The concept of the national park is an American contribution to world civilization, and it remains a defining characteristic of our country. From the rocky shore of Maine's Acadia to the barren crater and lush rain forest of Hawaii's Haleakala, America's national beauty is celebrated and preserved in its national parks. This book retells the history of each park, describes its most important features and wildlife, and reproduces its gorgeous scenery in full-color photographs that will enthrall armchair travelers and entice others to lace up their hiking boots and reach for their sporting gear. Organized by region of the country, it includes well-known parks like the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, and Glacier as well as lesser-known destinations like Shenandoah, Biscayne, and Kenai Fjords.

What makes a trip to a national park so wonderful? For starters, America's national park system is more diverse than any park system in the world. You can stroll the seashore at Olympic National Park in Washington or Cape Cod National Seashore in Massachusetts, climb craggy mountains in Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming, or go underground into the world's largest cave system at Mammoth Cave National Park in Kentucky. You can marvel at the largest canyon on Earth (Grand Canyon National Park), hike among the planet's largest collection or rock arches (Arches National Park), explore the lowest and hottest place in the Western Hemisphere (Death Valley National Park), or wander a realm of forests and misty mountains (Great Smoky Mountains National Park).

And these are just a few of your park options.

America's National Parks For Dummies gives you guidance to decide which park is for you, when to go, and what to see when you reach your destination. This guide will help you plan the best trip imaginable, whether you are

• An inexperienced traveler looking for guidance in determining whether to take a trip to a national park and how to plan for it
• An experienced traveler who has yet to explore the national park system and wants expert advice when you finally get a chance to enjoy one
• Any traveler who doesn't like big, thick travel guides that list every single hotel, restaurant, or attraction, but instead looks for a book that focuses on the places that will provide the best or most unique park experience

America's National Parks For Dummies is user-friendly and organized in a logical fashion. Each park is broken down in a chapter that delves into the nitty-gritty of trip planning and highlights, including tips for

• Planning your trip by touching on the diversity of the park system, explaining some of your vacation options, and telling you when parks are the most (and least) crowded
• Ironing out the details by describing how you get to the parks and how to find your way around after you arrive
• Exploring America's national parks by giving you the lowdown on 15 of the best parks, detailing things like each park's wild kingdom, the best spots for memorable photographs, and a few safety issues

The pages of this book resemble a great long-distance hike – you never know what's around the next bend in the trail. So throw on a backpack, take a swig of water, and get ready to explore the national parks!

Stand amid soaring Douglas fir in the great hall of Glacier Park Lodge or sit in the setting sun and gaze into the Grand Canyon at El Tovar. This beautiful gift book will transport you to the majestic lodges of our national parks to relive the glory of past vacations or plan adventures anew. This book and the PBS television series of the same title (to air in spring 2002) take armchair travelers into these architectural wonders and explore the surrounding natural beauty of our national parks. Lodges, wildlife, and stunning vistas are showcased in 175 full-color and black-and-white photographs, along with historical documents from the PBS series. In his introduction, Richard Moe, president of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, offers a call to preserve this national heritage, and a portion of the proceeds from the sale of this book go toward the rehabilitation of these magnificent buildings.

Educational Travel on a Shoestring shows parents how they can help their children learn–and have a blast–while traveling. From researching destinations to sharing activities that both teach and entertain, this priceless guide offers practical information for parents who want to have more fun with their kids, build closer family ties, and enjoy richer educational experiences–all without spending a fortune.

For tourists, family campers, and serious lovers of the outdoors, here is a big, beautiful, color-illustrated book that describes more than 50 national parks, sites, and seashores that stretch from Cape Hatteras on the Atlantic coast to the Grand Canyon in Arizona, Yosemite in California, Haleakala in Hawaii, and Glacier Bay in Alaska. More than 400 breathtaking photographs capture the beauty and atmosphere of each site, and 54 color maps show each park's location and major features. Visitor information panels give important details on access points, accommodations, and recreational activities such as hiking, rafting, birdwatching, and fishing. Here is a wonderful volume that will inspire plans for trips and evoke marvelous memories of past experiences in America's great outdoors.

