologic features, desert wildlife, historic sites, scenery, and clear night skies. Mining was the primary activity in the area before it was protected. The first documented non-Native Americans to enter Death Valley did so in the winter of 1849, thinking they would save time by taking a shortcut to the gold fields of California. They were stuck for weeks and in the process gave the valley its name, even though only one of their group died there. Several short-lived boom towns sprang up during the late 19th and early 20th centuries to exploit minor local bonanzas of gold. The only long-term profitable ore to be mined, however, was borax, a mineral used to make soap and an important industrial compound. Today, borax is an essential component of high-temperature resistant boro-silicate glass products, for example Pyrex cookware. Twenty-mule teams were used to transport ore out of the valley; helping to make it famous and the subject of books, radio programs, television series, and movies. The natural environment of the area has been shaped largely by its geology. The valley itself is actually a graben. The oldest rocks are extensively metamorphosed and at least 1.7 billion years old. Ancient warm, shallow seas deposited marine sediments until rifting opened the Pacific Ocean. Additional sedimentation occurred until a subduction zone formed off the coast. This uplifted the region out of the sea and created a line of volcanoes. Later the crust started to pull apart, creating the current Basin and Range landform. Valleys filled with sediment and, during the wet times of glacial periods, with lakes, such as Lake Manly. Sightseeing is available by personal automobile, four-wheel drive, bicycle, mountain bike (on established roadways only), and hiking. Riding through the park on motorcycle is also a popular pastime. State Route 190, the Badwater Road, the Scotty's Castle Road, and paved roads to Dante's View and Wildrose provide access to the major scenic viewpoints and historic points of interest. More than 350 miles (560 km) of unpaved and four-wheel-drive roads provide access to wilderness hiking, camping, and historical sites. All vehicles must be licensed and street legal. There are hiking trails of varying lengths and difficulties, but most backcountry areas are accessible only by cross-country hiking. There are literally thousands of hiking possibilities. The normal season for visiting the park is from October 15 to May 15, because of summer extremes in temperature. A costumed living history tour of the historic Death Valley Scotty's Castle is conducted for a fee. There are nine designated campgrounds within the park, and overnight backcountry camping permits are available at the Visitor Center. Xanterra Parks & Resorts owns and operates a private resort, the Furnace Creek Inn and Ranch Resort, which comprises two separate and distinct hotels: the Furnace Creek Inn is a four-star historic hotel, and the Furnace Creek Ranch is a three-star ranch-style property reminiscent of the mining and prospecting days. Xanterra also operates the Stovepipe Wells Village motel. The Furnace Creek Inn and Ranch and the Stovepipe Wells Village are the only inns located inside Death Valley proper. There are a few motels near various entrances to the park, in Shoshone, Death Valley Junction, Beatty, Nevada, and Panamint Springs. The visitor center is located in the Furnace Creek resort area on State Route 190. A 12-minute introductory slide program is shown every 30 minutes. During the winter season—November through April—rangers offer interpretive tours and a wide variety of walks, talks, and slide presentations about Death Valley cultural and natural history. The visitor center has displays dealing with the park's geology, climate, wildlife and natural history. There are also specific sections dealing with the human history and pioneer experience. The Death Valley Natural History Association maintains a bookstore specifically geared to the natural and cultural history of the park. Death Valley National Park is a popular location for stargazing as it has one of the darkest night skies in the United States. Despite Death Valley's remote location, its air quality and night visibility are threatened by civilization. In particular, light pollution is introduced by nearby Las Vegas. The darkest skies are, in general, located in the northwest of the park.

Glacier Bay National Park is a national park in Alaska. The area around Glacier Bay in southeastern Alaska was first proclaimed a U.S. National Monument on February 25, 1925. It was changed to Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve on Dec. 2, 1980 by the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act. Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve is a United States National Park in the southeastern part of Alaska west of Juneau. The park area was included in an International Biosphere Reserve in 1986 and is part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The park covers 5,130 mi² (13,287 km²). Most of the park is a designated wilderness area which covers 4,164 mi² (10,784 km²) of the park. No roads lead to the park and it is most easily reached by air travel. During some summers there are ferries to the small community of Gustavus or directly to the marina at Bartlett Cove. Despite the lack of roads, there are over 400,000 visitors per year, most on cruise ships. Glaciers descending from high snow capped mountains into the bay create spectacular displays of ice and iceberg formation. In the last century, the most dramatic was probably the Muir Glacier. The calving face was nearly 2 mi (3.2 km) wide and about 265 ft (81 m) high. In the 1990s, the Muir Glacier receded to the point that it was no longer a tidewater glacier. Most visitors today see the Margerie and Lamplugh Glaciers. Joseph Whidbey, master of the Discovery during George Vancouver's 1791-95 expedition, found Icy Strait, at the south end of Glacier Bay, choked with ice in 1794. Glacier Bay itself was almost entirely iced over. In 1879 naturalist John Muir found that the ice had retreated almost all the way up the bay, a distance of around forty-eight miles. By 1916 the Grand Pacific Glacier was at the head of Tarr Inlet about 65 mi (105 km) from Glacier Bay's mouth. This is the fastest documented glacier retreat ever. Scientists are hoping to learn how glacial activity relates to climate changes from the retreat. Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve includes nine tidewater glaciers. Four of these glaciers actively calve icebergs into the bay. Wildlife in the area includes both grizzly and black bears, moose, sitka blacktail deer, mountain goats, dall sheep, wolves, lynx, sea otters, harbor seals, steller's sea lions, Pacific white-sided dolphins, orcas, humpback whales, bald eagles, gulls, waterfowl, and salmon.

Everglades National Park is a national park in the U.S. state of Florida that protects the southern 25 percent of the original Everglades. It is the largest subtropical wilderness in the United States, and is visited on average by one million people each year. It is the third-largest national park in the lower 48 states after Death Valley and Yellowstone. It has been declared an International Biosphere Reserve, a World Heritage Site, and a Wetland of International Importance, only one of three locations in the world to appear on all three lists. Unlike most U.S. national parks, Everglades National Park was created to protect a fragile ecosystem instead of safeguarding a unique geographic feature. The Everglades are wetlands created by a slow-moving river originating in Lake Okeechobee, fed by the Kissimmee River, and flowing southwest at about .25 miles (0.40 km) per day into Florida Bay. The park protects an interconnected network of marshland and forest ecosystems that are maintained by natural forces. Thirty-six species designated as threatened or protected live in the park, including the Florida panther, the American crocodile, and the West Indian manatee. The park protects the largest U.S. wilderness area east of the Mississippi River, is the most significant breeding ground for tropical wading birds in North America, and contains the largest mangrove ecosystem in the western hemisphere. More than 350 species of birds, 300 species of fresh and saltwater fish, 40 species of mammals, and 50 species of reptiles live within Everglades National Park. All of South Florida's fresh water, which is stored in the Biscayne Aquifer, is recharged in the park. The busiest season for visitors is from December to March, when temperatures are lowest and mosquitoes are least active. The park features four visitor centers: on the Tamiami Trail (part of U.S. Route 41) directly west of Miami is the Shark Valley Visitor Center. A fifteen-mile (24 km) round trip path leads from this center to a two-story observation tower. Tram tours are available during the busy season. Closest to Homestead on State Road 9336 is the Ernest F. Coe Visitor Center, where a 38-mile (61 km) road begins, winding through pine rockland, cypress, freshwater marl prairie, coastal prairie, and mangrove ecosystems. Various hiking trails are accessible from the road, which runs to the Flamingo Visitor Center and marina, open and staffed during the busier time of the year. The Gulf Coast Visitor Center is closest to Everglades City on State Road 29 along the west coast. The Gulf Coast Visitor Center gives canoers access to the Wilderness Waterway, a 99-mile (160 km) canoe trail that extends to the Flamingo Visitor Center. The western coast of the park and the Ten Thousand Islands and the various key islands in Florida Bay are accessible only by boat. Several walking trails in the park vary in hiking difficulty on Pine Island, where visitors can cross hardwood hammocks, pinelands, and freshwater sloughs. Starting at the Royal Palm Visitor Center, the Anhinga Trail is a half-mile self-guided tour through a sawgrass marsh where visitors can see alligators, marsh and wading birds, turtles, and bromeliads. Its proximity to Homestead and its accessibility make it one of the most visited sites in the park. The nearby Gumbo Limbo Trail is also self-guided, at half a mile long. It loops through a canopy of hardwood hammocks that include gumbo limbo, royal palms (Roystonea), strangler figs (Ficus aurea), and a variety of epiphytes. Twenty eight miles (45 km) of trails start near the Long Pine Key campgrounds and wind through Long Pine Key, well-suited for offroad cycling through the pine rocklands in the Marjory Stoneman Douglas Wilderness Area. Two boardwalks allow visitors to walk through a cypress forest at Pa-Hay-O-Kee, which also features a two-story overlook, and another at Mahogany Hammock (referring to Swietenia mahagoni) that takes hikers through a dense forest in the middle of a freshwater marl prairie. Closer to Flamingo, more rugged trails take visitors through mangrove swamps, along Florida Bay. Christian Point Trail, Snake Bight Trail, Rowdy Bend Trail and Coastal Prairie Trail allow viewing of shorebirds and wading birds among the mangroves. Portions of the trails may be impassable depending on the time of year, because of mosquitoes and water levels. Ranger-led tours take place in the busier season only. Camping is available year-round in Everglades National Park. Frontcountry camping, with some services, is available at Long Pine Key, close to the Ernest F. Coe Visitor Center, where 108 sites are accessible by car. Near Flamingo, 234 campsites with some services are also available. Recreational vehicle camping is available at these sites, although not with all necessary services. Backcountry permits are required for campsites along the Wilderness Waterway, Gulf Coast sites, and sites in the various keys. Several backcountry sites are chickees; others are beach and ground sites. Low-powered motorboats are allowed in the park, although the majority of salt water areas are no-wake zones to protect manatees and other marine animals from harm. Jet skis, airboats, and other motorized personal watercraft are prohibited. However, many trails allow kayaks and canoes. A state license is required for fishing, and although fresh water licenses are not sold in the park, a salt water license may be available. Swimming is not recommended within the park boundaries; water moccasins, snapping turtles (Chelydra serpentina), alligators and crocodiles thrive in fresh water. Sharks, barracuda, and sharp dangerous coral are plentiful in salt water. Visibility is low in both kinds.

Acadia National Park (ANP) is a National Park located in the U.S. state of Maine. It reserves much of Mount Desert Island, and associated smaller islands, off the Atlantic coast. Originally created as Lafayette National Park in 1919, the first National Park East of the Mississippi, it was renamed Acadia in 1929. The park includes mountains, an ocean shoreline, woodlands, and lakes. In addition to Mount Desert Island, the park comprises much of the Isle au Haut, parts of Baker Island, and a portion of the Schoodic Peninsula on the mainland. In total, Acadia National Park consists of more than 47,000 acres (73 square miles, 190 km2), including 30,300 acres (47 sq mi., 123 km2) on Mount Desert Island, 2,728 acres (4.6 sq mi., 11 km2) on Isle au Haut and 2,366 acres (3.5 sq mi., 9.2 km2) on the Schoodic Peninsula. Cadillac Mountain, named after the French Explorer of the same name, is on the eastern side of the island. Its green, lichen-covered, pink granite summit is one of the first places in the United States to see the sunrise. Miles of carriage roads were originally built by Rockefeller, Jr. The mountains of Acadia National Park offer hikers and bicycle riders views of the ocean, island lakes, and pine forests. The inlet Somes Sound, often described as the "only fjord on the East Coast", is now called a fjard by officials. The park is home to some 40 different species of mammalian wildlife. Among these are red and gray squirrels, chipmunks, white-tailed deer, moose, beaver (Castor canadensis), porcupine, muskrats, foxes, coyote, bobcats, and black bears. Many other marine species have been observed in the surrounding area and waters. Excavations of old Indian sites in the Mount Desert Island region have yielded remains of the native mammals. Bones of wolf, beaver, deer, elk, Gray seal (Halichoerus grypus), the Indian dog, and Sea Mink (Neovison macrodon), as well as large numbers of raccoon, lynx, wolf, muskrat, and deer. Although beaver were trapped to extinction on the island, two pairs of beaver that were released in 1920 by George B. Dorr at the brook between Bubble Pond and Eagle Lake have repopulated it. The large fire in 1947 cleared the eastern half of the island of its coniferous trees and permitted the growth of aspen, birch, alder, maple and other deciduous trees which enabled the beaver to thrive. Species that used to inhabit the island include the mountain lion (or puma) and the gray wolf. It is thought that these predators have been forced to leave the area due to the dramatic decrease in small prey and proximity to human activity.

Zion National Park is located in the Southwestern United States, near Springdale, Utah. Notable geographical features of the park include: Virgin River Narrows, Emerald Pools, Hidden Canyon, Angels Landing, The Great White Throne, Checkerboard Mesa, The Three Patriarchs and Kolob Arch. Popular hiking trails include The Narrows, The Subway, Angels Landing, and Kolob Arch. Driving through the east side of Zion to U.S. Route 89 allows access to Bryce Canyon National Park in the north or to the north rim of the Grand Canyon in the south. Due to the narrowness of the Zion–Mount Carmel Tunnel, RVs and buses must obtain a special pass and can only drive through the tunnel during limited hours. The more primitive sections of Zion include the Kolob Terrace and the Kolob Canyons. The Grotto in Zion Canyon, the Visitor Center, and the viewpoint at the end of Kolob Canyons Road have the only designated picnic sites. Seven popular trails with round-trip times of half an hour (Weeping Rock) to 4 hours (Angels Landing) are found in Zion Canyon. Two popular trails, Taylor Creek (4 hours round trip) and Kolob Arch (8 hours round trip), are in the Kolob Canyons section of the park, near Cedar City. Hiking up into The Narrows (Zion National Park) from the Temple of Sinawava is popular in summer. However, hiking beyond Big Springs requires a permit. The entire Narrows from Chamberlain’s Ranch is a 16 mile one way trip that typically takes 12 hours of strenuous hiking. A shorter alternative is to enter the Narrows via Orderville Canyon. Both Orderville and the full Narrows require a back country permit. Entrance to the Parunuweap Canyon section of the park downstream of Labyrinth Falls is prohibited. Other often-used backcountry trails include the West Rim and LaVerkin Creek. Zion is a center for rock climbing, with short walls like Touchstone, Moonlight Buttress, Spaceshot, and Prodigal Son being very popular. Lodging in the park is available at Zion Lodge, located halfway through Zion Canyon. Zion Lodge is open year-round and has motel units and cabins, as well as a restaurant, café, and gift shop, but rooms fill up fast. Three campgrounds are available: South and Watchman at the far southern side of the park, and a primitive site at Lava Point in the middle of the park off Kolob Terrace Road. Watchman is the only campground in the park that takes reservations. Lava Point has only primitive facilities and is usually open from June to October. Overnight camping in the backcountry requires permits. Guided horseback riding trips, nature walks, and evening programs are available from late March to early November. The Junior Ranger Program for ages 6 to 12 is active from Memorial Day to Labor Day at the Zion Nature Center. Rangers at the Zion Canyon Visitor Center and the smaller Kolob Canyons Visitor Center can help visitors plan their stay. A bookstore attached to the Zion Canyon Visitor Center, run by the Zion Natural History Association, offers books, maps, and souvenirs for sale, with proceeds benefiting the park. Adjacent to the park on the south is the town of Springdale, Utah, which offers services such as lodging, food, and entertainment. Zion Canyon IMAX in Springdale offers many interesting documentaries about the natural history of Zion Canyon and the American Southwest. Lodging, food, and entertainment are also offered on the east side of the park along the Zion–Mount Carmel Highway and in Mount Carmel Junction. A prominent feature of the 229 square miles (590 km2) park is Zion Canyon, which is 15 miles (24 km) long and up to half a mile (800 m) deep, cut through the reddish and tan-colored Navajo Sandstone by the North Fork of the Virgin River. The lowest elevation is 3,666 ft (1,117 m) at Coalpits Wash and the highest elevation is 8,726 ft (2,660 m) at Horse Ranch Mountain. Located at the junction of the Colorado Plateau, Great Basin, and Mojave Desert regions, the park's unique geography and variety of life zones allow for unusual plant and animal diversity. Numerous plant species as well as 289 species of birds, 75 mammals (including 19 species of bat), and 32 reptiles inhabit the park's four life zones: desert, riparian, woodland, and coniferous forest. Common plant species include cottonwood, Cactus, Datura, Juniper, Pine, Boxelder, Sagebrush, yucca , and various willows. Notable megafauna include mountain lions, mule deer, and Golden Eagles, along with the reintroduced Bighorn Sheep. Zion National Park also has rare and endangered species such as the Peregrine Falcon, Mexican spotted owl, California condor, desert tortoise, and the Zion snail (found nowhere else on earth). Zion National Park includes mountains, canyons, buttes, mesas, monoliths, rivers, slot canyons, and natural arches. Human habitation of the area started about 8,000 years ago with small family groups of Native Americans; the semi-nomadic Basketmaker Anasazi (300 CE) stem from one of these groups. In turn, the Virgin Anasazi culture (500 CE) developed as the Basketmakers settled in permanent communities. A different group, the Parowan Fremont, lived in the area as well. Both groups moved away by 1300 and were replaced by the Parrusits and several other Southern Paiute subtribes. The canyon was discovered by Mormons in 1858 and was settled by that same group in the early 1860s. In 1909, U.S. President William Howard Taft named the area a National Monument to protect the canyon, under the name of Mukuntuweap National Monument. In 1918, however, the acting director of the newly created National Park Service changed the park's name to Zion as the original name was locally unpopular. Zion is one of the names of Jerusalem in ancient Hebrew. The United States Congress established the monument as a National Park on November 19, 1919. The Kolob section was proclaimed a separate Zion National Monument in 1937, but was incorporated into the park in 1956. The geology of the Zion and Kolob canyons area includes 9 formations that together represent 150 million years of mostly Mesozoic-aged sedimentation. At various periods in that time warm, shallow seas, streams, ponds and lakes, vast deserts, and dry near-shore environments covered the area. Uplift associated with the creation of the Colorado Plateaus lifted the region 10,000 feet (3,000 m) starting 13 million years ago. Spring weather is unpredictable, with stormy, wet days being common, mixed with occasional warm, sunny weather. Precipitation is normally heaviest in March. Spring wildflowers bloom from April through June, peaking in May. Fall days are usually clear and mild; nights are often cool. Summer days are hot (95 °F to 110 °F; 35 °C to 43 °C), but overnight lows are usually comfortable (65 °F to 70 °F; 18 °C to 21 °C). Afternoon thunderstorms are common from mid-July through mid-September. Storms may produce waterfalls as well as flash floods. Autumn tree-color displays begin in September in the high country; in Zion Canyon, autumn colors usually peak in late October. Winter in Zion Canyon is fairly mild. Winter storms bring rain or light snow to Zion Canyon and heavier snow to the higher elevations. Clear days may become quite warm, reaching 60 °F (16 °C); nights are often 20 °F (−7 °C) to 40 °F (4 °C) . Winter storms can last several days and make roads icy. Zion roads are plowed, except the Kolob Terrace Road which is closed when covered with snow. Winter driving conditions last from November through March.

Capitol Reef National Park is located in south-central Utah. It is 100 miles (160 km) long but fairly narrow. The park, established in 1971, preserves 378 mi² (979 km²) and is open all year, although May through September are the most popular months. Called "Wayne Wonderland" in the 1920s by local boosters Ephraim P. Pectol and Joseph S. Hickman, Capitol Reef National Park protects colorful canyons, ridges, buttes, and monoliths. About 75 miles (120 km) of the long up-thrust called the Waterpocket Fold, a rugged spine extending from Thousand Lake Mountain to Lake Powell, is preserved within the park. "Capitol Reef" is the name of an especially rugged and spectacular segment of the Waterpocket Fold near the Fremont River. The area was named for a line of white domes and cliffs of Navajo Sandstone, each of which looks somewhat like the United States Capitol building, that run from the Fremont River to Pleasant Creek on the Waterpocket Fold. The local word reef referred to any rocky barrier to travel. Easy road access came with the construction in 1962 of State Route 24 through the Fremont River Canyon. Capitol Reef encompasses the Waterpocket Fold, a warp in the earth's crust that is 65 million years old. It is the largest exposed monocline in North America. In this fold, newer and older layers of earth folded over each other in an S-shape. This warp, probably caused by the same colliding continental plates that created the Rocky Mountains, has weathered and eroded over millennia to expose layers of rock and fossils. The park is filled with brilliantly coloredsandstone cliffs, gleaming white domes, and contrasting layers of stone and earth. The area was named for a line of white domes and cliffs of Navajo Sandstone, each of which looks somewhat like the United States Capitol building, that run from the Fremont River to Pleasant Creek on the Waterpocket Fold. The fold forms a north-to-south barrier that even today has barely been breached by roads. Early settlers referred to parallel, impassable ridges as "reefs", from which the park gets the second half of its name. The first paved road was constructed through the area in 1962. Today, State Route 24 cuts through the park traveling east and west between Canyonlands National Park and Bryce Canyon National Park, but few other paved roads invade the rugged landscape. The park is filled with canyons, cliffs, towers, domes, and arches. The Fremont River has cut canyons through parts of the Waterpocket Fold, but most of the park is arid desert country. A scenic drive shows park visitors some of the highlights, but it runs only a few miles from the main highway. Hundreds of miles of trails and unpaved roads lead the more adventurous into the equally scenic backcountry. The town nearest Capitol Reef is Torrey, Utah, which lies eight miles (13 km) west of the visitor's center on Highway 24. Torrey is very small, but has several motels and restaurants. The park itself has a large campground, but it often fills by early afternoon during busy summer weekends. The Burr Trail Scenic Backway provides access from the west through the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument and the town of Boulder. Overnight camping within the park requires a permit from the rangers at the visitor's center. Activities in the park include hiking, horseback riding, and a driving tour. Mountain biking is prohibited in the park, but many trails just outside the park exist. The orchards planted by Mormon pioneers are maintained by the Park Service and different fruit can be harvested throughout the growing season by visitors for a small fee.

Canyonlands National Park is a U.S. National Park located in southeastern Utah near the city of Moab and preserves a colorful landscape eroded into countless canyons, mesas and buttes by the Colorado River, the Green River, and their respective tributaries. The rivers divide the park into four districts: the Island in the Sky, the Needles, the Maze and the rivers themselves. While these areas share a primitive desert atmosphere, each retains its own character. The park covers 527.5 square miles (1,366 km2). Canyons are carved into the Colorado Plateau by the Colorado River and Green River. Author Edward Abbey, a frequent visitor, described the Canyonlands as "the most weird, wonderful, magical place on earth—there is nothing else like it anywhere." Canyonlands is a popular recreational destination. On average 440,039 people visited the park each year. The geography of the park is well suited to a number of different recreational uses. Hikers, mountain bikers, backpackers, and four-wheelers all enjoy traveling the rugged, remote trails within the Park. Rafters and kayakers float the calm stretches of the Green River and Colorado River above the confluence. Below the confluence Cataract Canyon contains powerful whitewater rapids, similar to those found in the Grand Canyon. The Island in the Sky district, with its proximity to the Moab, Utah area, attracts the majority (59 percent) of park users. The Needles district is the second most visited, drawing 35 percent of visitors. The rivers within the park and the remote Maze district each only account for 3 percent of park visitation. Political compromise at the time of the park's creation limited the protected area to an arbitrary portion of the Canyonlands basin. Conservationists hope to complete the park by bringing the boundaries up to the high sandstone rims that form the natural border of the Canyonlands landscape.

