This page is currently in progress...(perhaps for forever). Links and other additions will be added here and there. Check back from time to time, I guess!
It's no secret that I have a serious obsession with the National Park system. Over time, my obsession has grown as each new park has brought new experiences, new wilderness opportunities, and new memories to create, relive, and relish.
Here is my complete list of parks visited. They are listed by region in the order of the National Park passport, and I indicated the date visited, if known. Those not dated were most likely visited with my family in the 90's when I was a kid.
North Atlantic Region
(Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont)
Mid-Atlantic Region
(Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia)
~Manassas NBP
National Capital Region
(Washington D.C.)
~Lincoln Memorial
~National Mall
~Thomas Jefferson Memorial
~Vietnam Veterans Memorial
~Washington Monument
~White House
~World War II Memorial
Southeast Region
(Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee)
Midwest Region
(Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, Wisconsin)
Southwest Region
(Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas)
~Carlsbad Caverns NP, 2015
~White Sands NM, 2015
~Big Bend NP, 2015
~Chamizal N MEM, 2015
~Fort Davis NHP, 2015
~Guadalupe Mountains NP, 2015
~Petroglyph NM, 2015
Rocky Mountain Region
(Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Wyoming)
~Rocky Mountain NP 2014
~Glacier NP, 2013
~Arches NP, 2012
~Bryce NP, 2012
~Canyonlands NP, 2012
~Capitol Reef NP, 2012
~Glen Canyon NRA, 2011
~Golden Spike NHS, 2014
~Natural Bridges NM, 2012
~Zion NP, 2012
~Grand Teton NM, 2014
~John D. Rockefeller, Jr. MEM PKWY, 2014
~Yellowstone NP, 2014
~Vermillion Cliffs NM (including Horseshoe Bend and Navajo Bridge), 2012
Western Region
(Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada)
~Casa Grande Ruins NM, 2014
~Chiricahua NM, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015
~Coronado N MEM, 2012
~Fort Bowie NHS, 2012, 2014
~Grand Canyon NP, 2009, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015
~Montezuma Castle NM, 2011
~Navajo NM, 2012
~Organ Pipe Cactus NM, 2013, 2015
~Petrified Forest NP, 2014
~Pipe Springs NM, 2012
~Saguaro NP, 2011
~Sunset Crater Volcano NM, 2011
~Tonto NM, 2012
~Tumaacori NHP, 2012
~Tuzigoot NM, 2011
~Walnut Canyon NM, 2011
~Wupatki NM, 2011
~Death Valley NP, 2010, 2013
~Golden Gate NRA (including Alcatraz), 2011
~Joshua Tree NP, 2012
~Kings Canyon NP, 2011
~Manzanar NHS, 2010
~Muir Woods NM, 2011
~Redwood N & SP, 2011
~San Francisco Maritime NHP, 2011
~Sequoia NP, 2011
~Yosemite NP, 2009
~Haleakala NP
~Lake Mead NRA, 2012
Pacific Northwest & Alaska Region
(Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Washington)
~Crater Lake NP, 2011
~Lewis & Clark NHP, 2011
~Ebey's Landing NH RES, 2013
~Klondike Gold Rush NHP, 2015
~North Cascades NP, 2013
~Olympic NP, 2015
~San Juan Island NHP, 2013, 2014
How do we visit all of these parks??? That's easy!
We are teachers with lots of (unpaid) time off. National Parks are affordable, family friendly, and relatively easy to get to. Arizona is situated perfectly so that just three hours takes us to the Grand Canyon, six hours takes us to Zion, nine hours takes us to the Sequoias, one day takes you to Rocky Mountain, and two (incredibly long back-to-back) days gets you to Glacier. We try to hit multiple parks on one road trip, and consider any breaks longer than a typical weekend an opportunity to get away. I think Leslie Knope (fictional director of the National Parks from the show "Parks and Recreation") says it best:
"There's nothing we can't do if we work hard, never sleep, and shirk all other responsibilities in our lives!"
It's like collecting. The more you add, the more you realize there is to add, so therefore, have to keep adding. I think it's never ending. Which is good news for me!