If a picture's worth 1,000 words, this book--with its hundreds of breathtaking photos of America's National Parks--is a well-stocked bookstore. Accompanied by the words of poet laureate Mark Strand, These Rare Lands is a perfect coffee-table book for anyone who has enjoyed the wonders of nature's wildest places. From a storm over Sequoia National Park in California to the otherworldly stalactites and stalagmites of New Mexico's Carlsbad Caverns and an Atlantic sunset in Maine's Acadia, this is a book that draws you back again and again. Photographer Stan Jorstad's obvious love of nature comes through in the thoughtful approach he takes to his life's work, contained in the pages of These Rare Lands.

From stunning mountain ranges to arid expanses of desert, America has been blessed with an incredibly diverse land -- and the vision to protect it for our and future generations to enjoy. These lands are ours to view, wander, learn from, and revel in. America's National Parks captures all that is great about all fifty-six parks in the national park system. It also gives interesting, easy-to-understand background on the geological and ecological forces that continue to make each national park so worthy of protection.

Nature lovers will be captivated by gorgeous photos of landforms, flora, and fauna. Families will appreciate the information that is sure to enhance vacations at the parks. And visitors to any of the country's national parks will forever treasure this book as a memento of past visits and an inspiration for future ones.

Unlike any other book published on national parks, America's National Parks is a must-have for anyone who relishes America's natural wonders and wants to learn more about the powerful forces that created them.

Now in its fourth edition, the National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of North America is the ultimate birder’s field guide. Sturdy, portable, and easy-to-use, it features the most complete information available on every bird species known to North America. This revised edition features 250 completely updated range maps, new plumage and species classification information, specially commissioned full-color illustrations, and a superb new index that allows birders in the field to quickly identify a species.

The National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of North America, Fourth Edition will continue to be a bestseller among the fastest-growing sector in the U.S. travel market—the nearly 25 million people who travel each year specifically to observe wild birds.

Theodore Roosevelt Birthplace NHS is located at 28 East 20th Street, between Broadway and Park Avenue South. Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th President of the United States, lived at this site from his birth on October 27, 1858 until he was 14 years old. The reconstructed house contains five period rooms, two museum galleries and a bookstore.

"The greatest thing I have learned is how good it is to come home again," Eleanor Roosevelt once told a friend. This simple statement expresses her love for the modest house near the Hudson River she called Val-Kill, the only home that was ever hers. The only National Historic Site dedicated to a First Lady, Val-Kill is located in Hyde Park and welcomes the visitor as Mrs. Roosevelt welcomed her many guests. Visitors may tour Mrs. Roosevelt's Val-Kill Cottage and enjoy the lovely gardens and grounds on the site.

Martin Van Buren National Historic Site is found in Kinderhook, New York. The Eighth President of the United States, Martin Van Buren purchased the estate in 1839 during his Presidency. Van Buren was born in Kinderhook in 1782, the last year of the American Revolution. He lived until July 1862, sixteen months into the American Civil War. During the seventy-nine years of his life, he was instrumental in the establishment of many of the political practices and party politics which saw the new nation from its inception to its trial by ordeal. The estate grew to 226 acres under his direction and was a profitable working farm. He named the farm Lindenwald. Although the park presently encompasses 38.50 acres, much of the cultural landscape and adjacent lands are conservation land. Some of the conservation land is open to the public. Most of the adjacent lands retain a very high degree of integrity to the period of of President Van Buren's residence. This serves to add environmental and historic context to the life and lifestyle of Martin Van Buren.

The Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site in Hyde Park contains "Springwood", the lifelong home of America's only 4-term President. Also on the site is the Presidential Library and Museum, operated by the National Archives. Visitors may enjoy a guided tour of FDR's home, take a self-guided tour of the Museum, or stroll the grounds, gardens, and trails of this 300-acre site.

More than a dozen forts were built to defend New York Harbor at the time of the War of 1812. The Southwest Battery was constructed on the rocks off the tip of Manhattan Island between 1808 and 1811. Although fully armed and staffed, the fort never had occasion to fire upon an enemy. In 1817, the fort was renamed Castle Clinton in honor of DeWitt Clinton, Mayor of New York City. The army vacated the fort in 1821 and the structure was deeded to New York City in 1823. In the summer of 1824, a new restaurant and entertainment center opened at the site, now called Castle Garden. A roof was added in the 1840s and Castle Garden served as an opera house and theater until 1854. On August 3, 1855, Castle Garden, now leased to New York State, opened as an immigrant landing depot. During the next 34 years, over 8 million people entered the United States through Castle Garden, until it was closed on April 18, 1890. The building was altered once again and reopened as the New York City Aquarium on December 10, 1896. It was one of the city's most popular attractions until it closed in 1941. The site is open for visitors daily.

