If you have visited any of the National Parks, you know what a treasure they are and how important their protection is. I suppose it’s possible to visit one of the parks and not be impressed and awed, but not for me.
There are more than 20,000 people who work for the National Parks Service. As far as I can tell they are almost universally dedicated and underpaid, and are just really outstanding individuals. I’m sure there are the same number of bad apples in that group as in any other, but I’ve never run across a single one.
The parks are under pressure from people who want to cut funding to them and exploit the resources within them. They are public property in an era where that very idea is anathema to the powerful, and their education mission is threatened by those for whom all education is an expression of partisan politics, as we have seen in recent days.
It’s too depressing to think of what will be lost if the parks system succumbs, so today I’ll reminisce in advance of any loss by posting a random few of my own photos.
Click on pics to enlarge. Also, please send Stewie some of your own pics or memories of the National Parks.
Acadia (via Elaine)
Carlsbad Caverns
Crater Lake
Denali
Glacier
Grand Teton
Grand Canyon
Mt. Hood
Olympic
Mt. Ranier
Redwoods
Great Smoky Mountains
Yellowstone
Zion
Get Off My Lawn 
Acadia National Park – we’ve gone for over 25 years now. Visiting the Parks gives families great memories. A summer without Acadia is not a summer.
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And Yellowstone & Teton many trips, our family’s favorite geographic places. At risk for pure greed.
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We spent years in Rocky Mtn Natl Park, Arches, Canyonlands, Bryce, & Yosemite. All forever unforgettable and the heart of America.
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