U.S.A. - California - Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park (2)

Sequoia National Park
Land of Giants, Sequoia National Park
The establishment of Sequoia National Park in 1890, even in its much smaller form, was a major first step in securing the giant trees and wondrous landscape for future generations. Several annexes and boundary expansions since that time have succeeded in protecting more of the area, but complete success will depend upon our appreciation and protection of the park into the future.

Sent by Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, Three Rivers, California.

U.S.A. - California - Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks (1)

SEQUOIA AND KINGS NATIONAL PARKS, CALIFORNIA
The twin national parks of Sequoia and Kings Canyon are located on the southern end of California's Sierra Nevada Mountains. Elevations range from 1,700 feet at Ash Mountain to 14,495 feet at Mount Whitney's summit. Within these parks are found the largest groves of giant sequoia trees and also the largest individual sequoias.

Sent by Sequoia & Kings National Parks, Three Rivers, California.

Sequoia National Park is a national park in the southern Sierra Nevada east of Visalia, California, in the United States. It was established on September 25, 1890. The park spans 404,063 acres (631.35 sq mi; 1,635.18 km²). Encompassing a vertical relief of nearly 13,000 feet (4,000 m), the park contains among its natural resources the highest point in the contiguous 48 United States, Mount Whitney, at 14,505 feet (4,421 m) above sea level. The park is south of and contiguous with Kings Canyon National Park; the two are administered by the National Park Service together.

The park is famous for its giant sequoia trees, including the General Sherman tree, one of the largest trees on Earth. The General Sherman tree grows in the Giant Forest, which contains five out of the ten largest trees in the world. The Giant Forest is connected by the Generals Highway to Kings Canyon National Park's General Grant Grove, home to the General Grant tree among other giant sequoias. The park's giant sequoia forests are part of 202,430 acres (81,921 ha) of old-growth forests shared by Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks. Indeed, the parks preserve a landscape that still resembles the southern Sierra Nevada before Euro-American settlement. (read further)

U.S.A.- Florida - Dry Tortugas National Park

DRY TORTUGAS NATIONAL PARK
Fort Jefferson, largest of the 19th century American coastal forts, is the central feature of the seven Dry Tortugas islands in the Gulf of Mexico, 70 miles of Key west Florida. The park is famus for its bird and marine life, as well as  for its legends of pirates and sunken ships. Dr. Samuel A.Mudd, who set the broken leg of President Lincoln's assassin, was imprisoned here for several years until he was pardoned in 1869.

Sent by Staff of Dry Tortugas National Park.

Dry Tortugas National Park is a national park in the USA about 68 statute miles (109 km) west of Key West in the Gulf of Mexico. The park preserves Fort Jefferson and the seven Dry Tortugas islands, the westernmost and most isolated of the Florida Keys. The archipelago's coral reefs are the least disturbed of the Florida Keys reefs.

The park is noted for abundant sea life, tropical bird breeding grounds, colorful coral reefs and legends of shipwrecks and sunken treasures. The park's centerpiece is Fort Jefferson, a massive but unfinished coastal fortress. Fort Jefferson is the largest masonry structure in the Western Hemisphere, and is composed of over 16 million bricks. Dry Tortugas is unique in its combination of a largely undisturbed tropical ecosystem with significant historic artifacts. The park is accessible only by seaplane or boat and averages 60,000 visitors each year. Activities include snorkeling, picnicking, birdwatching, camping,scuba diving, saltwater fishing and kayaking. (read further)

U.S.A. - Alaska - Kobuk Valley National Park

ALASKA
Base of a white spruce in midnight sun, Little Kobuk Sand Dunes, Kobuk Valley National Park.

Sent by Bernadette, a postcrosser from New Jersey, USA.