On September 14th, 1901, an anxious Theodore Roosevelt stood in the library of a friend's home in Buffalo, NY. Hours earlier, President William McKinley had died of an assassin's bullet, and now Roosevelt stood ready to rise to the highest office in the land. Roosevelt had been in the vice-presidency for barely six months and had privately feared that his political career was ended with his election to a largely powerless office. Yet at 3:32 pm of September 14th, Theodore Roosevelt was inaugurated as the 26th President of the United States as a consequence of unforeseen tragedy. Roosevelt's administration would expand the role of the United States in world affairs, change the relationship between the American government and its citizens, and alter the shape of the presidency itself. The Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural NHS preserves the former Ansley Wilcox home, the scene of this fateful turning point in American history.

The Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor covers 524 miles in Upstate New York, including four navigable waterways: Erie, Champlain, Oswego and Cayuga-Seneca; sections of the first Erie Canal; and over 200 municipalities adjacent to the canals. The New York State Canal System is the most commercially enduring and historically significant canalway in the United States. This waterway played a key role in turning New York City into a preeminent center for commerce, industry, and finance. Besides being a catalyst for growth in the Mohawk and Hudson valleys, these canals helped open up western America for settlement and for many years transported much of the Midwest's agricultural and industrial products to domestic and international markets.

This 18th-century church is one of New York's oldest parishes (1665-1980). It was used as a hospital following the important Revolutionary War Battle at Pell's Point in 1776, and was the scene of various military developments for the next six years. The church stood at the edge of Eastchester village green, the site of the "Great Election"(1733), which raised the issues of Freedom of Religion and Press. The adjoining cemetery contains burials dating from 1704. Increasing industrialization of the area around St. Paul's Church in the early 20th century led to the decline of the parish. In 1942, as part of an effort to revitalize the congregation and draw attention to the site's historical significance, the interior of the church was restored to its 18th century appearance, based on the original pew plan of 1787.

As a part of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River stretches 73.4 miles (118.3 km) along the New York-Pennsylvania border. The longest free-flowing river in the Northeast, it includes riffles and Class I and II rapids between placid pools and eddies. Public fishing and boating accesses are provided, although most land along the river is privately owned. Wintering bald eagles are among the wildlife that may be seen here. This unit of the National Park Service is also home to John Roebling's Delaware Aqueduct and the Zane Grey Museum in Lackawaxen, PA.

Gateway NRA is a 26,000 acre recreation area located in the heart of the New York metropolitan area. The park extends through three New York City boroughs and into northern New Jersey. Park sites offer a variety of recreation opportunities, along with a chance to explore many significant cultural and natural resources.

Site of the first significant American military victory during the Revolution, the Battles of Saratoga rank among the fifteen most decisive battles in world history. Here in 1777 American forces met, defeated and forced a major British army to surrender, an event which led France to recognize the independence of the United States and enter the war as a decisive military ally of the struggling Americans. First authorized as a New York state historic preserve in 1927 on the sesquicentennial of the Battles, the Battlefield was made part of the National Park System in 1938 when Saratoga National Historical Park was authorized by the United States Congress. The park now comprises three separate units: the 4 square mile Battlefield in Stillwater, New York, the General Philip Schuyler House eight miles north in Schuylerville and the Saratoga Monument in the nearby village of Victory. The park is located on the upper Hudson River in an area possessing significant natural and cultural attractions appealing to a wide range of visitors from around the world.

The Vanderbilt Estate in Hyde Park, New York is perhaps the best, most intact example of the types of estates constructed by wealthy industrialists in the 19th century. The fully-furnished, 54-room mansion is placed in a wondrous landscape with breathtaking views of the Hudson River and distant Catskill Mountains. If offers a glimpse into a past world known by only an elite few.

First thoughts of the Chesapeake Bay often bring up images of crabs and oysters. But, as the largest estuary in North America, the Chesapeake Bay has touched and influenced much of the American story – early settlement, commerce, the military, transportation, recreation and more. The Bay and its surrounding 64,000 square mile watershed hold a treasure trove of historic areas, natural wonders and recreational opportunities. Experience the diversity of the Chesapeake Bay through the Chesapeake Bay Gateways Network – a system of over 120 parks, refuges, museums, historic communities and water trails in the Bay watershed. Each of these sites tells a piece of the vast Chesapeake story.

