Put A Park In Your Plans

Perusing the website for the National Park Service I was impressed with the many ways you can choose a park to visit. Parks are a great place to include in your travel plans. They do not usually cost much if anything to visit and offer all sorts of programs to enrich your experience. We have gone on hikes, sat around campfires, fed hummingbirds and learned history, culture and about the natural environment of the area.

If you go onto their website you can search for a park by state, by activity or by topic. So if you are planning a trip you might want to take a look and find out what could be of interest to you. If you are a camper it's an ideal opportunity to enjoy the park from within after hours. If you're like us and camping is more like staying at the Holiday Inn, you might be interested in some of the parks that actually have lodges or cabins for your stay.

Be sure to check what the weather might be for the time of your visit. Death Valley National Park would be much more pleasant in the winter than in the summer when the temperatures reach the level that makes it earn its name. Parts of Yellowstone may be closed to you during the winter because of the snow and ice. As we were leaving the park when we visited in the fall, we noticed a crew putting up ten foot snow poles so the plows would be able to see where the road was.

I've been reading a book called The Great Burn that tells the story of a huge fire in the west around the time that Teddy Roosevelt and George Pinchot were forming the rangers organization and trying to get people to be involved in the conservation of natural land in our country. Thanks to their efforts and the efforts of others, we have these beautiful parks. Pick one and enjoy!