In 2009, my wife Terry and I were approaching retirement and sought the advice of a financial planner. She told us that before she could help us with our finances, she needed to know what we wanted to do with the rest of our lives. She asked us to create a Life Plan. Part of our Life Plan included hiking about all of our country’s major national parks. Yellowstone was the first of 63 when we visited in October of 2009. In 2022, we completed our “trek to the parks” with a visit to New River Gorge. Along the way, our family created a tabletop board game called Trekking the National Parks to help educate, inspire and entertain those who play it.
Sincerely,
Yellowstone National Park
America's first national park is named after the river that runs through it. Within the park's massive boundaries, visitors can find mountains, rivers, lakes, waterfalls and some of the most concentrated geothermal activity in the world. The park has 60% of the world’s geysers, as well as hot springs and mud pots. It is also home to diverse wildlife with the largest concentration of mammals in the Lower 48 states, including grizzly bears, wolves, bison and elk.
State(s): Idaho Montana, Wyoming,
Established: 1872
“The parks offer all of us an opportunity to explore and experience the remarkable landscapes and cultural resourses within these environmental and spiritual cathedrals. ”
National parks represent the best of America. Why do you care about protecting and preserving them? Tell us why parks matter to you!
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Greetings from Yellowstone National Park
With a bottle of water in one hand and a camera in another, I joined the throngs of visitors in Yellowstone. On a recent trip to the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone, I was eager to capture the breathtaking beauty of the Park that I only saw in pictures. Descending the…
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Greetings from Yellowstone National Park
Looking past the neon orange “Watch Your Step” sign, I leaned against the flimsy, chipping wooden fence to get a closer look at the serene, steaming geyser lying a few feet away from where I stood. Just one day prior, my family and I had landed at the Yellowstone Regional…
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Greetings from Yellowstone National Park
I have been to Yellowstone at least six times over the years. I took my kids a couple times and now I’m getting ready to take my grandkids. The diversity and wander of Yellowstone is a fantastic learning experience.
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