This week at English Camp we had some special visitors. A group of Coast Salish people came to share their heritage with us for Coast Salish Cultural Heritage Day. Long before the British set up English Camp, the ancestors of the Coast Salish fished and sought shelter in Garrison Bay. The Bay is a protected …
From National Parks
American Camp, San Juan Island NHP
San Juan Island National Historical Park has two areas: American Camp on the southeast end of the island and English Camp on the Northwest end of the island. Tom and I work at English Camp so you will hear a lot more about it in the coming weeks. But I thought I would spend a …
Pig War: San Juan Island National Historical Park
San Juan Island National Historical Park is, of course, the reason Tom and I are on San Juan Island. The National Park owns 2,500 acres which makes it the biggest landowner on San Juan Island. The park has a very interesting story to tell about the making of the United States. Have you ever heard …
South Dakota Grand Canyon: Badlands National Park
The Grand Canyon of South Dakota is Badlands National Park. Tom and I spent a day hiking in the Badlands during our recent drive across the country. It was not our first visit to the Badlands. We saw the Badlands in 1990 and in 2006. We started our visit to the Grand Canyon of South …
Minuteman Missile National Historic Site
On our drive across the United States, we took a break in South Dakota to check out a couple of National Park sites. Last Saturday, we parked the RV at a nearby campground and walked to the Visitors Center at the Minuteman Missile National Historic Site. Minuteman Missile is a newish park: only 18 years …
Cuyahoga Valley National Park
Tom and I had one day in Akron on this visit to Ohio. We saw our favorite dentist, went to CVS, and then had several hours free before meeting friends for dinner. We decided to go to Cuyahoga Valley National Park during that interim time. Over the years we spent a lot of time in …
Visiting a National Park
Many people are getting ready for summer vacations now. Being an expert at visiting National Parks (well, maybe not an expert, but I have visited and worked at a lot of them) I thought I would give you the benefit of my experience. Thus, today’s post is a how to guide for visiting a national …
Visitor Questions at Fort Frederica
Each national park site that Tom and I work at has its own distinctive emphasis and personality. This means that each national park site also has its own brand of visitors and visitor questions. I have discussed some of the unique questions that we get at each place in previous posts (Death Valley, Chickamauga, Kings …
Colonial Day at Fort Frederica
On Saturday, March 25, we celebrated the 281st anniversary of the founding of Fort Frederica with a Colonial Day Celebration. Tom and I participated in the Colonial Day by being part of the living history team demonstrating and interacting with folks. Tom was part of the Heron Company in Oglethorpe’s 42nd Regiment of Foot. Six …
Ocmulgee National Monument
Ocmulgee National Monument is the final national park site we saw on our three day trip through southern Georgia. Ocmulgee is in Macon – the geographic center of the state. It is the site of 10,000 years of occupation by Indians, from Ice Age hunters to Creeks. Between 900 and 1100 the Mississippian culture dominated …