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| Helicopter view above Volcanoes National Park. // Photo by Freeimages.com/Jesse Adams |
As the National Park Service (NPS) celebrates 100 years in operation, one of its most famous parks is also hitting the century mark in 2016.
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on Hawaii Island is turning 100 years old this year and the NPS is encouraging all national park lovers to come check it out for free.
Travelers are encouraged to get out and #FindYourPark during National Park Week, which runs from April 16 to 24. All National Park Service entrance fees will be waived for the week so choose a park, near or far, and discover what makes it unique.
And of course Hawaii's popular Hawaii Volcanoes National Park will be one of the 410 national parks featured during National Park Week.
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park spans 333,086 acres and has the most miles of hiking trails in Hawaii at 150. It is also the only national park in Hawaii still adding new land every day thanks to the Kilauea volcano, which has erupted continuously since 1983.
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is a place of contrasting environments and landscapes that satisfies single-day guests, but truly rewards multi-day and return visitors seeking deeper exploration of its rugged lava fields, rainforest flora and fauna, lava tubes and craters, coastline meetings of lava and ocean, Hawaiian cultural sites, ash-covered deserts and even alpine tundra.
It's also become a tradition for anyone visiting the park to see the night glow of the below-surface molten lava at Halemaumau crater. It's also immensely popular for guests to hike the once rainforest-covered Devastation Trail.
Clients are also encouraged to catch the sunrise at Holei sea arch, drive the scenic Maunaloa Road to its 6,667-foot elevation lookout and see Puuloa Petroglyph Field's Hawaiian lava etchings.
More About National Park Week
Throughout the year, and especially during National Park Week, the NPS and the National Park Foundation, invite everyone to discover and share their own unique connections to our public lands.
National Park Week will kick off with National Junior Ranger Day on Saturday, April 16. Parks will host kid oriented activities and distribute the new Centennial Junior Ranger booklet and badge. Throughout the week, many parks will also host "Every Kid in a Park" events, which encourage fourth grade students to visit national parks and other public lands by offering a free annual pass.
Other highlights during the week include an education summit on April 20, Earth Day events on April 22, a national park "InstaMeet" on April 23, and Park RxDay on April 24. Park Rx is a community health initiative where medical doctors “prescribe” time in parks to promote wellness and help prevent and treat chronic disease.
More than a dozen national parks will offer health screenings and recreational activities, including an event with the U.S. Surgeon General.
Visit www.findyourpark.com to learn more about National Park Week activities throughout the country.
Visit www.nps.gov and www.gohawaii.com. Keep visiting www.travelagentcentral.com for all your latest Hawaii travel news and be sure to follow Travel Agent's Joe Pike on Twitter @TravelPike.