Posted
on August 25, 2016
Today
is the National Park Service birthday!
Not
only that, it is the NPS Centennial! It is 100 years old today!!!
Because
of that, today through Sunday, August 28, park admission is free for
all U.S. National Parks. And for the rest of the year, fourth-graders
are free to all national parks and other federal lands and waters.
The
National Park Service was created by an act of Congress and was
signed by President Woodrow Wilson on this date in 1916. The agency
manages all U.S. national parks, many national monuments, and many
other properties such as historic sites, battlefields, preserves and
reserves, and seashores.
Park
Service Coins
The
U.S. Mint is celebrating the NPS Centennial with three
limited-edition coins – a five-dollar gold coin, a silver dollar,
and a half dollar. Can you see figure out what the pictures on the coins
represent?
(Answers below)
Favorites
There
are so many amazing things to see at the United States National
Parks. It's hard to choose just a few favorite things, but here are a
few of mine:
Yellowstone
has got to grab top honors, for me. It's crazy gorgeous and sometimes
weirdly beautiful. I can see why it was the first national park in the country (and the world!).
I
also love nature-sculpted rock soooooo much. Arches National Park is
one of many of my favorite rockscape locales.
I
have only seen the Vermillion Cliffs National Monument from afar –
you have to win a lottery to be allowed to make the hike to see “the
Wave,” pictured here – but even from afar these
rockscapes...well, rock!
Did
I mention that I love rockscapes? Well, Capitol Reef National Park is
right there with some gorgeous vistas!
Another
of my very favorite brands of beauty is snow-capped mountains coupled
with multi-colored wildflowers. Here, Mount Rainier at its best!
And
I love the alpine landscapes of Rocky Mountain National Park!
Last,
a more recent sort of favorite beauty is the weird and convoluted
formations seen in caves. This is from Carlsbad Cavern National Park.
Would-Be
Favorites
I
have been to – and loved! – Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. But I
would love to see running lava, especially lava running into the
ocean. From a safe distance, of course!
I'd
also love to go to Dinali National Park, in Alaska, someday...
There
are other beautiful national parks in Alaska as well. Since I've
never been to Alaska, I've never clapped my eyes on Lake Clark
National Park, pictured here, nor any other Alaska landscape...
ANSWERS
to the question about the National Park Service commemorative coins:
- Gold coin – likenesses of John Muir and Theodore Roosevelt in front of Yosemite's Half Dome on one side...
...the National Park Service arrowhead-shaped logo on the other - Silver dollar – Yellowstone's Old Faithful Geyser on one side...
...a Latina Folklórico dancer and the National Park Service arrowhead-shaped logo on the other
- Half dollar – Hiker enjoying the wilderness, and a child discovering a frog, on one side...
...the National Park Service arrowhead-shaped logo on the other
Also
on this date:
Plan ahead:
Check out my Pinterest boards for:
And
here are my Pinterest boards for:
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