Here at Gypsy With a Day Job we truly love our US National Parks. The US offers a vast landscape filled with a variety of natural features. It is good to know that these wonders are government protected so that not only we can enjoy them, but so can our grandchildren, and their grandchildren.
All US National Parks are operated and maintained by the National Park Service, which is supported by both tax dollars, donations, and attraction fees at some parks. This means that most parks are very economical destinations. It also that roads, facilities, and services, are well maintained.
US National Parks are typically staffed by several rangers who are highly trained in the history, geology and biology of their specific park. They share this knowledge through ranger led talks and tours that expand the visitor experience. The also typically offer a Junior Rangers Program for children, with learning activities set up at their own level.
US National Parks are vastly diverse, from subterranean caves to the continental divide, to the lowest point in the hemisphere; from isolated island locations to cityscape landmarks.
This post was updated on March 27th, 2026. If you’re looking for an easy day trip from South Carolina’s capital, Columbia to Congaree National Park is a perfect fit. A day trip to Congaree can easily be managed from not only Columbia, but from popular vacation cities such as Charleston, Savannah, Augusta, Myrtle Beach, Charlotte, […]
This post was updated on May 26th, 2025. Long before Las Vegas became Sin City, Hot Springs, Arkansas was home-away-from-home to many of the mob rulers and shakers. After all, if soaking in the hot thermal springs is good for aches and pains, it should help heal old bullet wounds, right? Tracing the gangster history
This post was updated on March 27th, 2026. If you are looking for one of the most magical road trips in the United States, perhaps the world, a Redwoods road trip is a perfect choice. Imagine 6 full days soaking in the Redwoods Zen. The best major city access to the Redwoods is San
This post was updated on May 26th, 2025. Yosemite is a magical place, that everyone should experience at least once, and wouldn’t it be awesome to have a couple weeks to explore the entire park, getting to know some of the nooks and crannies. There are so many amazing things to see and do! But
This post was updated on May 26th, 2025. Around the world there places of mystery and intrigue, sites which have an aura of mystique about them, sites that conjure up the need to know. Some are “Dark Tourism” sites, others places of myth. These places draw visitors, those hoping to find an understanding, hoping to
This post was updated on May 28th, 2025. There are a lot of gorgeous places in the world, but Yosemite National Park may be one of the most beautiful. There are epic views in Yosemite everywhere you look, but there are some extra special places, that are over the top. Whether you think of them
This post was updated on June 27th, 2024. Want to go to the moon? I can clue you in on a much cheaper–and much faster–method for getting there, than hitting up our friends at NASA. Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve in south-central Idaho, and visiting Craters of the Moon is the best
This post was updated on April 11th, 2024. Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, managed by the National Parks Service, was the first of the US National Lakeshores. This Pictured Rocks trip planner will provide all the details you need. We’ll talk about hiking at Pictured Rocks, boating, and kayaking, among several other things. You’ll
This post was updated on May 25th, 2022. Home to some of the tallest trees on earth, Redwoods National and State Parks are a string of protected forests, beaches and grasslands hugging the Northern California coastline. The stars of the show of course, are the giant Coast Redwood trees that are the tallest trees
This post was updated on June 13th, 2022. The Black Hills are a small mountain range in the West of South Dakota, rising from the Great Plains and extending North into Wyoming. The Black Hills are home to millions of acres of forest & mountains, prairie and monuments like you’ve never seen! There is
This post was updated on May 27th, 2022. When I was a kid, I have to tell you, the idea of going to Death Valley scared me a little bit. We all heard the stories. But perhaps in my case, these stories were exacerbated by the fact that my dad loved a good western
This post was updated on July 7th, 2024. What’s the first thing you think of when you hear mention of Yellowstone National Park? For me, it’s Yogi Bear – Yabba Dabba Doo folks! You might be aware that the fictional Jellystone Park, Yogi’s home, is a variant of the real Yellowstone National Park. If Yogi
This post was updated on July 7th, 2024. Lassen Volcanic National Park is a hidden gem of the National Parks system. Within its 106,000 acres are some diverse landscapes, from towering volcanic mountain peaks to hydrothermal areas. I found Lassen on a list of lesser visited locations that you shouldn’t miss. They couldn’t have been
This post was updated on June 9th, 2024. A National Park in the middle of a city? I thought the same thing upon discovering there was a National Park in downtown St. Louis. A stop at the Arch has long been a part of many day trip and weekend in St. Louis itineraries. But visiting Gateway Arch
This post was updated on May 17th, 2025. Death Valley may not be one of the National Parks that is high up on the travel list of every American, but it definitely should be. If you have never considered visiting this remarkable park, we encourage you to do so. And, if you are traveling to
This post was updated on March 10th, 2026. The name Death Valley brings with it a mystique, a note of fear. Growing up, I saw media images and heard stories that scared me. Death Valley seemed like one of those places you could go and get lost, and as the name says, die. But the
When I was younger, and never imagined that I would have to work 10 or 12 hours a day for 30 years, I fancied myself being quite an adventurer, and imagined a day I would raft down the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon. As an adult, the realities of paying bills have shoved
An Acadia National Park Itinerary should be in your travel plans. We give you the amazing places to see in Acadia, and a ton of things to do in Acadia, and a sample 3 day Acadia National Park Itinerary.
This post was updated on September 18th, 2024. Mammoth Cave National Park is one of those national parks in the middle of the US that we don’t really hear about that often. But we are here to tell you that visiting Mammoth Cave should be on your travel and adventure list. We put together
This post was updated on January 8th, 2020. A Grand Canyon Experience is sort of on your bucket list, right? When I say sort of, I mean, many of us think of our bucket list travel destinations as those far off places that we have a fat chance of ever getting to. In the
