Why You Should Invest In A National Parks Pass This Year

PHOTO: Nez Perce Creek, Yellowstone National Park. (Courtesy of National Forestry Service)

Happy 2015!

With the start of a new year comes many New Year’s Resolutions. This year make one of those resolutions to get out and explore more. We’re big into hiking and outdoor exploring. It’s a great way to experience the natural beauty of America, while serving as a cheap adventure. Things can add up while road tripping, and exploring national parks and outdoor adventures is a great way to keep costs down.

The National Parks Pass is a handy little pass for road trippers looking to explore national parks across America. It costs $80 and holds great value.

Last year we started off our road trip season at Ape Caves near Mt St Helens in Washington State. At the time, a park ranger encouraged us to purchase the pass. Thinking this would be just another pass that we would purchase and never use again, we passed on purchasing it.

During the summer, we ventured down to the Great Sand Dunes in Colorado, with the intention of heading to the Grand Canyon afterwards. It was at this time that we learned three park entrance fees would cover the cost of a parks pass, so we purchased the pass.

During the fall, we headed out on a national parks road trip adventure through Montana, Utah, Arizona California, and Oregon. The pass came in handy during this leg of our trip.

We met with other road trippers while at Arches National Park. One of the fellow road trippers was from Florida, on a mission to visit as many of the national parks on his two-month vacation as possible. He was also camping at many of the national parks to save on the cost of a hotel stay.

With 58 national parks to choose from in America, you really can’t go wrong.

Here is a list of my personal favorite national parks:

• Zion National Park

• Arches National Park

• Crater Lake National Park

• Death Valley National Park

• Grand Canyon National Park

• Yellowstone National Park

• Glacier National Park

• Lassen Volcanic National Park

• Mount Rainier National Park

• Great Sand Dunes National Park

A full list of the National Parks can he found here.

What’s your favorite National Park? Mine would be Zion National Park. We’re hopefully heading back to Zion this summer to explore The Narrows.