26 Wall Street was the site of New York City's 18th century City Hall. Here John Peter Zenger was jailed, tried, and acquitted of libel for exposing government corruption in his newspaper, an early victory for freedom of the press. City Hall hosted the Stamp Act Congress, which assembled in October 1765, to protest "taxation without representation." After the American Revolution, the Continental Congress met at City Hall, and in 1787 adopted the Northwest Ordinance establishing procedures for creating new states. When the Constitution was ratified in 1788, New York remained the national capital. Pierre L'Enfant was commissioned to remodel City Hall for the new federal government. The First Congress met in the new Federal Hall, and wrote the Bill of Rights, and George Washington was inaugurated here as President on April 30, 1789. When the capital moved to Philadelphia in 1790, the building again housed city government until 1812, at which time Federal Hall was demolished. The current structure on the site was built as the Customs House, opening in 1842. In 1862, Customs moved to 55 Wall Street and the building became the U. S. Sub-Treasury. Millions of dollars of gold and silver were kept in the basement vaults until the Federal Reserve Bank replaced the Sub-Treasury system in 1920.

Visit Fort Stanwix in Rome, NY, where our shared heritage comes alive everyday, and explore the sights, sounds, smells and feel of the 18th century. Discover how people endured harsh lives along the Oneida Carrying Place, the superhighway of the 18th century, and directly contributed to the American victory at Saratoga and westward expansion through New York ’s gateway to the west. Rediscover hundreds of archeological pieces in the museum and enjoy the fort diorama, theater and bookstore in the visitor center.

The heart of the Tenement Museum is its tenement building that was home to an estimated 7,000 people, from over 20 nations, between 1863 and 1935. Visitors tour the tenement’s cramped living spaces and learn about the lives of past residents and the history of the neighborhood. The Museum also offers various programs such as walking tours, plays, art exhibits, and readings that represent the immigrant experience, throughout the year.

This park commemorates women's struggle for equal rights, and the first Women's Rights Convention, held at the Wesleyan Chapel in Seneca Falls, NY on July 19 & 20, 1848. Three hundred women and men attended the Convention, including Lucretia Mott and Frederick Douglass. At the conclusion, 68 women and 32 men signed the Declaration of Sentiments drafted by Elizabeth Cady Stanton. The park consists of 4.38 acres owned by the National Park Service and 2.45 acres of non-federal land in Seneca Falls and nearby Waterloo, NY. It includes the Wesleyan Chapel and Declaration Park, the Stanton home, the M'Clintock House, where the Declaration of Sentiments was written, a Visitor Center, and an Education and Cultural Center housing the Suffrage Press Printshop.

Pristine ocean shores, an ancient maritime forest, legacies of lighthouse keepers, and the historic estate of William Floyd are just a few of the recreational, natural, and cultural resources of Fire Island National Seashore. Located only one hour east of New York City, this park offers visitors many types of relaxation and educational opportunities. Fire Island National Seashore was established "for the purpose of conserving and preserving for the use of future generations certain relatively unspoiled and undeveloped beaches, dunes, and other natural features ... which possess high values to the Nation as examples of unspoiled areas of great natural beauty in close proximity to large concentrations of urban population."

This memorial to Ulysses S. Grant, victorious Union commander of the Civil War, includes the tomb of General Grant and his wife, Julia Dent Grant. A West Point graduate, Grant served in the Mexican War and at various frontier posts, before rapidly rising through the ranks during the Civil War. Grant's tenacity and boldness led to victories in the Battles of Vicksburg and Chattanooga and Robert E. Lee's surrender at Appomattox, scenes depicted by mosaics in the tomb. In 1866 Congress awarded Grant his fourth star making him the first full General of the Armies. A grateful nation twice elected Grant to serve as President of the United States, from 1869 to 1877. Grant's accomplishments include signing the act establishing the first national park, Yellowstone, on March 1, 1872. After the Presidency, Grant settled in New York City. Ulysses S. Grant died of throat cancer on July 23, 1885 in Mount McGregor, New York, and was laid to rest in New York City on August 8th. Designed by architect John Duncan, the granite and marble structure was completed in 1897 and remains the largest mausoleum in North America.