Bryce Canyon National Park is located in southwestern Utah in the United States. The major feature of the park is Bryce Canyon which, despite its name, is not a canyon but a giant natural amphitheater created by erosion along the eastern side of the Paunsaugunt Plateau. Bryce is distinctive due to geological structures called hoodoos, formed by wind, water, and ice erosion of the river and lake bed sedimentary rocks. The red, orange, and white colors of the rocks provide spectacular views for park visitors. Bryce sits at a much higher elevation than nearby Zion National Park. The rim at Bryce varies from 8,000 to 9,000 feet (2,400 to 2,700 m). Most park visitors sightsee using the scenic drive, which provides access to 13 viewpoints over the amphitheaters. Bryce Canyon has eight marked and maintained hiking trails that can be hiked in less than a day (round trip time, trailhead): Mossy Cave (one hour, State Route 12 northwest of Tropic), Rim Trail (5–6 hours, anywhere on rim), Bristlecone Loop (one hour, Rainbow Point), and Queens Garden (1–2 hours, Sunrise Point) are easy to moderate hikes. Navajo Loop (1–2 hours, Sunset Point) and Tower Bridge (2–3 hours, north of Sunrise Point) are moderate hikes. Fairyland Loop (4–5 hours, Fairyland Point) and Peekaboo Loop (3–4 hours, Bryce Point) are strenuous hikes. Several of these trails intersect, allowing hikers to combine routes for more challenging hikes. The park also has two trails designated for overnight hiking: the 9-mile (14 km) Riggs Spring Loop Trail and the 23-mile (37 km) Under-the-Rim Trail. Both require a backcountry camping permit. In total there are 50 miles (80 km) of trails in the park. More than 10 miles (16 km) of marked but ungroomed skiing trails are available off of Fairyland, Paria, and Rim trails in the park. Twenty miles (32 km) of connecting groomed ski trails are in nearby Dixie National Forest and Ruby's Inn. The air in the area is so clear that on most days from Yovimpa and Rainbow points, Navajo Mountain and the Kaibab Plateau can be seen 90 miles (140 km) away in Arizona. On extremely clear days, the Black Mesas of eastern Arizona and western New Mexico can be seen some 160 miles (260 km) away. The park also has a 7.4 magnitude night sky, making it one of the darkest in North America. Stargazers can therefore see 7,500 stars with the naked eye, while in most places fewer than 2,000 can be seen due to light pollution (in many large cities only a few dozen can be seen). Park rangers host public stargazing events and evening programs on astronomy, nocturnal animals, and night sky protection. The Bryce Canyon Astronomy Festival, typically held in June, attracts thousands of visitors. In honor of this astronomy festival, Asteroid 49272 was named after the national park. There are two campgrounds in the park, North Campground and Sunset Campground. Loop A in North Campground is open year-round. Additional loops and Sunset Campground are open from late spring to early autumn. The 114-room Bryce Canyon Lodge is another way to overnight in the park. A favorite activity of most visitors is landscape photography. With Bryce Canyon's high altitude and clean air, the sunrise and sunset photographs can be spectacular. More than 400 native plant species live in the park. There are three life zones in the park based on elevation: The lowest areas of the park are dominated by dwarf forests of pinyon pine and juniper withmanzanita, serviceberry, and antelope bitterbrush in between. Aspen, cottonwood, Water Birch, and Willow grow along streams. Ponderosa Pine forests cover the mid-elevations with Blue Spruce andDouglas-fir in water-rich areas and manzanita and bitterbrush as underbrush. Douglas-fir and White Fir, along with Aspen and Engelmann Spruce, make up the forests on the Paunsaugunt Plateau. The harshest areas have Limber Pine and ancient Great Basin Bristlecone Pine—some more than 1,600 years old—holding on. The forests and meadows of Bryce Canyon provide the habitat to support diverse animal life, from birds and small mammals to foxes and occasional bobcats,mountain lions, and black bears. Mule deer are the most common large mammals in the park. Elk and pronghorn, which have been reintroduced nearby, sometimes venture into the park. Bryce Canyon National Park forms part of the habitat of three wildlife species that are listed under the Endangered Species Act: the Utah Prairie Dog, the California Condor, and the Southwestern Willow Flycatcher. The Utah Prairie Dog is a threatened species that was reintroduced to the park for conservation, and the largest protected population is found within the park's boundaries. About 170 species of birds visit the park each year, including swifts and swallows. Most species migrate to warmer regions in winter, although jays, ravens,nuthatches, eagles, and owls stay. In winter, the mule deer, mountain lion, and coyotes migrate to lower elevations. Ground squirrels and marmots pass the winter in hibernation. Eleven species of reptiles and four species of amphibians have been found at in the park. Reptiles include the Great Basin Rattlesnake, Short-horned Lizard,Side-blotched Lizard, Striped Whipsnake, and the Tiger Salamander. Also in the park are the black, lumpy, very slow-growing colonies of cryptobiotic soil, which are a mix of lichens, algae, fungi, and cyanobacteria. Together these organisms slow erosion, add nitrogen to soil, and help it to retain moisture. While humans have greatly reduced the amount of habitat that is available to wildlife in most parts of the United States, the relative scarcity of water in southern Utah restricts human development and helps account for the region's greatly enhanced diversity of wildlife. The Bryce area was settled by Mormon pioneers in the 1850s and was named after Ebenezer Bryce, who homesteaded in the area in 1874. The area around Bryce Canyon became a U.S. National Monument in 1923 and was designated as a national park in 1928. The park covers 56 square miles (145 km2) and receives relatively few visitors compared to Zion National Park and the Grand Canyon, largely due to its remote location. The town of Kanab, Utah, is situated at a central point between these three parks. Bryce Canyon National Park is located in southwestern Utah about 50 miles (80 km) northeast of—and 1,000 feet (300 m) higher than—Zion National Park. The weather in Bryce Canyon is therefore cooler, and the park receives more precipitation: a total of 15 to 18 inches (38 to 46 cm) per year. Yearly temperatures vary from an average minimum of 9 °F (−13 °C) in January to an average maximum of 83 °F (28 °C) in July, but extreme temperatures can range from −30 °F to 97 °F (−34 °C to 36 °C).

Arches National Park is located in eastern Utah, USA. It is known for preserving over 2,000 natural sandstone arches, including the world-famous Delicate Arch, in addition to a variety of unique geological resources and formations. Among the notable features of the park are: Balanced Rock – a large balancing rock, the size of three school buses Courthouse Towers – a collection of tall stone columns Dark Angel – a free-standing 150-foot (46 m) tall sandstone pillar at the end of the Devil's Garden Trail Delicate Arch – a lone-standing arch which has become a symbol of Utah Devil's Garden – with many arches and columns scattered along a ridge Double Arch – two arches that share a common end Fiery Furnace – an area of maze-like narrow passages and tall rock columns (see biblical reference Fiery Furnace) Landscape Arch – a very thin and long arch with a span of 290 feet (88 m) Petrified dunes – petrified remnants of sand dunes blown from the ancient lakes that covered the area Wall Arch – located along the popular Devil's Garden Trail; collapsed sometime on August 4/5, 2008 The national park lies atop an underground evaporite layer or salt bed, which is the main cause of the formation of the arches, spires, balanced rocks, sandstonefins, and eroded monoliths in the area. This salt bed is thousands of feet thick in places, and was deposited in the Paradox Basin of the Colorado Plateau some 300 million years ago when a sea flowed into the region and eventually evaporated. Over millions of years, the salt bed was covered with debris eroded from theUncompahgre Uplift to the northeast. During the Early Jurassic (about 210 Ma) desert conditions prevailed in the region and the vast Navajo Sandstone was deposited. An additional sequence of stream laid and windblown sediments, the Entrada Sandstone (about 140 Ma), was deposited on top of the Navajo. Over 5000 feet (1500 m) of younger sediments were deposited and have been mostly eroded away. Remnants of the cover exist in the area including exposures of theCretaceous Mancos Shale. The arches of the area are developed mostly within the Entrada formation. The weight of this cover caused the salt bed below it to liquefy and thrust up layers of rock into salt domes. The evaporites of the area formed more unusual saltanticlines or linear regions of uplift. Faulting occurred and whole sections of rock subsided into the areas between the domes. In some places, they turned almost on edge. The result of one such 2,500-foot (760 m) displacement, the Moab Fault, is seen from the visitor center. As this subsurface movement of salt shaped the landscape, erosion removed the younger rock layers from the surface. Except for isolated remnants, the major formations visible in the park today are the salmon-colored Entrada Sandstone, in which most of the arches form, and the buff-colored Navajo Sandstone. These are visible in layer cake fashion throughout most of the park. Over time, water seeped into the surface cracks, joints, and folds of these layers. Ice formed in the fissures, expanding and putting pressure on surrounding rock, breaking off bits and pieces. Winds later cleaned out the loose particles. A series of free-standing fins remained. Wind and water attacked these fins until, in some, the cementing material gave way and chunks of rock tumbled out. Many damaged fins collapsed. Others, with the right degree of hardness and balance, survived despite their missing sections. These became the famous arches. The park is located just outside of Moab, Utah, and is 119 square miles (310 km2) in size. Its highest elevation is 5,653 feet (1,723 m) at Elephant Butte, and its lowest elevation is 4,085 feet (1,245 m) at the visitor center. Forty-three arches have collapsed due to erosion since 1970. The park receives 10 inches (250 mm) of rain a year on average. Administered by the National Park Service, the area was originally designated as a National Monument on April 12, 1929. It was redesignated as a National Park on November 12, 1971. Temperatures in Arches National Park vary by month, as does the precipitation. Generally, the hottest month is July. The coolest month is January. October sees the most precipitation in the park. Snow is not an uncommon thing to see during the winter months.

Haleakala National Park, on Hawaii’s island of Maui, was established in 1916 as part of what was then known as Hawaii National Park. In 1960 the portion of the park that was located on the Big Island of Hawaii was split off from Haleakala with each section having its own identity in the National Parks System. Haleakala National Park stretches across Maui’s south and east coastlines and is home to its namesake and Maui’s tallest peak, Haleakala volcano. Haleakala rises 10,023 feet above sea level and is seen from virtually every spot on the island of Maui. Also named a United Nations International Biosphere Reserve, the park comprises starkly contrasting worlds of mountain and coast. The road to the summit of Haleakala is possibly the steepest grade for autos in the world. In the Hawaiian language, Haleakala means “House of the Sun” and is so named for an ancient legend that has the patron god of the island roping the sun from the summit of the volcano so as to slow the sunset and provide longer periods of daylight for the islanders. Visitors and residents on the island make early morning drives to the Haleakala Visitor Center high on the mountainside to watch unforgettable sunrises and sunsets. Hiking and horseback riding above the clouds on the many trails that offer incredible vistas and a sense of solitude is a favorite pursuit of those visiting Haleakala. Visitors to the park interested in hiking can day hike, choose to spend the night in a tent at one of the two wilderness campgrounds or reserve one of three historic cabins along the trail. Bicycling down the main road at sunrise is also a very popular adventure enjoyed by visitors to the park. Scenic drives within the park include a great number of lookout spots and incredibly clear night skies make Haleakala one of the best places in the USA for amateur astronomers. Local merchants provide binocular and telescope rentals for visitors that left theirs at home. Haleakala National Park is believed to have more threatened and endangered species than any other park in the National Park System. The primary threat to Haleakala National Park is from alien species (non-native plants and animals that do not naturally occur in Hawaii). Among the flora and fauna found among the extensive lava flows, ash and cinder cones within the park are the protected Hawaiian geese, known as “Nene” and the very rare Silversword plant, the blooming Ahinahina, a flowering plant that seemingly grows where nothing should within the barren landscape. The park extends from the volcano’s peak to sea level and has a number of unique micro-climates within its boundary presenting a dramatic landscape seemingly at the top of the world with widely varying temperatures. Away from the peak of the volcano but within the park’s boundary is the Kipahulu area of Haleakala National Park. Kipahulu can be accessed by driving 10 miles past the town of Hana, on the legendary Road to Hana that traces the northeast coast of the island of Maui. The Kipahulu area includes the easily accessed coastal section and the highly restricted, biologically precious and pristine upper slope reserve that is closed to all but scientists. Hiking in the Kipahulu area is self-guided and diverse. Many visitors choose to hike the two-mile trail leading uphill along the Pipiwai Trail, following a stream which courses through the Oheo Gulch followed by a swim in the cool lower pools adjacent to the ocean. Haleakala National Park extends from the 10,023 foot (3,055 m) summit of Haleakala down the southeast flank of the mountain to the Kipahulu coast. The two sections of the park are not directly connected by road but both can be reached independently from the town of Kahului by car or other forms of ground transportation. While there is no public transportation in or out of the park, many tour operators will provide everything from motorcycle tours to buses to whisk visitors around the park. Driving time to the summit from Kahului is approximately 1.5 hours. Driving time to Kipahulu from Kahului is approximately 3 hours. The island of Maui, Hawaii can be reached directly from the mainland USA through the airport in Kahului or from other Hawaiian islands.

Carlsbad Caverns National Park is a United States National Park in the Guadalupe Mountains in southeastern New Mexico. The primary attraction of the park for most visitors is the show cave, Carlsbad Caverns. Visitors to the cave can hike in on their own via the natural entrance, or take the elevator (the exit for everyone) directly to the Underground Lunchroom some 750 feet (230 m) below. The park has two entries on the National Register of Historic Places: The Caverns Historic District and the Rattlesnake Springs Historic District. Approximately two thirds of the park has been set aside as a wilderness area, helping to ensure no future changes will be made to the habitat. Carlsbad Caverns includes a large cave chamber, the Big Room, a natural limestone chamber which is almost 4,000 feet (about 1,219 m) long, 625 feet (190.5 m) wide, and 350 feet (about 107 m) high at the highest point. It is the third largest chamber in North America and the seventh largest in the world. The largest in the world is the Sarawak Chamber in Malaysia. Lechuguilla Cave is currently the largest known cave in the park, with over 130 miles of mapped passage and over 1,600 feet deep. The following are the main named rooms: Balloon Ballroom: Located in the ceiling above the main entrance hall, this small room was first accessed by tying a rope to a bunch of balloons and floating them up into the passage. Bat Cave: A large, unadorned rocky passage connected to the main entrance corridor. The majority of the cave's bat population lives in this portion of the cave, which was mined for bat guano in the early 20th century. Bell Cord Room: Named for a long, narrow stalactite coming through a hole in the ceiling, resembling the rope coming through the roof of a belfry. This room is located at the end of the Left Hand Tunnel. Bifrost Room: Discovered in 1982, it is located in the ceiling above Lake of the Clouds. Its name refers to a Norse myth about a world in the sky that was accessed from Earth by a rainbow. The room was given this name because of its location above the Lake of the Clouds and its colorful oxide-stained formations. Big Room or The Hall of the Giants: The largest chamber in Carlsbad Caverns, with a floor space of 357,469 square feet (33,210 m2). Chocolate High: A maze of small passages totalling nearly a mile (1500 m) in combined length, discovered in 1993 above a mud-filled pit in the New Mexico Room known as Chocolate Drop. Green Lake Room: The uppermost of the "Scenic Rooms", it is named for a deep, malachite-colored pool in the corner of the room. In the 1940s, when the military was testing the feasibility of Carlsbad Cavern as an emergency fallout shelter, the Green Lake was used to look for ripples caused by a nuclear bomb test many miles away. None appeared. Guadalupe Room: Discovered by a park ranger in 1966, this is the second largest room in Carlsbad Caverns. It is known for its dense collection of "soda straw" stalactites. Hall of the White Giant: A large chamber containing a large, white stalagmite. Rangers regularly lead special wild-cave tours to this room. King's Palace: The first of four chambers in a wing known as the "scenic rooms", it is named for a large castle-like formation in the center of the room. Lake of the Clouds: The lowest known point in the cave. It is located in a side passage off the Left Hand Tunnel. It is named for its large lake containing globular, cloud-like rock formations that formed under water when the lake level was much higher. Left Hand Tunnel: A long, straight passage marked by deep fissures in the floor. These fissures are not known to lead anywhere. The Left Hand Tunnel leads to the Lake of the Clouds and the Bell Cord Room. Mabel's Room: A moderate-sized room located past the Talcum Passage in Lower Cave. Mystery Room: A large, sloping room located off the Queen's Chamber, named for an unexplained noise heard only here. A small vertical passage at the far end connects it to Lower Cave. New Mexico Room: Located adjacent to the Green Lake Room and accessed by means of a somewhat narrow corridor. New Section: A section of fissures east of the White Giant formation and paralleling the Bat Cave. New discoveries are still being made in this section. Papoose Room: Located between the King's Palace and Queen's Chamber. Queen's Chamber: Widely regarded as the most beautiful and scenic area of the cave. Jim White's lantern went out in this chamber while he was exploring, and he was in the dark for over half an hour. Spirit World: Located in the ceiling of the Big Room at its highest point (an area known as the Top of the Cross), this area is filled with white stalagmites that resembled angels to the room's discoverers. Talcum Passage: A room located in Lower Cave where the floor is coated with gypsum dust. The Rookery: One of the larger rooms in Lower Cave. A large number of cave pearls are found in this area. Underground Lunchroom: Located in the Big Room at the head of the Left Hand Tunnel. It contains a cafeteria that was built in the 1950s, and is where the elevators from the visitor center exit into the cave. Camping is permitted in the back country of the park, but a permit is required from the visitor center. One of the extra events hosted by the park is the viewing of a bat flight. A program is given in the early evening at the amphitheater near the main entrance prior to the start of the flight, which varies with the sunset time. Flight programs are scheduled from Memorial Day weekend through the middle of October. Optimal viewing normally occur in July and August with the advent of baby bats in addition to the normal migratory bats. Morning programs are also hosted pre-dawn to witness the return of bats into the cave. Once a year, a bat flight breakfast is held where visitors can eat breakfast at the park prior to the morning return of bats. At various times throughout the year, star parties are hosted by the park at night. Rangers host informational programs on the celestial night sky and telescopes are also made available. These parties are often held in conjunction with special astronomical events, such as a transit of Venus. Peak visitation typically occurs on the weekends following Memorial Day and the Fourth of July. The park entrance is located on US Highway 62/180 approximately 18 miles (29 km) southwest of Carlsbad, New Mexico. The park participates in the Junior Ranger Program.

The Redwood National and State Parks (RNSP) are located along the coast of northern California. The parks are protecting Coastal Redwood old-growth forests. These trees are the tallest and one of the most massive tree species on Earth. In addition to the redwood forests, the parks preserve other indigenous flora, fauna, grassland prairie, cultural resources, portions of rivers and other streams, and 37 miles (60 km) of pristine coastline. Comprising Redwood National Park (created 1968) and California's Del Norte Coast, Jedediah Smith, and Prairie Creek Redwoods State Parks (dating from the 1920s), the combined RNSP contain 133,000 acres (540 km2). Located entirely within Del Norte and Humboldt Counties, the four parks, together, protect 45% of all remaining Coastal Redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) old-growth forests. In 1850, old-growth redwood forest covered more than 2,000,000 acres (8,100 km2) of the California coast. The northern portion of that area, originally inhabited by Native Americans, attracted many lumbermen and others turned gold miners when a minor gold rush brought them to the region. Failing in efforts to strike it rich in gold, these men turned toward harvesting the giant trees for booming development in San Francisco and other places on the West Coast. After many decades of unobstructed clear-cut logging, serious efforts toward conservation began. By the 1920s the work of the Save-the-Redwoods League, founded in 1918 to preserve remaining old-growth redwoods, resulted in the establishment of Prairie Creek, Del Norte Coast, and Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Parks among others. Redwood National Park was created in 1968, by which time nearly 90% of the original redwood trees had been logged. The National Park Service (NPS) and the California Department of Parks and Recreation (CDPR) administratively combined Redwood National Park with the three abutting Redwood State Parks in 1994 for the purpose of cooperative forest management and stabilization of forests and watersheds as a single unit. The ecosystem of the RNSP preserves a number of threatened animal species such as the Brown Pelican, Tidewater Goby, Bald Eagle, Chinook Salmon, Northern Spotted Owl, and Steller's Sea Lion. In recognition of the rare ecosystem and cultural history found in the parks, the United Nations designated them a World Heritage Site on September 5, 1980 and an International Biosphere Reserve on June 30, 1983. While the state parks have front country campsites that can be driven to, the federal sections of the park do not, and hiking is the only way to reach back country campsites. These are at Mill Creek campground in Del Norte Coast Redwoods State Park and Jedediah Smith campground in Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park, which together have 251 campsites; the Elk Prairie campground in Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park which has 75; and the Gold Bluffs Beach campground which has 25 campsites. Other nearby state parks have additional front country camping. Back country camping is by permit only and is only allowed in designated sites, except on gravel bars along Redwood Creek. Access to the back country is highly regulated to prevent overuse while permitting as many groups as possible to explore the forest. Camping in the back country is therefore limited to five consecutive nights, and 15 nights in any one year. Proper food storage to minimize encounters with bears is strongly enforced, and hikers and backpackers are required to take out any trash they generate. Almost 200 miles (320 km) of hiking trails exist in the parks, but during the rainy season some temporary footbridges are removed, as they would be destroyed by high streams. Throughout the year, trails are often wet and hikers need to be well prepared for rainy weather and consult information centers for updates on trail conditions. Horseback riding and mountain biking are popular but are only allowed on certain trails. Kayaking is popular along the seacoast and in the various rivers and streams. Kayakers and canoeists frequently travel the Smith River, which is the longest undammed river remaining in California. Fishing for salmon and steelhead, a highly prized anadromous form of rainbow trout over 16 inches (41 cm), is best in the Smith and Klamath rivers. A California sport fishing license is required to fish any of the rivers and streams. Hunting is not permitted anywhere in the parks, but is allowed in nearby National Forests. The park has three visitor centers, where guided nature walks and general information are available, along with two additional information points. Each campground offers campfire talks during the summer months as well as guided tours. The parks have many picnic areas, which are all easily accessed by vehicle.

Gateway Arch National Park, formerly known as the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial until 2018, is an American national park located in St. Louis, Missouri, near the starting point of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. The Gateway Arch and its immediate surroundings were initially designated as a national memorial by executive order on December 21, 1935, and redesignated as a national park in 2018. The park is maintained by the National Park Service (NPS). The memorial was established to commemorate: The memorial was established to commemorate: the Louisiana Purchase, and the subsequent westward movement of American explorers and pioneers; the first civil government west of the Mississippi River; and the debate over slavery raised by the Dred Scott case. The national park consists of the Gateway Arch, a steel catenary arch that has become the definitive icon of St. Louis; a 91-acre (36.8 ha) park along the Mississippi River on the site of the earliest buildings of the city; the Old Courthouse, a former state and federal courthouse where the Dred Scott case originated; and the 140,000 sq ft (13,000 m2) museum at the Gateway Arch. The Gateway Arch, known as the "Gateway to the West", is the tallest structure in Missouri. It was designed by Finnish-American architect Eero Saarinen and structural engineer Hannskarl Bandel in 1947 and built between 1963 and October 1965. It stands 630 feet (192 m) tall and 630 feet (192 m) wide at its base. The legs are 54 feet (16.5 m) wide at the base, narrowing to 17 feet (5.2 m) at the arch. There is a unique tram system to carry passengers to the observation room at the top of the arch. The Old Courthouse is built on land originally deeded by St. Louis founder Auguste Chouteau. It marks the location over which the arch reaches. Its dome was built during the American Civil War and is similar to the dome on the United States Capitol which was also built during the Civil War. It was the site of the local trials in the Dred Scott case. The courthouse is the only portion of the memorial west of Interstate 44. To the west of the Old Courthouse is a Greenway between Market and Chestnut Streets which is only interrupted by the Civil Courts Building which features a pyramid model of the Mausoleum of Mausolus (which was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World) on its roof. When the Civil Courts building was built in the 1920s, the Chouteau family sued to regain the property belonging to the Old Courthouse because it had been deeded in perpetuity to be a courthouse. Underneath the arch is a visitor center, entered from a circular entryway facing the Old Courthouse. Within the center, a project to rebuild the Museum at the Gateway Arch was completed in July 2018. The new museum features exhibits on a variety of topics including westward expansion and the construction of the arch, all told through a St. Louis lens. Tucker Theater, finished in 1968 and renovated 30 years later, has about 285 seats and shows a documentary (Monument to the Dream) on the arch's construction. A second theater was added in 1993 but removed in 2018 as part of the CityArchRiver renovation project. Also located in the visitor center are a gift shop and cafe.

