The Objects of Our Affection

As you can see from the sidebar and my blog moniker, I'm a *big* fan of our national park system -- the spectacular scenery, the wildlife, the historical significance. If you haven't seen it, I would highly recommend Ken Burns' excellent documentary, "The National Parks: America's Best Idea" for an in-depth look at the history of the national parks and the stories of the people involved, not to mention the gorgeous images of the parks themselves.

In the documentary, they describe how, early on, park visitors would receive a stamp showing that their entry fee had been paid. People started collecting the cancellations as a means to show which parks they had visited and when. The "Passport to Your National Parks" program has been around since 1986, but I caught the disease in 2005 when we took our first real road trip to Seattle and back. Our family tradition began when we bought our first passport at Crater Lake NP in Oregon, stamping it there and at Lava Beds NM in northern CA, too.

Yes, I admit that the route for our trip this summer was planned to maximize the number of  NPS units we could possibly visit (as well as the number of stamps that I could collect, too!) Dayton Duncan, who collaborated with Ken Burns on the documentary, details his eerily similar national park obssession here. Maybe we should start a support group...

But it's not just about the stamps. There are badges to collect, too! At many NPS sites, they offer a great program for kids. Just ask for the junior ranger booklet at any visitor center. The activities inside are age-appropriate ways for the kids to learn more about that particular park. And it keeps them interested, too -- it's so much better than going to the Grand Canyon and having them be ready to leave after 15 minutes of looking at that "big hole in the ground". Once they're finished with the booklet, they go over their answers with a ranger, receive a badge and/or patch for their efforts, and are sworn in as an official Jr. Ranger!

In addition to the Grand Canyon Jr. Ranger badge, the boys earned the "right"
to purchase a patch from the gift shop.

Sunset at Mather Point
Grand Canyon NP - December 2008

Currently, there are 394 units within the national park system. In my lifetime, I've visited 61 of them, including 15 of the 58 national parks. And the boys have earned 38 Junior Ranger badges. Here's to a great summer of collecting many more and the adventures that go along with!