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Saturday, July 9, 2016

18 Natural North American Attractions to Show the Kids

1. Grand Canyon


The Grand Canyon carved by the Colorado River is in the state of Arizon. It is contained within Grand Canyon National ParkThe Grand Canyon is 246 km long, up to 29 km wide and attains a depth of over 1,857 meters.Aside from casual sightseeing from the South Rim,skydiving, raftinghikingrunning, and helicopter tours are popular.  The floor of the valley is accessible by foot, muleback, or by boat or raft from upriver. 

2. Hawaii Volcanoes National Park

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, located on the island of Hawaii. It encompasses two active volcanoes: KÄ«lauea, one of the world's most active volcanoes, and Mauna Loa, the world's most massive subaerial volcano. For visitors, the park offers dramatic volcanic landscapes as well as glimpses of rare flora and fauna.The park includes 323,431 acresof land and provides unusual hiking and camping opportunities. 

3. Yellowstone National Park

Yellowstone National Park is a national park located in Wyoming, although it also extends intoMontana and Idaho.It is known for its wildlife and its many geothermal features, especially Old Faithful Geyser. It has many types of ecosystems, but the subalpine forest is the most abundant. It is part of the South Central Rockies forests ecoregion.Yellowstone National Park spans an area of 8,983 km2,  comprising lakes, canyons, rivers andmountain ranges. Yellowstone Lake is one of the largest high-elevation lakes in North America and is centered over theYellowstone Caldera, the largest supervolcano on the continent. 

4.Dinosaur Valley State Park
Dinosaur Valley State Park, located in Texas and is a 1,524.72-acre  scenic park set astride the Paluxy RiverEastward-dipping limestones, sandstones, and mudstones of the Glen Rose Formation were deposited during the early Cretaceous Period approximately 113 million years ago along the shorelines of an ancient sea, and form the geological setting for the park area. 

5. Niagara Falls

Niagara Falls is the collective name for three waterfalls that straddle the international border between Canada and theUnited States, the three waterfalls are the Horseshoe Falls, the American Falls and the Bridal Veil Falls. The combined falls form the highest flow rate of any waterfallin the world, with a vertical drop of more than 165 feet. Horseshoe Falls is the most powerful waterfall in North America.

6.Mesoamerican Barrier Reef

The Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System, also known as the Great Mayan Reef, extends over 600 miles from Isla Contoy at the northern tip of the Yucatan Peninsula to the Bay Islands in Honduras. The Mesoamerican Barrier Reef is the second largest barrier reef in the world. The Mesoamerican Reef contains more than 66 species of stony corals and over 500 species of fish, as well as several species of sea turtles, manatees, dolphins and whale sharks.The location of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef just off the coast from Cancun, the Riviera Maya, and the Costa Maya make these prime destinations for those interested in scuba diving and snorkeling on their vacation.
7.Banff National Park

Banff National Park is Canada's oldest national park, in the Rocky Mountains. The park, located west of Calgary in the province of Alberta, encompasses 6,641 square kms of mountainous terrain, with numerous glaciers and ice fields, dense coniferous forest, and alpine landscapes. The Icefields Parkway extends from Lake Louise, connecting to Jasper National Park in the north.Banff National Park has a subarctic climate with three ecoregions, including montanesubalpine, and alpine. Mammal species such as the grizzlycougarwolverineelkbighorn sheep and moose are found, along with hundreds of bird species. 

8. Sea of Cortez

The Gulf of California also known as Sea of Cortez, is a body of water that separates the Baja California Peninsula from theMexican mainland. It is bordered by the states of Baja CaliforniaBaja California SurSonora, and Sinaloa with a coastline of approximately 4,000 km .The Gulf is thought to be one of the most diverse seas on the planet, and is home to more than 5,000 species of micro-invertebrates. Baja California is one of the longest peninsulas in the world.

9.The Bay of Fundy

The Bay of Fundy  is a bay on the Atlantic coast of North America, on the northeast end of the Gulf of Maine between the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Nova ScotiaThe Bay of Fundy is known for having the highest tidal range in the world, it has one of the highest vertical tidal ranges in the world. 

10. Redwood National Park

The Redwood National is an old-growth temperate rainforests located along the coast of northern California and contains 133,000 acres. These trees are the tallest and one of the most massive tree species on Earth. In addition to the redwood forests, the parks preserve other indigenous florafauna, grassland prairie, cultural resources, portions of rivers and other streams, and 37 miles (60 km) of pristine coastline.The ecosystem of the RNSP preserves a number of threatened animal species such as the tidewater goby, Chinook salmon,northern spotted owl, and Steller's sea lion.

11. Northern Lights

Experience the spectacular beauty of the northern lights for yourself. Yukon tour operators know the best spots for unforgettable aurora borealis viewing.

12.Dinosaur Provincial Park

Dinosaur Provincial Park is located southeast of Calgary, Alberta.The park is situated in the valley of the Red Deer River, which is noted for its striking badland topography. The park is well known for being one of the richest dinosaur fossil locales in the world. Forty dinosaur species have been discovered at the park and more than 500 specimens have been removed and exhibited in museums around the globe. The renowned fossil assemblage of nearly 500 species of life, from microscopic fern spores to large carnivorous dinosaurs.

13. Sumidero Canyon

Sumidero Canyon is a narrow and deep canyon surrounded by a national park located just north of the city of Chiapa de Corzo in the Mexican state of Chiapas. The canyon has vertical walls which reach as high as 1000 meters, with the river turning up to ninety degrees during the thirteen kilometers that the narrow passage runs. Surrounding the canyon is theSumidero Canyon National Park, which extends for 21,789 hectares over four municipalities of the state of Chiapas. 

14. Algonquin Park

Algonquin Provincial Park is a provincial park located between Georgian Bay and the Ottawa River in Central Ontario, its current size of about 7,653 square kms. Over 2,400 lakes and 1,200 kilometres of streams and rivers are located within the park. Some notable examples include Canoe Lakeand the Petawawa, Nipissing, Amable du Fond, Madawaska, and Tim rivers. These were formed by the retreat of the glaciers during the last ice age.

15. Mammoth Cave

Mammoth Cave National Park is a U.S. national park in central Kentucky, encompassing portions of Mammoth Cave, thelongest cave system known in the world. The official name of the system is the Mammoth-Flint Ridge Cave System for the ridge under which the cave has formed.  It is centered on the Green River, with a tributary, the Nolin River, feeding into the Green just inside the park. With 400 miles (640 km) of surveyed passageways Mammoth Cave is by far the world's longest known cave system.

16.Arches National Park

Arches National Park is a US National Park in eastern Utah, containing over 2,000 natural sandstone arches, including the world-famous Delicate ArchThe park i is 76,679 acres. Its highest elevation is 5,653 feet at Elephant Butte, and its lowest elevation is 4,085 feet  at the visitor center

17.The Everglades

The Everglades are a natural region of tropical wetlands in the southern portion of the U.S. state of Florida, comprising the southern half of a large drainage basin and part of the neotropic ecozoneThe system begins near Orlando with the Kissimmee River, which discharges into the vast but shallow Lake Okeechobee

18. Denali National Park

Denali National Park and Preserve is a national park and preserve located in Interior Alaska, centered on Denali, the highest mountain in North America. The park encompasses more than 6 million acres. Denali's landscape is a mix of forest at the lowest elevations, including deciduous taiga. The preserve is also home to tundra at middle elevations, and glaciers, rock, and snow at the highest elevations. The longest glacier is the Kahiltna Glacier. Wintertime activities includes dog-sleddingcross-country skiing, and snowmachining.


Source: Wikepedia and National Parks




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