America's National Parks

Ok, here's a little trivia on me: I have a life-goal of one day visiting all of America's 57 National Parks. I've only been to about 10 of them so far, but I'm working on it. I have always loved traveling, sight-seeing, camping, hiking and being outdoors. The National Parks seem to be the perfect combination of all of the above. Some people say the National Parks are way too crowded...that if you're going to be out in nature, you should really be out in nature. That's a fair statement. But I love the National Parks. Each is situated in a uniquely beautiful part of our country. Each is designed around it's own special history, geology and wildlife. And -- something I've come to appreciate this past year -- each has been designed to allow people of all fitness levels and abilities the opportunity to get out and really enjoy nature. I think it's awesome!!

My wonderful and incredibly patient boyfriend Bryan (along with other friends) has explored four National Parks with me so far this year. The slideshow above are some of my favorite pics from each of the trips. He always seems to be up for my crazy ideas, and we've had a lot of fun visiting three of Utah's five National Parks, as well as the Grand Canyon, since March. I still haven't seen Bryce Canyon and Capitol Reef...but that will happen eventually. We have had so much fun taking pictures, and doing the "Auto Tour" of each of the parks. This is the great thing...all the parks have some sort of auto tour option for those that may not be up for hiking and other hard-core adventures, making these parks my perfect outdoor destination for right now, hehe.

While we were at the Grand Canyon, I discovered they have a "passport" system...each of the parks has a unique stamp at the Visitor's Center that has the name of the park and the date on it that you can stamp in your "passport" once you've visited. I thought this was a really fun thing, and yes, I AM just THAT cheesy. Well, when we found the little passport book, I was more than a little disappointed. It would have been cool if I were 10, but it was a little gimicky for an adult...even for me. Fortunately, Bryan found me this really cool little leather-bound atlas of all the National Parks. I'm going to use that instead, stamping the map for each park as I visit it. I actually think it's much cooler than the passport book in a classier, Indiana-Jones-adventurer kinda way. Wait....did I really just compare myself to Indiana Jones? YIKES. I'm not only cheesy, but now I'm also a little delusional. Thanks for playin' along. :) I guess the term adventurer isn't too far off...all these visits are adventures. Anyway, I'm excited about the little atlas. I'm all about goals, charts and visual progress, so this should be fun!

For the last few years, I've wanted to purchase a National Parks pass, a 12-month pass that's good for entrance into all the parks. I went ahead and got one this year, and so far it's paid for itself. I have several other parks I'd like to see this year: The 2 I still haven't seen here in Utah; Mesa Verde, in Colorado (since my best friend lives an hour and a half away); and Seguaro & Petrified Forest in Arizona (since I know a guy in Mesa.) Whew. That could really keep me busy, and perhaps I'm setting my sites a bit too high. But, it will be fun to try for it. And besides, I've gotta get my money's worth out of that pass. :) Do you have a favorite National Park? Let me know so I can add it to my list!