All posts by Raven About The Parks

Rock Creek Park

May 12, 2020 Raven About The Parks Leave a comment

Overview

We are used to National Monuments and National Historical Parks being listed among the 419 units in the National Park Service (NPS) system, but there are also 11 sites that fall under the category of “Other.” One of these is Rock Creek Park, a 1,754-acre urban park in northwestern Washington, D.C. established in 1890. It contains an equestrian center and 13 miles of bridle trails, as well as the Thompson Boat Center, which rents bicycles and a variety of non-motorized boats. It also has the amenities you would typically associate with any park, like picnic areas, tennis courts, playgrounds, and an amphitheater offering free concerts and plays during the summer.

Highlights

Nature Center and Planetarium, Peirce Mill, Old Stone House, Fort Stevens

Must-Do Activity

Rock Creek Park contains the only planetarium in the entire NPS system, which is at the same location as the Nature Center. The planetarium offers free astronomy programs and holds monthly stargazing programs between April and November. The site of Civil War-era Fort Stevens is located east of the main park where interpretive information explains the July 1864 battle that took place there. It was during a visit to the fort that Abraham Lincoln became the only sitting president to ever come under enemy fire during wartime.

Best Trail

There are 25 miles of trails within Rock Creek Park, plus they connect to parkland in bordering Maryland.

Instagram-worthy Photo

Peirce Mill was originally in operation from the 1820s to 1897, utilizing slave labor (until the Civil War) to run the flour mill, sawmill, distillery, and nursery. The mill was renovated by the NPS in the 1930s to produce flour during World War II and remains open to visitors seasonally.

Peak Season

Summer

Hours

https://www.nps.gov/rocr/planyourvisit/hours.htm

Fees

None

Road Conditions

All roads are paved, though some are closed on weekends and holidays for non-motorized users.

Camping

None

Related Sites

Fort Washington Park (Maryland)

Theodore Roosevelt Island (District of Columbia)

Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial (District of Columbia)

Explore More – Rock Creek also flows through the fee-free National Zoological Park, which is managed by what institution?

Virgin Islands

Buck Island Reef National Monument

May 7, 2020 Raven About The Parks Leave a comment

Overview

Located 1.5 miles north of the large Caribbean island of St. Croix is Buck Island, which covers only 176 acres of the 19,015 acres designated as Buck Island Reef National Monument. Arguably the best coral reef in the entire National Park Service (NPS) system is the barrier reef around the island’s northern and eastern shore, which includes large examples of elkhorn coral with its beautiful yellow branches. Private boats can get a permit to visit the island, but most tourists reserve trips with an NPS-authorized concessionaire that provides the gear for guided snorkeling and scuba diving experiences.

Highlights

Snorkeling, Underwater Trail, West Beach, Observation Point

Must-Do Activity

Snorkeling on the eastern end of the island is the highlight of a day trip to Buck Island. The water offshore from St. Croix is cooler, even though your boat will moor in a lagoon, so consider wearing a wet suit. There is an Underwater Trail with interpretive signs at one location along the coral reef. Watch for a variety of parrotfish, angelfish, filefish, and sharks (lemon and nurse). Sea turtles (green, hawksbill, loggerhead, and leatherback) are more common the west side of the island.

Best Trail

A steep, sandy trail climbs from Diedrichs Point and forms a loop when you walk West Beach, the designated anchorage area. The 45-minute trek has a must-do spur to Observation Point for the best views, otherwise you will not be able to see through the thick vegetation of thorny trees interspersed with organ pipe cactus. Stay on the trail and be careful not to touch poisonous manchineel trees or Christmas bush (related to poison-ivy).

Instagram-worthy Photo

Bring an underwater camera for great photo opportunities. We followed a spotted eagle ray and a large school of blue tangs around the reef. We also saw a nurse shark, lemon shark, and dozens of barracudas.

Peak Season

Anytime except hurricane season

Hours

Buck Island is only open during daylight hours

https://www.nps.gov/buis/planyourvisit/hours.htm

Fees

None, except for concessionaire boat trip

Road Conditions

There are no roads on the island, so a boat tour through an NPS-authorized concessionaire is necessary to access it. There is a large parking lot (fee) near the Christiansted marina and floatplane airport. Note: you drive on the left side of the road in the U.S. Virgin Islands, but in standard American left-side driver seat vehicles.

