Archive for the ‘National Parks’ Category
Acadia National Park Carriage Roads
Tuesday, July 20th, 2010
Horses on Acadia National Park Carriage Road
John D. Rockefeller Jr. became interested in Mount Desert Island in the early 1900’s when he and his wife spent several summers vacationing in Bar Harbor. Their son Nelson, future vice president of the US, was born here.
In 1910 John D. Rockefeller Jr. purchased a house in Seal Harbor and over the years converted it into a large 100 room mansion known as the Eyrie. He was very interested in the preservation of land on the island and became the greatest donor of land and money to the formation of what is now Acadia National Park.
In 1913 he began building the carriage road system. Initially it was just around his property but in time his interest expanded and construction continued until the early 1940s.
In the end John D. Rockefeller Jr. built 16 stone bridges, 57 miles of carriage roads and the two gate-lodges most of which have been given to the park. Along with over 10,000 acres of land and several million dollars for various other projects including the construction of the park loop road and restoration after the 1947 fire, John D. Rockefeller Jr. has been the single greatest benefactor to Acadia National Park.
To this day the Rockefeller family continues its interest and generosity to Mount Desert Island and Acadia National Park.
The significance of the carriage road system is not simply a generous gift or an engineering feat but as a pathway into the heart of the park, where people can experience the full beauty of nature away from human influence.
Today, the carriage roads are wonderful opportunities to experience Acadia by bicycle. Your only companions may be pedestrians and horses. Find out more about biking in Acadia here.
Fun Campfire Games
Monday, June 7th, 2010
campfire fun
What is camping without a campfire? Smores, ghost stories, cooking hot dogs on a stick – that’s what makes a campfire fun family time. Pack the marshmallows, lawn chairs, and creativity and have some fun with these games around the campfire:
1- Skin the Marshmallow – While toasting your marshmallows on a stick over the coals, see who can skin their marshmallow the most times. Toast your marshmallow to the point where you can pull off just the outermost toasted layer. Toast the remainder lightly until you can pull off its outer skin. Repeat until you have skinned your marshmallow down to nothing. Don’t forget to count how many times you skinned the same marshmallow. My personal record is 13 skins.
2- Circle Story – Everyone sitting around the campfire contributes to the circle story. One person starts the story with, “Once upon a time…” and for instance can say, ” a boy and his pet dragon went for a walk in the woods.” Then, the next person picks up the story and builds the drama. Each person can tell for as long as he/she wants, but cannot undo what previous storytellers said. Its fun to try to put in a twist for the next storyteller in the circle. The story ends when it completes the circle and comes back to the person who started it. (Or, keep it going round and round – it could go all night!)
3- A What? – This is a fun classic that is sure to make everyone laugh. One person hands an object to the person next to him in the circle saying, “This is a widget”. (Any word can be used, the weirder the better actually). The recipient asks, “A what?” and the response is, “a Widget”. The second person then hands the object to the 3rd person in the circle telling her, “This is a widget”, and the 3rd person asks, “A what?” and the 2nd person turns back to the first and asks, “A what?” and the first answers, “A widget”. The second then answers the 3rd with, “A widget” and the third can then hand it to the 4th person, saying, “This is a widget”, who of course has to ask, “A what?” which gets relayed all the way back to the starter. The object goes all the way around the circle with, “A What?” going all the way back to the original person as if no one has any memory at all, and “A widget” being conveyed back to the person with the object. Once you have that down, try passing a different object around the circle in the opposite direction at the same time. Then the confusion and hilarity really begins.
4- Rhythm Game – Everyone has to have their hands free for this one. Decide on a general topic, like animals. Then, start a rhythm by clapping thighs twice followed by two claps (slap-slap-clap-clap) Not too fast at first. To start, the first person names an animal beginning with the letter A on the claps. The next person in the circle then has to shout out an animal starting with the letter B on the very next claps. The third person in the circle then has the letter C to name an animal on the claps and so forth down the alphabet. If someone misses an animal or messes up the rhythm, he is out. Who of your group is the quick thinker and most coordinated? Other categories can include places, people’s names, food. You can come up with plenty others I’m sure.
5- Twenty questions – Another classic in which one person thinks of a person, place or thing. Others around the campfire can fire off questions with a “yes” or “no” answer to come up with what the person is thinking of. Narrow the focus with categories like movies, historical figures, famous people, astronomy, or whatever you want.
There are many games to play around the campfire. Make up some of your own. Those can be some of the best fun. Who knows, you may be up all night!
New – National Park Quarters
Friday, June 4th, 2010
Hot Springs coin
America’s National Parks and Preserves are featured in a new series of quarters to be issued by the US Treasury. Five quarters will be issued in 2010. Look for these in the palm of your hand this year:
1. Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas – the first publicly preserved landscape, will be the first quarter issued. As early as 1807, people had begun using the springs for relaxation and health. In the 1830s, President Andrew Jackson set aside some of the springs for public use. Although not designated as a National Park, the Hot Springs became the first nationally preserved land. In 1921, Hot Springs was re-designated as the 18th National Park.