Kobuk Valley National Park is in northwestern Alaska 25 miles (40 km) north of the Arctic Circle. It was designated a United States National Park in 1980 by the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act. It is noted for the Great Kobuk Sand Dunes and caribou migration routes. The park offers backcountry camping, hiking, backpacking, and dog sledding. There are no designated trails or roads in the park, which at 1,750,716 acres (2,735.49 sq mi; 7,084.90 km²), is approximately the size of the state of Delaware. The park is entirely above the Arctic Circle.
No roads lead to the park. It is reachable by foot, dogsled, snowmobile, and chartered air taxis from Nome and Kotzebue year-round. The park is one of the least visited in the National Park System. (read further)

U.S.A. - California - Redwood National & State Parks (2)

Redwood National & State Parks
Big Tree
Prairie Creek Redwood State Park, California
Height 304-ft., diameter 21.6-ft., circumference 68-ft., estimated age 1,500-years. It is one of the largest and most easily accessible trees of the Coast Redwoods.

Sent by Francis from Oregon, USA.

U.S.A. - Texas - Big Bend National Park

Big Bend National Park
The Chisos Mountains were born of volcanoes, and erosion has left jagged peaks of lava and ash. The usually plaid Rio Grande patiently carries the Chisos, bit by bit, to the Gulf of Mexico, more than 800 miles away.

Sent by Big Bend National Park.

Big Bend National Park is a national park located in the U.S. state of Texas. Big Bend has national significance as the largest protected area of Chihuahuan Desert topography and ecology in the United States, which includes more than 1,200 species of plants, more than 450 species of birds, 56 species of reptiles, and 75 species of mammals.

The park covers 801,163 acres (1,252 sq mi; 3,242 km²). It is larger than the state of Rhode Island. Few other parks exceed this park's value for the protection and study of geologic and paleontologic resources. A variety of Cretaceous and Tertiary fossilorganisms exist in abundance. Archaeologists have discovered artifacts estimated to be 9,000 years old, and historic buildings and landscapes offer graphic illustration of life along the international border in the 19th century.

For more than 1,000 miles (1,600 km), the Rio Grande/Río Bravo forms the international boundary between Mexico and the United States, and Big Bend National Park administers approximately 244 miles (393 km) along that boundary. The park was named after the area, which is bounded by a large bend in the Texas-Mexico border (see map at right below).

Because the Rio Grande serves as an international boundary, the park faces unusual constraints while administering and enforcing park rules, regulations, and policies. In accordance with the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, the park's territory extends only to the center of the deepest river channel as the river flowed in 1848. The rest of the land south of that channel, and the river, lies within Mexican territory. (read further)

U.S.A. - California - Pinnacles National Park

Pinnacles National Park, California
Letterpress Condors and Formations
Artwork by Lantern Press
Image # 44978

Sent by Pinnacles National Park.

Pinnacles National Park is a U.S. National Park protecting a mountainous area located east of the Salinas Valley in Central California, about 5 miles (8.0 km) east of Soledad and 80 miles (130 km) southeast of San Jose. The park's namesakes are the eroded leftovers of the western half of an extinct volcano that has moved 150 miles (240 km) from its original location on the San Andreas Fault, embedded in a portion of the California Pacific Coast Ranges. Pinnacles is managed by the National Park Service and the majority of the park is protected as wilderness.

The national park is divided by the rock formations into East and West Divisions, connected by foot trails; there is no through road that connects the east and west entrances to the park. The east side has shade and water, the west has high walls. The rock formations provide for spectacular pinnacles that attract rock climbers. The park features unusual talus caves that house at least thirteen species of bat. Pinnacles is most often visited in spring or fall because of the intense heat during the summer months. Park lands are prime habitat for prairie falcons, and are a release site for California Condors that have been hatched in captivity.

Pinnacles National Monument was established in 1908 by U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt. Pinnacles National Park was created from the former Pinnacles National Monument by legislation passed by Congress in late 2012 and signed into law by President Barack Obama on January 10, 2013. (read further)

U.S.A - California - Channel Islands National Park

CHANNEL ISLANDS NATIONAL PARK
California
Inspiration Point, Anacapa Island
Revitalizing ocean breezes and breathtaking coreopsis dappled views await the visitor on Anacapa Island. While strolling along the 2-mile nature trail, one is certain to discover the diverse and unique beauty of the island.

