WASHINGTON, Aug. 25 (UPI) — The U.S. National Parks Service is celebrating its 99th birthday by offering free admission Tuesday to all of its sites nationwide.
Signed into legislation in 1916, the National Park Service operates 408 areas with more than 84 million acres in every state, the District of Columbia, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
“The National Park Service’s 99th birthday is an opportunity to reflect on and celebrate the role of national parks in the American story,” said National Park Service Director Jonathan B. Jarvis. “And it’s also a time to look ahead to our centennial year, and the next 100 years. These national treasures belong to all of us, and we want everyone – especially the next generation of park visitors, supporters and advocates – to discover and connect with their national parks.”
Across the country, national parks are celebrating the day in different ways. To encourage visitors to explore the parks, the park service has created a birthday list of99 Ways to Find Your Park, which includes everything from urban hikes and sunrise selfies to writing poetry and earning a Junior Ranger badge.
“(Today) is going to be nice and warm so coming out to hike would be good, although being there in the morning would be best and of course the road will be open because driving up to the top is a very popular thing to do,” said Lesley Gaunt, park ranger at Scottsbluff National Monument, a 3,000 acre park in Nebraska.
At 13.2 acres, Wrangell – St. Elias National Park and Preserve in Alaska is the largest. Thaddeus Kosciuszko National Memorial in Pennsylvania is the smallest with 0.02 acres.
