National Parks Offer History, Nature

Visiting national parks throughout the United States can provide a great family vacation. National parks can celebrate history or nature and are often inexpensive to visit. Most parks offer hotels nearby, but there are close ones too.

According to the National Park Service, the cultural resources programs are dedicated to preserving history and education. History is everywhere in nearly 400 national parks, covering ancient civilizations to boyhood homes of presidents. Historical national parks also relive exciting events in American culture, such as when a woman refused to give up her seat on a bus or hard-fought wars. History is part of what makes Americans who they are, the NPS said. Some options for visits include the National Constitution Center or Gettysburg. During June, NPS staff will perform maintenance on three of Gettysburg’s tallest monuments, New York State Memorial, Pennsylvania State Memorial and Vermont State Memorial. When the work is completed, the memorials will be polished and cleaned and more beautiful to view.

Another historical event occurring this summer is the bicentennial of the War of 1812 and the writing of the Star-Spangled Banner. Fort McHenry is planning events throughout the summer to highlight these events.

In addition to historical parks, the NPS also maintains natural parks, such as Yosemite National Park or Grand Canyon National Park. These parks offer hiking, camping, rafting, mountain climbing and picnics. They also provide scientific information about how to protect the environment or preserve natural habitats for endangered species or other animals. NPS has invited Americans to visit Kahuku, Hawaii. Two adventurous programs are offered by the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. They introduce people to a captivating landscape, biodiversity and history. People and Land of Kahuku is a two-mile, three-hour expedition through pastures, a quarry, an airstrip and the 1868 lava fields of Kahuku. The hike is offered June 3, July 15 and Aug. 11. Kipuka’akhi is a challenging 1.5 mile, five-hour adventure to see some of the rare plants and wildlife that inhabit kipuka. The rare plant hike is available June 17, July 28 and Aug. 25.

Other national parks offer similar hikes or history and are always an enjoyable trip. Vacation Dayz can help Marylanders find lodging in places near national parks. The travel club also can help find the special spot near Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. Vacation Dayz offers memberships in a travel club that provides significant savings on trips. It works similarly to a warehouse club for groceries. It works on volume-based purchasing. Vacationers who are more flexible in their trip-planning will benefit from Vacation Dayz product.
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Doug Donaldson is a member of The Village Connector Community News as well as president of Vacation Dayz. You may reach Doug at (240) 508-3839 or via email at: Doug@helloworld.com. Please find out more about Vacation Dayz by visiting them on the web at: http://vacationdayz.com/