Sent by Bill of Channel Islands National Park.

Channel Islands National Park is a United States national park that consists of five of the eight Channel Islands off the coast of the U.S. state of California, in the Pacific Ocean. Although the islands are close to the shore of densely populated Southern California, their isolation has left them relatively undeveloped. The park covers 249,561 acres (100,994 ha) of which 79,019 acres (31,978 ha) are owned by the federal government. The Nature Conservancy owns and manages 76% of Santa Cruz Island, the largest island in the park.

Channel Islands National Park is home to a wide variety of significant natural and cultural resources. It was designated a U.S. National Monument on April 26, 1938, and a National Biosphere Reserve in 1976. It was promoted to a National Park on March 5, 1980. (read further)

USA - Hawai'i - Haleakalā National Park

Haleakalā National Park

Sent by David, a postcrosser from Indiana, USA.

Haleakalā National Park is a United States national park located on the island of Maui in the state of Hawaiʻi. The park covers an area of 33,265 acres (134.62 km²), of which 19,270 acres (77.98 km²) is a wilderness area. In 2000 the name was changed by the Hawaiian National Park Language Correction Act of 2000 observing the Hawaiian spelling.

It was originally created as part of the Hawaii National Park along with the volcanoes of Mauna Loa and Kilauea on the island of Hawaiʻi in 1916. Hawaii Volcanoes National Park was made into a separate national park in 1961. The park area was designated an International Biosphere Reserve in 1980. The name Haleakalā is Hawaiian for "house of the sun." According to a local legend, the demigod Maui imprisoned the sun here in order to lengthen the day.

The park features the dormant Haleakalā (East Maui) Volcano, which last erupted sometime between 1480 and 1600 AD.The park is divided into two distinct sections: the summit area and the coastal Kipahulu area.

The two sections of the park average 1,450,000 visitors per year. (read further)

USA - South Carolina - Congaree National Park

Congaree National Park protects an ancient forest of champion-size trees, primeval floodplain landscapes, and an incredible diversity of plant and animal life. The park includes the largest remnant of old-growth floodplain forest in the southeastern United States and one of the tallest temperate deciduous forests in the world. It is also designated as an International Biosphere Reserve, Wilderness area, National Natural Landmark, and Globally Important Bird Area.

Sent by Park Ranger of Congaree National Park.

Congaree National Park preserves the largest tract of old growth bottomland hardwood forest left in the United States. Located in South Carolina, the 26,546-acre (107.43 km²; 41.48 sq mi) national park received that designation in 2003 as the culmination of a grassroots campaign which had started in 1969. The lush trees growing in this floodplain forest are some of the tallest in the Eastern U.S., forming one of the highest temperate deciduous forest canopies remaining in the world. TheCongaree River flows through the park. About 57 percent (15,000 acres or 61 square kilometers) of the park is designatedwilderness area. (read further)

USA - Utah - Capitol Reef National Park

Capitol Reef National Park
Capitol Reef National Park was established to protect the Waterpocket Fold, a grand and colorful geologic feature, as well as the unique natural and cultural history found in the area.

Sent by Park Ranger of Capitol Reef National Park :)

Capitol Reef National Park is a United States National Park, in south-central Utah. It is 100 miles (160 km) long but fairly narrow. The park, established in 1971, preserves 241,904 acres (978.95 km²; 377.97 sq mi) and is open all year, although May through September are the most popular months.

