Mount Rainier National Park, with 236,381 un-spoiled acres, was established in 1899, 17 years before the National Park Service was formed, making it one of the oldest in the nation. Ascending to 14,410 feet above sea level, Mount Rainier stands as an icon in the Washington landscape. An active volcano, Mount Rainier is the most glaciated peak in the contiguous U.S.A., spawning six major rivers. It is the most prominent peak in the Cascade Range. Mount Rainier last erupted approximately 150 years ago. Coniferous trees dominate and the lower slopes have dense forests of giant Douglas firs, western red cedars, and mountain hemlocks. During the warm months the alpine meadows are covered with wildflowers that bloom progressively higher up the slopes as the summer passes. The park’s wildlife is abundant and varied and includes deer, Roosevelt elk, bears and mountain goats and there are also more than 140 bird species. One of the park’s most scenic drives runs from the Nisqually entrance to Paradise. This 80 mile drive winds through river valleys, lowland forests and glaciated peaks and offers some magnificent views. Nearly two million visitors a year come to Mount Rainier National Park for hiking, moutain climbing, backpacking, and more.

Welcome to Mount Rainier National Park

White River

White River

Fryingpan Creek Bridge

Narada Falls

Narada Falls

Trail of Shadows

Trail of Shadows

Christine Falls

Nisqually River

Pinnacle Peak

Stevens Canyon Road

Tunnel, Stevens Canyon Road

Stevens Creek

Box Canyon

Box Canyon

Roots of a Giant

Grove of the Patriarchs Trail

Mount Rainier and Louise Lake

Mount Rainier in Reflection Lake

Mount Rainier

credit: Ashlyn G

Joshua Tree National Park is located in southeastern California. Declared a U.S. National Park in 1994 when the U.S. Congress passed the California Desert Protection Act. The park encompasses nearly 800,000 acres of the Mojave and Colorado Deserts, conserving two separate desert ecosystems at different altitudes. The name of the park is derived from the distinctive Joshua Tree, a tall-growing variety of the yucca genus that grows prevalently within its boundaries. In the higher Mojave portion of the national park, a forest of the strange Joshua Trees and a number of unique rock formations called Inselbergs are protected. In the lower Colorado portion, the Pinto Basin exhibits the typical plants of this hotter Sonoran Desert.

credit: mlinksva

The Carlsbad Caverns National Park contains 113 of more than 300 known caves beneath the surface of the Chihuahuan Desert and Guadalupe Mountains of southeastern New Mexico and west Texas. All caves was formed as sulfuric acid dissolved the surrounding limestone. The most famous part of this National Park is the show cave, which is open to the public and tourists can hike by themselves via the natural entrance. National Park was first designated a National Monument on 25 Oct 1923. Carlsbad Caverns was also designated a World Heritage Site on 06 Dec 1995.

credit: bradspry