Author's posts
Oct 01 2024
Yosemite National Park’s Bridalveil Fall
Bridalveil Fall is one of the signature waterfalls of Yosemite National Park and one of the first major landmarks many travelers see as they enter Yosemite Valley. Dropping 620 feet from a hanging valley high above the valley floor, the waterfall appears almost suspended against a wall of pale granite. Unlike many seasonal Yosemite waterfalls, …
Oct 01 2024
Yosemite National Park’s Half Dome
Half Dome is the defining symbol of Yosemite National Park. Rising to an elevation of about 8,842 feet and standing nearly 4,800 feet above its base, this enormous granite formation dominates the eastern end of Yosemite Valley and appears in some of the most recognizable landscapes in the American national park system. For many visitors, …
Oct 01 2024
Yosemite National Park’s Yosemite Falls
Yosemite Falls is one of the defining landmarks of Yosemite National Park and one of the tallest waterfalls in North America. From the rim of Yosemite Valley to the rocks below, the entire waterfall system drops an extraordinary 2,425 feet, creating a spectacle that can be seen from meadows, roads, trails, and viewpoints throughout the …
Oct 01 2024
Wind Cave National Park Wildlife: Bison, Elk, Prairie Dogs & More
Wind Cave National Park may be best known for the vast cave system hidden beneath the Black Hills of South Dakota, but some of the park’s greatest attractions live above ground. Rolling mixed-grass prairie, ponderosa pine forest, rocky hills, and prairie dog towns support an impressive collection of wildlife that includes American bison, elk, pronghorn, …
Oct 01 2024
White Sands National Park Wildlife: Foxes, Lizards, Birds & Desert Animals
White Sands National Park may look almost empty at first glance. Miles of brilliant white gypsum dunes stretch across New Mexico’s Tularosa Basin, with few trees, little standing water, and summer temperatures that can make the landscape seem far too harsh for abundant wildlife. Yet White Sands supports a surprisingly diverse animal community. More than …
Oct 01 2024
Voyageurs National Park Wildlife: Wolves, Moose, Bears, Loons & More
Voyageurs National Park is a landscape of water, islands, forests, wetlands, and rocky shorelines along the Minnesota–Canada border. Its interconnected lakes and boreal forests provide habitat for an impressive range of northern wildlife, including gray wolves, moose, black bears, beavers, river otters, white-tailed deer, bald eagles, common loons, and dozens of fish species. Wildlife watching …
Sep 30 2024
Best Hikes in Voyageurs National Park: Trails, Difficulty & Hiking Guide
Voyageurs National Park is best known for its enormous lakes, rocky islands, quiet bays, and water-based adventures, but hiking reveals an entirely different side of this northern Minnesota wilderness. Trails lead through boreal forest, past beaver ponds and wetlands, across ancient granite ridges, and into remote sections of the Kabetogama Peninsula where wolves, moose, black …
Sep 30 2024
Virgin Islands National Park Coral Reefs: Snorkeling, Marine Life & Best Spots
Virgin Islands National Park is as remarkable beneath the water as it is above it. More than 40 percent of the park lies underwater, protecting coral reefs, seagrass beds, mangrove shorelines, sandy bottoms, and rocky marine habitats around the island of St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands. For visitors, that means snorkeling is not …
Sep 30 2024
The Diverse Wildlife of Theodore Roosevelt National Park
Theodore Roosevelt National Park is one of the best wildlife-watching destinations on the northern Great Plains. Across the rugged Badlands of western North Dakota, American bison graze beside prairie dog towns, mule deer disappear into juniper draws, coyotes hunt across open grassland, and golden eagles circle high above eroded buttes. The park’s wildlife diversity comes …
Sep 30 2024
Painted Canyon in Theodore Roosevelt National Park: Overlooks, Hiking & Wildlife
Painted Canyon provides one of the most dramatic introductions to Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Just a few minutes after leaving Interstate 94, visitors can stand at the edge of the North Dakota Badlands and look across an enormous landscape of layered buttes, eroded gullies, prairie grasslands, juniper-covered slopes, and streaks of red, brown, gray, gold, …
