America abounds with natural resources (fertile soil, timber, navigable rivers, oil, natural gas, essential minerals, etc.) and with stunning natural beauty, but, in a story all too often the case, men rush in to exploit them for private gain. Resources created by nature have been privatized, while access to many natural areas is available only by payment of an entrance fee. Fortunately, the government has intervened on occasion to prevent some of the worst exploitation and to preserve some of the best resources. 

In June 1864, President Lincoln, despite his focus on ending a civil rebellion, signed legislation protecting Yosemite Valley and Mariposa Grove within the new state of California, the first time the U.S. government protected land specifically for its natural beauty and for public enjoyment. The signed Yosemite Grant stated, “…the premises shall be held for public use, resort, and recreation, and shall be inalienable for all time….” While Fontainebleau Forest had been preserved by Napoleon III for its artistic beauty in 1853, Yosemite was the first action in the world to permanently set aside land for public benefit, a decision that has been called “the best idea we ever had… absolutely American, absolutely democratic….” (author and Pulitzer Prize winner Wallace Stegner). On our recent trip to California, Dianne and I experienced some of the fruit of that decision, exploring Yosemite, Sequoia, King’s Canyon, Joshua Tree, and Death Valley National Parks (unfortunately, weather prevented us from ferrying out to the Channel Islands), and as part of our upcoming travels to the Mountain West, we plan to visit quite a few more. 

Even though Yosemite Valley was the first area to be protected, it wasn’t the first national park, as it was ceded to the State of California for management. Yellowstone was the world’s first national park, created in 1872, with over two million acres preserved. Sequoia followed in 1890, and Yosemite was enlarged and reconstituted a national park in the same year. Mount Rainier (1899) and Crater Lake (1902) round out the first five national parks created. Each park was managed by a separate Board, which had the power to make decisions about access, development, staffing, and all other operational issues, but budgets were either extremely limited or non-existent. Designation didn’t solve all the problems in these parks in their early years, as poaching, mining, and timbering continued, but at least steps could now be legally taken to protect the areas from further private exploitation.

The National Park Service was created in 1916 to provide unified management of the national parks with the following mission: “…to conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and the wild life therein and to provide for the enjoyment of the same… by such means as will leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations.” There were already 14 national parks at the time the Park Service was created, so it had its work cut out for it, especially since attendance was skyrocketing due to the growing mobility afforded by automobiles. Today, there are 63 national parks (between us, Dianne and I have visited about a third of them). California has the most (9), followed by Alaska (8), and 45 of the parks are west of the Mississippi River. Wrangell-St. Elias National Park in Alaska is the largest (over 13 million acres!), while Great Smoky Mountains National Park is the most visited, with 13 million visitors each year (that’s like everyone in Pennsylvania heading to the park!). America has made a significant commitment to open space, preservation, conservation, and recreation, and people love to take advantage of these resources. The Park Service has over 300 million visits annually to its sites (including its seashores, monuments, and historic sites), and 55-60% of American adults say they have visited at least one national park in their lifetime.

The parks have been the subject of numerous books, paintings, videos and documentaries, a number of which we’ve read or watched. John Muir, Ansel Adams, Ken Burns, and National Geographic, among so many others, have described and portrayed the parks’ beauty, vistas, unique features, wildlife, and architecture. And online, there are a lot of people giving their thoughts as to the highlights of the parks and how to maximize your time in them. 

I can’t match Muir and his passionate descriptions of Yosemite, or the narratives from Burns or NatGeo, and my photos certainly won’t rival those of Adams. What I can say, though, is that each park we visited was a surprise, even after all the research we’d done. The photos, paintings, and descriptions were inspiring, but actually being in each park, seeing the views and marveling at the features, the vastness, the beauty, took the experience to an unexpected level, one that was so satisfying yet also left me longing for more. Perhaps that’s the very nature of beauty and the beauty of nature.

In all the parks, we bee-lined for the Visitor Center to absorb the exhibits and to talk to the rangers. In every location, we gleaned a lot from the exhibits, but it was the rangers who impressed us the most. They were so friendly, so helpful, so informative, and just down right nice–it was always a pleasure to engage with them. I’ve long admired the Park Service, and after this trip, I’m an even bigger fan. It’s a crime that the agency is facing such ridiculous staff reductions and budget constraints when our parks are actually experiencing record attendance.

One of our favorite conversations was with a volunteer at Death Valley National Park. She and her husband live in Virginia, just over an hour from us, and are in their 5th year of volunteering at Death Valley–they love both the park and the experience. They are there from January through April each year, the busiest months for the park and a perfect winter get-away for the couple. They do a variety of jobs at the park, and after five years, they have become experts in the operation of the park. The day we visited she was seated right beside a ranger and the two of them were answering questions about the best hikes, the wildlife, the Artist’s Palette drive, and many other topics, and I thought she was as enthusiastic an advocate for the park as the ranger. She told us about their volunteering experience, including tips on how to get involved; her experiences, plus those of our good friend Pat, who has volunteered at several parks, are making us think about a possible future adventure.

With our California trip and so many great experiences now behind us, there are several memories that feel like lasting ones:

• Emerging from a long tunnel and immediately pulling over to see our first view, “the view,” of Yosemite, with El Capitan, Half Dome, Bridal Veil Falls, and the whole valley in front of us–truly a “wow!” moment.
• My queasiness and sense of vulnerability as we turned onto Rt. 178 in Death Valley, a beautiful but deserted road, with 70 miles to go before reaching our hotel, no cell service, no cars ahead or behind us–would anyone find us if our rental car broke down?
• Watching through binoculars several climbers scaling El Capitan–what are they thinking?!
• Walking through the trunk of a fallen sequoia tree, one that fell over 100 years ago and yet still has not decayed.
• The icy (in April!) path down, down, down in Sequoia NP to view General Sherman, the largest living creature on earth (by volume).
• Going to sleep listening to the roar of the Merced River right off our balcony, minutes from the entrance to Yosemite.
• The view and sunset at Mount Whitney, the highest peak in the lower 48 states, and the next day standing in Badwater Basin, the lowest point in North America (282 feet below sea level).
• A beer on the lawn of the Ahwahnee Lodge in Yosemite, staring up at Half Dome (it doesn’t get any better than this!).

Our national parks are indeed an American treasure, and we thoroughly enjoyed our recent treasure hunt. But we realize that, even with all our visits, hikes, and conversations, there is so much left to discover.