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National Park Quiz 10: Speak of the Devil

Thunderstorm at Devils Tower. Photo by richpix_? via Flickr.

1. Devils Tower National Monument was named “monument” because
a. it is a monument-like geologic formation
b. it is the English translation of the Shoshone word for “sacred place”
c. the Antiquities Act authorized the President to proclaim national monuments
d. the name “spaceport” was already taken

2. The rarest of all the creatures at Death Valley National Park is the famously endangered Devil’s Hole pupfish. These and the other pupfish inhabiting springs and seeps in the park are the sole survivors of ancient
a. Lake Manly
b. Lake Bonneville
c. Lake Polk
d. Lake Alkali

3. The Devil’s Postpile, a geologic formation in a California national monument of the same name, is considered one of the world’s finest examples of
a. sandstone hoodoos
b. wave eroded schist
c. glacially striated limestone
d. columnar basalt

4. There is both a Devil’s Trail and a Devil’s Garden Campground at
a. Valley Forge National Historical Park
b. Petrified Forest National Park
c. Arches National Park
d. Joshua Tree National Park

5. An oxbow lake has formed at Devils Elbow, a cutoff meander on the river that forms the southern boundary of
a. Horseshoe Bend National Military Park
b. Theodore Roosevelt Island National Memorial
c. Congaree National Park
d. Big Bend National Park

6. The Devil’s Throat in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is
a. a fire fountain spewing lava about 100 feet into the air
b. a pit crater that is about 165 feet deep
c. a drained lava tube with a lighted trail and signage
d. a Native Hawaiian sacred site with no public access

7. A backpacker at _______ can climb the Devil’s Staircase, pass through the Devil’s Hall, arrive at the end of the trail, and see what must surely be the National Park System’s single most informative sign. It reads “End of the Trail.”
a. Guadalupe Mountains National Park
b. Jewel Cave National Monument
c. Kings Canyon National Park
d. Petroglyph National Monument

8. The Devils Loop hiking trail ends at Ross Lake in
a. Kenai Fjords National Park
b. Prince William Forest Park
c. Jean Lafitte National Historical Park & Preserve
d. North Cascades National Park

9. Devils Point is a great place for a cool-me-off swim in the Devil's Punch Bowl if you get overheated while hiking or biking in
a. Shenandoah National Park
b. Olympic National Park
c. Acadia National Park
d. Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area

10.* Devils Island at Apostle Islands National Lakeshore has
a. concessionaire-operated llama- and horse packing trips on 30 miles of trails
b. a campground store that offers propane tank exchanges and scuba tank refills
c. a lighthouse that was the last manned station in the Apostle Islands
d. a year round resident population, including children who attend school on the mainland

* The Hauptquizmeister has ruled that Bob Krumenaker cannot include this question in his tally and must take his chances with the bonus question.

Bonus question

11. In a recent conversation with my neighbor Mike, I told him these four things about my visits to national parks. I’m a talented liar, as everybody knows, but I did slip in one statement that happens to be true. Which one is it?
a. I shot two under par on the Devil’s Golf Course at Death Valley.
b. I cooked a dinner for three at the Devil’s Kitchen in Lassen Volcanic.
c. I took the elevator down to the Devil’s Den in Carlsbad Caverns.
d. I traced the third flight while walking in Kill Devil Hills.

Answers: (1) c (2) a (3) d (4) c (5) c (6) b (7) a (8) d (9) b (10) c (11) d – The Wright Brothers first flight took place at the base of Kill Devil Hill, now in the town of Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina. While at the Wright Brothers National Memorial there, visitors can walk the path of the first, second, third, and fourth flights. BTW, Devil’s Golf Course is a salt pan, Devil’s Kitchen is a geothermal spring (no cooking allowed!), and Devil’s Den at Carlsbad is accessed from the natural entrance, not the elevator. Grading: 9 or 10 correct, rest on your laurels; 7 or 8 correct, pretty darn good; 6 correct, passably fair; 5 or fewer correct, nothing to brag about.

Comments

An early morning hike in Arches on the Devil's Garden Primitive Loop trail is one of the more special places I've been in the NPS. Early morning, as the first part of the trail gets pretty crowded with people trekking to Landscape Arch and a bunch of other arches along the first couple miles of trail. Also, you'll get out to explore some great fins/mazes all by yourself. (Not as impressive as the Fiery Furnace, but also less of a chance that you'll get hopelessly lost as well.)


I disagree with (1). Many areas (for example White Sands) are declared "National Monuments" that do not feature "a geologic formation that resembles a monument". Joshua Tree in California was a National Monument before being upgraded to a National Park several years ago, as were Death Valley and Grand Teton.
According to Wikipedia (we all know how trustworthy they are): "A National Monument in the United States is a protected area that is similar to a National Park except that the President of the United States can quickly declare an area of the United States to be a national monument without the approval of Congress. National monuments receive less funding and afford fewer protections to wildlife than national parks." [Ed. Nice catch, Anon. The Hauptquizmeister agrees that he should be called on the carpet when he does not offer the correct answer as a choice and instead indicates a distractor (teacher-speak for an answer selection put in there to lead you astray). If you will look at the revised item #1, you'll see what the quiz item looked like before the Hauptquizmeister got sloppy with draft number three of this quiz when he decided to put in a joke distractor -- that spaceport thing -- and inadvertently replaced the correct answer with another distractor. Man, that's some pretty good weaselspeak, if I do say so myself!]


Well, Professor, you found my weakness. Even if I (illegally) counted the question you excluded me from, I could only do 6 on this test! All the best, Bob


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