Camping

Buck Island is closed between sunset and sunrise, with no overnight mooring allowed. On St. Croix, there is no official NPS campground at Salt River Bay National Historical Park and Ecological Preserve, but people camp along the coast there and at many beachside locations around the entire island.

Related Sites

Christiansted National Historic Site (U.S. Virgin Islands)

Salt River Bay National Historical Park and Ecological Preserve (U.S. Virgin Islands)

Virgin Islands National Park (U.S. Virgin Islands)

Vegetation is mainly thorny trees and organ pipe cactus

Explore More – What type of domesticated animals were let loose on Buck Island in the 1700s (permanently altering the vegetation)?

List

Top 10 National Parks for Wildlife Watching

May 5, 2020 Raven About The Parks Leave a comment

There are 63 National Parks of the 430+ units in the National Park Service (NPS) system and they are among the best places to watch wildlife. As with all of our Top 10 lists, this is a ranking of our favorite parks and not necessarily a true reflection of biodiversity or the likelihood of spotting the animals listed. Note: brown bears and grizzly bears are the same species, so we stuck with the Alaskan name. We have published a travel guidebook to the 63 parks with much more information about where to go to see wildlife (available on Amazon).

Know someone who loves National Parks? Gift them our travel guidebook A Park to Yourself: Finding Solitude in America’s 63 National Parks.

10. Theodore Roosevelt (North Dakota)

Bison, elk, pronghorn, white-tailed deer, mule deer, prairie dogs, wild horses, prairie rattlesnakes

9. Virgin Islands (U.S. Virgin Islands)

Sea turtles, stingrays, barracudas, parrotfish, iguanas (introduced), frigatebirds, bananaquits, pelicans

8. Rocky Mountain (Colorado)

Elk, moose, bighorn sheep, white-tailed deer, mule deer, black bears, yellow-bellied marmots, pikas

7. Glacier (Montana)

Mountain goats, bighorn sheep, moose, elk, mule deer, brown bears, black bears, lynx, yellow-bellied marmots, pikas

6. Great Smoky Mountains (Tennessee-North Carolina)

Elk, white-tailed deer, black bears, raccoons, turkeys, salamanders, synchronous fireflies

5. Denali (Alaska)

Caribou, moose, Dall sheep, brown bears, black bears, gray wolves, beavers, hoary marmots

4. Badlands (South Dakota)

Bison, bighorn sheep, pronghorn, white-tailed deer, mule deer, prairie dogs, black-footed ferrets

3 (tie). Kenai Fjords/Glacier Bay (Alaska)

Sea otters, sea lions, harbor seals, whales, porpoises, moose, mountain goats, brown bears, black bears, bald eagles

2. Everglades (Florida)

Alligators, crocodiles, dolphins, barred owls, anhingas, roseate spoonbills, wood storks, ospreys, pelicans

…and finally our #1 National Park for watching wildlife:

1. Yellowstone (Wyoming-Montana-Idaho)

Bison, elk, moose, bighorn sheep, pronghorn, brown bears, black bears, mountain lions, gray wolves

Honorable Mentions

Voyageurs (Minnesota)

River otters, beavers, moose, white-tailed deer, black bears, gray wolves, lynx, bald eagles, loons

Channel Islands (California)

Sea otters, sea lions, harbor seals, whales, dolphins, anemones, sea urchins, starfish, sea gulls, pelicans

Dry Tortugas (Florida)

Sea turtles, parrotfish, groupers, tarpons, sharks, crocodiles, frigatebirds, noddies, boobies, terns, pelicans

Know someone who loves National Parks? Gift them our travel guidebook A Park to Yourself: Finding Solitude in America’s 63 National Parks.

Massachusetts, Rhode Island

Blackstone River Valley National Historical Park

April 30, 2020 Raven About The Parks Leave a comment

Overview

Roger Williams National Memorial used to be the only National Park Service (NPS) site in Rhode Island, but in 2014 Blackstone River Valley was upgraded from an affiliated National Heritage Corridor to a National Historical Park. It commemorates the industrial revolution that changed the landscape of America during the 1800s, as well as the immigration of factory workers that changed its face. Another NPS-affiliated point of interest in the tiny state is Touro Synagogue National Historic Site (admission charged) in Newport.

