The week is almost over but I can’t let it pass completely without reminding you that this is National Parks Week. I love our National Parks. Over the years I’ve been to over 50 units of the National Park System and hope to visit many more while I am still able to get out and about.
In case you’re wondering, as of the date of this post there are 422 units that are overseen my the National Park System. They fall into the following 22 categories:
- National Battlefields (11)
- National Battlefield Parks (4)
- National Battlefield Site (1)
- National Military Parks (9)
- National Historical Parks (58)
- National Historic Sites (76)
- International Historic Sites (1)
- National Lakeshores (3)
- National Memorials (31)
- National Monuments (84)
- National Parks (62)
- National Parkways (4)
- National Preserves (19)
- National Reserves (2)
- National Recreation Areas (18)
- National Rivers (5)
- National Scenic Trails (3)
- National Seashores (10)
- National Wild and Scenic Rivers and Riverways (10)
- Other Designations (11)
Long ago my wife and I lived in our tent for the better part of a year and spent most of that time camping in National Parks. Our most recent visit was to Saguaro National Park in Tucson, Arizona, last month.
If you don’t have much information about our parks, one place to look is the website of the National Park Foundation, which is the official charitable organization affiliated with the National Park System. You can get a lot of free information and download brochures that will help you find and enjoy parks that are near to you. And, if you happen to have a few bucks to donate, I’m sure they’d appreciate that as well.
Just for fun, here are 10 photographs, one from each of the following locations: Arches National Park, Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Everglades National Park, Grand Canyon National Park, Mt. Rainier National Park, Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, Yellowstone National Park, Yosemite National Park, and Zion National Park. Can you connect the photo with the location?
(Hint: After guessing, mouse over an image to see the park name.)
