The Splendor of Natural America: Majestic and Beautiful

This article is a salute to some of America’s finest National Parks. Happy Birthday America! May you always be wild and free.

Yosemite National Park, California

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John Muir, one of America’s original naturalists supposedly took President Theodore Roosevelt camping in Yosemite to convince the president that our country needed to have designated National Parks. President “Teddy” Roosevelt was so awe struck by his experience camping in Yosemite that he set up the National Parks Service to preserve vast pieces of our country’s wild and beautiful territory. Yosemite has deep valleys and waterfalls that are truly magnificent. Yosemite is one of our nation’s most regal parks and over 3 million visitors from all over the world come to reign in her glory.

This is an example of just one waterfall within Yosemite National Park.

Half Dome, Yosemite National Park

Denali National Park, Alaska

Denali National Park is home to Mt. McKinley, the tallest mountain in the United States.

The park itself is about 200 miles south of the Artic Circle. The park wildlife includes Dall (big horn) sheep, grizzly bears, gray wolves and moose. This area is a place where the tectonic plates of the earth continually are in motion and thus earthquakes are a part of the territory. The Alaskan Range actually rises 3 centimeters a year, due to this constant force. In the winter, the temperature in this region can drop to 95 degrees below zero.

Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah

Bryce Canyon National Park is known for its red rock formations and unusual landscape.

These rock formations are called “hoodoos” and they were craved by melting snow. This sculpting of the rocks took thousands and thousands of years. The entire park has been created by the elements of wind and rain, giving it a memorable terrain. Inside the park at 9,000 feet above sea level, there are 1,500 year old pine trees.