White Sands National Park is a United States national park located in the state of New Mexico on Route 70 approximately 54 miles (87 km) northeast of Las Cruces and 16 miles (26 km) southwest of Alamogordo in western Otero County and northeastern Doña Ana County. The park is situated at an elevation of 4,235 feet (1,291 m) in the mountain-ringed Tularosa Basin and comprises the southern part of a 275 sq mi (710 km2) field of white sand dunes composed of gypsum crystals. The gypsum dune field is the largest of its kind on Earth. A fossil trackway of footprints of humans and ground sloths dating from the last ice age shows that ground sloths lived at White Sands, and were hunted by humans at least 11,700 years ago. The first Euro-American exploration was led by a party of US Army officers in 1849. :6 :5 The Antelope Band of the Mescalero Apache were already living in the area at the time. Hispanic families started farming communities in the area at Tularosa in 1861 and at La Luz in 1863.:6 The idea of creating a national park to protect the white sands formation dates to 1898 when a group from El Paso, Texas, proposed the creation of Mescalero National Park. The plan failed as it included a game hunting preserve that conflicted with the idea of preservation held by the Department of the Interior.:17:52–53 In 1921–22, Albert B. Fall, Secretary of the Interior and owner of a large ranch in Three Rivers northeast of the dune field, promoted the idea of an "all-year national park" that, unlike more northerly parks, would be open even in the winter. This idea ran into a number of difficulties and did not succeed.:22–25:61–70 Tom Charles, an Alamogordo insurance agent and civic booster, was influenced by Fall's ideas. By emphasizing the economic benefits, Charles was able to mobilize enough support to have the national monument created.:28–32:77–89 On January 18, 1933, President Herbert Hoover designated White Sands National Monument, acting under the authority of the Antiquities Act of 1906.:32 The dedication and grand opening was on April 29, 1934.:102 Tom Charles became the first custodian of the monument,:35:99 and upon his retirement in 1939 became the first concessionaire, operating as White Sands Service Company.:72:117 The visitor center and a nearby comfort station, three ranger residences, as well as three maintenance buildings were constructed of adobe bricks as a Works Progress Administration project starting in 1936 and completed in 1938. The original eight adobe buildings and other nearby structures were designated the White Sands National Monument Historic District when they were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1988. The principal architect was Lyle E. Bennett who also designed NPS buildings at Casa Grande and Bandelier national monuments, as well as Petrified Forest, Carlsbad Caverns, and Mesa Verde national parks. The monument is completely surrounded by military installations (White Sands Missile Range and Holloman Air Force Base) and has always had an uneasy relationship with the military.:131,175 Errant missiles often fell on the monument, in some cases destroying some of the visitor areas.:145 Overflights from Holloman disturbed the tranquility of the area.:149 In 1969, the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish introduced oryx into the Tularosa Basin for hunting. The oryx, having no natural predators, entered the monument and competed with native species for forage.:172 In 1996, increasingly problematic alcohol abuse by students on spring break led to a ban on the consumption of alcohol, and the possession of alcohol or alcohol containers, throughout the monument from February 1 to May 31. WSNM was placed on a tentative list of potential World Heritage Sites on January 22, 2008. The state's two U.S. Senators, Pete Domenici and Jeff Bingaman, wrote letters of support of the application. U.S. Representative Stevan Pearce declined to support the application, saying, "I would guarantee that if White Sands Monument receives this designation, that there will at some point be international pressures exerted that could stop military operations as we know them today." The WHS application generated much controversy in Otero County, most of it taking place in meetings of the Otero County Commission. A petition with 1,200 signatures opposing the application was presented to the commission on August 16, 2007. The commission passed a resolution of opposition to the application on August 23, 2007, and passed Ordinance 07-05 on October 18, 2007, relating to any potential World Heritage Site designations within the county. The ordinance requires coordination with the county in following its environmental planning and review process through its Public Land Use Advisory Council, and states that "No world heritage site...will be located on or adjacent to any military land...within or adjacent to the boundaries of Otero County." On January 24, 2008, after the WHS tentative list was announced, the commission instructed the county attorney to write a letter to the Secretary of the Interior, demanding that WSNM be taken off the list. In May 2018, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich, a Democrat, introduced a bill to designate White Sands a national park. Heinrich consulted with monument officials, the National Park Service, White Sands Missile Range, the U.S. Army, and Holloman Air Force Base before the bill was introduced in Congress. The bill is supported by the Alamogordo City Commission, the Las Cruces City Council, the Mescalero Apache Tribal Council, the Town of Mesilla Board of Trustees, Alamogordo Mayor Richard Boss, New Mexico Senator Ron Griggs (Republican), the Alamogordo Chamber of Commerce, the Greater Las Cruces Chamber of Commerce, the Las Cruces Green Chamber of Commerce, the National Parks Conservation Association, and the Southern New Mexico Public Lands Alliance. The bill was opposed, however, by Otero County commissioners, who stated that the main argument in favor of national park status was the potential for increased visitation, which they claim is uncertain, while also noting that the monument is already the most-visited NPS site in the state. The commissioners were also concerned that "the change in status will affect filmmaking here either from higher fees or increased regulation." The commissioners only supported boundary adjustments and additional infrastructure, such as campgrounds and improved road access. The Doña Ana County commissioners have also opposed the redesignation of White Sands as a national park.:5 The redesignation bill was re-introduced on March 27, 2019. On December 11, 2019, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act, which included legislation that would re-designate White Sands National Monument into White Sands National Park. President Trump signed the bill on December 20, redesignating it as a national park and transferring land both to and from the missile range and protecting additional land, adding a net 4,855 acres to the park. White Sands National Park has been featured in a variety of western films, includingFour Faces West(1948),Hang 'Em High(1968),The Hired Hand(1971),My Name Is Nobody(1973),Bite the Bullett(1975), andYoung Guns II(1990).White Sands(1992) is a crime film containing some scenes filmed in the national park.King Solomon's Mines(1950),The Man Who Fell to Earth(1976), andTransformers(2007) were also filmed at White Sands.:4 During the Permian Period, shallow seas covered the area that today forms White Sands National Park. The seas left behind gypsum (calcium sulfate), and subsequent tectonic activity lifted areas of the gypsum-rich seabed to form part of the San Andres and Sacramento Mountains. Over time, rain dissolved the water-soluble gypsum in the mountains, and rivers carried it to the Tularosa Basin, which has no outlet to the sea. The trapped water sank into the ground or formed shallow pools that subsequently dried out, leaving the gypsum on the surface in a crystalline form called selenite. Groundwater that flows out of the Tularosa Basin flows south into the Hueco Basin. During the last ice age, a lake now called Lake Otero covered much of that basin. When it dried out, a large flat area of selenite crystals remained, which is named the Alkali Flat. Lake Lucero, a dry lake bed which occasionally fills with water, is located in the southwest corner of the park, at one of the lowest points of the basin. The ground in the Alkali Flat and along Lake Lucero's shore is covered with selenite crystals that measure up to three feet (1 m). Weathering and erosion eventually break the crystals into sand-size grains that are carried away by the prevailing winds from the southwest, forming the white dunes. The dunes constantly change shape and slowly move downwind. Since gypsum is water-soluble, the sand that composes the dunes may dissolve and cement together after rain, forming a layer of sand that is more solid, which increases the wind resistance of the dunes. The increased resistance does not prevent dunes from quickly covering the plants in their path. Some species of plants, however, can grow fast enough to avoid being buried by the dunes. White Sands contains various forms of dunes. Dome dunes are found along the southwest margins of the field, transverse and barchan dunes in the center of the field, and parabolic dunes along the northern, southern, and northeastern margins. From the visitor center at the park entrance, the Dunes Drive leads 8 miles (13 km) into the dunes. Four marked trails allow visitors to explore the dunes by foot. During the summer, there are also ranger-guided orientation and nature walks. The park participates in the Junior Ranger Program, with various age-group-specific activities. Unlike dunes made of quartz-based sand crystals, the gypsum does not readily convert the sun's energy into heat and can be walked upon safely with bare feet, even in the hottest summer months. Visitors frequently ride sleds down the dunes by the parking areas. Both the park and U.S. Route 70 between Las Cruces and Alamogordo are subject to closure for safety reasons when tests are conducted at White Sands Missile Range which completely surrounds the park. Tests occur about twice a week on average, for a duration of one to two hours. According to the Köppen climate classification system, White Sands National Park has a continental or "cold" semi-arid climate (BSk) bordering extremely closely on a continental desert climate (BWk). Daily means resemble those of a humid subtropical climate (Cfa), though its relatively high elevation and low precipitation causes a higher diurnal temperature variation and shorter growing season than would be typical of such a climate, the latter lasting only from April 27 to October 19 (175 days) on average. Like much of the Southwestern United States and other subtropical regions around the world, the hottest temperatures are experienced in the dry early summer before the arrival of the monsoon (in this case the North American Monsoon), though the effect is much less pronounced than in warmer, more extreme regions like North India or the Sahel.

Joshua Tree National Park is located in southeastern California. Straddling the San Bernardino County/Riverside County border, the park includes parts of two deserts, each an ecosystem whose characteristics are determined primarily by elevation: the higher Mojave Desert and lower Colorado Desert. The Little San Bernardino Mountains run through the southwest edge of the park. Nine established campgrounds exist in the park, three of which (Black Rock Campground, Indian Cove Campground, and Cottonwood Campground) provide water and flush toilets. A fee is charged per night for each camping spot.Reservations are accepted at Black Rock Campground, Indian Cove Campground, and Cottonwood Campground, while the six other campgrounds are first-come first-serve. Backcountry camping, for those who wish to backpack, is permitted with a few regulations. There are several hiking trails within the park, many of which can be accessed from a campground. Shorter trails, such as the one mile hike through Hidden Valley, offer a chance to view the beauty of the park without straying too far into the desert. A section of the California Riding and Hiking Trail meanders for 35 miles through the western side of the park. The lookout point at Keys View, towards the south of the park, offers views of the Coachella Valley and Salton Sea. Nature walks inside the park include: Hidden Valley Indian Cove Cholla Cactus Garden Longer trails include: Boy Scout Hiking and Equestrian Trail Contact Mine Fortynine Palms Oasis Lost Horse Mine Lost Palms Oasis Ryan Mountain Warren Peak Due to graffiti on at least 17 sites on trails, officials have closed them to the public. They closed sites include Native American sites, at the Southern California park's Rattlesnake Canyon and Barker Dam. They blame the increase in vandalism on the increased use of social media. The park is popular with rock climbers and was originally a winter practice area while Yosemite Valley and other parts of the Sierra Nevada were snowbound, but later became an area of interest in its own right. There are thousands of named climbing routes, at all levels of difficulty. The routes are typically short, the rocks being rarely more than 230 ft (70 m) in height, but access is usually a short, easy walk through the desert, and it is possible to do a number of interesting climbs in a single day. The rocks are all composed of quartz monzonite, a very rough type of granite made even more so as there is no snow or ice to polish it as in places like Yosemite. Most of the park's roads are unpaved and require a vehicle with high ground clearance, and preferably one with four-wheel drive. In August 2011, the director of Dutch club 013 and his girlfriend died of heat stroke in a remote part of Joshua Tree National Park, allegedly searching for a Joshua tree that had been featured in the album artwork of The Joshua Tree, a studio album released in 1987 by the Irish rock band U2. Their vehicle, a Dodge Charger rental car with rear-wheel drive and low ground clearance, was found stuck on Black Eagle Mine Road, an unpaved road in a remote part of the park. In reality, the site of that specific tree, which fell down in 2000, is located near Darwin, California, more than 300 miles driving distance from Black Eagle Mine Road. The Geology Tour Road is another unpaved road located in the center of the park. Visitors with a four-wheel drive vehicle can use this road to take a self-guided tour. There are sixteen stops on the tour showcasing the region's geology. There are over 250 species of bird in the park including resident desert birds such as the Greater Roadrunner and Cactus Wren as well as Mockingbirds, Le Conte's Thrasher, Verdin and Gambel's Quail. There are also many transient species that may spend only one or two seasons in the park. Noted birding spots in the park include: fan palm oases, Barker Dam and Smith Water Canyon. Queen Valley and Lost Horse Valley also provide good birding but with a different range of species because of the lack of water. These are often good places to see Ladder-backed Woodpecker and Oak Titmouse. A USGS Bird Checklist of "what, when, and status" has 239 species listed for the park. Joshua Tree is a popular southern California location for amateur astronomy and stargazing, along with nearby Anza-Borrego Desert State Park. Joshua Tree is well known for its dark skies, which are largely free from southern California's extreme light pollution. The park's elevation and dry desert air, along with the relatively stable atmosphere in southern California, often make for excellent astronomical observing conditions. Joshua Tree's sky darkness ranges from a green to a blue rating on the Bortle Dark-Sky Scale. Declared a U.S. National Park in 1994 when the U.S. Congress passed the California Desert Protection Act (Public Law 103-433), it had previously been a U.S. National Monument since 1936. It is named for the Joshua tree (Yucca brevifolia) forests native to the park. It covers a land area of 789,745 acres (319,598 ha), or 1,234 square miles - an area slightly larger than the state of Rhode Island. A large part of the park is designated to wilderness area—some 429,690 acres (173,890 ha).

Among the attractions that makes St. John a worthy destination is the Virgin Islands National Park. This US National Park is renowned throughout the world for its breathtaking beauty while covering two-thirds of the island. The park claims some of the most beautiful coral reefs, plant life and brilliantly decorated tropical fish in the Caribbean. More than a third of the area that makes up the national park is underwater presenting unique opportunities for diving and snorkeling that may be unmatched for accessibility and dependability. Thanks to the US Park Service, St. John has sustained its vast stretches of verdant hillsides and oft-photographed, pristine white-sand beaches. Virgin Islands National Park is home to hundreds of historic structures that include plantations, factories, fortifications, schools and numerous home sites that were inhabited by workers previously enslaved on the island. The waters of Virgin Islands Coral Reef National Monument and Virgin Islands National Park are believed harbor the remains of some of the 28 ships known to have wrecked in the vicinity of St. John between 1713 and 1916. Seemingly, every bay on the island is worth a trip into the water. The promise of a variety of fish, coral reefs, tidal pool marine life and seabirds beckons. The National Park Service provides instruction and guides for beginners and advance snorkelers and divers. St. John also has many outfitters that provide guided tours both in the bays and to more outbound locations utilizing their boats to access the current hot spots for the best snorkeling and diving. Visitors can explore the seascapes by snorkeling and diving among more than 400 reef fish species.

Sequoia National Park is home to the General Sherman Tree, the largest tree on Earth, surrounded by serene trails and ancient forests. Sequoia National Park is a national park in the southern Sierra Nevada, east of Visalia, California, in the United States of America. It was established on September 25, 1890. The park spans 404,051 acres (1,635 km2). Encompassing a vertical relief of nearly 13,000 feet (4,000 m), the park contains among its natural resources the highest point in the contiguous 48 United States, Mount Whitney, at 14,505 feet (4,421 m) above sea level. The park is south of and contiguous with Kings Canyon National Park; the two are administered by the National Park Service together. The park is famous for its Giant Sequoia trees, including the General Sherman tree, the largest tree on Earth. The General Sherman tree grows in the Giant Forest, which contains five out of the ten largest trees in the world, in terms of wood volume. The Giant Forest is connected by the park's Generals Highway to Kings Canyon National Park's General Grant Grove, home to the General Grant tree among other sequoias. The park's Giant Sequoia forests are part of 202,430 acres (81,921 ha) of old-growth forests shared by Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks. Indeed, the parks preserve a landscape that still resembles the southern Sierra Nevada before Euro-American settlement. In addition to hiking, camping, fishing, and backpacking, the following attractions are highlights with many park visitors: Sherman Tree Trail An 0.8-mile roundtrip paved trail that descends from the parking lot to the base of the General Sherman tree that meanders through a grove of giant sequoia trees. Tunnel Log is a tunnel cut through a fallen giant sequoia tree in Sequoia National Park. The tree, which measured 275 feet (84 m) tall and 21 feet (6.4 m) in diameter, fell across a park road in 1937 due to natural causes. The following year, a crew cut an 8-foot (2.4 m) tall, 17-foot (5.2 m) wide tunnel through the trunk, making the road passable again. Tokopah Falls The trail to Tokopah Falls starts just beyond the Marble Fork Bridge in Lodgepole Campground. It is an easy 1.7 mile (one way) walk along the Marble Fork of the Kaweah River to the impressive granite cliffs and waterfall of Tokopah Canyon. Tokopah Falls is 1,200 feet (365.8 meters) high, and is most impressive in early summer. Crescent Meadow is a small, sequoia-rimmed meadow in the Giant Forest region of Sequoia National Park. This sierran montane meadow marks the western terminus of the High Sierra Trail, which stretches from the meadow across the Great Western Divide to Mount Whitney. Pioneer Hale Tharp homesteaded in this and nearby Log Meadow. Conservationist John Muir visited this meadow many times and praised it highly calling it the "Gem of the Sierras". The meadow lies at the end of a three-mile paved road which leaves the Generals Highway near the Giant Forest Museum. Moro Rock is a granite dome located in the center of the park, at the head of Moro Creek, between Giant Forest and Crescent Meadow. A 400-step stairway, built in the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps, is cut into and poured onto the rock, so that visitors can hike to the top. The stairway is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The view from the rock encompasses much of the Park, including the Great Western Divide. It has an elevation of 6,725 feet (2,050 m). Campgrounds in the park include three in the foothills area: Potwisha (42 sites), Buckeye Flat (28 sites), and South Fork (10 sites). Four campgrounds are at higher, conifer-dominated elevations, ranging from 6,650 to 7,500 feet (2,000 to 2,300 m): Atwell Mill (21 sites), Cold Springs (40 sites), Lodgepole (214 sites), and Dorst Creek (204 sites). Giant Forest Museum offers information about giant sequoias and human history in the forest. The historic museum was built in 1928 by architect Gilbert Stanley Underwood. Many park visitors enter Sequoia National Park through its southern entrance near the town of Three Rivers at Ash Mountain at 1,700 ft (520 m) elevation. The lower elevations around Ash Mountain contain the only National Park Service-protected California Foothills ecosystem, consisting of blue oak woodlands, foothills chaparral, grasslands, yucca plants, and steep, mild river valleys. The foothills region is also home to abundant wildlife: bobcats, foxes, ground squirrels, rattlesnakes, and mule deer are commonly seen in this area, and more rarely, reclusive mountain lions are seen as well. The California Black Oak is a key transition species between the chaparral and higher elevation conifer forest. At higher elevations in the front country, between 5,500 and 9,000 feet (1,700 and 2,700 m) in elevation, the landscape becomes montane forest-dominated coniferous belt. Found here are Ponderosa, Jeffrey, sugar, and lodgepole pine trees, as well as abundant white and red fir. Found here too are the mighty giant sequoia trees, the most massive living single-stem trees on earth. Between the trees, spring and summer snowmelts sometimes fan out to form lush, though delicate, meadows. In this region, visitors often see mule deer, Douglas squirrels, and American black bears, which sometimes break into unattended cars to eat food left by careless visitors. The vast majority of the park is roadless wilderness; no road crosses the Sierra Nevada within the park's boundaries. 84 percent of Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks is designated wilderness and is accessible only by foot or by horseback. Sequoia's backcountry offers a vast expanse of high-alpine wonders. Covering the highest-elevation region of the High Sierra, the backcountry includes Mount Whitney on the eastern border of the park, accessible from the Giant Forest via the High Sierra Trail. On a traveler's path along this 35-mile (56 km) backcountry trail, one passes through about 10 miles (16 km) of montane forest before reaching the backcountry resort of Bearpaw Meadow, just short of the Great Western Divide. Continuing along the High Sierra Trail over the Great Western Divide via Kaweah Gap, one passes from the Kaweah River Drainage, with its characteristic V-shaped river valleys, and into the Kern River drainage, where an ancient fault line has aided glaciers in the last ice age to create a U-shaped canyon that is almost perfectly straight for nearly 20 miles (32 km). On the floor of this canyon, at least two days hike from the nearest road, is the Kern Canyon hot spring, a popular resting point for weary backpackers. From the floor of Kern Canyon, the trail ascends again over 8,000 ft (2,400 m) to the summit of Mount Whitney. At Mount Whitney, the High Sierra Trail meets with the John Muir Trail and the Pacific Crest Trail, which continue northward along the Sierra crest and into the backcountry of Kings Canyon National Park.

Petrified Forest National Park is a United States national park in Navajo and Apache counties in northeastern Arizona. Named for its large deposits of petrified wood, the park covers about 146 square miles (380 km2), encompassing semi-desert shrub steppe as well as highly eroded and colorful badlands. The Painted Desert Visitor Center, designed by modernist architect Richard Neutra, is part of the Painted Desert Community Complex Historic District and is on the National Register of Historic Places. Eight other sites within the park are also on the National Register, including the Painted Desert Inn and associated cabins, the Agate House Pueblo, the Painted Desert Petroglyphs and Ruins Archeological District, Newspaper Rock Petroglyphs Archeological District, Puerco Ruins and Petroglyphs, the Flattops Site (an archeological site), the Twin Buttes Archeological District, and the 35th Parallel Route (also known as the Beale Camel Trail). The Painted Desert Inn was upgraded to a National Historic Landmark in 1987. The desert is composed of stratified layers of easily erodible siltstone, mudstone, and shale of the Triassic Chinle Formation. These fine grained rock layers contain abundant iron and manganese compounds which provide the pigments for the various colors of the region. Thin resistant lacustrine limestone layers and volcanic flows cap the mesas. Numerous layers of silicicvolcanic ash occur in the Chinle and provide the silica for the petrified logs of the area. The erosion of these layers has resulted in the formation of the badlands topography of the region. More than 400 species of plants, dominated by grasses such as bunchgrass, blue grama, and sacaton, are found in the park. Fauna include larger animals such as pronghorns, coyotes, and bobcats; many smaller animals such as deer mice; snakes; lizards; seven kinds of amphibians, and more than 200 species of birds, some of which are permanent residents and many of which are migratory. About half of the park is designated wilderness. Some of the larger animals roaming the grasslands include pronghorns, black-tailed jackrabbits (hares), Gunnison's prairie dogs, coyotes, bobcats and foxes. Pronghorns, the fastest land animals in North America, are capable of 60-mile-per-hour (97 km/h) sprints. The Petrified Forest is known for its fossils, especially fallen trees that lived in the Late Triassic, about 225 million years ago. The sediments containing the fossil logs are part of the widespread and colorful Chinle Formation, from which the Painted Desert gets its name. Beginning about 60 million years ago, the Colorado Plateau, of which the park is part, was pushed upward by tectonic forces and exposed to increased erosion. All of the park's rock layers above the Chinle, except geologically recent ones found in parts of the park, have been removed by wind and water. In addition to petrified logs, fossils found in the park have included Late Triassic ferns, cycads, ginkgoes, and many other plants as well as fauna including giant reptiles called phytosaurs, large amphibians, and early dinosaurs. Paleontologists have been unearthing and studying the park's fossils since the early 20th century. The park's earliest human inhabitants arrived at least 8,000 years ago. By about 2,000 years ago, they were growing corn in the area and shortly thereafter building pit houses in what would become the park. Later inhabitants built above-ground dwellings called pueblos. Although a changing climate caused the last of the park's pueblos to be abandoned by about 1400 CE, more than 600 archeological sites, including petroglyphs, have been discovered in the park. In the 16th century, Spanish explorers visited the area, and by the mid-19th century a U.S. team had surveyed an east–west route through the park and noted the petrified wood. Later roads and a railway followed similar routes and gave rise to tourism and, before the park was protected, to private removal of the park's fossils. Theft of petrified wood remains a problem in the 21st century. The visitor center, which is near the north entrance to the park, offers visitor information and shows a 20-minute orientation movie, "Timeless Impressions", once every half-hour. It has a bookstore, exhibits, a restaurant open from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., a gift shop, a gas station, a post office open from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Friday, a postal drop box, and public restrooms. The Rainbow Forest Museum complex 2 miles (3.2 km) north of the park's south entrance offers services including information and "Timeless Impressions" showings once every half-hour. It has a bookstore, fossil exhibits, an interactive Triassic Virtual Tour, limited food service, a gift shop, and public restrooms. The Painted Desert Inn, 2 miles (3.2 km) north of the Painted Desert Visitor Center, offers visitor information. It has a bookstore, museum exhibits (including the building itself), and public restrooms. No campgrounds or overnight lodging are available in the park, although nearby communities such as Holbrook offer motels and other accommodations.Overnight parking is not allowed except in the case of backpackers with wilderness hiking permits. Sightseeing is available by private automobile, motorcycle, commercial tour, bicycle, and hiking. The park road, parking lots, and turn-outs are big enough to accommodate large recreational vehicles. Off-road vehicle travel, including by mountain bike, is not allowed. Bicycles may use only paved roads—the 28-mile (45 km) park road and the 3.5-mile (5.6 km) loop around Blue Mesa. The park's seven maintained hiking trails, some paved, vary in length from less than 0.5 miles (0.8 km) to nearly 3 miles (4.8 km). Pets are allowed on these trails if kept on a leash, but bicycles are not. These named trails are Painted Desert Rim, Puerco Pueblo, Blue Mesa, Crystal Forest, Giant Logs, Long Logs, and Agate House. Hikers and backpackers may also visit the park's wilderness areas. Free permits are required for overnight stays; they are issued from the Painted Desert Visitor Center, Painted Desert Inn, and Rainbow Forest Museum. Most backpackers enter the wilderness at the north end of the park, where parking and an access trail are available at Painted Desert Inn. Group camping is limited to eight people. Horseback riding is allowed in the wilderness areas; water for horses is available at the service station near the Painted Desert Visitor Center. Riders and hikers are asked to travel along dry washes as much as possible to reduce the impact on fragile desert soils. Rangers offer a variety of programs about the park. Regularly scheduled events include a Painted Desert Inn tour, a Triassic program at the Rainbow Forest Museum sunroom, a talk or walk along the Giant Logs Trail behind the museum, and a Puerco Pueblo guided walk. The park hosts special events related to Earth Science Week and National American Indian Heritage Month. On Saturdays from Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day at the Painted Desert Inn, artisans from the region give cultural demonstrations related to ancient peoples, intertribal relationships, and European-descent cultures. For students and teachers, the rangers offer educational materials and field-trip talks. Artists-in-residence work in the park between May and November. The park's headquarters are about 26 miles (42 km) east of Holbrook along Interstate 40 (I-40), which parallels a railroad line, the Puerco River, and historic U.S. Route 66, all crossing the park roughly east–west. The site, the northern part of which extends into the Painted Desert, was declared a National Monument in 1906 and a national park in 1962. About 600,000 people visit the park each year and take part in activities including sightseeing, photography, hiking, and backpacking. Average summer daytime temperatures range from 90 °F (32 °C) to over 100 °F (38 °C). Because the clear skies of the park allow for rapid cooling at night, summer lows are sometimes 40 °F (22 °C) below the daily highs. July is the warmest month, with an average high of 92 °F (33 °C) and an average low of 60 °F (16 °C). January is the coldest month, when highs average 48 °F (9 °C) and lows average 21 °F (−6 °C). The highest recorded temperature was 107 °F (42 °C) in 1998, and the lowest was −27 °F (−33 °C) in 1971. Winter winds can reach 60 miles per hour (97 km/h). Summer breezes are lighter, but the 10-mile-per-hour (16 km/h) average wind causes frequent sandstorms and dust devils, some of which reach altitudes of several thousand feet. Rain is heaviest from July through September, when about half of the park's annual average precipitation falls during short, violent thunderstorms. August is generally the wettest month. At an elevation of more than 5,000 feet (1,500 m),Petrified Forest National Park has a chance of light snow from October through March, although snow cover rarely persists. The average relative humidity of the area is well below 50 percent and at times less than 15 percent. The park is open every day except Christmas (December 25) on a schedule that varies slightly with the seasons. In 2010, it and its Painted Desert Visitor Center and Rainbow Forest Museum were open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. from May 9 through September 6 but opened as early as 8 a.m. and closed as late as 5 p.m. during other parts of the year. The Painted Desert Inn (an historic museum and bookstore) is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. year-round except Christmas. Park clocks are always set to Mountain Standard Time, as Arizona does not observe Daylight Saving Time.