Highlights

Slater Mill Historic Site, Blackstone River State Park, Statue of Hope Fountain

Must-Do Activity

Formerly known as the John H. Chafee Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor, this NPS unit remains a partnership between government agencies, non-profits, and businesses in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Its centerpiece is the nation’s first successful water-powered cotton-spinning factory: Slater Mill Historic Site in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, which offers free ranger-guided tours. By 1880, this “hardest working river” was one of the most polluted in the country, but has recovered so that canoeists can float portions of its 46-mile length.

Best Trail

Blackstone River State Park has a free museum (inside the Kelly House) and a section of the canal that followed the river. There are 3.5 miles of the 14-mile (of a planned 48) paved bikeway along the canal towpath within this Rhode Island park. Another section of trail lies within Blackstone River and Canal Heritage State Park near River Bend Farm in Massachusetts.

Instagram-worthy Photo

The Statue of Hope Fountain was dedicated on November 12, 1904 in the town of Hopedale, Massachusetts. It was carved from Carrara marble by Waldo Story and was once considered the “finest drinking fountain in the United States.” We found it a little creepy looking.

Peak Season

Summer

Hours

https://www.nps.gov/blrv/planyourvisit/hours.htm

Fees

None

Road Conditions

All major roads paved

Camping

Rhode Island State Parks manages several campgrounds, including George Washington State Campground in Chepachet.

Related Sites

Roger Williams National Memorial (Rhode Island)

New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park (Massachusetts)

Lowell National Historical Park (Massachusetts)

Wilkinson Mill at Slater Mill Historic Site

Explore More – When did English immigrant Samuel Slater take over a failed mill to start the first successful water-powered cotton-spinning factory in America?

Hawaii

Haleakalā National Park

April 22, 2020 Raven About The Parks 1 Comment

Overview

On the tropical island of Maui, Haleakalā National Park is accessible by two memorable roads. One road climbs from sea level up to 10,023 feet overlooking Haleakalā Crater, which has almost no vegetation. To the east, a lush tropical rainforest thrives in the Kīpahulu District located at the end of the winding road to Hana. Both districts offer great hiking opportunities and free campgrounds. There is much more information about this park in our National Park guidebook, available on Amazon.

Highlights

Haleakalā Crater, Sliding Sands Trail, Hosmer Grove, ‘Ohe‘o Gulch pools, Waimoku Falls

Must-Do Activity

The thing to do at Haleakalā National Park is drive up the curvy entrance road in the pitch dark to catch a sunrise from 10,000 feet. Haleakalā translates to “the house of the sun” so it is kind of a big deal here. It is like a party atmosphere in the chilly air waiting for the guest of honor. Of course, we were up there one morning, though we thought the sunsets were prettier and much less crowded. Several tours drive visitors to the summit for sunrise then provide bicycles to coast back down the switchbacks outside the park boundaries.

Best Trail

In the Kīpahulu District, we hiked the two-mile Pipiwai Trail to the 400 foot cascades of Waimoku Falls in a steady downpour. The trail offers some protection from rain under sprawling banyan trees and incredibly dense bamboo thickets. Like many of the plant and animal species found throughout Hawai‘i, the banyan and bamboo are not native to the islands, but have thrived on this isolated landmass 2,400 miles from the nearest continent.

Instagram-worthy Photo

Silversword (‘ahinahina) plants grow all along the Sliding Sands Trail that accesses the bottom of the 2,000 foot deep crater.

Peak Season

Year round, though summer might be slightly warmer at 10,000 feet in elevation.

Hours

https://www.nps.gov/hale/planyourvisit/hours.htm

Fees

$30 per vehicle or America the Beautiful pass

Road Conditions

All roads are paved, but the road to the summit is full of switchbacks and bicyclists. The curvy road to Hana is well known for its one-lane bridges, of which we counted 53 before we reached the Kīpahulu District.

Camping

The two National Park Service campgrounds here are free, a big savings in a place that can be expensive to visit. There is a lottery for three hike-in cabins and permits available for wilderness backpacking campsites.

Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park (Hawai‘i)

Kaloko-Honokōhau National Historical Park (Hawai‘i)

This design we created to celebrate Haleakalā National Park is available on a variety of products at Cafe Press.

Explore More – How much annual precipitation does the Kīpahulu District receive (making it one of the wettest places on Earth)?

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