Welcome back to National Parks & other public lands with T! If you are seeing this on Twitter or Facebook, please visit the blog to see all of the photos and read the story by clicking the link.

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The Walkill River National Wildlife Refuge protects a ten mile stretch of the Walkill River. This river flows north from Sussex County, New Jersey, up into New York State and into a tributary of the Hudson River.

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The Lenape called the river Twischsawkin, or ‘the land of plentiful plums.’ As European settlers moved into the fertile valley, they lowered the water levels by constructing a canal. When the area became a wildlife refuge in 1990, much of the natural area was reclaimed from farmlands.

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The Winding Waters Trail follows an old farm road up the river and through fields in a 2.1 mile loop. It begins at one of the refuge’s canoe…

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Zion National Park: Pa’Rus Trail

National Parks With T

Welcome back to National Parks & other public lands with T! If you are seeing this on Twitter or Facebook, please visit the blog to see all of the photos and read the story by clicking the link.

On our last day in Zion, we spent the morning hiking the strenuous trail to Angel’s Landing (you can see my post about that hike here and here.) We were exhausted from that hike, but still wanted to see more of this beautiful park. After lunch, we rode the shuttle to the Visitor Center and spoke to a ranger about our options.

He suggested the easy and level Pa’Rus trail. It is 1.8 miles from the Visitor Center and is mostly paved or hard-pack. It was designed to ease congestion during the busy months…it provides a way for hikers and bicyclists to get from the Visitor Center to the car-free section of…

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Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park: Chain of Craters

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Welcome back to National Parks & other public lands with T! If you are seeing this on Twitter or Facebook, please visit the blog to see all of the photos and read the story by clicking the link.

Chain of Craters Road is a 19-mile road through the East Rift and coastal area of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on the big island of Hawaii.

Our tour stopped at the Lua Manu crater on this drive. It is the first crater on the Chain of Craters Road and was formed when, about 200 years ago, the lava beneath it drained leaving an empty chamber. The surface collapsed into the chamber, forming a 125 foot deep pit.

We walked around on the surrounding lava fields, marveling at the plants growing right up out of the rocks and taking photos by interesting formations.

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Ramapo Mountain State Forest: Ramapo Lake

National Parks With T

Welcome back to National Parks & other public lands with T! If you are seeing this on Twitter or Facebook, please visit the blog to see all of the photos and read the story by clicking the link.

Ramapo Mountain State Forest protects 4,269 acres in the mountainous region of Northern New Jersey. It is in both Passaic and Bergen Counties and is a separate park from the adjacent Ramapo County Reservation.

There is a well-marked network of trails here. I met up with a local hiking group in the upper lot on Skyline Drive. In my previous visit to this park, I’d begun at the lower lot.

We followed the yellow Hoeferlin Trail which was a rocky descent from Skyline Drive to Ramapo Lake. Ramapo Lake is a man-made lake. It is 120 acres now and began as a 25-acre pond.