Guadalupe Mountains National Park is located in the Guadalupe Mountains of West Texas and contains Guadalupe Peak, the highest point in Texas at 8,749 feet (2,667 m) in elevation. It also contains El Capitan, long used as a landmark by people traveling along the old route later followed by the Butterfield Overland Mail stagecoach line. Visitors can see the ruins of an old stagecoach station near the Pine Springs Visitor Center. Camping is available nearby at the Pine Springs Campground. The restored Frijole Ranch House is now a small museum of local ranching history and is the trailhead for Smith Spring. The park covers 135 square miles (350 km2) and is in the same mountain range as Carlsbad Caverns National Park which is located about 25 miles (40 km) to the north in New Mexico. Numerous well-established trails exist in the park for hiking and horse-riding. The Guadalupe Peak Trail offers perhaps the most outstanding views in the park. Climbing over 3,000 feet (910 m) to the summit of Guadalupe Peak, the trail winds through pinon pine and douglas fir forests and offers spectacular views of El Capitan and the vast Chihuahuan desert. The park also contains McKittrick Canyon. During the Fall, McKittrick comes alive with a blaze of color from the turning Bigtooth Maples, in stark contrast with the surrounding Chihuahuan desert. A trail in the canyon leads to a stone cabin built in the early 1930s, formerly the vacation home of Wallace Pratt, a petroleum geologist who donated the land in order to establish the park. The Guadalupe Mountains reach their highest point at Guadalupe Peak, the highest point in Texas, with an elevation of 8,751 feet (2,667 m). The range lies southeast of the Sacramento Mountains and east of the Brokeoff Mountains. The mountain range extends north-northwest and northeast from Guadalupe Peak in Texas into New Mexico. The northeastern extension ends about 10 miles (16 km) southwest of Carlsbad, near White's City and Carlsbad Caverns National Park; the southwest tip ends with El Capitan about 90 miles (140 km) east of El Paso. The mountains rise more than 3,000 feet (910 m) above the arid floor of the Chihuahuan Desert. with an elevation of 8,751 feet (2,667 m). The Guadalupe Mountains are surrounded by the South Plains to the east and north, Delaware Mountains to the south, and Sacramento Mountains to the west. The northwestern extension, bounded by a dramatic escarpment known as "The Rim", extends much further into New Mexico, to near the Sacramento Mountains. The range is bounded on the north by Four Mile Canyon; on the east by the valley of the Pecos River; and on the west by Piñon Creek, Big Dog Canyon, Valley Canyon, Middle Dog Canyon and West Dog Canyon. Much of the range is built from the ancient Capitán Reef that formed at the margins of a shallow sea during the Permian Period. For detail on the area's geology, see Delaware Basin. As the range is built up almost entirely oflimestone, upland areas have little or no surface water. The only significant surface water is McKittrick Creek, in McKittrick Canyon, which emerges from the eastern side of the massif, just south of the New Mexico border. Elevations at the base of the range vary from 4,000 feet (1,200 m) above sea level on the western side to 5,000 feet (1,500 m) on the east. Several peaks on the southern end exceed 8,000 feet (2,400 m). The Guadalupe Mountains experience relatively hot summers, calm, mild autumn weather, and cool to cold weather in winter and early spring. Snow storms, freezing rain, or fog may occur in winter or early spring. Frequent high wind warnings are issued during winter through spring. Late summer monsoons produce thunderstorms. Nights are cool, even in summer. There are three major ecosystems contained within the mountain range. First of all, deserts exhibit salt flats on the western side of the National Park and creosote desert, with low elevations on the east covered with grassland, pinyon pine (Pinus edulis) and junipers such as alligator juniper (J. deppeana) and one-seeded juniper (J. monosperma). Secondly, canyon interiors such as McKittrick, Bear, and Pine Springs Canyon on the southeast end exhibit maple, ash, chinquapin oak (Quercus muehlenbergii), and other deciduous trees. These trees are able to grow in the desert due to springsof water recharged by wet uplands. Finally, alpine uplands known as 'The Bowl' exceeding elevations of 7,000 ft (2,100 m) are clothed with denser forests of ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa), southwestern white pine (Pinus flexilis), and Rocky Mountain Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii subsp. glauca), with small stands of aspen. The range contains many world-class caves, including Carlsbad Caverns (the best known) and Lechuguilla Cave, discovered in 1986. The history of the range includes occupation by ancient Pueblo and Mogollon peoples, and by the Apache and various Anglo outlaws in the 19th century.

Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve is a United States National Park located in the easternmost parts of Alamosa County and Saguache County, Colorado, United States. The large, main dunefield covers approximately 30 square miles, but there are many more square miles of smaller dunes in the sand sheet surrounding the main dunefield. At the widest point, the main dunefield runs six miles and at the greatest length, eight miles. Great Sand Dunes has the tallest dunes in North America. Star Dune rises 750 feet from its base to its crest. High Dune rises 650 feet from its base, but because it starts on higher ground, its crest is higher above sea level that of Star Dune. The park also contains alpine lakes and tundra, six peaks over 13,000 feet (3,940 m) in elevation, ancient spruce and pine forests, large stands of aspen and cottonwood, grasslands, and wetlands — all habitat for diverse wildlife and plant species. One of the most unusual features of the park happens at Medano Creek, which borders the east side of the dunes and is located next to the Visitor Center and Bookstore. Because fresh sand continually falls in the creek, Medano Creek never finds a permanent and stable streambed. Small underwater sand dunes that act like dams continually form and break down, and so waders in the stream see surges—which look like waves—of water flowing downstream at intervals of anywhere from just a few seconds to a minute or more. In a high-water year, these surges can be as much as a foot in height, resembling ocean waves. Building sand castles with the creek sand is a popular visitor activity, and Skimboarding is a great activity for young people to do because only an inch or two of creek depth is needed. Many visitors to the site try to sled down the dunes. The Park Service provides hints as to the best time to sled (when the sand is wet) and which equipment works best. Visitors anytime other than late fall through early spring are also advised to avoid bare feet or sandals, and stick with sturdy, closed footwear. While the sand looks alluring, its chocolate color absorbs heat. The daylight sand temperature can reach 140 degrees and will burn bare feet. One of the most valued features of the Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve is one that can't be seen. According to a recent Soundscape Study conducted by the National Park Service, this park is the quietest national park in the 48 contiguous United States. Getting to the dunes requires walking across the wide and shallow Medano Creek, which flows only from spring to early summer. Hiking is permitted, with the warning that the sand can get very hot in the summer, up to 140° Fahrenheit (60° Celsius). The area gets snow in the winter. Sand wheelchairs are available at the Vistor's Center. Originally designated Great Sand Dunes National Monument, Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve was created by an act of the United States Congress on September 13, 2004. The park contains approximately 85,000 acres (340 km², 130 mi²). During summer days, plan to keep your pet on the moist, cool sand near Medano Creek. Access the dunes with your pet only in early morning or evening to avoid 150 degree F sand.

Dry Tortugas National Park preserves Fort Jefferson and the Dry Tortugas section of the Florida Keys. The park covers 101 mi² , mostly water, about 68 statute miles west of Key West in the Gulf of Mexico. It is famous for abundant sea life, colorful coral reefs and legends of shipwrecks and sunken treasures. The park's centerpiece is Fort Jefferson, a massive but unfinished coastal fortress. It is the largest masonry structure in the Western Hemisphere, and is composed of over 16 million bricks. The park has almost 80,000 visitors each year. The park is accessible only by seaplane or boat. Ferries leave from Key West. Activities include snorkeling, picnicking, camping, scuba diving, saltwater fishing and birdwatching. Fort Jefferson is an unincorporated community and ghost town in Monroe County, Florida, United States. It is located on Garden Key in the lower Florida Keys within the Dry Tortugas National Park, about 70 miles (110 km) west of the island of Key West. Fort Jefferson is a massive but unfinished coastal fortress. It is the largest masonry structure in the Western Hemisphere, and is composed of over 16 million bricks. The total area of the islets, some of which are little more than sand bars just above the water mark, is about 580,000 square meters (143 acres). Their area changes over time as wind and waves reshape them. There are seven islets, which are from West to East: Loggerhead Key, with Dry Tortugas lighthouse (46 meters high), 250 by 1200 meters in size, with an area of 260,000 m2 the largest, 1 meter high. This island has the highest elevation in the Dry Tortugas, at 10 feet (3.0 m). Garden Key, with Fort Jefferson and the inactive Garden Key lighthouse (20 meters high), 4 km east of Loggerhead Key. Garden Key is the second largest island in the chain, at 400 by 500 meters in size, with an area of 170,000 m2. The original size, before construction of Fort Jefferson, has been estimated at 30,350 m2 to 35,610 m2. Bush Key, formerly named Hog Island because of the hogs that were raised there to provide fresh meat for the prisoners at Fort Jefferson, just a few meters east of Garden Key. At times, Bush Key is connected to Garden Key by a sand bar. The island is the third largest, 150 by 900 meters in size, area 120,000 m2, less than 1 meter high. Bush Key is the site of a large tern rookery. It is closed to visitors from April to September to protect nesting Sooty Terns and Brown Noddys. Long Key, 50 meters south of the eastern end of Bush key, 50 by 200 meters in size, area 8,000 m2 Hospital Key, so called because a hospital for the inmates of Fort Jefferson had been built there in the 1870s. The island was formerly called Middle Key or Sand Key. It lies 2.5 km northeast of Garden Key and Bush Key, 70 meters in diameter, area 4,000 m2, and is 1 meter high at its highest point. Middle Key, 2.5 km east of Hospital key, 90 meters in diameter, area 6,000 m2, due to various seasonal changes, storm patterns and tidal cycles it is not always above sea level, disappearing for weeks or months only to reappear again. East Key, 2 km east of Middle Key, 100 by 200 meters in size, area 16,000 m2, over 2 meters high The three westernmost keys, which are also the three largest keys (Loggerhead Key, Garden Key, and Bush Key), make up about 93 percent of the total land area of the group.

Crater Lake National Park is a United States National Park located in southern Oregon, whose primary feature is Crater Lake. This National Park was established on May 22, 1902, and it is the sixth oldest National Park in the U.S. This park encompasses the Crater Lake caldera, which rests in the remains of a destroyed volcano (eventually named Mount Mazama) and the surrounding forestland and hills. This is the only National Park in Oregon. The lake is 1,949 feet deep at its deepest point, which makes it the deepest lake in the United States, the second deepest in North America and the ninth deepest in the world. However, when comparing its average depth of 1,148 feet (350 m) to the average depth of other deep lakes, Crater Lake becomes the deepest in the Western Hemisphere and the third deepest in the world. The impressive average depth of this volcanic lake is due to the nearly symmetrical 4,000-foot deep caldera formed 7,700 years ago during the violent climactic eruptions and subsequent collapse of Mount Mazama and the relatively moist climate that is typical of the crest of the Cascade Range. The caldera rim ranges in elevation from 7,000 to 8,000 feet (2,100 to 2,400 m). The United States Geological Survey benchmarked elevation of the lake surface itself is 6,178 feet (1,883 m). This National Park encompasses 183,225 acres (286.29 sq mi; 741.49 km2). Crater Lake has no streams flowing into or out of it. All water that enters the lake is eventually lost from evaporation or subsurface seepage. The lake's water commonly has a striking blue hue, and the lake is re-filled entirely from direct precipitation in the form of snow and rain. Some notable park features created by this huge eruption are: The Pumice Desert: A very thick layer of pumice and ash leading away from Mazama in a northerly direction. Even after thousands of years, this area is largely devoid of plants due to excessive porosity (meaning water drains through quickly) and poorsoil composed primarily of regolith. The Pinnacles: When the very hot ash and pumice came to rest near the volcano, it formed 200-to-300-foot (60 to 90 m) thick gas-charged deposits. For perhaps years afterward, hot gas moved to the surface and slowly cemented ash and pumice together in channels and escaped through fumaroles. Erosion later removed most of the surrounding loose ash and pumice, leaving tall pinnacles and spires. Other park features: Mount Scott is a steep andesitic cone whose lava came from magma from Mazama's magma chamber; geologists call such volcano a parasitic or satellite cone. Volcanic eruptions apparently ceased on Scott sometime before the end of thePleistocene; one remaining large cirque on Scott's northwest side was left unmodified by post-ice age volcanism. In the southwest corner of the park stands Union Peak, an extinct volcano whose primary remains consist of a large volcanic plug, which is lava that solidified in the volcano's neck. Crater Peak is a shield volcano primarily made of andesite and basalt lava flows topped by andesitic and dacite tephra. Timber Crater is a shield volcano located in the northeast corner of the park. Like Crater Peak, it is made of basaltic and andesitic lava flows, but, unlike Crater, it is topped by two cinder cones. Rim Drive is the most popular road in the park; it follows a scenic route around the caldera rim. Llao Rock on the north side rises 1,800 feet (550 m) above the lake, with a 1.3 miles (2.1 km) trail from Rim Drive leading to the summit. The Pacific Crest Trail, a 2,650-mile (4,260 km) long distance hiking and equestrian trail that stretches from the Mexican to Canadian borders, passes through the park. Old-growth forests covering 50,000 acres (20,000 ha). There are many hiking trails inside the park, and several campgrounds. Unlicensed fishing is allowed without any limitation of size, species, or number. The lake is believed to have no indigenous fish, but several species of fish were introduced beginning in 1888 until all fish stocking ended in 1941. Kokanee Salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) and Rainbow Trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) now thrive and reproduce here naturally. Swimming is allowed in the lake, and the boat tours, which stop at Wizard Island a cinder cone inside the lake, operate daily during the summer. All lake access for people is from Cleetwood Trail, a steep walking trail, and there are no roads for cars, trucks, or wagons that lead to the waterfront. All of the boats in the lake were delivered by helicopter. Numerous observation points along the caldera rim for the lake are readily accessible by automobile via the "Rim Drive", which is 33 miles (53 km) long and has an elevation gain of 3,800 feet (1,200 m). The highest point in Crater Lake National Park is Mount Scott at 8,929 feet (2,722 m). Getting there requires a fairly steep 2.5-mile (4.0 km) hike from the Rim Drive trailhead. On a clear day visibility from the summit exceeds 100 miles (160 km), and one can, in a single view, take in the entire caldera. Also visible from this point are the white-peaked Cascade Range volcanoes to the north, the Columbia River Plateau to the east, and also the Western Cascades and the more-distant Klamath Mountains to the west. The scenery of Crater Lake is fully accessible during the summer months. Heavy snowfalls in this park during the fall, winter, and spring months force many road and trail closures, including the popular "Rim Drive", which is generally completely open from July to October, and partially open in some other months, such as May, June, and November.

Glacier National Park is located in the U.S. state of Montana, bordering the Canadian provinces of Alberta and British Columbia. The park encompasses over 1,000,000 acres (4,000 km2) and includes parts of two mountain ranges (sub-ranges of the Rocky Mountains), over 130 named lakes, more than 1,000 different species of plants and hundreds of species of animals. This vast pristine ecosystem is the centerpiece of what has been referred to as the "Crown of the Continent Ecosystem", a region of protected land encompassing 16,000 square miles (41,000 km2). The region that became Glacier National Park was first inhabited by Native Americans and upon the arrival of European explorers, was dominated by the Blackfeet in the east and the Flathead in the western regions. Soon after the establishment of the park on May 11, 1910, a number of hotels and chalets were constructed by the Great Northern Railway. These historic hotels and chalets are listed as National Historic Landmarks, and a total of 350 locations are on the National Register of Historic Places. By 1932, work was completed on the Going-to-the-Sun Road, later designated a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark, which provided greater accessibility for automobiles into the heart of the park. The mountains of Glacier National Park began forming 170 million years ago when ancient rocks were forced eastward up and over much younger rock strata. Known as the Lewis Overthrust, these sedimentary rocks are considered to have some of the finest fossilized examples of extremely early life found anywhere on Earth. The current shapes of the Lewis and Livingston mountain ranges and positioning and size of the lakes show the telltale evidence of massive glacial action, which carved U-shaped valleys and left behind moraines which impounded water creating lakes. Of the estimated 150 glaciers which existed in the park in the mid-19th century, only 25 active glaciers remained by 2010. Scientists studying the glaciers in the park have estimated that all the glaciers may disappear by 2030 if the current climate patterns persist. Glacier National Park has almost all its original endemic plant and animal species. Mammals such as the grizzly and mountain goat as well as less common ones such as the wolverine and lynx are known to inhabit the park. Hundreds of species of birds, more than a dozen fish species and even a few reptile and amphibian species have been documented. The park has numerous ecosystems ranging from prairie to tundra and the easternmost forests of red cedar and hemlock normally found in large numbers closer to the Pacific Ocean. Though larger forest fires are uncommon in the park, in 2003 over 10% of the park was impacted by fires. Glacier National Park borders Waterton Lakes National Park in Canada—the two parks are known as the Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park, and were designated as the world's first International Peace Park in 1932. Both parks were designated by the United Nations as Biosphere Reserves in 1976, and in 1995 as World Heritage sites.

Wrangell–St. Elias National Park and Preserve is a United States National Park in southeastern Alaska. It was established in 1980 by the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act. The park area is included in an International Biosphere Reserve and is part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is the largest national park in the United States by area, covering an area of 20,587 mi² (53,321 km²), or over 13 million acres (53,000 km²). In fact, it is larger than nine U.S. States, and its size is comparable to the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. The Edgerton Highway runs along the valley of the Copper River on the western margin of the park. The headquarters and visitor center are at mile 106.8 near Copper Center. Road access to the park's interior is along the Nabesna Road and the McCarthy Road. The abandoned mining town of Kennecott can be accessed by footbridge from a continuation of the McCarthy road. Backcountry access is available by air taxi services. Access to the Park is open all year, and most of the park facilities are open from May to September, although some locations open as late as the end of May and close in mid-August. The main visitor center remains open on weekdays in the winter. The climate of the park's interior is dominated by long, cold winters in which temperatures may remain below freezing for five months. Nighttime low temperatures can sink to −50 °F (−46 °C) and daytime highs of 5 °F (−15 °C) to 7 °F (−14 °C) are usual. Summer lasts two months, June and July, bringing flowers and biting insects, with maximum temperatures of 80 °F (27 °C). Late summers can bring drizzle. It begins to get cool in August, and first snows fall in September. Conditions are more temperate along the coast, and the high mountains retain snow all year. The Kendsnii campground on the Nabesna Road is the only Park Service-managed campground in the park. There are a number of private campgrounds and lodgings on the McCarthy and Nabesna roads, and there are fourteen public-use cabins. Most of these cabins are accessible only by air. None are accessible by road, but most are associated with airstrips. Backcountry camping is allowed without a permit. There are few established and maintained trails in the park. Mountain biking is mainly limited to roads due to prevailing boggy conditions in the summer. On the other hand, float trips on the rivers are a popular way to see the park on the Copper, Nizina, Kennicott and Chitina Rivers.Because the park and preserve include some of the highest peaks in North America, they are a popular destination for mountain climbing. Of the 70 tallest mountains in Alaska, 35 are in the park, including seven of the top ten peaks.Climbing these peaks is technically demanding, and requires expeditions to access remote and dangerous terrain. In addition to the Copper Center visitor center, the park maintains a visitor center at Kennecott and an information station at Mile 59 on the McCarthy Road. There are ranger stations at Slana on the Nabesna Road, in Chitina at the end of the Edgerton Highway,and in Yakutat. The Yakutat ranger station is shared with Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve. The park has three improved airstrips, at McCarthy, May Creek and Chisana, with a number of unimproved strips scattered around the park. Air taxis provide sightseeing services and visitor transportation within the park, based in Glennallen, Chitina, Nabesna, and McCarthy. Air taxis provide access to sea kayak tours that operate in the vicinity of Icy Bay. Farther east on the park's coast, cruise ships are frequent visitors to Hubbard Glacier in Yakutat Bay. Sport hunting and trapping are allowed only within the preserve lands. Subsistence hunting by local residents is permitted in both the park and preserve. Hunting is managed jointly by the National Park Service, and the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, which issues hunting licenses. The use of off-road vehicles (ORVs) is restricted to specific routes and permits are required to use ORVs in the preserve. Mount St. Elias is situated on the border of Wrangell–St. Elias National Park and Canada's Kluane National Park and Reserve. At 18,008 feet (5,489 m), Mt. St. Elias is the second highest mountain in both Canada and the United States. In all, nine of the 16 highest peaks on U.S. soil are located in the park, along with North America's largest subpolar icefield, glaciers, rivers, an active volcano, and the historic Kennecott copper mines. The vast majority of the park is designated as wilderness, and the Wrangell–St. Elias Wilderness is the largest designated wilderness in the United States. The park is accessible by highway from Anchorage; two rough gravel roads (the McCarthy Road and the Nabesna Road) wind through the park, making much of the interior accessible for backcountry camping and hiking. Chartered aircraft also fly into the park. Wrangell–St. Elias received 61,085 visitors in 2007 and is quickly gaining popularity through its combination of size, remoteness, and accessibility.

