Zion National Park - Utah
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zion_National_Park]Located at the junction of the Colorado Plateau, Great Basin, and Mojave Desert, this park contains sandstone features such as mesas, rock towers, and canyons, including the Virgin River Narrows. The various sandstone formations and the forks of the Virgin River create a wilderness divided into four ecosystems: desert, riparian, woodland, and coniferous forest. USNPs Oct 15, 2023, 5:28 AM cowpoke
Yosemite National Park -California
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yosemite_National_Park]Yosemite features sheer granite cliffs, exceptionally tall waterfalls, and old-growth forests at a unique intersection of geology and hydrology. Half Dome and El Capitan rise from the park's centerpiece, the glacier-carved Yosemite Valley, and from its vertical walls drop Yosemite Falls, one of North America's tallest waterfalls at 2,425 feet (739 m) high. Three giant sequoia groves, along with a pristine wilderness in the heart of the Sierra Nevada, are home to a wide variety of rare ... USNPs Oct 13, 2023, 10:08 PM cowpoke
Yellowstone National Park - Idaho Montana Wyoming
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellowstone_National_Park]Situated on the Yellowstone Caldera, the park has an expansive network of geothermal areas including boiling mud pots, vividly colored hot springs such as Grand Prismatic Spring, and regularly erupting geysers, the best-known being Old Faithful. The yellow-hued Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River contains several high waterfalls, and four mountain ranges traverse the park. More than 60 mammal species including timber wolves, grizzly bears, black bears, lynxes, bison, and elk make this park one USNPs Oct 13, 2023, 5:23 AM cowpoke
Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve - Alaska
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wrangell%E2%80%93St._Elias_National_Park_and_Preserve]The largest national park in the system protects the convergence of the Alaska, Chugach, Wrangell, and Saint Elias Ranges, which include many of the continent's tallest mountains and volcanoes, including the 18,008-foot Mount Saint Elias. More than a quarter of the park is covered with glaciers, including the tidewater Hubbard Glacier, piedmont Malaspina Glacier, and valley Nabesna Glacier. USNPs Oct 12, 2023, 5:36 AM cowpoke
Wind Cave National Park - South Dakota
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wind_Cave_National_Park]Wind Cave is distinctive for its calcite fin formations called boxwork, a unique formation rarely found elsewhere, and needle-like growths called frostwork. It is one of the longest caves in the world and creates a wind as air pressure changes. Above ground is a mixed-grass prairie with animals such as bison, black-footed ferrets, and prairie dogs and ponderosa pine forests home to cougars and elk. The cave is culturally significant to the Lakota people as a creation site. USNPs Oct 11, 2023, 5:34 AM cowpoke
White Sands National Park - New Mexico
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Sands_National_Park]Located in the mountain-ringed Tularosa Basin, White Sands consists of the southern part of a 275-square-mile (710 km2) field of white sand dunes composed of gypsum crystals—the world's largest gypsum dunefield. The park is completely within the White Sands Missile Range and is subject to closure when tests are conducted. USNPs Oct 10, 2023, 4:40 AM cowpoke
Voyageurs National Park - Minnesota
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voyageurs_National_Park]This park protecting four lakes near the Canada–US border is a site for canoeing, kayaking, and fishing. The park also preserves a history populated by Ojibwe Native Americans, French fur traders called voyageurs, and gold miners. Formed by glaciers, the region features tall bluffs, rock gardens, islands, bays, and several historic buildings. USNPs Oct 9, 2023, 5:05 AM cowpoke
Virgin Islands National Park United States
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virgin_Islands_National_Park]This island park on Saint John preserves pristine beaches surrounded by mangrove forests, seagrass beds, and coral reefs. It also has Taíno archaeological sites and the ruins of sugar plantations from Columbus's time. USNPs Oct 8, 2023, 5:39 AM cowpoke
Theodore Roosevelt National Park - North Dakota
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theodore_Roosevelt_National_Park]This region that enticed and influenced President Theodore Roosevelt consists of a park of three units in the northern badlands. Besides Roosevelt's historic cabin, there are numerous scenic drives and backcountry hiking opportunities. Wildlife includes American bison, pronghorn, bighorn sheep, and wild horses. USNPs Oct 7, 2023, 5:54 AM cowpoke
Shenandoah National Park - Virginia
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shenandoah_National_Park]Shenandoah's Blue Ridge Mountains are covered by hardwood forests that teem with a wide variety of wildlife. The Skyline Drive and Appalachian Trail run the entire length of this narrow park, along with more than 500 miles (800 km) of hiking trails passing scenic overlooks and cataracts of the Shenandoah River. USNPs Oct 6, 2023, 7:54 AM cowpoke