Called "Wayne Wonderland" in the 1920s by local boosters Ephraim P. Pectol and Joseph S. Hickman, Capitol Reef National Park protects colorful canyons, ridges, buttes, and monoliths. About 75 mi (121 km) of the long up-thrust called theWaterpocket Fold, a rugged spine extending from Thousand Lake Mountain to Lake Powell, is preserved within the park. "Capitol Reef" is the name of an especially rugged and spectacular segment of the Waterpocket Fold near the Fremont River. The area was named for a line of white domes and cliffs of Navajo Sandstone, each of which looks somewhat like theUnited States Capitol building, that run from the Fremont River to Pleasant Creek on the Waterpocket Fold. The local wordreef referred to any rocky barrier to travel. Easy road access came with the construction in 1962 of State Route 24 through the Fremont River Canyon. (Source)

USA - Minnesota - Voyageurs National Park

MINNESOTA
Voyageurs National Park has hundreds of miles of shoreline waiting to be explored either by the conventional method or by birchbark canoe, just the way the voyageurs themselves did.

Sent by Justin, Park Ranger of Voyageurs National Park.

Voyageurs National Park is a United States National Park in northern Minnesota near the town of International Falls. It was established in 1975. The park's name commemorates the voyageurs, French-Canadian fur traders who were the first Europeansettlers to frequently travel through the area. The park is notable for its outstanding water resources and is popular withcanoeists, kayakers, other boaters and fishermen. The Kabetogama Peninsula, which lies entirely within the park and makes up most of its land area, is accessible only by boat. To the east of the National Park lies the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.

The park has several boat ramps and visitor centers around its periphery, though the main body of the park is only accessible by boat or, in the winter, by snowmobile, ski, or snowshoe. In 2011 the park hosted 177,184 visitors.

Voyageur National Park is located on the Canadian Shield, with the rocks averaging between 1 and 3 billion years old. Formed during the early ages of the earth formation, the rocks of the park were compressed, and folded under tremendous pressure. Then molten flows of lava intruded through the layers creating a mosaic of various gneiss and granites. Over time, additional layers of sedimentary rocks developed on top, to be stripped away by the continental glaciers of the Wisconsin Glacial epoch and earlier. (Source)

USA - Wyoming - Grand Teton National Park (2)

GRAND TETON NATIONAL PARK

Sent by Zwollywood, a postcrosser from Germany.

USA - Oregon - Crater Lake National Park (2)

CRATER LAKE NATIONAL PARK
Whitebark Pines, distorted by severe environmental conditions live on Mount Scott and along the rim of Crater Lake.

Sent by Lori, a postcrosser from USA.

This is from Wikipedia : Crater Lake National Park is a United States National Park located in southern Oregon. Established in 1902, Crater Lake National Park is the fifth oldest national park in the United States and the only one in the state of Oregon. The park encompasses the caldera of Crater Lake, a remnant of a destroyed volcano, Mount Mazama, and the surrounding hills and forests.

The lake is 1,943 feet (592 m) deep at its deepest point, which makes it the deepest lake in the United States, the second deepest in North America and the ninth deepest in the world. Crater Lake is often referred to as the seventh deepest lake in the world, but this former listing excludes the approximately 3,000-foot (910 m) depth of subglacial Lake Vostok in Antarctica, which resides under nearly 13,000 feet (4,000 m) of ice, and the recent report of a 2,740-foot (840 m) maximum depth for Lake O'Higgins/San Martin, located on the border of Chile and Argentina. However, when comparing its average depth of 1,148 feet (350 m) to the average depth of other deep lakes, Crater Lake becomes the deepest in the Western Hemisphere and the third deepest in the world. The impressive average depth of this volcanic lake is due to the nearly symmetrical 4,000-foot (1,200 m) deep caldera formed 7,700 years ago during the violent climactic eruptions and subsequent collapse of Mount Mazama and the relatively moist climate that is typical of the crest of the Cascade Range.

The caldera rim ranges in elevation from 7,000 to 8,000 feet (2,100 to 2,400 m). The United States Geological Surveybenchmarked elevation of the lake surface itself is 6,178 feet (1,883 m). This National Park encompasses 183,225 acres (286.29 sq mi; 741.49 km²). Crater Lake has no streams flowing into or out of it. All water that enters the lake is eventually lost from evaporation or subsurface seepage. The lake's water commonly has a striking blue hue, and the lake is re-filled entirely from direct precipitation in the form of snow and rain.