Great Smoky Mountains National Park is the most important natural area in the eastern United States, the most visited National Park in the USA, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and an International Biosphere Reserve. The park is frequently cited as a shining example of a temperate deciduous hardwood forest. With 130 species of tree found in the park, it has almost as many tree species as all of Europe. It harbors many endangered species of animals and has what has been called the greatest diversity of salamanders in the world. The Great Smoky Mountains presents 16 peaks over 6,000 feet, the tallest mountains in the Appalachian chain. The topography of the park is comprised of crested, steep-sided ridges separated by V-shaped valleys. Many of those ridges branch and subdivide creating a natural drainage system with a number of rapidly flowing clear mountain streams. Wildlife, in addition to the Black Bears, includes more than 50 native animals. Several species of bats and over 200 types of birds live in the park. Copious amounts of precipitation and the many streams make the mountains perfect habitat for a wide variety of amphibians and the park also contains a diverse collection of invertebrates with over 70 species of native fish, spiders, insects and other arthropods. This breathtakingly beautiful park is home to more than 3,500 plant species Evidence exists supporting the earliest inhabitants of the park were prehistoric hunters and gatherers. The park contains remnants of four pre-Columbian Indian cultures: Mississippian, Woodland, Archaic and Paleo-Indians, with the first evidence of organized farming in North America, to early European settlement in the 1800s to loggers and Civilian Conservation Corps enrollees in the 20th century. More than 150 archaeological sites have been identified within the park. Structures dot the landscape dating from the mid-1800s to 1920, including the the best collection of log buildings in the United States. The region had been the home of the Cherokee Indians for centuries, until most of them were forced from their land and sent to Oklahoma on what came to be known as the Trail of Tears. The Cherokees called the mountains the "Land of the Blue Smoke" because of the smoky fog that often shrouds the mountains. The fog is the result of warm humid air from the Gulf of Mexico as it cools rapidly when it enters the higher elevations. The fog is most prevalent after a summer rainstorm. After the Cherokees, other folks settled or hid-out in the remote mountain tops and hollows such as farmers looking for isolation, moonshiners, Confederate deserters and Union sympathizers during the Civil War, Cherokees who had evaded removal and other people wanting to escape civilization for one reason or another. Great Smoky Mountains National Park preserves the rich cultural fabric of Southern Appalachian history. Life for the early European settlers was primitive, but by the 1900s there was little difference between the mountain people and their contemporaries living in rural areas beyond the mountains. Earlier settlers had lived off the land by hunting the wildlife, utilizing the timber for buildings and fences, growing food and raising livestock in the clearings. As the decades passed, many areas that had once been forest became fields and pastures. People farmed, attended church, hauled their grain to the mill and maintained community ties as would be typically found in rural areas. The agricultural pattern of life in the Great Smoky Mountains changed with the arrival of lumber mills in the early 1900s. Within 20 years, the largely self-sufficient economy of the people here was almost entirely replaced by dependence on manufactured items like store bought food. Logging boom towns sprang up overnight at sites that have preserved their camp names: Elkmont, Smokemont, Proctor, Tremont. The fear was then that loggers were rapidly cutting the great forests that remained on these mountains and unless the course of events could be quickly changed, there would be little left of the region’s special character and wilderness resources. Intervention came when Great Smoky Mountains National Park was established in 1934. The forest, at least the 20% that remained uncut within park boundaries, was preserved. More than 1,200 land-owners had to leave their land once the park was established. They left behind many farm buildings, mills, schools and churches. Over 70 of these structures have since been preserved so that Great Smoky Mountains National Park now contains the largest collection of historic log buildings in the East. The idea to create a national park in these mountains started in the late 1890s. The land that became Great Smoky Mountains National Park was owned by hundreds of small farmers and a handful of large timber and paper companies. Establishing most of the older parks located in the western United States, such as Yellowstone was relatively easy by comparison. Congress merely carved the parks out of lands already owned by the government, quite often in places where no one wanted to live in the first place. That was not the case for the Great Smokys. Acquiring park land in this area was a completely different story. The farmers did not want to leave their family homesteads; neither did the large corporations want to abandon huge forests of timber, the many miles of railroad track, extensive systems of logging equipment and entire villages of employee housing. The drive to create a national park became successful in the mid-1920s with most of the hard working supporters based in Knoxville, Tennessee and Asheville, North Carolina. The two groups had long been at odds over the location of the national park but they finally began working together for a park in the heart of the Smokys. The park was formally dedicated by President Franklin Roosevelt in September, 1940. Visitors will find birds, mammals, reptiles and other forms of wildlife throughout the park. While viewing wildlife in the Smokys can be challenging because most of the park is covered by dense forest, the more open areas like Cataloochee and Cades Cove offer some of the best opportunities to spot white-tailed deer, black bear, raccoon, turkeys, woodchucks and other animals. Great Smoky Mountains National Park has about 2,115 miles of streams within its boundary and protects one of the last wild trout habitats in the eastern United States. The park offers a wide variety of angling experiences from remote, headwater trout streams to large, cool water smallmouth bass streams. Most of the streams remain at or near their capacity of fish and offer a great opportunity to catch fish throughout the year. A Tennessee or North Carolina fishing license is required to fish in the park. Hikers enjoy the park during all months of the year with every season offering is own special rewards. One of the most daunting tasks facing hikers is choosing just which trail to cover out of the 900 miles available. The suggestion is to plan ahead by deciding on just exactly what you would like to see. Perhaps some of park’s magnificent waterfalls would fulfill your fantasies of the perfect Great Smokys hiking experience. Treks through old-growth forests are popular as are some of the trails that are laid out to capture the incredible vistas. The park has trails appealing to every level of hiker. Many of the hikes pass or end at cascading waterfalls and scenic view points. A wide range of easy day hikes can be found throughout the park.The world-famous Appalachian Trailruns through the park and crosses many of the park trails. Some of the favorite trails within the park are Alum Cave Trail, Rainbow Falls Trail and Laurel Falls Trail. The park is also world-renowned for its fall foliage. Red, yellow and orange pallets enhance the already spectacular landscape. Throughout the year wild flowers are in bloom at different altitudes. The park boasts over 1,500 species of native flowering plants, making this a haven for all plant lovers and anyone that can appreciate nature’s beauty. Favorite destinations in the park are Cades Cove, an isolated valley that was once home to settlers where often explored Gregory’s Cave and Bull Cave are located, the Cataloochee Valley with its historic villages and significant reintroduced elk population, Clingmans Dome, the tallest peak in the Smokys and Roaring Fork, a huge rapidly flowing mountain stream through an old-growth forest. Auto touring through the park is the way most visitors garner the experience of the Great Smokys but alternative experiences including bicycling, hiking and backpacking. Le Conte Lodge, on top of Mount Le Conte, provides the only lodging within the park. The lodge is accessible only by trail (one way is a 5 mile hike). Summiting Mount LeConte is a great hike even if you aren’t going to be staying at the Lodge. Reservations are often made a year in advance. The surrounding communities offer a wide choice of accommodations including hotels, cabins, bed and breakfasts and commercial campgrounds that are conveniently located. No entrance fees are charged for visiting the park courtesy of guidelines developed when the park was established. There are ten developed campgrounds in the park. Each campground has restrooms with cold running water and flushable toilets. However, there are no showers or electrical or water hookups. If you require shower facilities those are available in the communities surrounding the national park but then again there are always the plethora of waterfalls. Each individual campsite has a fire grate and a picnic table. Park campgrounds are located in areas frequented by bears and other wildlife (here’s another one of those bear warnings!). All food, coolers, utensils, stoves, etc., must be stored out of sight in a closed vehicle when not in use. All visitors are reminded not to throw food scraps or packaging in fire rings. Feeding wildlife is prohibited in Great Smokys National Park and, frankly, everywhere. Four drive-in horse camps provide ready access to backcountry horse trails in the national park. Travelling by car is the best method to visit the park. The most popular entrance into the park is from the North through Gatlinburg, Tennessee. You can also enter from the South on the North Carolina side of the park, through Cherokee, Maggie Valley, or Bryson City. Airlines will get you to Asheville, NC (60 miles East) or Knoxville, TN (45 miles West) where car rentals are easily arranged. The closest train station is in Clemson, South Carolina, a two hour drive from the park entrance near Bryson City. So when you have finally made up your mind to add a trip to Great Smoky Mountains National Park to your bucket list you would be well advised to read and memorize this advice we encountered about the Black Bears until its second nature: “Bears in the park are wild and their behavior is sometimes unpredictable. Although extremely rare, attacks on humans have occurred, inflicting serious injuries and death. Treat bear encounters with extreme caution and follow these guidelines: If you see a bear remain watchful. Do not approach it. If your presence causes the bear to change its behavior (stops feeding, changes its travel direction, watches you, etc.)—you’re too close. Being too close may promote aggressive behavior from the bear such as running toward you, making loud noises, or swatting the ground. The bear is demanding more space. Don’t run, but slowly back away, watching the bear. Try to increase the distance between you and the bear. The bear will probably do the same. If a bear persistently follows or approaches you, without vocalizing, or paw swatting, try changing your direction. If the bear continues to follow you, stand your ground. If the bear gets closer, talk loudly or shout at it. Act aggressively and try to intimidate the bear. Act together as a group if you have companions. Make yourselves look as large as possible (for example, move to higher ground). Throw non-food objects such as rocks at the bear. Use a deterrent such as a stout stick. Don’t run and don't turn away from the bear. Don't leave food for the bear; this encourages further problems. Most injuries from black bear attacks are minor and result from a bear attempting to get at people's food. If the bear's behavior indicates that it is after your food and you areattacked separate yourself from the food and slowly back away. If the bear shows no interest in your food and you're physically attacked, fight back aggressively with any available object—the bear may consider you as prey! Protect others, report all bear incidents to a ranger immediately. Above all, keep your distance from bears!”

Olympic National Park is located on the Olympic Peninsula in the state of Washington. The park can be divided into three basic regions: the Pacific coastline, the Olympic Mountains, and the temperate rainforest. U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt originally created Mount Olympus National Monument in 1909 and after Congress voted to authorize a re-designation to National Park status, President Franklin Roosevelt signed the legislation in 1938. In 1976, Olympic National Park became an International Biosphere Reserve, and in 1981 it was designated a World Heritage Site. In 1988, Congress designated 95 percent of the park as the Olympic Wilderness. The coastal portion of the park is a rugged, sandy beach along with a strip of adjacent forest. It is 73 miles (117 km) long but just a few miles wide, with native communities at the mouths of two rivers. The Hoh River has the Hoh people and at the town of La Push at the mouth of the Quileute River live the Quileute. The beach has unbroken stretches of wilderness ranging from 10 to 20 miles (16 to 32 km). While some beaches are primarily sand, others are covered with heavy rock and very large boulders. Bushy overgrowth, slippery footing, tides and misty rain forest weather all hinder foot travel. (Times to hike should typically be doubled.) The coastal strip is more readily accessible than the interior of the Olympics; due to the difficult terrain, very few backpackers venture beyond casual day-hiking distances. The most popular piece of the coastal strip is the 9-mile (14 km) Ozette Loop. The Park Service runs a registration and reservation program to control usage levels of this area. From the trailhead at Ozette Lake, a 3-mile (4.8 km) leg of the trail is a boardwalk-enhanced path through near primal coastal cedar swamp. Arriving at the ocean, it is a 3-mile walk supplemented by headland trails for high tides. This area has traditionally been favored by the Makah from Neah Bay. The third 3-mile leg is enabled by a boardwalk which has enhanced the loop's popularity. There are thick groves of trees adjacent to the sand, which results in chunks of timber from fallen trees on the beach. The mostly unaltered Hoh River, toward the south end of the park, discharges large amounts of naturally eroded timber and other drift, which moves north, enriching the beaches. The removal of driftwood - logs, dead-heads, tops and root-wads from streams and beaches was a major domestication measure across North America. Even today driftwood deposits form a commanding presence, biologically as well as visually, giving a taste of the original condition of the beach viewable to some extent in early photos. Drift-material often comes from a considerable distance; the Columbia River formerly contributed huge amounts to the Northwest Pacific coasts. The smaller coastal portion of the park is separated from the larger, inland portion. President Franklin D. Roosevelt originally had supported connecting them with a continuous strip of park land. The park is known for its unique turbidites. It has very exposed turbidities with white calcite veins. Turbidites are rocks or sediments that travel into the ocean as suspended particles in the flow of water, causing a sedimentary layering effect on the ocean floor. Over time the sediments and rock compact and the process repeats as a constant cycle. The park also is known for its tectonic mélanges that have been deemed 'smell rocks' by the locals due to its strong petroleum odor. Mélanges are large individual rocks that are large enough that they are accounted for in map drawings. The Olympic mélanges can be as large as a house. Within the center of Olympic National Park rise the Olympic Mountains whose sides and ridgelines are topped with massive, ancient glaciers. The mountains themselves are products of accretionary wedgeuplifting related to the Juan De Fuca Plate subduction zone. The geologic composition is a curious mélange of basaltic and oceanic sedimentary rock. The western half of the range is dominated by the peak ofMount Olympus, which rises to 7,965 feet (2,428 m). Mount Olympus receives a large amount of snow, and consequently has the greatest glaciation of any non-volcanic peak in the contiguous United States outside of the North Cascades. It has several glaciers, the largest of which is the Hoh Glacier, nearly five kilometers in length. Looking to the east, the range becomes much drier due to the rain shadow of the western mountains. Here, there are numerous high peaks and craggy ridges. The tallest summit of this area is Mount Deception, at 7,788 feet (2,374 m). The western side of the park is mantled by a temperate rain forest, including the Hoh Rain Forest and Quinault Rain Forest, which receive annual precipitation of about 150 inches (380 cm), making this perhaps the wettest area in the continental United States (the island of Kauai in the state of Hawaii gets more rain). As opposed to tropical rainforests and most other temperate rainforest regions, the rainforests of the Pacific Northwest are dominated by coniferous trees, including Sitka Spruce, Western Hemlock, Coast Douglas-fir and Western redcedar. Mosses coat the bark of these trees and even drip down from their branches in green, moist tendrils. Valleys on the eastern side of the park also have notable old-growth forest, but the climate is notably drier. Sitka Spruce is absent, trees on average are somewhat smaller, and undergrowth is generally less dense and different in character. Immediately northeast of the park is a rather small rainshadow area where annual precipitation averages about 16 inches. There are several roads in the park, but none penetrate far into the interior. The park features a network of hiking trails, although the size and remoteness means that it will usually take more than a weekend to get to the high country in the interior. The sights of the rain forest, with plants run riot and dozens of hues of green, are well worth the possibility of rain sometime during the trip, although months of July, August and September frequently have long dry spells. An unusual feature of ONP is the opportunity for backpacking along the beach. The length of the coastline in the park is sufficient for multi-day trips, with the entire day spent walking along the beach. Although idyllic compared to toiling up a mountainside (Seven Lakes Basin is a notable example), one must be aware of the tide; at the narrowest parts of the beaches, high tide washes up to the cliffs behind, blocking passage. There are also several promontories that must be struggled over, using a combination of muddy steep trail and fixed ropes. During winter, the popular viewpoint known as Hurricane Ridge offers alpine and Nordic skiing opportunities. The Hurricane Ridge Winter Sports Club operates Hurricane Ridge Ski and Snowboard Area, a not for profit alpine ski area which offers ski lessons, rentals, and inexpensive lift tickets. The small alpine area is serviced by two rope tows and one poma lift. Backcountry skiers often make their way down to the main Hurricane Ridge Road in order to hitchhike their way back to the top. Rafting is available on both the Elwha and Hoh Rivers. Spectacular views of the Olympic National Park can be seen from the Hurricane Ridge viewpoint. The road leading west from the Hurricane Ridge visitor center is dotted with picnic areas and trail heads. A paved trail called the Hurricane hill trail is popular with visitors, and is about 1.6 miles long (one-way) with an elevation gain of about 700 ft. It is not uncommon to find snow on the trails even as late as July. Several other dirt trails of varying distances and difficulty levels branch off of the Hurricane hill trail. The picnic areas are open only in the summer, and have restrooms, water and paved access to picnic tables. The Hurricane Ridge visitor center offers several conveniences, including an information desk, gift shop, restrooms, and a snack bar. The exhibits in the visitor center are open year-round.

Mammoth Cave National Park is a U.S. National Park in central Kentucky, encompassing portions of Mammoth Cave, the longest cave system known in the world. The official name of the system is the Mammoth-Flint Ridge Cave System for the ridge under which the cave has formed. The park was established as a national park on July 1, 1941. It became a World Heritage Site on October 27, 1981, and an international Biosphere Reserve on September 26, 1990. The park's 52,835 acres (21,382 ha) are located primarily in Edmonson County, Kentucky, with small areas extending eastward into Hart County and Barren County. It is centered around the Green River, with a tributary, the Nolin River, feeding into the Green just inside the park. With over 390 miles (630 km) of passageways it is by far the world's longest known cave system, being well over twice as long as the second longest cave system, which is South Dakota's Jewel Cave with just over 150 miles (240 km) of known passageways. The National Park Service offers several cave tours to visitors. Some notable features of the cave, such as Grand Avenue, Frozen Niagara, and Fat Man's Misery, can be seen on lighted tours ranging from one to six hours in length. Two tours, lit only by visitor-carried paraffin lamps, are popular alternatives to the electric-lit routes. Several "wild" tours venture away from the developed parts of the cave into muddy crawls and dusty tunnels. The lectures delivered by the National Park Service cave guides are varied by tour, so that in taking several tours the visitor learns about different facets of the cave's formation, or of the cave's human history and prehistory. The Echo River Tour, one of the cave's most famous attractions, used to take visitors on a boat ride along an underground river. The tour was discontinued for logistic and environmental reasons in the early 1990s. Following species of bats that inhabit the caverns: Indiana bat (Myotis sodalis), Gray bat (Myotis grisescens), Little brown bat (Myotis lucifugus), Big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus), and the Eastern pipistrelle bat (Pipistrellus subflavus). All together, these and more rare bat species such as the Eastern Small-footed Bat had estimated populations of 9–12 million just in the Historic Section. While these species still exist in Mammoth Cave, their numbers are now no more than a few thousand at best. Ecological restoration of this portion of Mammoth Cave, and facilitating the return of bats, is an ongoing effort. Not all bat species here inhabit the Cave; the red bat (Lasiurus borealis) is a forest-dweller, found underground only rarely. The superlatives which are justly applied to Mammoth Cave often lead to exaggeration of the cave's extent and reach. One such misconception is that the cave extends far beyond its well-known geographical boundaries, even to other states in the United States. This misconception is easily debunked. Caves of Mammoth's type form as water from the surface seeks the level of the surface streams that drain them: in Mammoth Cave's case, the Green River to the north. It is a virtual certainty that no cave passages connecting to Mammoth will ever be found north of the Green River, or substantially east of the Sinkhole Plain which is the primary recharge area (the place where water enters) for the cave. More tantalizing is the prospect of ancient passages to the south which might bridge the current drainage divide between the Green River basin and the Barren River basin south of it, but in that case, the maximum expected southerly extent of Mammoth Cave would be the Barren River. It is true, however, that the layers of sedimentary rock in which Mammoth Cave has formed do extend many miles in almost any direction from Mammoth Cave. These rocks were all laid down over the same period. The similarity of the rocks of the broader region to those in the immediate vicinity of Mammoth Cave means that conditions are right for cave formation; however, the absolute boundaries of the Mammoth Cave system are known, so it is expected that these other caves will not be found to connect to Mammoth Cave.

Mesa Verde National Park is a U.S. National Park and UNESCO World Heritage Site located in Montezuma County, Colorado, United States. It was created in 1906 to protect some of the best preserved cliff dwellings in the world. The park occupies 81.4 square miles (211 km2) (211 square kilometers) near the Four Corners and features numerous ruins of homes and villages built by the Ancestral Puebloan people, sometimes called the Anasazi. The park protects over 4,000 archaeological sites, including 600 separate cliff dwellings. The Anasazi inhabited Mesa Verde anywhere between 550 to 1300 AD. These people were mainly subsistence farmers; they grew crops on nearby mesas. Their primary crop was Corn, which was also was the major part of their diet. Men were also hunters which further increased their food supply. The women of the Anasazi were famous for the elegant basket weaving. Anasazi pottery is just as famous as their baskets; their artifacts, even today, are highly prized. Since the Anasazi kept no written records, their artifacts are the only link to understanding their interesting culture. By 750 CE, the people were building mesa-top villages made of adobe. By the late 12th century they began to build the cliff dwellings for which Mesa Verde is famous. Mesa Verde is best known for cliff dwellings, which are structures built within caves and under outcropping in cliffs — including Cliff Palace, which is thought to be the largest cliff dwelling in North America. The Spanish term Mesa Verde translates into English as "green table." Approximately 600 of the over 4700 archeological sites found in Mesa Verde National Park are cliff dwellings. Mesa Verde National Park, with fifty-two thousand acres, is located in southwestern Colorado. Its canyons were created by erosion from receding ancient oceans and waterways, which resulted in Mesa Verde National Park elevations ranging from about 6,000 to 8,572 feet (1,800 to 2,613 m), the highest elevation at Park Point. The terrain in the park is now a transition zone between the low desert plateaus and the Rocky Mountains.:9-13, 24 The climate is semi-arid. Water for farming and consumption by the Ancient Pueblo Peoples was provided by summer rains, winter snowfall and seeps and springs in and near the Mesa Verde villages. The middle mesa areas, ten degrees cooler than on the mesa at 7,000 feet (2,100 m), were ideal for agriculture, and the lower temperatures reduced the amount of water needed for agriculture. The cliff dwellings were built with obvious attention to managing solar energy. In the winter, the angle of the sun warmed the masonry of the cliff dwellings, warm breezes blew from the valley, and the air was ten to twenty degrees warmer in the canyon alcoves than on the top of the mesa. In the summer, due to the angle of the sun, much of the village was protected from direct sunlight in the cliff dwellings. Mesa Verde's park entrance is on U.S. Route 160, about 9 miles (14 km) east of the community of Cortez and about 7 miles (11 km) west of Mancos, Colorado. A vehicle is needed to explore Mesa Verde National Park. The first view of a cliff dwelling is 21 miles (approximately 45 minutes) past the entrance station along a steep, narrow, winding road. NOTE: Be sure to make the Mesa Verde Visitor Center your first stop if you wish to visit Cliff Palace, Balcony House, or Long House. If you plan to visit any of these three cliff dwellings, you must purchase tickets here first. Park entrance fees are collected here from early January to early March.

Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, near the towns of Montrose and Crawford, Colorado. The park was literally carved out of multiple rock layers over the last couple of million years by the Gunnison River harboring a variety of life zones in its dramatically plunging gorges and chasms. It’s big enough to be awe-inspiring while welcoming enough to allow visitors to feel the pulse of time on a more personal level. Black Canyon of the Gunnison presents some of the steepest cliffs, oldest rock formations and craggiest spires in North America. Having those two million years to work its wonder, the Gunnison River has sculpted this vertical wilderness of rock, water and sky, assisted by the forces of nature. According to Wallace Hansen, considered to be the unequivocal expert on the geology of this region, “no other canyon in North America combines the depth, narrowness, sheerness, and somber countenance of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison." Visitors come to know that The Black Canyon contains some of the oldest exposed rock on Earth known as Precambrian, or “basement” rock, believed to be nearly 2 billion years old. Among the pursuits that are popular with visitors to the park include Camping, Hiking, Canyoneering, Scenic Drives, Fishing, Kayaking, Rafting and Rock Climbing. Wildlife Watching of subjects that might well be observed include Yellow-bellied Marmot, Golden-mantled Ground Squirrels, Least and Colorado Chipmunks, Mountain Cottontails, Rock Squirrels, Mule Deer, Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep, Elk, Coyotes, Skunks, Badgers, Long-tail Weasels, Ringtail Cats, Mountain Lions, Bobcats and Black Bear and a number of different non-poisonous snakes. Bird Watchers can be on the lookout for Peregrine Falcons, Blue Grouse, Cooper's Hawks, Red Tailed Hawks, Turkey Vultures, Golden Eagles, Canyon Wren and plenty of Black-billed Magpies among other avian species. Horseback Riding, Winter Activities like Cross Country Skiing, Snowshoe Trekking and Winter Backcountry Camping are just some of the other adventures visitors enjoy. Black Canyon is home to the fastest bird in the world, the Peregrine Falcon. Scientists estimate that Peregrines can reach speeds of over 200 mph in an aerial dive. Consider some other interesting facts about Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park: The narrowest part of Black Canyon at the river is only 40 feet across. The temperature at the bottom of Black Canyon is approximately 8 degrees warmer than at the rim. The Black Canyon stretches far beyond the 14 miles within the national park. Including the canyon within Curecanti National Recreation Area and Gunnison Gorge National Conservation Area, the total length is 53 miles. Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park is located approximately 250 miles southwest of Denver, Colorado. The South Rim is 15 miles east of Montrose, CO and the North Rim is 11 miles south of Crawford, CO. There is no bridge between the north and south rims of the canyon. Visitors should allow two to three hours to drive from one side to the other. Commercial airline service is available to Montrose, Gunnison and Grand Junction.

Shenandoah National Park encompasses part of the Blue Ridge Mountains in the U.S. state of Virginia. This national park is long and narrow, with the broad Shenandoah River and valley on the west side, and the rolling hills of the Virginia Piedmont on the east. Although likely the most prominent feature of the Park is the scenic Skyline Drive, almost 40% of the land area 79,579 acres (322.04 km2) has been designated as wilderness and is protected as part of the National Wilderness Preservation System. The highest peak is Hawksbill Mountain at 4,051 feet (1,235 m). The park is best known for Skyline Drive, a 105 mile (169 km) road that runs the entire length of the park along the ridge of the mountains. The drive is particularly popular in the fall when the leaves are changing colors. 101 miles (162 km) of the Appalachian Trail are also in the park. In total, there are over 500 miles (800 km) of trails within the park. Of the trails, one of the most popular is Old Rag Mountain, which offers a thrilling rock scramble and some of the most breathtaking views in Virginia. There is also horseback riding, camping, bicycling, and many waterfalls. The Skyline Drive is the first National Park Service road east of the Mississippi River listed as a National Historic Landmark on the National Register of Historic Places. It is also designated as a National Scenic Byway. Shenandoah National Park offers 196,000 acres (790 km2) of backcountry and wilderness camping. While in the backcountry, campers must use a "Leave No Trace" policy that includes burying excrement and not building campfires. Backcountry campers must also be careful of wildlife such as poisonous snakes and bears. Campers must suspend their food from trees while not in use in "bear bags" or park-approved bear canisters to prevent unintentionally feeding the bears, who then become habituated to humans and their food and therefore dangerous. All animals are protected by federal law. Dark Hollow Falls is a scenic trail of the Skyline drive which ends in waterfalls. It is located near the Byrd Visitor Center. The trail is at the edge of a stream which enhances the enjoyment. During the hike, birds, butterflies, deer and occasionally black bear and timber rattlesnake can be seen, but these have not been known to harm any visitors. Visitors who hike down to see the waterfall call it a worthwhile experience. The trail is a steep hike down about ¾ mile, with no restrooms or emergency shelter. Those who make this hike should be prepared, preferably carrying a bottle of water, and avoiding the hike altogether if there is any prediction of rain. The return trip up to the parking lot is very steep, and may be exhausting for some, especially older persons and those not accustomed to physical activity. The Stony Man Trail is one of the most scenic trails in the skyline drive. It ends up at a cliff and offers a beautiful overlook. It is ideal to watch sunset. Pets and horses are not allowed in this trail.

