Temporary Graffiti Death Valley National Park

One of the unfortunate things and growing problem that I see much too often at national parks is graffiti. I really don’t understand why people feel it’s necessary to come to an amazingly beautiful place, and they feel the need to leave a mark so that it isn’t quite as beautiful for the next person that comes around. In fact, some national parks have resorted to putting up anti graffiti fine signs in an attempt to keep people from marking up sites within national parks. During my recent visit to Death Valley at Badwater, one thing that you couldn’t help but notice was the large amount of graffiti etched into the salt while walking out into the valley:

badwater graffiti death valley national park

badwater salt flat graffiti death valley

death valley national park graffiti

Not only was there a lot of it, people were openly carving their preferred graffiti into the salt without a hint of anything being wrong in doing so. I stopped to ask a few people who were carving their names into the salt why they thought it was OK and they gave two basic answers. First, they said that everyone else had done it so one more person doing it wouldn’t really matter. The second reason was that the graffiti wasn’t really “permanent” since water would at some point flow over it and wash it away in time. They likened it to writing something on a beach where the waves would eventually come in and wash whatever was written in the sand away.

The problem with the first justification I think is obvious to all. Just because someone has done something doesn’t make it right and OK for others to do. The problem with the second is that the process of eliminating the salt graffiti would take a much longer period than the waves washing away things written in the sand. The graffiti etched into the salt was likely to stay there for months at a minimum.

While I was disappointed that so many people felt the need to write their names into the salt, the second justification does bring up an interesting question. In your opinion, is temporary graffiti acceptable in any instance in national parks?

National Park Free Days 2013

At the time of me writing this post, there are 398 parks within the national parks system. While many of the most popular national parks charge an entrance fee, there are a large number of parks within the system that are free of charge year round. For the parks that charge an entrance fee, the national parks service designates certain days throughout the year when they waive this fee and offer entrance into all of the parks at no charge. This includes all national parks, as well as the lesser know national monuments, national seashores, national preserves and national recreation areas. The free entrance days vary from year to year. For 2013, National Parks free days have been designated on the following eleven days:

Yosemite national park meadow

January 21 (Martin Luther King Jr. Day)

April 22 – 26 (National Park Week)

August 26 (National Park Service Birthday)

September 28 (National Public Lands Day)

November 9 – 11 (Veterans Day weekend)

In addition to all the units within the national parks system, other federal land units such as national forests and national wildlife refuges also participate on these days. This brings the total number of places you can visit for free on the above days to over 2000.

For those that are planning trips, it’s important to note that the free days apply only to entrance into the parks. Other park fees for such things as camp sites, reservations, tours and concessions still apply on these days. It’s definitely worthwhile checking with any destination you’re planning to visit since hotels and tour operators will often have special deals and discounts to coincide with the free entrance days.

2014 national parks free entrance days should be announced in late October or early November. As soon as the official dates are announced, we will post them. For those trying to plan ahead, there’s a good chance that they will be similar to the days announced for 2013. National parks free days 2014 will likely include the following days:

Martin Luther King Jr. Day or birthday weekend
National Parks Week
National Park Service Birthday
Public Lands Day
Veterans Day Weekend

While national park free days allow for no cost entrance to everyone, starting in 2012 the national park service began offering a free annual pass to active duty military members and their dependents. This pass can be obtained free of charge at most visitor centers or at park entrances. The pass will allow free access to all national parks 365 days a year. There is also a similar free pass for people with disabilities.

While not free, the America the Beautiful National Parks Senior pass for those 62 years of age and older only costs $10 (this is less expensive than the entrance fee to some of the most popular national parks) and it’s good forever (there is no expiration date) so it can be used year after year. For the general public, there is an annual America the Beautiful National Parks pass that costs $80, but it’s still a great deal for anyone that visits national parks often.

Cholla Cactus Garden Joshua Tree National Park

While certainly most famous for the Joshua Tree, Joshua Tree national park has a variety of other plant life that is well worth exploring. Just like it’s worth taking the time to stop to see the Ocotillo in the southern part of the park, it’s most definitely worthwhile stopping at the Cholla (pronounced choy-ya) Cactus Garden located in the Pinto Basin (which usually only receive 4 inches of water a year) near the center of Joshua Tree national park.

Cholla cactus garden Joshua Tree national park

It’s a pretty amazing sight, and the Cholla cactus looks terrifyingly like a cactus that you would never want to mess around with. In fact, there is a great quote on the information sign before entering the cactus garden:

“If the plant bears any helpful or even innocent part in the scheme of things on this planet, I should be glad to hear of it.” — J Smeaton Chase

cholla cactus

The cactus garden has a short 1/4 mile nature trail that is definitely worth taking, but be sure to leave the dogs behind (they aren’t allowed and wouldn’t fare too well against the Cholla) and keep a close eye on children so they don’t try to touch the cactus (the spines are needle sharp).

Cholla cactus garden path

One thing you will immediately notice is that it appears that a fire recently swept through the area burning the base of most of the Cholla in the garden:

Cholla Cactus fire

The truth is that this is natural and simply the dead spines of the Cholla cacti, and none of these have ever been burned. Even with the dark discoloration, the plants are healthy with the upper portion of the plant continuing to grow new stem segments. These segments with drop off as the plant gets older which will then produce a new plant.

I had not expected to see the Cholla cactus garden while driving through Joshua Tree, but I’m definitely glad that I made the stop. The sheer concentration of them in this one area is breathtaking and certainly a sight to see. In many ways, they were just as impressive as the Joshua trees, just in a different way. If you find yourself anywhere near the garden while driving through the park, it’s a stop that you won’t regret making even if it takes you a little bit out of your way.

Dry Yosemite National Park

I stopped by to visit Yosemite National Park a couple of weeks ago, and for the first time, I ran into a dry Yosemite. When you see all those spectacular photos of Yosemite Falls, you might forget that the beautiful scene isn’t constant. Depending on the amount of snowfall the region receives during the winter, it’s not uncommon for Yosemite Falls to go dry in the late summer or early autumn. While the valley is still spectacular, for anyone who has visited when the falls is flowing (or for anyone that was expecting to see the falls not realizing that it sometimes stops), there seems to be something missing.

missing Yosemite falls

While there is a bit of water in the river, it is far less than I had ever seen in my previous visits. Normally you would see the upper falls flowing over the ledge in the above photo adding one more piece of beauty to it. Instead, all you can see is the stain on the rocks from where the falls normally flows:

Yosemite falls dry at Yosemite National Park

Yosemite Upper falls not flowing

Yosemite Falls isn’t the only natural wonder which is affected. Most of the water falls coming into Yosemite valley were completely dry or just a trickle of water. The rivers and streams that flow through the valley are greatly diminished or completely dry. And a hike to see Mirror Lake found that when the lake isn’t there, it’s a lot harder for it to reflect like a mirror:

Mirror Lake Yosemite without water

Yosemite Mirror Lake dry

A storm just went through California and I suspect that the falls, lakes and rivers are now once again flowing (or should be very soon). I often get asked whether I get bored visiting National Parks again and again, and the answer is a resounding “No.” National Parks aren’t stagnant like the photos in books or the picture postcards. They are always changing and can look dramatically different depending on the time of year that you visit. That makes them exciting to visit each and every time, but it also means that if there is a particular natural wonder that you want to see, you need to take the time to make sure that it’s there when you plan to go. While I prefer Yosemite when the water is flowing, I am glad that I had the opportunity to see it dry — and get a new perspective of this spectacular valley.