USA - Maine - Acadia National Park - Boulder Beach

BOULDER BEACH

This famous beach in Acadia National Park in Maine, USA is strewn with egg shaped stones smoothed by the relentless erosive actions of pounding waves.

Sent by Daniel from Massachusetts, USA.

My other two Acadia National Park postcards are here and here.

Boulder Beach is great for shooting with a ND filter as the waves create a soft, milky flow. Be careful though a getting to the beach some effort. You are walking on rocks and boulders and the footing is very unsteady. After scrambling down a steep incline, However slow and steady and the effort will be worth it. It can get pretty crowded so go early and stake your spot (read more).

USA - Arizona - Petrified Forest National Park (3)

Petrified Forest National Park.

Petrified wood is made of a dense quartz material that resists erosion. This dense quartz, along with small quantities of other substances, replaces the original wood of the log and creates the rainbow color seen within the petrified wood.

Sent by Jane from Arizona, USA.

My other two Petrified Forest National Park postcards are here and here.

USA - Washington - North Cascades National Park

NORTH CASCADES NATIONAL PARK

Glaciers, waterfalls, alpine lakes, and conifers are found in this gorgeous patch of wilderness in the Evergreen State of Washington, but the mountains themselves take center stage.

Sent by Mandy from Tacoma in Washington, USA.

Less than three hours from Seattle, an alpine landscape beckons. Discover communities of life adapted to moisture in the west and recurring fire in the east. Explore jagged peaks crowned by more than 300 glaciers. Listen to cascading waters in forested valleys. Witness a landscape sensitive to the Earth's changing climate. Help steward the ecological heart of the Cascades (read further).

USA - California - Lassen Volcanic National Park

LASSEN VOLCANIC NATIONAL PARK

Sulphur vents, mud pots, and lava rocks remind visitors of Lassen Peak's ruptured past and continued activity, contrasting wildflower meadows, forests, and alpine lakes in this California park.

Sent by Peggy from Monterey Bay, California, USA. 

Lassen Volcanic National Park is home to steaming fumaroles, meadows freckled with wildflowers, clear mountain lakes, and numerous volcanoes. Jagged peaks tell the story of its eruptive past while hot water continues to shape the land (read further).

USA - Alaska - Lake Clark National Park

Lake Clark National Park was established in 1980, the 47th among America's National Parks. Alaska's Lake Clark is 4 million acres of stunning beauty where volcanoes steam, salmon run, bears forage, and mountain reflect in shimmering turquoise lakes. The local people still depend on the land and water. The park is not on the road system; therefore, access is primarily by small aircraft.

Sent by /CaptivatingApple from USA. 

Lake Clark National Park and Preserve is a land of stunning beauty. Volcanoes steam, salmon run, bears forage, and craggy mountains reflect in shimmering turquoise lakes. Here, too, local people and culture still depend on the land and water. Venture into the park to become part of the wilderness (read further).

USA - Utah - Zion National Park (3)

RED ARCH MOUNTAIN

ZION NATIONAL PARK, UTAH

Gigantic red sandstone monument known as the Red Arch Mountain, towers above the meandering Virgin River.

Sent by CAJW from Texas, USA.

My other two Zion National Park postcards are here and here.

USA - New Mexico - Carlsbad Caverns National Park (2)

Located in the Guadalupe Mountains of southern New Mexico, Carlsbad Caverns National Park contains over 120 limestone caves in a fossil reef laid down 265 million years ago. American Indians lived in the area twelve to fourteen thousand years ago; their cooking ring sites and pictographs have been found within the park's boundaries.

Sent by Erica, a Postcrosser from Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA.

Thanks for getting the postcard stamped by the Carlsbad Caverns National Park.

USA - Kentucky - Mammoth Cave National Park (3)

MAMMOTH CAVE NATIONAL PARK - The 400-mile cave system in central Kentucky is the heart of this park wth underground treasures including the stunning Frozen Niagara - named so because it looks like a waterfall.

Sent by Karen, a postcrosser from Ohio, USA.

USA - Florida - Everglades National Park (2)

Everglades National Park / Florida

Sent by Gen from Punta Gorda in Florida, USA.

Everglades National Park protects an unparalleled landscape that provides important habitat for numerous rare and endangered species like the manatee,  American crocodile, and the elusive Florida panther.

An international treasure as well -  a World Heritage Site, International Biosphere Reserve, a Wetland of International Importance, and a specially protected area under the Cartagena Treaty (read further).

USA - California - Yosemite National Park (4)

Greetings From Yosemite National Park.

Sent by Irene from California, USA.

Not just a great valley, but a shrine to human foresight, the strength of granite, the power of glaciers, the persistence of life, and the tranquility of the High Sierra.

First protected in 1864, Yosemite National Park is best known for its waterfalls, but within its nearly 1,200 square miles, you can find deep valleys, grand meadows, ancient giant sequoias, a vast wilderness area, and much more (read further).

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)