Grand Teton National Park is located in northwestern Wyoming. The park consists of approximately 310,000 acres (130,000 ha) and includes the major peaks of the 40 miles (64 km) long Teton Range as well as most of the northern sections of the valley known as Jackson Hole. Only 10 miles (16 km) south of Yellowstone National Park, the two parks are connected by the National Park Service managed John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway. These three protected areas in conjunction with surrounding National Forests constitute the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, which at almost 18,000,000 acres (7,300,000 ha), is one of the largest intact ecosystems in the United States. Grand Teton National Park is named for Grand Teton which is the tallest mountain in the Teton Range. At 13,775 feet (4,199 m), Grand Teton rises abruptly more than 7,000 feet (2,100 m) above Jackson Hole and is almost 850 feet (260 m) higher than Mount Owen, the second highest summit in the range.

Rocky Mountain National Park is a national park located in the north-central region of the U.S. state of Colorado. It features majestic mountain views, a variety of wildlife, varied climates and environments—from wooded forests to mountain tundra—and easy access to back-country trails and campsites. The park is located northwest of Boulder, Colorado, in the Rockies, and includes the Continental Divide and the headwaters of the Colorado River. Planning a trip to Rocky Mountain National Park from May 24 through mid-October? Rocky Mountain National Park is implementing a timed entry reservation system during certain hours of the day. There are two different options available to choose from: Timed Entry or Timed Entry + Bear Lake Road. Timed entry reservations apply to all areas of the park. The park has five visitor centers. The park headquarters, Beaver Meadows Visitor Center, is a National Historic Landmark, designed by the Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture at Taliesin West. The park may be accessed by three roads: U.S. Highway 34, 36, and State Highway 7. Highway 7 enters the park for less than a mile, where it provides access to the Lily Lake Visitor Center. Farther south, spurs from route 7 lead to campgrounds and trail heads around Longs Peak and Wild Basin. Highway 36 enters the park on the east side, where it terminates after a few miles at Highway 34. Highway 34, known as Trail Ridge Road through the park, runs from the town of Estes Park on the east to Grand Lake on the southwest. The road reaches an elevation of 12,183 feet (3,713 m), and is closed by snow in winter. The park is surrounded by Roosevelt National Forest on the north and east, Routt National Forest on the northwest, and Arapaho National Forest on the southwest.

Denali National Park and Preserve is located in Interior Alaska and contains Denali (Mount McKinley), the highest mountain in North America. The park and preserve together cover 9,492 mi² (24,585 km²). Denali is home to a variety of Alaskan birds and mammals, including a healthy population of grizzly bears and black bears. Herds of caribou roam throughout the park. Dall sheep are often seen on mountainsides, and moose feed on the aquatic plants of the small lakes and swamps. Despite human impact on the area, Denali accommodates gray wolf dens, both historic and active. Smaller animals, such as hoary marmots, arctic ground squirrels, beavers, pikas, and snowshoe hares are seen in abundance. Foxes, martens, lynx, wolverines also inhabit the park, but are more rarely seen due to their elusive natures. The park is also well known for its bird population. Many migratory species reside in the park during late spring and summer. Birdwatchers may find waxwings, Arctic Warblers, pine grosbeaks, and wheatears, as well as Ptarmigan and the majestic tundra swan. Predatory birds include a variety of hawks, owls, and the gyrfalcon, as well as the abundant but striking golden eagle. Ten species of fish, including trout, salmon, and arctic grayling share the waters of the park. Because many of the rivers and lakes of Denali are fed by glaciers, glacial silt and cold temperatures slow the metabolism of the fish, preventing them from reaching normal sizes. A single amphibious species, the wood frog, also lives among the lakes of the park. Denali park rangers maintain a constant effort to keep the wildlife wild by limiting the interaction between humans and park animals. However, the number of wild bears necessitates their wearing collars to track movements. Feeding animals is strictly forbidden, as it may cause adverse affects on the feeding habits of the creature. Visitors are encouraged to view animals from safe distances. Despite the large concentration of bears in the park, efforts by rangers to educate backpackers and visitors about preventative measures and BRFCs have greatly reduced the number of dangerous encounters. Certain areas of the park are often closed due to uncommon wildlife activity, such as denning areas of wolves and bears or recent kill sites. These restricted areas may change throughout the year. Through the collective care of park staff and visitors, Denali has become a premier destination for wildlife viewing. Denali is emerging as a site of interesting fossils, including footprints (ichnites) that were credited with being the first evidence of prehistoric wading birds, probing in mudflats for food during the Late Cretaceous Period, when they were first publicly reported in May 2006. A footprint of a carnivorous theropod had previously been reported in the park.

Channel Islands National Park consists of five of the eight Channel Islands off the coast of California. Although the islands are close to the shore of densely-populated Southern California, their isolation has left them relatively undeveloped. Channel Islands National Park offers a wide variety of recreation activities, kayaking through the Sea Caves being one of the most popular. Backpacking, camping, day hiking, scuba diving, and spearfishing are among the activities available to visitors. The Channel Islands National Park is renowned for its large number of complex, beautiful Sea Caves. Based on ocean conditions and ferry availability, Scorpion Anchorage on Santa Cruz Island is the most visited area in the park for day and camping visitors. It is recommended that inexperienced visitors use caution when visiting the national park due to changing ocean conditions in this unique ecosystem. Guide and outfitter services are available. More than 2,000 species of plants and animals can be found within the park. However only three mammals are endemic to the islands, one of which is the deer mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus) which is known to carry the sin nombre hantavirus. Spotted Skunk and Channel Islands Fox also are endemic. The Island fence lizard is also endemic to the Channel Islands.Other animals in the park include Island Scrub Jay, harbor seal, California sea lion, island fox, spotted skunk, island night lizard, barn owl, American kestrel, horned lark and meadowlark and California brown pelican. One hundred and forty-five of these species are unique to the islands and found nowhere else in the world. Marine life ranges from microscopic plankton to the endangered blue whale, the largest animal ever to live on earth. Archeological and cultural resources span a period of more than 10,000 years. The islands within the park extend along the Southern California coast from Point Conception near Santa Barbara to San Pedro, a neighborhood of Los Angeles. Park headquarters and the Robert J. Lagomarsino Visitor Center are located in the city of Ventura. While the mainland visitor centers in Ventura and Santa Barbara are readily accessible by car or public transportation, the islands are only accessible by park concessionaire boats and planes or private boat. Advanced planning is highly recommended. There is no transportation available on the islands. All areas must be accessed on foot or by private boat or kayak. Public boat transportation is available year-round by the park concessionaire Island Packers. In addition, Island Packers offers whale watching trips. For departures out of Ventura and Channel Islands (Oxnard) Harbors contact: Island Packers, 1691 Spinnaker Dr., Ventura, CA 93001, (805) 642-1393. The park consists of 249,354 acres (100,910 ha), half of which are under the ocean, and includes the islands of: San Miguel 9,325 acres (3,774 ha) Santa Rosa 52,794 acres (21,365 ha) Anacapa 699 acres (283 ha) Santa Barbara 639 acres (259 ha) Santa Cruz 60,645 acres (24,542 ha) 76% owned by the Nature Conservancy, 24% by the National Park Service Camping is available year round on all five islands in Channel Islands National Park in National Park Service-managed campgrounds. There is currently one established campground on each island: above the Landing Cove on Santa Barbara, on the east islet of Anacapa, at Scorpion Ranch on Santa Cruz, at Water Canyon on Santa Rosa, and above Cuyler Harbor on San Miguel. No camping is allowed on The Nature Conservancy's western 76 percent of Santa Cruz Island. Limited backcountry camping is available on Santa Cruz and Santa Rosa Islands. Channel Islands National Park is home to a wide variety of significant natural and cultural resources. It was designated a U.S. National Monument on April 26, 1938, and a National Biosphere Reserve in 1976. It was promoted to a National Park on March 5, 1980.

Saguaro National Park, located in the state of Arizona, is part of the United States national park system. Saguaro National Park is divided into two sections, lying approximately 20 miles (32 km) east and 15 miles (24 km) west of the center of the city of Tucson, Arizona. There is a visitor center in each section. Both are easily reached by car from Tucson, but there is no public transport into either section. Both sections conserve fine tracts of the Sonoran Desert, including ranges of significant hills, the Tucson Mountains in the west and the Rincon Mountains in the east. The park gets its name from the saguaro cactus which is native to the region. Many other kinds of cactus, including barrel cactus, chollacactus, and prickly pear, are also abundant in the park. One endangered animal, the Lesser Long-nosed Bat, lives in the park part of the year during its migration, together with one threatened species, the Mexican Spotted Owl. Facilities in the park include 150 miles (240 km) of well marked and maintained hiking trails, and shorter walking trails with interpretative information available. Hiking is not advisable during the hot summer months. An extended hike into the rugged wilderness brings wonderful opportunities as well as challenges for the adventurous hiker. An overnight trip into Saguaro’s wilderness can take you from 3,000’ elevation to over 8,000’ in about 15 miles. Hikes may be started from any of five trailheads ranging from the easy-to-access Douglas Spring Trailhead at the east end of Speedway Boulevard to the more remote Italian Spring Trailhead accessed through Reddington Pass on the adjacent Coronado National Forest. The Rincon Mountain District is located at the eastern edge of Tucson, Arizona and includes the land protected in the original National Monument. Plant communities at the lower elevations in the park are typical of the Sonoran Desert, while the Rincon Mountains support a temperate coniferous forest. The highest peak in this range is Mica Mountain, at an elevation of 8,664 feet (2,641 m). While this side of the park has fewer saguaro than its counterpart they are larger in size, due to higher amounts of rainfall and run off from the Rincon Mountains. The key feature of this district is its 8.3-mile (13.4 km) loop road, which provides access to the two picnic areas and the central trails. Hiking on this side of the park is readily accessible to visitors. There are trailheads present at the east end of Speedway and Broadway and these are popular with equestrians, especially on weekends. Off the park's loop road there are several additional trailheads. Each Visitor Center can supply a map of hiking trails in the park. At the southern boundary of the park is the Hope Camp Trails which are also popular with equestrians. Access to the Hope Camp Trails is found at the end of Camino Loma Alta, however the road is no longer paved for the last couple hundred yards. This section of the park was added in 1991 when Congress authorized the purchase of an additional 4,011 acres (1,623 ha). There are no campgrounds accessible by road in the park but the Rincon Mountain District is open to backcountry camping at designated sites. The site closest to a road is the Douglas Spring Campground which requites a 5.9-mile (9.5 km) hike. A wilderness permit is required for all overnight stays. The fee for this permit is $6.00 per campsite, per night. While there are no overnight accommodations for recreational vehicles in the park, but facilities are available at Colossal Cave Mountain Park which is ten miles (16 km) south of the Rincon District Visitor Center on Old Spanish Trail. Be aware that dogs are allowed on the trails, but must be on a leash at all times. Bicycles are confined to the loop road and the Cactus Forest Trail.

North Cascades National Park is a U.S. National Park located in the state of Washington. The park is the largest of the three National Park Service units that comprise the North Cascades National Park Service Complex. Several national wilderness areas and British Columbia parkland adjoin the National Park. The park features rugged mountain peaks. In 1971, the park had 318 glaciers with an area of 117 km2 (Post et al., 1971), the most of any US park outside Alaska. All the glaciers in the park have retreated significantly from 1980–2005 and the rate is increasing. The recent warmer climate has led to more summer melting and more winter melting events, reducing winter snowpack. Several glaciers in the range have melted away in the last decade. Boston Glacier, on the north slope of Boston Peak, is the largest glacier in the park with an area of 7 km2. The other large glaciers (with areas greater than 2.5 km2) are: Redoubt (Mount Redoubt) Nooksack (Mount Shuksan) Sulphide (Mount Shuksan) Challenger (Mount Challenger) Inspiration (Eldorado Peak) McAllister (Eldorado Peak) Neve (Snowfield Peak) Due to its wilderness nature, it is home to wolves, lynx, moose, wolverines, and many other rare or endangered species. Few grizzly sightings have been confirmed by park staff, though black bears are common. There are a gamut of mammals, birds, amphibians and reptiles. As a notable amphibian example, within the Rough-skinned Newt Cascade Mountains populations, approximately ninety percent of the adult population is perennibranchiate. Although one gravel road open to the public enters the park, most automobile traffic in the region travels on the North Cascades Highway (Washington State Route 20), which passes through the Ross Lake National Recreation Area. The nearest large town on the west side of the park is Sedro-Woolley, Washington, while Winthrop lies to the east. Chelan is located at the southeastern end of Lake Chelan.

Kobuk Valley National Park is in northwestern Alaska 25 miles (40 km) north of the Arctic Circle. It is noted for the Great Kobuk Sand Dunes and caribou migration routes. The park offers backcountry camping, hiking, backpacking, and dog sledding. There are no designated trails or roads in the park, which at 1,669,813 acres (6,757.49 km2), is approximately the size of the state of Delaware. Bounded by the Waring Mountains in the South and the Baird Mountains in the North, it is the center of a vast ecosystem between Selawik National Wildlife Refuge and the Noatak National Preserve. It is over 75 miles (121 km) by river to the Chukchi Sea. The Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve lie 32 miles (51 km) to the east. The most visible animals are the 400,000 caribou of the Western Arctic herd. The herd migrates annually between their winter breeding grounds, south of the Waring Mountains, and their summer calving grounds, north of the Baird Mountains. The herd's annual crossing of the Kobuk River is central to the Inupiaq people's subsistence hunting. The park consists of the broad wetlands valley of the Kobuk River which runs along the southern edge of the western Brooks Range, which is known as the Baird Mountains. The boundary of the park runs along the height-of-land of the Baird Mountains in the north and the shorter Waring Mountains in the south that form a ring, defining and enclosing the Kobuk Valley. The middle two-thirds of the Kobuk River, from just above Kiana to just below Ambler, is included in the park, as are several of its major tributaries such as the Salmon River and the Hunt River. The valley floor is mainly covered by glacial drift. Much of the southern portion of the park, south of the Kobuk River, is managed as the Kobuk Valley Wilderness of 174,545 acres (70,636 ha). The Selawik Wilderness lies to the south, in the adjoining Selawik National Wildlife Refuge. Three sets of sand dune fields are located on the south side of the Kobuk River. The Great Kobuk Sand Dunes, Little Kobuk Sand Dunes and the Hunt River Dunes are remnants of dunefields that covered as many as 200,000 acres (81,000 ha) immediately after the retreat of Pliestocene glaciation.A combination of outwash deposits from the glaciers and strong winds created the field, which is now mostly covered by forest and tundra. In present times the active dune fields cover about 20,500 acres (8,300 ha). The Great Kobuk Sand Dunes comprise the largest active Arctic dune field in North America. The park's headquarters are at the Northwest Arctic Heritage Center in Kotzebue, about 100 miles (160 km) west of the park on the Bering Sea coast. Seasonal ranger stations are operated along the Kobuk river at Kallarichuk, at the west end of the park, and at Onion Portage at the east end of the park. Offices and visitor services for Cape Krusenstern National Monument and Noatak National Preserve are in the same facility. The units are managed together as the Western Arctic National Parklands, with a single Park Service superintendent in charge. No roads lead to the park. It is reachable by foot, dogsled, snowmobile, and chartered air taxis from Nome and Kotzebue year-round. The park is one of the least visited in the National Park System, ranking as the least visited national park in the country in 2006 with just 3,005 visitors. This dropped to just 847 visitors in 2007. The fish and wildlife in the park are typical of arctic and subarctic fauna. The major economic species are caribou, moose, and fish species such as salmon and sheefish. The most visible animals are the 400,000 caribou of the Western Arctic herd. The herd migrates annually between their winter breeding grounds, south of the Waring Mountains, and their summer calving grounds, north of the Baird Mountains. The herd's annual crossing of the Kobuk River is central to the Inupiaq people's subsistence hunting. Large mammals in the park include gray wolf, caribou and moose. black bear, brown bear and Dall's sheep exist in the park as well. Smaller mammals include wolverine, mink, porcupine,snowshoe hares and a variety of voles. Fish species include chinook, chum, pink and sockeye salmon, with other salmonids including Dolly Varden, Arctic char, lake trout and Arctic grayling. Other species include burbot, Arctic lamprey, round, broad and humpback whitefish, and pond and rainbow smelt. Weather in the park is subject to extremes. Average low temperatures in January are −8 °F (−22 °C), and can reach nighttime lows of −50 °F (−46 °C). Summer temperatures average around 65 °F (18 °C), and can reach 85 °F (29 °C). Since the park is above the Arctic Circle, the sun does not set from June 3 to July 9, and the sun is visible for only 1-1/2 hour on the winter solstice, with long periods of twilight on either side of sunrise and sunset. As is the case over all of northern Alaska, the aurora borealis is often visible on winter nights when solar activity is high. Snow can happen at any time of the year. Wind and rain are common in summer.

Biscayne National Park is a U.S. National Park located in southern Florida. The park preserves Biscayne Bay, one of the top scuba diving areas in the United States. Ninety-five percent of the park is water. In addition, the shore of the bay is the location of an extensive mangrove forest. The park covers 207 mi² (700 km²). Elliott Key, the park's largest island, is considered the first of the true Florida Keys being formed from fossilized coral reef, i.e. Key Largo limestone. The islands farther north in the park are transitional islands of coral and sand. The major attraction of the park is fishing the inshore and offshore waters. Scuba diving or snorkeling on the coral reef ecosystems that are found east of the barrier islands is also a very popular attraction. Other attractions include: canoeing, kayaking, sailing, or cruising the expanse of open waters within the park and camping on Elliot Key or Boca Chita. Limited services are offered by the Park's concessionaire, so the majority of visitors enter the Park via Black Point or Bayfront boat ramps and explore the area on their own private boats. Biscayne National Park protects four distinct ecosystems: the shoreline mangrove swamp, the shallow waters of Biscayne Bay, the coral limestone keys and the offshore Florida Reef. The shoreline swamps of the mainland and island margins provide a nursery for larval and juvenile fish, molluscs and crustaceans. The bay waters harbor immature and adult fish, seagrass beds, sponges and soft corals, as well as manatees. The keys are covered with tropical vegetation including endangered cacti and palms, and their beaches provide nesting grounds for endangered sea turtles. Offshore reefs and waters harbor more than 200 species of fish, pelagic birds, whales and hard corals. Sixteen endangered species including the Schaus' swallowtail butterfly, smalltooth sawfish, manatees, and green and hawksbill sea turtles may be observed in the park. Biscayne also has a small population of threatenedAmerican crocodiles and a few American alligators. Access to the park from the mainland is limited to the immediate vicinity of the Dante Fascell Visitor Center at Convoy Point. All other portions of the park are reachable only by private or concessioner boats. Activities include boating, fishing, kayaking, windsurfing, snorkeling and scuba diving. Miami-Dade County operates four marina parks near the park. Homestead Bayfront Park is directly adjacent to the park headquarters at Convoy Point. Farther south Black Point Park provides access to Adams and Elliott Keys. Matheson Hammock Park is near the north end of the park, and Crandon Park is on Key Biscayne. Although it is a federally designated park, fishing within Biscayne is governed by the state of Florida. Anglers in Biscayne are required to have a Florida recreational saltwater fishing license. Fishing is limited to designated sport fish, spiny lobster, stone crab, blue crab and shrimp. Tropical reef fish may not be collected, nor may sharks, conch, sea urchins and other marine life. Reef life species such as coral and sponges are also protected from collecting by visitors. Additionally, lobstering is prohibited in the Biscayne Bay-Card Sound Lobster Sanctuary, administered by the state of Florida to protect spiny lobster breeding areas, which overlaps much of Biscayne Bay. Concessioner-operated tours provide boat trips into the bay and to the keys and reefs. Most tours are operated during the peak winter season from January to April. Call 305-230-1100 for details on current offerings. You may also visit their website for information at www.BiscayneUnderwater.com, but it is highly recommended to call before making the trip out to the park for a boat trip. Personal watercraft are prohibited in Biscayne and most other national parks, but other private powerboats and sailboats are permitted. Most of Biscayne's permanent facilities are on the offshore keys. A seasonally staffed ranger station is located on Elliott Key, as well as a campground and 36 boat slips. A single loop trail runs from the harbor to the oceanfront, and a path following the Spite Highway runs the length of the island. Adams Key is a day-use-only area for visitors, although two Park Service residences are on the island. Boca Chita Key is the most-visited island, with a campground and picnic areas. The Boca Chita Lighthouse is occasionally open to visitors when staffing permits.

Mount Rainier National Park is a United States National Park located in southeast Pierce County and northeast Lewis County in Washington state. It was one of the US's earliest National Parks, having been established on March 2, 1899 as the fifth national park in the United States. The park contains 368 square miles (950 km2) including all of Mount Rainier, a 14,411-foot (4,392 m) stratovolcano. The mountain rises abruptly from the surrounding land with elevations in the park ranging from 1,600 feet (490 m) to over 14,000 feet (4,300 m). The highest point in the Cascade Range, around it are valleys, waterfalls, subalpine wildflower meadows, old growth forest and more than 26 glaciers. The volcano is often shrouded in clouds that dump enormous amounts of rain and snow on the peak every year and hide it from the crowds that head to the park on weekends. Mount Rainier is circled by the Wonderland Trail and is covered by several glaciers and snowfields totaling some 35 square miles (91 km2). Carbon Glacier is the largest glacier by volume in the continental United States, while Emmons Glacier is the largest glacier by area. About 1.3 million people visit Mount Rainier National Park each year. Mount Rainier is a popular peak for mountain climbing with some 10,000 attempts per year with approximately 25% making it to the summit. The park contains outstanding subalpine meadows and 91,000 acres (370 km2) of old growth forests.

Established from Hot Springs Reservation, Hot Springs National Park is a United States National Park in central Arkansas adjacent to the city of Hot Springs. Hot Springs Reservation was initially created by an act of the United States Congress on April 20, 1832, and the area was made a national park on March 4, 1921. It is the smallest national park by area in the United States. Since Hot Springs National Park is the oldest federal reserve, it was the first to receive its own US quarter in April 2010 as part of the America the Beautiful Quarters. The hot springs flow from the western slope of Hot Springs Mountain, part of the Ouachita Mountain range. In the park, the hot springs have not been preserved in their unaltered state as natural surface phenomena. They have instead been managed to conserve the production of uncontaminated hot water for public use. The mountains within the park are also managed within this conservation philosophy in order to preserve the hydrological system that feeds the springs. People have used the hot spring water in therapeutic baths for more than two hundred years to treat rheumatism and other ailments. While it was a reservation, the area developed into a well-known resort nicknamed The American Spa that attracted not only the wealthy but indigent health seekers from around the world as well. The park includes portions of downtown Hot Springs, making it one of the most easily visited national parks. There are numerous hiking trails and camping areas. Bathing in spring water is available in approved facilities at extra cost. The entire Bathhouse Row area is a National Historic Landmark District that contains the grandest collection of bathhouses of its kind in North America, including many outstanding examples of Gilded Age architecture. The row's Fordyce Bathhouse serves as the park's visitor center; the Buckstaff and Quapaw are currently the only facilities still operating as bathhouses. Other buildings of the row are currently in various states of interior restoration or are used in other capacities. The park has become increasingly popular in recent years, and recorded over 1.5 million visitors in 2003, as well as nearly 2.5 million non-recreational visitors.

Cuyahoga Valley National Park preserves and reclaims the rural landscape along the Cuyahoga River between Akron and Cleveland in Northeast Ohio. The 51-square-mile (130 km2) park is the only national park in Ohio. Cuyahoga means "crooked river" in Mohawk. Many visitors spend their time hiking or bicycling the parks' many trails which visit its numerous attractions, including the crushed limestone along portions of the 20 miles (32.2 km) Towpath Trail, following a former stretch of the 308 miles (495.7 km) Ohio and Erie Canal. Waterfalls, rolling hills, caves, winding river scenery attract many park visitors. Steep narrow ravines, a rolling floodplain, and lush farmland contrast one another throughout the park. Animal life is also plentiful. The Ledges provides a boulder-strewn cliff to relax and watch the sunset over the wooded scenery below. Sled-riding is popular during the winter at Happy Days Park. The national park has something for everyone and is a wonderful asset for northeastern Ohio. The park offers an array of preserved and restored displays of 19th and early 20th century sustainable farming and pastoral or rural living, while catering to contemporary interests with art exhibits, outdoor concerts, and scenic excursion and special event railroad tours on the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad. It includes compatible-use sites not owned by the federal government, including several local regional parks in the Cleveland Metroparks and Metro Parks, Serving Summit County systems, Blossom Music Center, and the Hale Farm & Village. In the mid 1980s, the park hosted the National Folk Festival.

Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve is a U.S. National Park in Alaska. It is the northernmost national park in the U.S. (the entirety of the park lies north of the Arctic Circle) and the second largest at 13,238 mi² , about the same size as Switzerland. The park consists primarily of portions of the Brooks Range of mountains. It was first protected as a U.S. National Monument on December 1, 1978, before becoming a national park and preserve two years later in 1980 upon passage of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act. A large part of the park is preserved as a wilderness area; some 11,321 mi² of wilderness which with the adjoining Noatak Wilderness Area forms the largest contiguous wilderness in the United States. The park's name dates to 1929, when wilderness activist Bob Marshall, exploring the North Fork of the Koyukuk River, encountered a pair of mountains (Frigid Crags and Boreal Mountain), one on each side of the river. He christened this portal the "Gates of the Arctic." Unusual for a U.S. national park, some 1,500 people reside in ten small communities in the park's "resident subsistence zone" where they rely on park resources for survival. There are no established roads, trails, visitor facilities, or campgrounds in the park. However, the Dalton Highway (Alaska State Highway 11) comes within five miles (8 km) of the park's eastern boundary. The National Park Service maintains a small visitor center in nearby Coldfoot on the highway. The geography contains the arête-peaked Brooks Range and rolling valleys of wild tundra. Fauna include moose, barren-ground grizzlies, Dall sheep, black bears, wolves, and caribou. The park contains mountains such as the Arrigetch Peaks and Mount Igikpak. The park also features six Wild and Scenic Rivers: Alatna River 83 miles John River 52 miles Kobuk River 110 miles the North Fork of the Koyukuk River 102 miles part of the Noatak River Tinayguk River 44 miles.

Wind Cave National Park is a United States national park 10 miles (16 km) north of the town of Hot Springs in western South Dakota. Established in 1903 by President Theodore Roosevelt, it was the seventh U.S. National Park and the first cave to be designated a national park anywhere in the world. The cave is notable for its displays of the calcite formation known as boxwork. Approximately 95 percent of the world's discovered boxwork formations are found in Wind Cave. Wind Cave is also known for its frostwork. The cave is also considered a three-dimensional maze cave, recognized as the densest (most passage volume per mi3) cave system in the world. The cave passed Hölloch cave in Switzerland on February 11, 2006 to become fourth-longest in the world with 119.58 miles (192.45 km) of explored cave passageways. The cave's current length is 131.04 miles (210.89 km), with an average of four new miles of cave being discovered each year. Above ground, the park includes the largest remaining natural mixed-grass prairie in the United States. Caves are said to "breathe," that is, air continually moves into or out of a cave, equalizing the atmospheric pressure of the cave and the outside air. When the air pressure is higher outside the cave than in it, air flows into the cave, raising cave's pressure to match the outside pressure. When the air pressure inside the cave is higher than outside it, air flows out of it, lowering the air pressure within the cave. A large cave (such as Wind Cave) with only a few small openings will "breathe" more obviously than a small cave with many large openings. Rapid weather changes, accompanied by rapid barometric changes, are a feature of Western South Dakota weather. If a fast-moving storm was approaching on the day the Bingham brothers found the cave, the atmospheric pressure would have been dropping fast, causing the cave's higher-pressure air to rush out all available openings, creating the "wind" for which Wind Cave was named. Wind Cave National Park protects a diverse ecosystem with eastern and western plant and animal species. Some of the more visible animals include elk (also called wapiti), bison, black-footed ferrets, pronghorn antelope and prairie dogs. The Wind Cave Bison Herd is one of only four free-roaming and genetically pure herds on public lands in North America. The other three herds are the Yellowstone Park Bison Herd, the Henry Mountains Bison Herd in Utah and on Elk Island in Alberta, Canada. The Wind Cave Bison Herd is currently brucellosis-free. Several roads run through the park and there are 30 miles (48 km) of hiking trails, so almost the entire park is accessible. The park had an estimated 577,141 visitors in 2010. The Wind Cave Visitor Center features three exhibit rooms about the geology of the caves and early cave history, the park's wildlife and natural history, and the work of the Civilian Conservation Corps in the park. The 18-minute movie "Wind Cave: One Park, Two Worlds" is shown throughout the day, and slide and video programs are also shown. The center is open year round except Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's Day. All cave tours leave from the visitor center. Elk Mountain Campground, located in a ponderosa pine forest, is about 1.25 miles (2.01 km) from the visitor center. There are 75 sites for tents and recreational vehicles. It is open year round with campfire programs offered in the summer and limited services available in the winter.

Katmai National Park and Preserve is a United States National Park in southern Alaska, notable for the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes and for its brown bears. The park covers 7,383 square miles (19,120 km2), being roughly the size of Wales. Most of this is a designated wilderness area, including 5,288 square miles (13,700 km2) of the park. The park is named after Mount Katmai, its centerpiece stratovolcano. Activities at Katmai include hiking, backpacking, camping, backcountry skiing, fishing, kayaking, boat tours, and interpretive programs. There are at least fourteen active volcanoes within the national park, most recently Fourpeaked Volcano, which became active September 17, 2006 after more than 10,000 years of dormancy. This park contains numerous archaeological sites which indicate a long history of prehistoric occupations from the Paleoarctic tradition up to the Thule tradition. Katmai is also well known for brown bears and the salmon which attract both bears and people. Katmai contains the world's largest protected brown bear population, estimated to number in excess of 2,000. Bears are especially likely to congregate at the Brooks Falls viewing platform when the salmon are spawning, and many well known photographs of brown bears have been taken there. The coastal areas such as Hallo Bay, Kukak Bay and Chiniak host the highest population densities year-round, due to the availability of clams and edible coastal sedge as well as salmon and other fish. The saltwater coast of the area is the eponym for Katmai Bay (CGC 101), a United States Coast Guard cutter tugboat icebreaker. The vast majority of Katmai visitors come to Brooks Camp, one of the only developed areas of the park, and few venture further than the bear viewing platforms. Rangers at the park are extremely careful not to allow bears to obtain human food or get into confrontations with humans. As a result, bears in Katmai Park are uniquely unafraid of and uninterested in humans, and will allow people to approach (and photograph) much more closely than bears elsewhere. Established in 1918, the park is located on the Alaska Peninsula, across from Kodiak Island, with headquarters in nearby King Salmon, about 290 miles (470 km) southwest of Anchorage. Originally, on September 24, 1918, the area was designated a national monument to protect the area around the major 1912 volcanic eruption of Novarupta, which formed the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes, a 40-square-mile (100 km2), 100-to-700-foot-deep (30 to 210 m) pyroclastic flow.

Badlands National Park, in southwest South Dakota, United States preserves 244,000 acres (98,740 ha) of sharply eroded buttes, pinnacles, and spires blended with the largest protected mixed grass prairie in the United States. Bison, bighorn sheep, prairie dogs, and black-footed ferrets can be seen at the park. These striking geologic deposits contain one of the world’s richest fossil beds. Ancient mammals such as the rhino, horse, and saber-toothed cat once roamed here. The yellow and red layers in the badlands formations are fossilized soils, called paleosols. Fossil root traces, burrows, and animal bones found within the soils provide scientists with evidence of environmental and climatic changes that occurred in the badlands over time. The Badlands Wilderness protects 64,144 acres (25,958 ha) of the park as a designated wilderness area and is the site of the reintroduction of the black-footed ferret, the most endangered land mammal in North America. The Stronghold Unit is co-managed with the Oglala Lakota tribe and includes sites of 1890s Ghost Dances, a former United States Air Force bomb and gunnery range, and Red Shirt Table, the park's highest point at 3,340 feet (1,020 m). Authorized as Badlands National Monument on March 4, 1929, it was not established until January 25, 1939. Under the Mission 66 plan, the Ben Reifel Visitor Center was constructed for the monument in 1957-58. It was redesignated a national park on November 10, 1978. The park also administers the nearby Minuteman Missile National Historic Site.

Theodore Roosevelt National Park in the US comprising three geographically separated areas of badlands in western North Dakota. Both main units of the park have scenic drives, approximately 100 miles of foot and horse trails, wildlife viewing, and opportunities for back country hiking and camping. There are three developed campgrounds: Juniper Campground in the North Unit, Cottonwood Campground in the South Unit, and the Roundup Group Horse Campground in the South Unit. One of the most popular attractions is wildlife viewing. The park is home to a wide variety of Great Plains wildlife including bison, feral horses, elk, bighorn sheep, white-tailed deer and mule deer, prairie dogs, and at least 186 species of birds including golden eagles, sharp-tailed grouse, and wild turkeys. Bison may be dangerous and visitors are advised to view them from a distance. Bison, elk, and bighorn sheep have been successfully reintroduced to the park. The scenery changes constantly in relationship with the seasons. The brown, dormant grass dominates from late summer through the winter, but explodes into green color in the early summer along with hundreds of species of flowering plants. Winter can be a beautiful scene as snow covers the sharp terrain of the badlands and locks the park into what Theodore Roosevelt called "an abode of iron desolation." The badlands are very important in Theodore Roosevelt's life, and the park memorializes his contributions to the conservation of America's natural resources. A museum at the South Unit Visitor Center provides background on Theodore Roosevelt and his ranching days. Roosevelt's Maltese Cross Cabin is open for public viewing year-round at the South Unit Visitor Center. Roosevelt's Elkhorn Ranch is a remote area of the park, 35 miles north of Medora, accessible by gravel roads. Check with park rangers for road conditions and routes to travel to the site. The foundation of the ranch house and other shops buildings have been preserved, though the other portions of the cabin were removed and repurposed after Roosevelt vacated the ranch. Threats to the Elkhorn Ranch site include oil development on adjacent lands, particularly visual intrusions and noise pollution from oil facilities and traffic. The park is popular for back country hiking and horseback riding. Permits for back country camping may be obtained at the South Unit or North Unit Visitor Centers. Over 100 miles of trail make it a fine hiking park, though water and shade are limited along trails. The park units are mostly surrounded by Forest Service grasslands. The area has very dark night skies with excellent star gazing and occasional northern lights displays. The entire park has been surrounded with a 7-foot (2.1 m) tall woven wire fence to keep bison and feral horses inside the park and commercial livestock out. Other animals are able to pass over, under, or through the fence in specific locations provided for that purpose. The town of Medora, at the entrance to the south unit, provides a touristy western experience, with wooden planked sidewalks, old fashion ice cream parlors, and buggy rides. There are several museums and the Burning Hills Amphitheather with nightly productions of the "Medora Musical" from early June to early September. Park officials manage populations of bison, horses, and elk to maintain a balanced ecosystem. Biologists also monitor prairie dog towns, though the park only controls their population in instances where they pose a threat to buildings or human health. The park was named for U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt, in honor of his achievements in conservation as president and for the landscape's influence on his life. The park covers 110 square miles (285 km²) of land in three sections: the North Unit, the South Unit, and the Elkhorn Ranch Unit. The park's larger South Unit lies alongside Interstate 94 near Medora, North Dakota. The smaller North Unit is situated about 80 mi (130 km) north of the South Unit, on U.S. Highway 85, just south of Watford City, North Dakota. Roosevelt's Elkhorn Ranch is located between the North and South units, approximately 20 mi (32 km) west of US 85 and Fairfield, North Dakota. The Little Missouri River flows through all three units of the park. The Maah Daah Hey Trail connects all three units.

Great Basin National Park is a United States National Park established in 1986, located in east-central Nevada near the Utah border. The park derives its name from the Great Basin, the dry and mountainous region between the Sierra Nevada and the Wasatch Mountains. Topographically, this area is known as the Basin and Range Province. The park is notable for its groves of ancient bristlecone pines, the oldest known non-clonal organisms; and for the Lehman Caves at the base of 13,063 ft (3,982 m) Wheeler Peak. The caves were originally designated as the Lehman Caves National Monument on January 24, 1922, and they were later incorporated into the national park. The park has 12 trails ranging from 0.3 to 13.1 miles (0.48 to 21.1 km). Trails range from short nature trails at 6,825 feet (2,080 m) (Mountain View Nature Trail), to the Wheeler summit trail starting at 10,160 feet (3,097 m). The Wheeler Summit trail is quite strenuous, and the altitude presents significant hazards for unprepared or inexperienced hikers. Backcountry routes are occasionally maintained throughout the more remote southern portion of the park. A number of these trailheads are accessible by the dirt road that terminates at the primitive Shoshone campground. There are a number of developed campsites within the park, as well as excellent back country camping opportunities. Adjacent to Great Basin National Park lies the Highland Ridge Wilderness. These two protected areas provide contiguous wildlife habitat and contiguous protection to 227.8 square miles (590.0 km2) of eastern Nevada's basin lands. An abundance of wildlife has taken advantage of the habitat zones in Great Basin National Park. Jackrabbits, pygmy rabbits, mountain cottontails,ground squirrels, chipmunks, and various mice live in the low-elevation sagebrush desert. pronghorn, coyotes, kit fox, and badgers are less common inhabitants. In the more rugged areas on the slopes of mountains and in the valley areas nearby, mountain lions, bobcats, marmots, rock squirrels, and mountain sheep can occasionally be seen. Other animals that can be found in the National Park include mule deer, spotted skunk, shrew, ringtail cat, and ermine. The Bonneville cutthroat trout is the only fish native to Great Basin National Park. It arrived in the mountain waters naturally and was eventually isolated by changing climatic conditions. Other trout species, such as Lahonton cutthroat, rainbow, brook and brown, were stocked in the lakes and streams of the South Snake Range until the Park's incorporation in 1986. Many species of birds can be found in Great Basin National Park, including hawk, sparrow, killdeer, wren, chickadee, eagle, magpie, and swallow. The park is located approximately 290 miles (470 km) north of Las Vegas and protects 77,000 acres (31,000 ha). The Great Basin Visitor Center is located on Nevada State Route 487 in the town of Baker. The Lehman Caves Visitor Center is located on Nevada State Route 488. It is 5.5 miles (8.9 km) from Baker, Nevada, 0.5 miles (0.80 km) inside the park boundary. Both centers feature exhibits about the park's geology, natural and cultural history, as well as theaters with orientation films. The centers are closed Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, and New Years Day. Great Basin National Park has between 79,000 and 89,000 visitors in a normal year.

Voyageurs National Park is a United States National Park in northern Minnesota near the town of International Falls. It was established in 1975. The park's name commemorates the voyageurs, French-Canadian fur traders who were the first European settlers to frequently travel through the area. The park is notable for its outstanding water resources and is popular with canoeists, kayakers, other boaters and fishermen. The Kabetogama Peninsula, which lies entirely within the park and makes up most of its land area, is accessible only by boat. To the east of the National Park lies the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. The park has several boat ramps and visitor centers around its periphery, though the main body of the park is only accessible by boat or, in the winter, by snowmobile, ski, or snowshoe. The park hosts about 235,000 visitors per year. 114,000 acres (461 km2) of the park are intended to be wilderness by September 30, 2006. The largest city near Voyageurs National Park is International Falls, Minnesota. Unlike many other National Parks, where the main access to the park is by automobile or by foot, the primary access to the park is via water. Many visitors travel by canoe and kayak. Others rent house boats. The park has three centers where visitors can obtain information about the park, view films, and see exhibits about the park's geology, wildlife, plants, and history. Rainy Lake Visitor Center - is open all year and is located 12 miles (19 km) east of International Falls at the end of Koochiching County Road 96, which is located off of State Highway 11, leaving International Falls. Kabetogamma Lake Visitor Center - is located in the Kabetogama community on the southwestern edge of the park. This center is open seasonally. It can be reached, just 3 miles (5 km) off of U.S. Highway 53 on Saint Louis County Road 122 and Saint Louis County Road 123. Ash River Visitor Center - is on the parks southern boundary just north of the community of Ash River. It can be reached, just 11 miles (18 km) from U.S. Highway 53 on the Ash River Trail, Saint Louis County Road 129, taking the park road 1 mile (2 km) before reaching Ash River. The park encompasses all or part of four major lakes: Rainy Lake - 60 miles (97 km) long, 929 miles (1,495 km) of shoreline, 227,604 acres (921.1 km2), 161 feet (49 m) max depth Kabetogama Lake - 15 miles (24 km) long, 78 miles (126 km) of shoreline, 25,760 acres (104.2 km2), 80 feet (24 m) max depth Namakan Lake - 16 miles (26 km) long, 146 miles (235 km) of shoreline, 25,130 acres (101.7 km2), 150 feet (46 m) max depth Sand Point Lake - 8 miles (13 km) long, 92 miles (148 km) of shoreline, 5,179 acres (21.0 km2), 184 feet (56 m) max depth Of these, Namakan, Rainy and Sand Point lakes straddle the United States-Canada border. Lake Namakan and Sand Point Lake are accessible only by boat except in the winter. The southern boundary of the park is the northern shore of Crane Lake. The park has many smaller lakes, especially on the Kabetogama peninsula. Most popular of these are on the Locator Lakes trail. In all the park has more than 344 square miles (890 km2) of water.

Lassen Volcanic National Park is located in northeastern California and is known for Lassen Peak; the largest plug dome volcano in the world and the southern-most volcano in the Cascade Range. Lassen Volcanic National Park started as two separate national monuments designated by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1907: Cinder Cone National Monument and Lassen Peak National Monument. The source of heat for volcanism in the Lassen area is subduction off the Northern California coast of the Gorda Plate diving below the North American Plate. The area surrounding Lassen Peak is still active with boiling mud pots, stinking fumaroles, and churning hot springs. Lassen Volcanic National Park is one of the few areas in the world where all four types of volcano can be found (plug dome, shield, cinder cone, and strato). The park is accessible via State Routes SR 89 and SR 44. SR 89 passes north-south through the park, beginning at SR 36 to the south and ending at SR 44 to the north. SR 89 passes immediately adjacent the base of Lassen Peak. There are a total of five vehicle entrances to the park: the north and south entrances of SR 89, and unpaved roads entering at Drakesbad and Juniper Lake in the south, and Butte Lake in the northeast. The Park can also be accessed by trails leading in from Caribou Wilderness to the east, as well as the Pacific Crest Trail, and two smaller trails leading in from Willow Lake and Little Willow Lake to the south. Camping is the way to go at Lassen, although the nearby towns of Mineral and Chester offer some motel opportunities. Summer through fall is the best time to experience this trail. Snow covers the Lassen landscape for much of the year, closing roads and obscuring trails.

Established in 1980 by the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, Lake Clark National Park and Preserve is a United States National Park in southwestern Alaska. The park includes many streams and lakes vital to the Bristol Bay salmon fishery. The park allows a wide variety of recreational activities year-round. Lake Clark has been called "the essence of Alaska", for it concentrates in a relatively small area of the Alaska Peninsula, Southwest of Anchorage, a variety of features not found together in any of the other Alaska Parks: the junction of three mountain ranges, (the Alaska Range from the North, the Aleutian Range from the South, and the park's own rugged Chigmit Mountains), two active volcanoes (Iliamna and Redoubt), a coastline with rainforests on the East (similar to South East Alaska), a plateau with tundra on the West (similar to Arctic Alaska), and turquoise lakes. No roads lead to the park and it can only be reached by small aircraft, floatplanes being the best method. The park, one of the least visited in the National Park System, averages just over 5,000 visitors per year. The documentary film "Alone in the Wilderness" (2003) is set in what is now the park. Most of the film was taken in 1968 and shows the Twin Lakes portion of the park. Originally a national monument, Lake Clark's status was changed to National Park and Preserve in 1980, and about two-thirds was designated Wilderness.

Kings Canyon National Park is a U.S. National Park in the southern Sierra Nevada, east of Fresno, California. The park was established in 1940 and covers 462,901 acres (187,329 ha). It incorporated General Grant National Park, established in 1890 to protect the General Grant Grove of Giant Sequoias. The park is north of and contiguous with Sequoia National Park; the two are administered by the National Park Service together. Kings Canyon National Park consists of two sections. The small, detached General Grant Grove section preserves several groves of giant sequoias, including the General Grant Grove, with the famous General Grant Tree, and the Redwood Mountain Grove, which is the largest remaining natural grove of giant sequoias in the world (covering 3,100 acres (1,300 ha) and with 15,800 sequoia trees over one foot 1 foot (30 cm) in diameter at their bases). The park's Giant Sequoia forests are part of 202,430 acres (81,920 ha) of old-growth forests shared by Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks. This section of the park is mostly mixed conifer forest, and is readily accessible via paved highways. The remainder of Kings Canyon National Park, which comprises over 90% of the total area of the park, is located to the east of General Grant Grove and forms the headwaters of the South and Middle Forks of the Kings River and the South Fork of the San Joaquin River. Both the South and Middle Forks of the Kings Rivers have extensive glacial canyons. One portion of the South Fork canyon, known as the Kings Canyon, gives the entire park its name. Kings Canyon, with a maximum depth of 8,200 feet (2,500 m), is one of the deepest canyons in the United States. The canyon was carved by glaciers out of granite. The Kings Canyon, and its developed area, Cedar Grove, is the only portion of the main part of the park that is accessible by motor vehicle. Both the Kings Canyon and its Middle Fork twin, Tehipite Valley, are deeply incised, U-shaped glacial gorges with relatively flat floors and towering granite cliffs thousands of feet high. In addition, the canyon has several cave systems, one of which is the Boyden Cave, which is open to the public. To the east of the canyons are the high peaks of the Sierra Crest, which attain an elevation of 14,248 feet (4,343 m) at the summit of North Palisade, the highest point in the park. This is classic high Sierra country: barren alpine ridges and glacially scoured lake-filled basins. Usually snow free only from late June until late October, the high country is accessible only via foot and horse trails. The Sierran crest forms the eastern boundary of the park, from Mount Goethe in the north, down to Junction Peak, at the boundary with Sequoia National Park. Several passes cross the crest into the park, including Bishop Pass, Taboose Pass, Sawmill Pass, and Kearsarge Pass. All of these passes are above 11,000 feet (3,400 m) elevation.

Pinnacles National Park is a protected mountainous area located east of central California's Salinas Valley, about 5 miles (8.0 km) east of Soledad and about 80 miles (130 km) southeast of San Francisco. The park's namesakes are the eroded leftovers of half of an extinct volcano. The national park is divided by the rock formations into East and West Divisions, connected by foot trails; there is no through road that connects the east and west entrances to the park. The east side has shade and water, the west has high walls. The rock formations provide for spectacular pinnacles that attract rock climbers. It is popular with advanced rock climbers due to the many difficult and challenging climbs. The park is most often visited in spring or fall because of the intense heat during the summer months. There are several trails for day hikers, some of which are strenuous. The trails provide views of the surrounding hills and valleys on clear days. The San Andreas Fault is visible from some vantages along the trails. The park includes a well known hiking portion known among enthusiasts simply as "The Pig Fence". This portion of South Wilderness Trail is a challenging stretch of strenuous hiking that at times requires use of the fence, erected to prevent feral pigs from entering the park, to help oneself to climb the steeply pitched trail. Other trails include lush wildflower accented views along flat stream beds, trails that bring one into beautiful caves, and trails that involve high vistas of the Pinnacle formations. The caves at Pinnacles are talus caves, formed when steep, narrow canyons were filled with boulders, leaving passages between the larger rocks. The Bear Gulch on the east side of the park and Balconies caves on the west side are seasonally open to visitors. These caves house breeding colonies for Townsend's big-eared bat and are closed during pupping season. The caves may be flooded at times of high water. Camping facilities are available on the east side in the Pinnacles Campground. The park lies within the California interior chaparral and woodlands ecoregion. The vegetation is about 80% chaparral with woodlands, riparian and grasslands merged into the chaparral. The diversity of intersecting ecosystems and altitude has led to great number of animal species that call the Monument home. The park is located near the San Andreas Fault, which had a hand in creating the unique formations the Monument protects. The Pinnacles are part of the Neenach Volcano which erupted 23 million years ago near present-day Lancaster, California.. The movement of the Pacific Plate along the San Andreas Fault split a section of rock off from the main body of the volcano and moved it 195 miles (314 km) to the northwest. It is believed that the pinnacles came from this particular volcano due to the unique breccias that are only found elsewhere in the Neenach Volcano formations. Differential erosion and weathering of the exposed rock created the Pinnacles that are seen today. Large scale earth movement also created the talus caves that can be found in the Monument. Deep, narrow gorges and shear fractures were transformed into caves by large chunks of rock falling from above and wedging into the cracks leaving an open area below. Since the Pinnacles were moved to this area, the San Andreas Fault has shifted 4 miles (6.4 km) to the East of the Monument. The original location of the San Andreas can be seen in the Chalone Creek Fault. Two other large faults are known to run through the Monument, the Miner's Gulch and Pinnacles Faults. These faults parallel the San Andreas and were most likely caused by major movements of the main fault. Seismic activity is frequent in the Monument and United States Geological Survey maintains two seismometers within the boundaries. Evidence of past and ongoing seismic activity can be seen in offset streams where they cross faults. Valley bottoms and terraces show signs of uplift. Prairie Falcons breed in this area in some of the highest densities of anywhere in North America. Peregrine falcons have recently returned to the park to breed also, but in far fewer numbers. ACalifornia Condor re-establishment program has been in place since 2003. The first nest since reintroduction was built in 2010, and Pinnacles now manages a population of 32 free-flying condors. Bobcats, cougars, coyotes, California Quail, Wild Turkey, and many other birds and mammals live in the area. Like many parks in central California, Pinnacles has had a small problem with wild pigs (a mix of feral domestic pigs and imported wild boars) disturbing the landscape on a regular basis. As of Spring 2006, the core of the park was pig free. The culmination of a twenty-year, 1.6 million dollar effort had succeeded in eradicating pigs from the main area of the park. National Park Servicepersonnel along with IWS worked to remove pigs from inside the park, and establish and monitor an exclusionary pig fence that runs for approximately 26 miles (42 km) around the center core of the park. Outside this fence, however, wild pigs still roam in regular abundance. Current monitoring for potential breaks and breaches in the fence is needed to ensure that the pigs do not return to devastate the park. More than 80% of the park is designated as the Pinnacles Wilderness (15,985 acres or 6,469 hectares), which provides even higher protection for the rock spires that give Pinnacles its name, as well as Chalone Peak, the highest peak in the Gabilan Range, and includes the creeks and canyons that are habitat for the endangered red-legged frog. The United States Congress in 1976 enacted Public Law 94-567, adding Pinnacles Wilderness and several others to the National Wilderness Preservation System. Pinnacles National Park lies about 40 miles (64 km) inland from the Pacific Ocean and about 80 miles (130 km) south of the San Francisco Bay Area. The monument is in the southern portion of the Gabilan Range, part of California's Coast Ranges. Elevation within the boundaries range from 824 feet (251 m) to 3,304 feet (1,007 m) at the peak of North Chalone Peak. The climate is Mediterranean, typical on the Southern and Central California coast. The Santa Lucia Mountains lie between the Monument and Pacific Ocean, blocking much of the moderating influence of the Ocean. In comparison to the nearby coast, temperatures have a daily larger range that can be 50 °F to 100 °F (10 °C to 38 °C). The average rainfall is about 16 inches (410 mm) per year. Snow can fall in small amounts at higher elevations between mid-December and January. Pinnacles National Park was created from the former Pinnacles National Monument by legislation passed by Congress in late 2012 and signed into law on January 10, 2013.