The North Country National Scenic Trail links scenic, natural, historic, and cultural areas in seven northern states. The approximately four thousand mile long trail incudes a variety of hikes from easy walking to challenging treks. When completed, through the efforts of many people, the trail will become the longest continuous hiking trail in the United States. From the Missouri River in North Dakota to the shores of Lake Champlain in New York, the trail allows hikers to experience a variety of features, from clear-flowing streams, to thick Northern woods, from vast prairies to clean lakes.

The Appalachian National Scenic Trail is a 2,180-mile footpath along the ridgecrests and across the major valleys of the Appalachian Mountains from Katahdin in Maine to Springer Mountain in northern Georgia. It traverses the scenic, wooded, pastoral, wild, and culturally resonant lands of the Appalachian Mountains. Conceived in 1921, it was built by private citizens and completed in 1937. The trail traverses Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia, Virginia, Tennessee, North Carolina and Georgia.

Ellis Island was incorporated as part of the Statue of Liberty National Monument on May 11, 1965. Between 1892 and 1954, approximately 12 million steerage and third class steamship passengers who entered the United States through the port of New York were legally and medically inspected at Ellis Island. Reopened on September 10, 1990 after a massive restoration, the Main Building on Ellis Island is now a museum dedicated to the history of immigration and the important role this island claimed during the mass migration of humanity in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

The National Parks of New York Harbor represents a collaboration, or organizational network, of these parks: Gateway National Recreation Area, Governors Island, Manhattan Sites and Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island, as well as one affiliated site, the Lower East Side Tenement Museum. These remarkable places include Jamaica Bay, the largest continuous piece of open space in all of New York City and icons such as the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, recognized the world over. The parks also include the cradle of our nation at Federal Hall on Wall Street, places in Manhattan where Presidents have lived and breathed and been interred and memorialized, and Governors Island, the newest national park on New York Harbor.

Located on 12-acre Liberty Island in New York Harbor, the Statue of Liberty was a gift of international friendship from the people of France to the people of the United States and is one of the most universal symbols of political freedom and democracy. The Statue of Liberty was dedicated on October 28, 1886 and was designated a National Monument on October 15, 1924.

Sagamore Hill was the home of Theodore Roosevelt, 26th President of the United States, from 1885 until his death in 1919. From 1902 to 1908 his "Summer White House" was the focus of international attention. Otherwise, it was the home of a most remarkable fellow. Today, Sagamore Hill is furnished as it was during his busy lifetime. The home is located in Oyster Bay, Long Island, 45 miles east of New York City.

Governors Island is a 172-acre island located a half-mile from the southern tip of Manhattan in New York harbor. Its name comes from the time when New York was a British colony and the colonial assembly reserved the island for the exclusive use of New York’s royal governors. When the American Revolution began in 1776, George Washington ordered the island to be fortified with earthworks just prior to the Battle of Long Island (also known as the Battle of Brooklyn) - the first ever engagement of the fledgling Continental Army with British forces. Two fortifications were placed on Governors Island in the years preceding the War of 1812 as part of an extensive coastal defense system. During the Civil War, Castle Williams held Confederate prisoners of war. After the war, it was used as a military stockade and became the east coast counterpart to military prisons at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas and Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay. In 1878 the military installation on the island, then known as Fort Columbus, became a major Army administrative center and, in 1939, the headquarters of the United States First Army. When the Army left Governors Island in 1966, the installation became a U.S. Coast Guard base - the largest in the world. Its closing in 1997 concluded almost two centuries of the island’s use as a federal reservation. In 2001, the two historic fortifications and their surroundings became a national monument.

Hamilton Grange National Memorial, located at 287 Convent Avenue, preserves the home of founding father Alexander Hamilton. Hamilton commissioned architect John McComb Jr. to design a Federal style country home on a sprawling 32 acre estate in upper Manhattan. This house was completed in 1802 and named "The Grange" after the Hamilton family's ancestral home in Scotland, but served as his home for only two years.

America’s oldest state park, Niagara Falls State Park stands today as an American icon and enduring legacy of the visionaries who worked to save it for generations to come. Today, the park’s signature attraction, majestic Niagara Falls, is the dramatic apex of the free-flowing waters of the Niagara River Gorge. Visitors from around the world are entranced by the thundering wonder of Niagara Falls, a gradn tribute to the men and women who fought to preserve it for all.