Discover history and enjoy nature at national parks

AccuWeather

The National Park Service's Mike Litterst shares great tips for visiting some of the nation's top sites for breathtaking views and deep history.

Transcript

00:00 There are national parks in all 50 states,

00:02 but there's a dozen of them just in

00:04 or just about anyway in the Washington

00:07 DC area. Which of those parks feature

00:09 presidents? Well, we've probably got the

00:12 the greatest concentration of presidential

00:13 theme national parks.

00:14 The one that you opened with the

00:17 Washington Monument.

00:17 Of course, the Lincoln Memorial,

00:19 the Jefferson Memorial,

00:20 Frederick Franklin Delano Roosevelt

00:22 Memorial and our most recent presidential

00:24 memorial is the Dwight D Eisenhower

00:26 Memorial. But you think about it,

00:28 all of Washington DC named after George

00:30 Washington is in some ways a memorial

00:32 to the nation's first president.

00:34 So cool to think about it that way.

00:37 And absolutely right.

00:38 Obviously now I have to ask you,

00:40 look, we need a little bit of a weather

00:42 tie into everything here at Accuweather.

00:44 And unfortunately some of our national

00:46 parks have been impacted by extreme weather.

00:48 Thinking about, let's say Yellowstone,

00:50 for example,

00:51 what is the latest on those parks?

00:53 Even Death Valley as well that have

00:55 had some damage in terms of flooding,

00:57 especially in the last year or two.

00:59 National parks across the country

01:00 are seeing impacts from weather,

01:02 even right here in Washington DC.

01:04 The the seawall that protects the

01:06 tidal basin and the famous cherry

01:08 trees has been sinking and been

01:10 subject to sea level rise in recent years.

01:13 It's going to undergo a major

01:15 rehabilitation starting later this year.

01:17 Yellowstone that you mentioned the 2022

01:19 flood that destroyed so much infrastructure

01:21 in the northern part of the park.

01:24 A temporary road was opened up

01:25 about a year and a half ago,

01:28 or in the process now of getting

01:30 public input to help for it to

01:33 select a permanent road alignment

01:35 and beginning environmental

01:36 compliance process and Death Valley.

01:38 Two storms in the last six months

01:40 have brought more than three and a

01:42 half inches of rain twice as much as

01:45 they they typically see in an entire

01:48 year and for the first time in a long

01:50 time there's actually a lake in a dry

01:53 lake bed and dry in Death Valley.

01:55 So the parks are certainly being

01:57 impacted by the changing climate.

01:59 Oh, so scary to think about

02:01 all that flooding too.

02:02 Alright for the people,

02:03 maybe on a happier note here for people

02:05 planning spring break or summer vacation.

02:07 Look, we already mentioned there's

02:08 a park in every single state and

02:10 even then some what are some national

02:12 parks that folks might want to consider

02:14 visiting as they head toward the warmer

02:16 months. Any tips, any advice here?

02:18 Well, certainly you know there

02:19 are the big ones.

02:20 Everybody knows the Yellowstones,

02:22 the 70s, the Grand Canyons,

02:23 but there are more than 425

02:25 national parks across the country.

02:26 Chances are there's probably one

02:28 very close to where you are right now.

02:30 You might want to download the

02:32 National Park Service app that

02:34 can help you choose one based on

02:36 your interest or where you're going to go.

02:40 Do some research before you go.

02:42 Get online either our social media

02:44 channels or NPS.gov the website.

02:45 Help make your plans that way.

02:47 If you're going to be visiting a lot of

02:50 parks, maybe think about getting the

02:52 America the Beautiful Pass which will

02:54 save you money in the long run.

02:56 And of course,

02:57 if you're traveling with kids,

02:58 look for the Junior Ranger program

03:00 when you go to a park.

03:02 Activities that you can do while

03:04 you're there and get a nice Junior

03:06 Ranger badge or patch when you're finished.

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