You are here

Home

Exploring the Parks

Traveler peels back the layers to help you enjoy your national park experience to the max.

Musings From Death Valley National Park

November sun sets at 4:35 p.m. in Death Valley. Early because we’re on the eastern edge of Pacific Standard Time. It’s only 6:30 p.m. and I’m already tired of reading. All around my campsite there are others sitting in the dark. Most are sitting beside campfires. Quiet talk fills the evening along with delicious odors of cooking food. Somewhere not too far away, someone quietly plunks on a guitar.

Musings From Cabrillo National Monument

Cabrillo National Monument is one of the little gems of the National Park System. Located at the tip of Point Loma, a peninsula that’s on the northwest side of San Diego Bay. Only 160 acres and surrounded by a major Naval base and Coast Guard station, Cabrillo is nevertheless a tiny treasure — and because of its proximity to one of America’s largest urban areas, it’s one of the most heavily visited pieces of the park system.

Long-Distance Trails For Your Consideration

Since 1966, national scenic and historic trails have been an American priority. They traverse mountains, canyons, forests, and grasslands across the country, crossing creeks and rivers and skirting lakes. These narrow corridors through the wilderness provide recreation and protect historic resources while conserving natural features. There are many physical, emotional, and logistical requirements for these trips, and winter is the perfect season to get in shape and plan for a long walk. Here’s a quick look at a few of these trails to help you plan a trip.

Enjoying Winter And Pondering The Relevancy Of National Parks

How relevant are national parks to the American public? Back in 2014, then-Park Service Director Jon Jarvis raised that question in a conversation, explaining that “the challenges that we’re facing on a variety of fronts are symptoms, to me, of a waning relevancy to the American people.” That comment arose as we discussed Congress’s collective shoulder shrug over issues facing the National Park Service.

Afoot Through History In The Waterpocket Fold

If you pay a visit to any of Utah’s five national parks, much of the time your eyes will be riveted on arches, towers, cliffs and canyons. That’s only natural in places as scenic as these, but in the years that my wife and I have been exploring southern Utah’s park lands, we’ve found it worth our while to learn about their history as well. The signs of human occupancy in the national parks and monuments of the Colorado Plateau are often hidden, but they give important clues to how people have adapted—or failed to adapt—to the rigors of living in this harsh landscape.

Wanderings From Cable Mountain In Zion National Park

I scraped one more item off my Things To Do list a couple of weeks ago. I finally made it to the top of Cable Mountain. If you stand in the parking lot at Weeping Rock or the shuttle stop at Big Bend and look up toward a tall, sheer cliff to the east, you’ll see a square frame pasted to the sky up there. Most people never notice it because it’s awfully small when viewed against the backdrop of red rocks and towering cliffs. But that little thing is part of one of the most fascinating stories in a place full of fascinating stories.

A Walk Through Walnut Canyon National Monument

Just 10 minutes east of Flagstaff, Arizona, on a densely forested plateau, the serpentine chasms of Walnut Canyon long ago gave refuge to hundreds of Native Americans. Occupied from approximately 1100 to 1250 CE, the Sinagua people were experts in growing crops and living in an arid environment. While this national monument might simply be a quick stop for travelers heading to Petrified Forest National Park or Grand Canyon National Park, it deserves a visit unencumbered by a tight timeframe.

Fall Spectacular: What's That Sound? Where To Listen To -- And Look For -- Wildlife in the National Parks

In the fall, animals and birds prepare for winter. Bears eat constantly to fatten up before they slow down. Many birds are already on their migration path. Elk and other ungulates are preparing for the mating ritual, the rut. Take a look -- or stop and listen -- in many national parks this fall and you'll catch a glimpse of this autumnal spectacular.

Fall Spectacular: Great Autumn Hikes in the National Parks

It's hard to beat autumn for prime hiking in parks from coast to coast. This season brings fine weather to most of the country and in many locations fall foliage is an added bonus. There are more hikes in national parks than we can take in a lifetime, so here are a few suggestions for some great ones all across the nation—including some alternatives to the most heavily-visited sites.

Paddling Into The Past On Rainy Lake At Voyageurs National Park

It was a calm and warm mid-September day when my friend Jeff and I put our canoe in the water at the Rainy Lake Visitor Center boat ramp. Jeff is a park ranger at Grand Canyon National Park and I was excited to show him the sites of some of the most interesting historic events that took place on Rainy Lake inside what is now Voyageurs National Park. As we paddled away from the boat ramp the North Woods were in all their splendor. A loon dove under the water no more than 50 yards away and an eagle soared overhead. The very first hint of fall color shone on a few of the scattered aspens on the lakeshore.

A Monumental Road Trip In Northern Arizona

Cool Ponderosa pine forests, ancient life, and volcanism are all within reach this fall in Arizona’s high country. The gateway town of Flagstaff makes a perfect basecamp to visit four national monuments that protect ancient Native American dwellings and tell the stories of their occupants’ lives. Of course, the Grand Canyon to the north is the main draw for many visitors, but take some time to explore these lesser-known sites as well.

Organ Pipe Cactus: A Sonoran Desert Treasure

The blue fluttering banner was whipping in the hot, dry, desert wind. It was easily spotted above the cactus garden. It did not signal a restricted zone but, rather, salvation. Beneath the flag was a barrel of water, or aqua. Border jumpers heading north from Mexico who couldn’t carry enough water to last through the trek would most likely find this life-saving liquid.

Exploring Kejimkujik National Park Seaside

The ferry pulled out of the Portland, Maine, harbor, turning towards the blue-sky horizon to begin the 6.5-hour journey to Nova Scotia. Though I lived in Maine for most of my life, I had never made the trek to our Canadian cousin to the east, a region home to an impressive history of fishing in the Atlantic Ocean as well as beautiful natural landscapes. My brother, sister, parents, and I would spend the rest of the next day exploring the Nova Scotia coastline, including a major item on my bucket list: Kejimkujik National Park Seaside.

Musings From Craters Of The Moon National Monument And Preserve

I headed up to Idaho to scout out a spot to watch the Great Total Eclipse of the Sun on August 21. Depending upon who you talk to, there is either fear or anxious anticipation about that coming event. Speculation (probably well founded) has it that millions of people will make a mass migration across the country and around the world as a band of blackness shoots across all of America from Oregon to Florida.

The Essential RVing Guide

The Essential RVing Guide to the National Parks

The National Parks RVing Guide, aka the Essential RVing Guide To The National Parks, is the definitive guide for RVers seeking information on campgrounds in the National Park System where they can park their rigs. It's available for free for both iPhones and Android models.

This app is packed with RVing specific details on more than 250 campgrounds in more than 70 parks.

You'll also find stories about RVing in the parks, some tips if you've just recently turned into an RVer, and some planning suggestions. A bonus that wasn't in the previous eBook or PDF versions of this guide are feeds of Traveler content: you'll find our latest stories as well as our most recent podcasts just a click away.

So whether you have an iPhone or an Android, download this app and start exploring the campgrounds in the National Park System where you can park your rig.