Kenai Fjords National Park is a United States National Park established in 1980 by the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act. The park covers an area of approximately 1,760 sq mi (4,600 km2) on the Kenai Peninsula in southcentral Alaska, near the town of Seward. The park contains the Harding Icefield, one of the largest ice fields in the United States. The park is named for the numerous fjords carved by glaciers moving down the mountains from the ice field. The field is the source of at least 38 glaciers, the largest of which is Bear Glacier. Seward is a departure point and destination for large cruise ships from Celebrity Cruises, Holland America Line, Royal Caribbean International and others. Passenger traffic through Seward is projected at 68,000 for 2013. Cruise tours originating from Seward provide access to the park via Resurrection Bay. Various companies offer tours, many guided by National Park Rangers. The tours provide views of land and marine wildlife, particularly Steller sea lions, puffins, Dall's porpoises, American black bear, Mountain goats, and humpback and orca whales, as well as natural sights such as the fjords and tidewater glaciers. Seward is a destination for cruise ships. Bus tours from Seward visit Exit Glacier and boat tours visit other parts of the park. The park maintains public-use cabins and shelters in coastal areas and at the edge of the Harding Icefield. Some of these are on native corporation lands, with a portion of the use fee going to the native community. The park can be reached from Seward, 130 mi (210 km) south of Anchorage at the southern terminus of the Seward Highway. It is only one of three national parks in Alaska that can be reached by road, via the Exit Glacier Nature Center. A network of trails from the Nature Center provide access to the glacier, and the 7.4-mile (11.9 km) Cruise tours originating from Seward also provide access to the park via Resurrection Bay. Various companies offer tours, many guided by National Park Rangers. The tours provide views of land and marine wildlife, particularly Stellar sea lions, puffins, Dall's porpoises, American black bear, Mountain goats, and humpback and orca whales, as well as natural sights such as the fjords and tidewater glaciers. Exit Glacier has a 12-site, walk-in, tent-campground. Sites are available on a first-come, first-served basis. There are no reservations or camping fees. There is a fourteen day stay limit. The campground frequently fills by early evening in July and August.

Congaree National Park preserves in South Carolina is the largest tract of old growth bottomland hardwood forest left in the United States. The lush trees growing in this floodplain forest are some of the tallest in the Eastern U.S., forming one of the highest natural canopies remaining in the world. The Congaree River flows through the park. In addition to being a designated Wilderness Area, an International Biosphere Reserve, a Globally Important Bird Area and a National Natural Landmark, Congaree National Park features primitive campsites and offers hiking, canoeing, kayaking, and bird watching. Bald cypress is a common tree in the park. Large animals possibly seen in the park include bobcats, deer, feral pigs, feral dogs, coyotes, armadillos andturkeys. Its waters contain interesting creatures like amphibians, turtles, snakes, alligators, and many types of fish, including bowfin, largemouth bass, panfish, and catfish. Primitive and backcountry camping is available. Some of the hiking trails include the Bluff Trail (0.7 mi), Weston Lake Loop Trail (4.6 mi), Oakridge Trail (7.5 mi), and King Snake Trail (11.1 mi) where hikers may spot deer, raccoon, opossum, and even bobcat tracks. The National Park Service rangers have current trail conditions which can be found in the Harry Hampton Visitor’s Center. Along with hiking trails, the park also has a 20-mile (32 km) marked canoe trail on Cedar Creek. Most visitors to the park walk along the Boardwalk Loop, an elevated 2.4-mile (3.9 km) walkway through the swampy environment that protects delicate fungi and plant life at ground level. Canoe rides through the swamp are conducted for free Saturday and Sunday as staffing permits. Congaree boasts both the tallest (169ft, 51.4m) and largest (42 cubic meters) Loblolly Pines (Pinus taeda) alive today. The Harry Hampton Visitor Center features exhibits about the natural history of the park, and the efforts to protect the swamp.

Indiana Dunes National Park is a unit of the National Park System designated as a U.S. National Park located in northwest Indiana and managed by the National Park Service. It was authorized by Congress in 1966 as the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, the name by which it was known until 2019. The national park runs for nearly 25 miles (40 km) along the southern shore of Lake Michigan, in Chesterton, Indiana, and contains approximately 15,000 acres (6,100 ha). The National Park has acquired about 95% of the property within the authorized boundaries. Its holdings are non-contiguous and include the 2,182-acre (883 ha) Indiana Dunes State Park (1925), which is owned and managed by the state of Indiana. The park is physically divided into 15 disconnected pieces. Along the lakefront, the eastern area is roughly the lake shore south to U.S. 12 or U.S. 20 between Michigan City, Indiana, on the east and the ArcelorMittal steel plant on the west. A small extension, south of the steel mill continues west along Salt Creek to Indiana 249. The western area is roughly the shoreline south to U.S. 12 between the Burns Ditch west to Broadway in downtown Gary, Indiana. In addition, there are several outlying areas, including; Pinhook Bog, in LaPorte County to the east. The Heron Rookery in Porter County, the center of the park, and the Calumet Prairie State Nature Preserve and the Hobart Prairie Grove, both in Lake County, the western end of the park. Also within the National Park is the Hoosier Prairie State Nature Preserve, managed by the Indiana Department of Natural Resources. A bill to reclassify Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore as Indiana Dunes National Park was sponsored by Representative Pete Visclosky and Senators Todd Young and Mike Braun and previously by Senator Joe Donnelly, who wanted to bring the site more attention. The National Park Service testified in opposition to the redesignation, which is inconsistent with the Service's naming conventions: The Indiana Dunes have more in common with other national lakeshores and seashores than national parks, which are typically much larger and have a greater diversity of resources. H.R. 1488 originally passed in the House of Representatives on November 1, 2017, but it did not receive a vote in the Senate during the 115th Congress. The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2019 included the bill as a provision, and Pres. Donald Trump signed the legislation on February 15, creating the country's 61st National Park and the first in Indiana. The creeks and rivers of the national park include: Dunes Creek is a northwards-flowing 4.3-mile-long (6.9 km) stream which drains the flows northward, receiving first the Great Marsh tributary from the east and then the West Branch tributary which drains Cowles Bog. Dunes Creek passes through the coastal sand dunes to empty into Lake Michigan. East Arm Little Calumet River, also known as the "East Branch Little Calumet River", is a 22.1-mile-long (35.6 km) portion of the Little Calumet River that begins just east of Holmesville, Indiana, in New Durham Township in LaPorte County and flows west to Porter County where it is diverted to the Port of Indiana-Burns Waterway and Lake Michigan. Salt Creek is a 24.0-mile-long (38.6 km) tributary of the East Arm Little Calumet River that begins south of Valparaiso in Porter County, Indiana, and flows north until it joins the East Arm Little Calumet River just before it exits to Lake Michigan via the Port of Indiana-Burns Waterway. Trail Creek is a 7.3-mile-long (11.7 km) north- by northwest-flowing stream whose main stem begins at the confluence of the West Branch Trail Creek and the East Branch Trail Creek in LaPorte County, Indiana, and flows through the Michigan City harbor into Lake Michigan. Indiana Dunes National Park is host to wide variety of wildlife, including white-tailed deer, red fox, raccoons, opossums, cottontail rabbits, various rodents, Canada geese, gulls, squirrels, hawks, turkey vultures, mallards, great blue herons, songbirds, and garter snakes. The Indiana Dunes has over 369 species of flowering plants. Of these, thirteen are considered threatened or in danger of extinction. Additionally, there four invasive flowering plants on the list. Some of the most common spring flowers include the May apple, buttercups (6 varieties), and violets (14 varieties). Summer brings out the orchids (5 varieties) and lots of goldenrod (11 varieties).

The National Park of American Samoa is a national park on the American territory of American Samoa, distributed across three separate islands: Tutuila, Ofu-Olosega, and Ta‘ū. The Tutuila unit of the park is on the north end of the island near Pago Pago. It is separated by Mount Alava (1,610 feet (490 m)) and the Maugaloa Ridge and includes the Amalau Valley, Craggy Point, Tafeu Cove, and the islands of Pola and Manofa. It is the only part of the park accessible by car and attracts the vast majority of people. The park lands include a trail to the top of Mount Alava and historic World War II gun emplacement sites at Breakers Point and Blunt's Point. The trail runs along the ridge in dense forest, north of which the land slopes steeply away to the ocean. Ofu and Olosega can be accessed by small plane from the airport on Tutuila to Ofu. Accommodations are available on Ofu at the airport and at Asaga. Ta‘ū can be reached by a flight from Tutuila to Fiti‘uta on Ta‘ū. Accommodations are available on Ta‘ū. A trail runs from Saua around Si’u Point to the southern coastline and stairs to the 3,000-foot (910 m) summit of Lata Mountain. The park includes coral reefs and rain forest and is popular for hiking, snorkeling, and scuba diving, although the primary purpose of the park is that of preservation of Samoa's unique natural resources. It is the only American national park south of the equator. Because of its remote location, diversity among the terrestrial species is low. Approximately 30% of the plants and one bird species (the Samoan Starling) are endemic to the archipelago.

Isle Royale National Park is a U.S. National Park in the state of Michigan. Isle Royale, the largest island in Lake Superior, is over 45 miles (72 km) in length and 9 miles (14 km) wide at its widest point. The park is made of Isle Royale itself and approximately 400 smaller islands, along with any submerged lands within 4.5 miles (7.24 km) of the surrounding islands. Isle Royale National Park was established on April 3, 1940, was designated as a Wilderness Area in 1976, and was made an International Biosphere Reserve in 1980. It is a relatively small national park at 894 square miles (2,314 km²), with only 209 square miles (542 km²) above water. At the U.S.-Canada border, it will meet the borders of the future Canadian Lake Superior National Marine Conservation Area. The Greenstone Ridge is a high ridge in the center of the island and carries the longest trail in the park, the Greenstone Ridge Trail, which runs 40 miles (60 km) from one end of the island to the other. This is generally done as a 4 or 5 day hike. A boat shuttle can carry hikers back to their starting port. In total there are 165 miles (265 km) of hiking trails. There are also canoe/kayak routes, many involving portages, along coastal bays and inland lakes. Isle Royale National Park is known for its wolf and moose populations which are studied by scientists investigating predator-prey relationships in a closed environment. This is made easier because Isle Royale has been colonized by roughly just one third of the mainland mammal species, due to it being so remote. In addition, the environment is unique in that it is the only known place where wolves and moose coexist without the presence of bears There are usually around 25 wolves and 1000 moose on the island, but the numbers change greatly year to year. In rare years with very hard winters, animals can travel over the frozen lake from the Canadian mainland. To protect the wolves from canine diseases, dogs are not allowed in any part of the park, including the adjacent waters. In the 2006-2007 winter, 385 moose were counted, as well as 21 wolves, in three packs. In spring 2008, 23 wolves and approximately 650 moose were counted. The park is accessible by floatplane and by ferry during the summer months from Grand Portage, Minnesota, and from Houghton and Copper Harbor in Michigan. Private boats travel to the island from Minnesota, Michigan and Ontario. Isle Royale is quite popular with day-trippers with day trip service provided from Grand portage, MN and Copper Harbor, MI to and from the park. The ferries that make this voyage from Grand Portage, MN do so in an hour and a half, and spend 4 hours on the island, allowing plenty of time for hiking, picnic lunches and taking in a guided hike or program by the park staff Some ferries may delay—and in some situations cancel—trips during heavy weather, although this occurs very rarely. The park has two developed areas: Windigo, at the southwest end of the island (docking site for the ferries from Minnesota), with a campstore, showers, campsites, and a boat dock. Rock Harbor on the south side of the northeast end (docking site for the ferries from Michigan), with a campstore, showers, restaurant, lodge, campsites, and a boat dock. Non-camping sleeping accommodations at the park are limited to the lodge at Rock Harbor. The park has 36 designated wilderness campgrounds. Some campgrounds in the interior are accessible only by trail or by canoe/kayak on the island lakes. Others campgrounds are accessible only by private boat. The campsites vary in capacity but typically include a few three-sided wood shelters (the fourth wall is screened) with floors and roofs, and several individual sites suitable for pitching a small tent. Some tent sites with space for groups of up to 10 are available, and are used for overflow if all the individual sites are filled. The only amenities at the campgrounds are pit toilets, picnic tables, and fire-rings at specific areas. Campfires are not permitted at most campgrounds; gas or alcohol camp stoves are recommended. Drinking and cooking water must be drawn from local water sources (Lake Superior and inland lakes) and filtered, treated, or boiled to avoid parasites. Hunting is not permitted, but fishing is, and edible berries (blueberries, thimbleberries) may be picked from the trail. The park is accessible by ferries, floatplanes, and passenger ships during the summer months — from Houghton and Copper Harbor in Michigan; and Grand Portage in Minnesota. Private boats travel to the island from the coasts of Michigan, Minnesota, and Ontario. Isle Royale is quite popular with day-trippers in private boats, and day trip ferry service is provided from Copper Harbor and Grand Portage to and from the park. Because of the difficulty of travel and the hazards of wilderness survival during the winter months, Isle Royale National Park is the only U. S. National Park to entirely close for the full winterseason. Due to the distance across Lake Superior to reach the park, and the winter closing, fewer than 20,000 people a year visit Isle Royale — which is fewer than the number of visitors to the most popular National Parks in a single day. Isle Royale had 15,973 visitors in 2007, making it the least-visited national park in the continental United States; and the fifth-least visited in the National Park Service system. Scheduled ferry service operates from Grand Portage, Copper Harbor and Houghton. The Grand Portage ferries reach the island in 1 1/2 hours, and stay 4 hours at the island, allowing time for hiking, a guided hike or program by the park staff, and picnics. The Isle Royale Queen serves park visitors out of Copper Harbor, on the northern Upper Peninsula coast of Michigan. It arrives at Rock Harbor in the park in 3 to 3 1/2 hours, spends 3 1/2 hours before returning to Copper Harbor. The Sea Hunter operates round-trips and offers day trips through much of the season, less frequently in early summer and autumn. Some ferries may delay—and in some situations cancel—trips during heavy weather. The Ranger III is a 165-foot (50 m) ship that serves park visitors from Houghton, Michigan to Rock Harbor. It is operated by the National Park Service, and said to be the largest piece of equipment in the National Park system. It carries 125 passengers, and canoes, kayaks, and even small powerboats. It is a six-hour voyage from Houghton to the park. The ship overnights at Rock Harbor before returning the next day, making two round trips each week, June to mid-September. Briefly in the 2008 season, the Ranger III carried visitors to/from Windigo. This was not continued after 4 trips, due to low interest and long crossing times. The Voyageur II, out of Grand Portage, crosses up to three times a week, overnighting at Rock Harbor and providing transportation between popular lakeside campgrounds. The Voyageur II and other boat taxi services ferry hikers to points along the island, allowing a one-way hike back to Rock Harbor or Windigo. Visitors may land at Rock Harbor and depart from Windigo several days later, or vice versa. Hikers will frequently ride it in one direction to do a cross-island hike and be picked up at the other end when they finish.

Big Bend National Park is a national park located in the U.S. state of Texas. For more than 1,000 miles (1,600 km), the Rio Grande/Río Bravo forms the international boundary between Mexico and the United States, and Big Bend National Park administers approximately 244 miles (393 km) along that boundary. The park was named after the area, which is bounded by a large bend in the Texas-Mexico border (see map at right below). Big Bend National Park has national significance as the largest protected area of Chihuahuan Desert topography and ecology in the United States, which includes more than 1,200 species of plants, more than 450 species of birds, 56 species of reptiles, and 75 species of mammals. The park covers 801,163 acres (1,252 sq mi; 3,242 km2). Few areas exceed the park's value for the protection and study of geologic and paleontologic resources. Cretaceous and Tertiary fossil organisms exist in variety and abundance. Archeologists have discovered artifacts estimated to be 9,000 years old, and historic buildings and landscapes offer graphic illustration of life along the international border in the 19th century. Because the Rio Grande serves as an international boundary, the park faces unusual constraints when administering and enforcing park rules, regulations, and policies. In accordance with the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, the park has jurisdiction only to the center of the deepest river channel as the river flowed in 1848. The rest of the land south of that channel, and the river, lies within Mexican territory.

The New River Gorge National Park and Preserve is a unit of the United States National Park Service designed to protect and maintain the New River Gorge in southern West Virginia in the Appalachian Mountains. Established in 1978 as a national river, the NPS-protected area stretches for 53 miles (85 km) from just downstream of Hinton to Hawks Nest State Park near Ansted. The park is rich in cultural and natural history and offers an abundance of scenic and recreational opportunities. New River Gorge is also home to some of the country's best whitewater rafting, mainly from the Cunard put-in to the Fayette Station take-out. New River Gorge is also one of the most popular climbing areas on the east coast with over 1,400 established rock climbs. The cliffs at "The New" are located just below the rim of the gorge and are made up of a very hard Nuttall sandstone. The rock is very featured, and an abundance of crack and face routes, with occasional large roofs. Almost all climbs are one pitch long and range from 30 to 120 feet (37 m) in height. The majority of the routes in the gorge are for advanced climbers in 5.10-5.12 range of the Yosemite Decimal System with about an equal number of traditional and sport climbs. President Jimmy Carter signed legislation establishing New River Gorge National River on November 10, 1978 (Pub.L. 95–625). As stated in the legislation, the park was established as a unit of the national park system "for the purpose of conserving and interpreting outstanding natural, scenic, and historic values and objects in and around the New River Gorge and preserving as a free-flowing stream an important segment of the New River in West Virginia for the benefit and enjoyment of present and future generations." The New River Gorge National Park and Preserve Designation Act was incorporated into the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, signed on December 27, 2020 by President Donald Trump, changing the designation to New River Gorge National Park and Preserve. Less than 10% of the original national river was redesignated as national park where hunting is no longer permitted, while the remainder is a national preserve with little change. Flowing water is the creative force shaping the geologic features of the New River Gorge as the river continues to sculpt the longest and deepest river gorge in the Appalachian Mountains. On display in the gorge one can find a variety of unique geologic features and processes that exemplify the geology of the Appalachian Plateau, including the exposure of over 1,000 feet (300 m) of sandstone and shale, house-sized boulders scattered from rim to river, plant and invertebrate fossils, and steep channel drop-offs. The river has exposed four seams of coal, considered among the best bituminous coal in the world. The smokeless New River coal once fed the boilers of the nation's trains, factories, fleets and power plants, and its coke fueled the nation's iron furnaces. The waters of the New River system contain a mosaic of hydrologic features and aquatic habitats that support a unique aquatic ecosystem and nourish a riparian zone that supports rare plants, animals, and communities. The waters provide a surprising variety and density of riverine hydrologic features and processes unparalleled in the Eastern United States, including pools, backwaters, glides, runs, shoals, riffles, torrents, cascades, chutes, rapids and waterfalls. The river is a highly productive aquatic ecosystem that includes distinct populations of native fish (many found nowhere else), mussels, crayfish, and a broad array of other aquatic life, including rare amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals. The riparian zone is the most biologically diverse part of the park and contains globally rare communities and essential habitat for several rare species. The New River is a dynamic aquatic ecosystem that supports smallmouth bass and other game fish, mussels, crayfish, other invertebrates, and aquatic plants. New River Gorge National Park and Preserve lies at the core of a globally significant forest containing the most diverse flora of any river gorge in central and southern Appalachia and provides essential habitat for endangered mammals and rare birds and amphibians. The park contains habitats of continuous forest, cliff and rimrock, forest seeps and wetlands, mature bottomland forests, abandoned mine portals (providing a refuge for rare species, including bats, amphibians, and the Allegheny woodrat; a species of special concern in West Virginia and in decline throughout the eastern United States). New River Gorge offers shelter to at least 63 species of mammals including the endangered Virginia big-eared and Indiana bats. The river, stream tributaries, and forest provide habitat for 48 known species of amphibians including the eastern hellbender, black-bellied salamander, and cave salamander. Diverse populations of birds such as wood warblers, vireos, and thrushes spend part of their lives in the tropics but depend upon the unfragmented forests of the New River Gorge for breeding. The region is a vital link in the north-south migratory flyway. Each year, thousands of hawks fly across the region during the fall migratory season. The National Park Service and West Virginia Department of Natural Resources have initiated a multi-year program to restore peregrine falcons to New River Gorge. These majestic birds soar and dive near the cliffs. Forty different plant communities containing at least 1,342 species and 54 rare plants have been identified in the gorge. Within the gorge is a wealth of historically significant abandoned places, some in ruins and some stabilized and rehabilitated, where people worked and lived during the late 18th and 19th centuries, supplying the coal and lumber that helped fuel American industry. Remnants of the park's past, hidden in the forest, tell the stories of earlier life in the Appalachian Mountains. On display are the tangible remains of historic coal mining structures and coke ovens of unmatched integrity — such as at Nuttallburg Coal Mining Complex and Town Historic District and Kay Moor — and the historic structures and ruins associated with more than 50 company-owned towns. The New River Gorge region was opened up to the outside world in 1873 with the coming of the railroad. In the park, there are old railroad depots, rail yards, rail grades, steel and timber trestle bridges, railroad equipment, archeological sites and associated towns, like Thurmond, that were developed to support the railroad. The history and archeology associated with the lumbering industry can be seen in the ruins of old towns like Hamlet. Also contributing to the area's rich cultural history are surviving examples of subsistence farms, former community sites, homesteads, and other places in the park where the ancestors of families long associated with the New River lived and worked. The Lower Gorge of the New River is a premier whitewater rafting location. The rapids, ranging in difficulty from Class III to Class V, are imposing and forceful, many of them obstructed by large boulders which necessitate maneuvering in very powerful currents, crosscurrents, and hydraulics. Commercial outfitters conduct trips down the river from April through October. The upper part of the river offers somewhat less challenging class I to III rapids for whitewater canoeing. The National Park Service website lists all the licensed outfitters on their Commercial Whitewater Information page. New River Gorge National Park and Preserve has become one of the most popular rock climbing areas in the country. Within the park are over 1,400 established rock climbs. The cliffs at New River Gorge are made up of hard sandstone and range from 30 to 120 feet (37 m) in height. Fishing is one of the most popular activities on the New River. The diversity of fish in its waters makes the New River an excellent warm water fishery. There are over 50 miles (80 km) of hiking trails in the park ranging from easy walks to more challenging hikes. Several trails following old railroad grades are open to bikes. There are four primitive camping areas within the park, all located along the river.