Parks

The National Parks have played a huge role in my Meanders. My love affair with the Parks (and with the Pacific Northwest) began with my first flirtation with Mt. Rainier in 2011. We DTRed and made it Facebook official when I kicked off my first Meander in 2013 with six nights in Yosemite.

Here’s a rundown of NPS Units I’ve visited since 2012.

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National Parks (date of first visit) 

cabrillo national monument

I don’t walk, I run, when entering a new park.

Mount Rainier National Park (July 2011*)
Olympic National Park (July 2011*)
Petrified Forest National Park (July 2012)
Redwood National Park (May 2013)
Yosemite National Park (May 2013)
Lassen Volcanic National Park (June 2013)
Crater Lake National Park (June 2013)
North Cascades National Park (July 2013)
Glacier National Park (August 2013)
Grand Teton National Park (September 2013)
Yellowstone National Park (September 2013)
Joshua Tree National Park (December 2013)
Arches National Park (March 2015)
Sequoia National Park (July 2015)
Kings Canyon National Park (July 2015)
Death Valley National Park (August 2015)
Grand Canyon National Park (December 2015)
Rocky Mountain National Park (May 2017)
Guadalupe Mountains National Park (December 2017)
Carlsbad Caverns National Park (December 2017)
White Sands National Monument (December 2017)
Everglades National Park (December 2018)
Biscayne National Park (January 2019)
Saguaro National Park (March 2023)

Other NPS Units (date of first visit)

Tuzigoot National Monument (April 2012)
Golden Gate National Recreation Area (April 2012)
El Malpais National Monument (July 2012)
El Morro National Monument (July 2012)
Cabrillo National Monument (August 2012)
Mississippi National River and Recreation Area (April 2013)
Lava Beds National Monument (June 2013)
Lewis and Clark National Historical Park (June 2013)
Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park (July 2013)
Ross Lake National Recreation Area (July 2013)
John D. Rockefeller Memorial Parkway (September 2013)
Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument (February 2014)
Walnut Canyon National Monument (February 2014)
Wupatki National Monument (February 2014)
Lake Mead National Recreation Area (September 2014)
Tonto National Monument (January 2015)
Navajo National Monument (March 2015)
Natural Bridges National Monument (March 2015)
Canyon De Chelly National Monument (May 2015)
Whiskeytown National Recreation Area (July 2015)
Devils Postpile National Monument (August 2015)
Manzanar National Historic Site (August 2015)
Montezuma Castle National Monument (December 2015)
Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument (March 2016)
Glen Canyon National Recreation Area (April 2016)
Rainbow Bridge National Monument (April 2016)
Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historic Park (June 2016)
Antietam National Battlefield (June 2016)
Monocacy National Battlefield (June 2016)
Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area (July 2016)
Oregon Caves National Monument (July 2016)
Chiricahua National Monument (March 2017)
Fort Bowie National Historic Site (March 2017)
Whitman Mission National Historic Site (September 2017)
City of Rocks National Reserve (September 2017)
Golden Spike National Historic Site (September 2017)
Cedar Breaks National Monument (September 2017)
Pipe Spring National Monument (September 2017)
Chamizal National Memorial (December 2017)
Big Cypress National Preserve (December 2018)
César E. Chávez National Monument (July 2019)
Fort Vancouver National Historic Site (August 2019)
New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park (February 2020)
Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve (February 2020)
Coronado National Memorial (June 2022)
Tumacacori National Historic Site (March 2023)
Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail (March 2023)
Casa Grande Ruins National Monument (March 2023)

Easy NPS Units in Washington D.C. (June 2016)

Arlington House, the Robert E. Lee Memorial
Carter G. Woodson Home National Historic Site
Constitution Gardens
Ford’s Theatre National Historic Site
Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial
Frederick Douglass National Historic Site
George Washington Memorial Parkway
Korean War Veterans Memorial
Lincoln Memorial
Lyndon Baines Johnson Memorial Grove on the Potomac
Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial
Mary McLeod Bethune Council House National Historic Site
National Capital Parks
National Mall
National World War I Memorial
Pennsylvania Avenue National Historic Site
Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail
Rock Creek Park
Theodore Roosevelt Island
The White House
Thomas Jefferson Memorial
Vietnam Veterans Memorial
Washington Monument
World War II Memorial

* These are on the list because I’ve returned since 2012.

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Subaru Outback at Joshua Tree National Park