America’s 20 most-visited National Monuments
In New York harbor just a few hundred yards from lower Manhattan, Governors Island served as a military base for 200 years and was home to the U.S. Army and Coast Guard. It was shuttered in 1996 and became a national monument in 2003. Today the island offers biking, tours of historic buildings and art exhibits and performances. The park is still under development.
Visitors in 2009: 325,840
More info: http://www.nps.gov/gois/index.htm (RICHARD DREW / AP)
Breathtaking. That’s the word for the Colorado National Monument. Here you’ll find sheer walled red rock canyons, big blue skies and panoramic views, as well as bighorn sheep and golden eagles. Rangers recommend the 23-mile Rim Rock Drive, which takes visitors to campgrounds, hiking trails and “remote canyons full of bird song and solitude.”
Visitors in 2009: 400,226
More info: http://www.nps.gov/colm/index.htm (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)
White Sands National Monument is the largest pure gypsum dune field in the world. The national monument offers visitors a drive through the fields, as well as an explanation of how all that sand got there.
(Giovanna Dell’Orto / Associated Press)
Cedar Breaks National Monument is closed from October through late May because of heavy snowfall, but the rest of the year, it’s a stellar place to visit, and views of the spectacular 3-mile long, 2,000-foot-deep, naturally occurring “amphitheater” are available all year long. (Jerel Harris / Los Angeles Times)
The Castillo was built to protect Spanish claims in the New World. Rangers and volunteers in period dress demonstrate with live cannon and musket firings and reenactments that illuminate the colonists’ life in the bastion.
Weather conditions at Castillo de San Marcos, about 40 miles from Jacksonville, Fla., are hot and humid with frequent thunderstorms. Check for hurricanes June through November.
Visitors in 2009: 667,783
More info: http://www.nps.gov/casa (Ken Laffal / For the Times)
The old-growth coastal redwood forest just outside Mill Valley is cool and shady year-round. The refreshing climate attracts visitors and an annual migration of Convergent Ladybugs seeking refuge from the hot Central Valley.
Visitors to the forest, which is named after conservationist John Muir, can participate in monthly beach cleanups or hike among the giant trees (the tallest recorded redwood is 379.1 feet, about the height of a 35-story building.)
Muir Woods is about 16 miles north of San Francisco. Temperatures average range from 40 to 70 degrees, with rain between November and April.
Visitors in 2009: 779,880
More info: http://www.nps.gov/muwo (Paul Morse / Los Angeles Times)
The survivors at the somber USS Arizona Memorial in Honolulu are living history of the Dec. 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor, which preceded the United States’ entrance into World War II.
The reverent memorial educates visitors through survivors’ firsthand accounts, museum exhibits and the opportunity to reflect on the underwater remains of the USS Arizona. The Arizona is accessible only by boat.
Visitors in 2009: 1.28 million
More info: http://www.nps.gov/valr/index.htm (Peter French / © Courtesy of Impact Photo Graphics)
