In addition to the site of a famous Revolutionary War battle, Cowpens National Battlefield preserves the 1828 Robert Scruggs House. The “Backcountry Holiday” that the park hosts at the Scruggs House each November entertains and educates visitors of all ages.
With all that snow atop Mount Rainier, it's no surprise that folks head to the mountain to make some turns. But those turns are really earned, as there's no lift. This short video shows some turns made the other day following the recent snowfall at Mount Rainier National Park.
Still unchecked on my national park "to-do" list is a winter visit to Sequoia National Park with snowshoes and XC skis in tow. The folks at Wuksachi Lodge are trying to entice me with winter specials.
To honor America's military members, all national park entrance fees will be waived for all visitors on November 11.
In a move that might not go over well with motorboaters, officials at Everglades National Park are thinking of creating a "pole and troll" boating zone in Florida Bay to protect seagrass and marine-life. However, such a zone could prove popular with paddlers, wildlife viewers, and some anglers.
Trekking to Canyon de Chelly National Monument in winter offers a number of pluses -- a respite from high summer temperatures, no crowds, and lodging rates well below summer's high-season pricing.
Need to bone up on your Revolutionary War history? Plan a trip to Valley Forge National Historical Park, and catch a Revolutionary War-themed movie at the same time.
While the main attraction is underground at Mammoth Cave National Park, there's quite a bit of history to appreciate above ground. Long before the park was established, homesteads dotted the heavily forested rolling hills. The land that was acquired for the national park displaced small communities that left their mark in the more than 80 cemeteries, churches, and homesteads that can be found within the park's borders.
A Nevada man paid $2,500 for mussels at Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, but they weren't served up at some ritzy restaurant. No, the boater was fined $2,500 for failing to have his craft inspected for quagga and zebra mussels before launching on Lake Powell.
In a bid to stop the spread of a beetle that could devastate Shenandoah National Park's ash trees, park officials are instituting a ban against firewood brought into the park by campers.
With the approach of Christmas and New Year's, some people remain undecided about what to do and where to go for the holidays. Here are a few suggestions for year-end national park vacations that are likely to result in some lasting memories.
Have you ever heard a man describe a woman as being “so beautiful it hurts”? Well, it’s a phrase that suits Crater Lake National Park perfectly. Just under 2,000 feet deep, Crater Lake is the clearest, cleanest, and deepest body of water in the United States. To the Klamath Indians, it was a sight too sacred for human eyes. To their way of thinking, to gaze upon the azure waters was to risk “death and lasting sorrow.”
For those who see the national parks as being preserved time immemorial under gigantic bell jars, there is evidence that each succeeding generation makes an imprint or two on the parks. It wasn't too terribly long ago, for instance, that you climbed into the bleachers to watch the bear buffets in Yellowstone National Park, or that the El Tovar Hotel at the Grand Canyon National Park had separate dining areas for men and women.
Fall can be a wonderful time to see Zion National Park, and the free shuttle service in Zion Canyon allows you to concentrate on the scenery instead of a search for a parking place. The shuttle will continue to run during November, but on a reduced schedule. Here's what you need to know for a visit.
It could take three months or longer to clean up a rock slide and reopen a section of Interstate 40 on the North Carolina side of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. That means getting to the park from some areas will be a bit tricky. It also means don't rely on your GPS units to find a shortcut, as that could spell trouble.
People who want to attend this year’s National Christmas Tree lighting on December 3 (invited VIPs excepted, of course) will need to score tickets distributed to the general public by lottery. You can enter the lottery online or by phone during November 4-6. Here are the details.
Comparatively few people think of visiting national parks during the winter months, and that's unfortunate for a variety of reasons. Not only does this season present an entirely different view of the parks than the one you normally experience during spring and summer, but lodging typically is less expensive, as the following offers demonstrate.
Some roads and campgrounds soon will be gated closed in Great Smoky Mountains National Park as crews ready the park for winter.
With more than 150 documented paranormal events, many of them experienced by credible witnesses such as rangers and scientists, Mammoth Cave National Park easily qualifies for the title “most haunted natural wonder in the world.” Park rangers Colleen O’Connor Olson and Charles Hanion have recorded many of the park’s creepiest tales in their book Scary Stories of Mammoth Cave, a must read for anybody intrigued by the park’s supernatural history.
If you're planning to visit Yellowstone National Park in the coming days, you better hurry. On Monday all roads through the park's interior will be closed to wheeled vehicles.
There is perhaps no more ethereal place than the Upper Geyser Basin in Yellowstone National Park. There, when the night skies are thick with scudding clouds, ghostly phantoms promenade on the geysers' drifting zephyrs.
Bears jams are pretty cool. The first time you're stuck in one. They get old kinda quickly. Which is one reason why the folks at Glacier National Park are developing a wildlife viewing plan for the Many Glacier area.
Ghost stories and old buildings just seem to go together, and the national parks have their share of old buildings -- and ghosts! If you spend a night at The Chateau at Oregon Caves National Monument, you just might agree.
Not only was Henry Wadsworth Longfellow an incredible poet, but he also believed in the supernatural. That second part is of particular interest this week, as the folks at the Longfellow National Historic Site are offering special Halloween tours to explore what they call "19th century America's fascination with death and mourning."
Nobody beats the Death Valley 49ers when it comes to staging festivals that masquerade as encampments. This year’s encampment at the biggest and driest national park in the coterminous U.S. is slated for November 4-8. It’s the 60th in the series, and it’ll be a dandy.
Let's face it. We're not all as competent as Bear Grylls when it comes to staying alive in the great outdoors. Still, with some simple precautions we can greatly enhance our safety in the backcountry and increase the odds of successfully confronting dire situations.
Visiting Yosemite National Park for the year-end holidays doesn't mean you're restricted to the Yosemite Valley. Evergreen Lodge, a small, historic lodge with a clutch of cabins just beyond Hetch Hetchy, has a number of packages available. A side benefit of staying here is helping inner-city young adults find their way in life.
As Professor Bob pointed out two weeks ago, one of the must-see things at Biscayne National Park are the reefs teeming with rainbow-hued fish, corals, and sponges. While these delicate structures struggle with warming waters, disease, and physical assaults from boaters, divers, and anglers, volunteers at the park are working to preserve them by nurturing coral nurseries.
In a bid to thwart poachers in Shenandoah National Park this hunting season, park officials will be closing sections of the Skyline Drive at night.
If you're thinking of a winter trek to Yellowstone National Park, there are some things you have to accept. One, more than likely it will be cold and snowy. Two, lodging reservations will be tricky, as there are a very limited number of lodges open. Three, it's not going to be cheap. But if you're OK with those three conditions, you'll more than likely have an incredible time.
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