By Tim Posada
On a smoggy day in Southern California, many forget that the third largest state houses some of the most magnificent national parks. But hikers need not travel far to adequately stretch their legs on something besides sidewalks and asphalt––and that number of hikers continue to climb past 32 million participants yearly. When you consider your weekend plans, don’t forget the national parks and all the other places a car can’t reach.
59 Number of national parks in the U.S.
12 Number of national parks where oil and gas drilling are currently happening
360,000 National park acres degraded by fracking since 2005
1M Number of visitors to Yosemite National Park in 1954
4M Number of visitors to Yosemite National Park in 2012
13.2M Acres in our largest national park, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, Alaska
.02 Acres in our smallest national park, Thaddeus Kosciuszko National Memorial, Pa.
67 Years since Smokey Bear first informed children that “only you” can prevent forest fires
12 Number of U.S. forest fires currently burning as WLT goes to press
Photo courtesy Lori Berezin. Sources: National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service, SmokyBear.com, The Wilderness Society and American Hiking Society
** If you like the outdoors you might also enjoy…
~ Take Back the Soil: Plant Community Gardens
~ Topanga — Close to Home, Yet a World Away
~ How They Almost Closed the Gates to Paradise at Our State Parks