Yosemite coin
2. Yosemite National Park in California - followed a similar path to National Park status as Hot Springs. President Abraham Lincoln set aside the land as a national preserve, but the land was returned to California soon thereafter. It wasn’t until 1890 that Yosemite returned as a National Park.
Yellowstone coin
3. Yellowstone National Park - the first official National Park will also be honored. In 1872, President US Grant established as the first National Park in the world. Established originally to preserve its scenery, some now refer to Yellowstone as America’s Serengeti for the exceptional wildlife viewing opportunities found here.
Mt. Hood coin
4. Mount Hood National Forest – although not a national park, the 100-year effort to make it so continues to this day. Mount Hood and its surrounding forests are managed by the US Forest Service. Although some land is preserved under wilderness designation, much of the land is managed for timber harvesting.
Grand Canyon coin
5. Grand Canyon National Park - was established as one of America’s first National Monuments. The US Antiquities Act gave the President the opportunity to set aside land without the approval of Congress. Originally meant to preserve important Native American archeological sites, President Teddy Roosevelt read into the act a broader mission. He used the act to create 18 national monuments, including setting aside over 800,000 acres as Grand Canyon National Monument. Learn more about the history of this special National Park with a Grand Canyon NaturePod.
Cape Cod Lifesaving Service – Supreme Dedication
Monday, May 10th, 2010
Surfman using a signal flare
Memorial Day is approaching fast. It’s the unofficial start of the summer season. If the weather is warm, you will find the beaches at Cape Cod National Seashore filled with waders, swimmers, and sun lovers. If the weather is cool and stormy, the waves will teem with wet-suited surfers.
Should you find yourself at the Cape, and need a break from the sun and surf, check out the Old Harbor Lifesaving Station at Race Point Beach. Park staff and volunteers recreate the techniques first employed by the U.S. Lifesaving Service back in the mid 1800’s.
A strong offshore current known as “The Race” caused numerous ships to flounder as they rounded the tip of the Cape. Surfmen patrolled the beaches during stormy weather to spot and assist these ships.
Unloading rescued passengers from a surfboat
When the word went out that a ship was in trouble, surfmen would gather. When the weather was so bad that surfboats could not be launched, a canon would be fired to deploy a line to the struggling crew. As testament to the importance of these waters for trade, instructions were sent with the line in multiple languages. These instructed sailors to affix the line to their mast and ride a breaches buoy to shore, skimming across the tempest.
The lifesaving stations had a 99% success rate along the shores of Cape Cod, saving over 175,000 lives.
In 1915, the U.S. Lifesaving Service and the Revenue Cutters Service joined to create the US Coast Guard. Today, these men and women continue the tradition, going out in the worst of weather and under the most difficult conditions, to assist sailors in trouble.
Inspirational Cape Cod Beaches
Saturday, November 14th, 2009
Cape Cod beach
President Obama is now vacationing on Martha’s Vineyard, an island off the southern coast of Cape Cod in Massachusetts. These beaches have attracted vacationers and artists for many years. The constant surf, changing landscape, and persistence of life amid the harsh conditions of beating surf are indeed a wonder and a long attraction for those tending toward contemplation and inspiration.
A visit to any of Cape Cod’s or Martha’s Vineyard’s many encompassing beaches may inspire you to take up journaling, sketching a landscape, or composing a poem. You are not alone. Citizens and visitors to the Cape encompass a long history of artistic endeavor. Some Cape Cod artists have acquired international fame.
Here is a little of the artistic history and some famous artists that have taken advantage of Cape Cod’s inspirational vibes thanks to Jody Anastasio author of Cape Cod NaturePod.
After studying impressionist painting in New York, Charles Webster Hawthorne traveled to Holland and discovered painting en plein air – a style of using outdoor light and color. He returned to the United States to start the Cape Cod School of Art in Provincetown in 1899. Provincetown is known for its light, and Hawthorne inspired many artists to take advantage of it.
Another artist who found nourishment in Provincetown was Eugene O’Neill, playwright. After a rough early life, involving depression and alcoholism, O’Neill recognized a love for the sea. He spent several years on the ocean, and based many of his later plays on these experiences. He began spending summers in Provincetown in 1916, and the Provincetown Players performed his first play, Bound East for Cardiff, a sea story. O’Neill purchased the old Peaked Hill Lifesaving Station, and lived there with his wife for several years. Here he found an inspirational place for writing.
O’Neill’s presence drew other artists to the nearby dune shacks, rustic buildings originally created for members of the lifesaving service. Artists discovered the dune shacks and moved in. In their artistic heyday of the mid-twentieth century, the shacks are said to have housed the poets Harry Kemp and E.E. Cummings, painter Jackson Pollack, and writers Jack Kerouac and Norman Mailer.
The shacks are now part of an historic district that recognizes the area’s historic association with the development of art and literature in America. They continue to beckon artists, writers, naturalists, solitude-seekers, and all who draw inspiration and renewal from the dramatic dune environment.