Nothing can beat the splendor of the preserved beauty of nature for miles, lit by a setting sun while you sip a beer you snuck in. Public parks are great in nearly every form, and National Parks are a national treasure. There are 59 of them designated right now (although there are 417 units in the National Park Service) in these United States and I recommend racing your friends to visit the most.

At a lot of these parks, you’ll end up having to hike a bit. But good news! Hiking is just walking. Grab some fashionable yet comfortable sneakers, a reusable water bottle, and get your park on. Summer is the perfect season for sweating off your booty while enjoying one of these charming spots.

Plus, they need us! We all know how politics go, and don’t you want America to still be here in hundreds of years, in the form of natural landmasses that we had little to do with? Show your support by visiting and indicating that you appreciate their existence. Our national parks are doing a really great job lately, and we should each and every one of us let them know!

The Parks

Some of our favorites are Congaree, The Everglades, The Great Smoky Mountains, and Mammoth Cave! The most popular park always seems like it must be the Grand Canyon, but the most visited was actually the Great Smoky Mountains in 2016 — even Amandoll and AlexT were there in 2016! And it’s no wonder that it was because of how beautiful it is. (It’s also no wonder it’s got an extra special place in Dolly Parton’s heart.)

Only 27 states have National Parks, but try to visit a local one if you can. If you need help, you can use this website to Find Your Park. State parks are pretty good for the same reasons, but they aren’t quite the same, guys. Get in on this on a national scale.

 

The Activities

Not really into hiking even though it’s just walking? There are a lot of things you can do at National Parks that don’t necessarily involve walking over a mile.

I’m a big fan of birdwatching and fishing. Birdwatching you can pretty much do at any of the parks, while fishing you’re allowed to do at a few. You can also go caving, snorkeling, biking, or even snowshoeing. You can find a unit under the National Park Service on their site by searching for activity (or state or why it was designated), even by places good for astronomy or wildlife watching.

You can camp, you can go to landmarks, but whatever you do, don’t become another statistic, being trampled to death by bison or antelope because you don’t respect their space. Don’t even do it to get on YouTube or a tv show about when animals attack. It still hurts our hearts to know people can be so dumb.

 

The History

Yellowstone was the first National Park signed into law by Ulysses S. Grant. The preservation of these parks is so important for future generations, and for us! The National Park Service has many dedicated employees and volunteers whose job it is to protect these amazing American spots, while also giving us access to their beauty.

And oh, the prestige! National parks have been featured in road trip family movies of the 80s, 90s, and today! So go out there and make a national park the feature of your own glorious memories.