{"id":73015,"date":"2024-09-23T10:20:37","date_gmt":"2024-09-23T17:20:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/?p=73015"},"modified":"2024-09-25T14:38:14","modified_gmt":"2024-09-25T21:38:14","slug":"national-public-lands-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/national-public-lands-day\/","title":{"rendered":"Five ways to celebrate National Public Lands Day"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you love the environment\u2014and you must, because you live in Flagstaff!\u2014then you\u2019ll enjoy the excuse to celebrate <\/span>National Public Lands Day<\/span><\/a> on Saturday, Sept. 28.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Throughout the country, people celebrate this special day by visiting national parks and other public lands, volunteering at clean-ups and other preservation events and giving thanks for all the beautiful spaces that have been protected and preserved for everyone to enjoy.\u202f<\/span><\/p>\n

When it comes to local public lands, Flagstaff is extra special. No matter where you live in the city, you\u2019re probably a short walk away from national forest land or other pine-filled open spaces. Plus, Flag is just a short drive away from some of the nation\u2019s most picturesque national parks, monuments and recreation areas.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

If you\u2019re ready to explore our local playground this Saturday but don\u2019t know where to start, here are five suggestions. Don\u2019t forget to pack water, snacks, sunscreen, a hat and plenty of layers. Have fun out there!<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"biking<\/a>
Biking the south rim of the Grand Canyon<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Visit a national park or national monument\u2026for free!<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

National Public Lands Day is the perfect time to check off that bucket-list trip to a national park or monument, because on this day, <\/span>they\u2019re all free to visit<\/span><\/a>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

If you\u2019re headed to the Grand Canyon, avoid the seasonal crowds by hitting some hidden gems. Instead of busy Mather Point, drive farther east to the beautiful Shoshone Point. Rather than relying on the crowded shuttle system, park in a remote lot and ride your bike along the canyon from Bright Angel to Hermit\u2019s Rest, stopping as frequently and for as long as you please.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Or, bag two free national monuments in one by visiting Sunset Crater and Wupatki together. Not only is each worth visiting for very different reasons\u2014one is a geological wonder, the other a series of 1,000-year-old ancestral sites\u2014but the two are also linked by a short scenic road with a picnic site that provides vistas all the way to the Colorado River and Painted Desert.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Volunteers<\/a>
Photo: National Park Service<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Volunteer<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

National Public Lands Day isn\u2019t just an annual excuse to get outside and play\u2014it\u2019s also an opportunity to give back. This holiday marks the largest single-day volunteer event for parks, forest lands and other public lands in the United States, with many national parks and forest lands offering opportunities to help with trail maintenance, trash pickup and more.\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Some volunteer events are unique to National Public Lands Day: On Sept. 28, for example, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area is hosting a one-time \u201cLove Your Lake\u201d cleanup and volunteer appreciation event. But plenty of other Arizona sites, like Montezuma Castle National Monument, are looking for docents and other workers year-round. You can browse all Arizona volunteer opportunities on the <\/span>volunteer.gov<\/span> website<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"View<\/a>
Left: Old Caves Crater; Right: Red Mountain<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Hike up a cinder cone<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

When most people think of volcanoes, they think of huge peaks in Japan, Hawai\u2019i, New Zealand and the Pacific Northwest. But you don\u2019t have to travel to the Pacific Ocean to experience the weird, wonderful world of lava fields and calderas. There are more than 600 volcanoes right here in northern Arizona!<\/span><\/p>\n

How did we end up with a giant volcanic field way up in the high country, nowhere near the edge of a tectonic plate? Geologists believe that the Earth\u2019s mantle is particularly hot underneath the crust of the Colorado Plateau, and that unusual heat caused multiple volcanoes to form and erupt beginning about 6 million years ago.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

When you climb S P Crater, a cinder cone that erupted 3,000 years ago, you don\u2019t just get a great view of the surrounding landscape\u2014you also get an aerial view of the molten lava\u2019s inkblot-shaped path down the valley. The black trail of lava contrasts sharply with the yellow-colored surrounding valley, leaving a mark so clear that it\u2019s easy to imagine the eruption happened just yesterday, not thousands of years ago.<\/span><\/p>\n

S P Crater is a tough climb. If you want something easier but still picturesque, check out Old Caves Crater in Doney Park or Red Mountain north of Fort Valley.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Fall<\/a>
Hart Prairie Trail<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Explore our forest service roads<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

At this time of year, Flagstaff\u2019s paved roads are often crowded with Grand Canyon traffic and leaf peepers from the Valley. But that\u2019s OK, because some of the best fall views can be spotted along unpaved forest roads that see much less traffic.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Go see for yourself: On the next beautiful fall morning, head north on Route 180 and turn right on Fire Road 151, otherwise known as Hart Prairie Road. Keep your eyes peeled for blazing yellow aspens on your right. After about a mile, bear left at the fork onto Fire Road 418 and follow it to the Hart Prairie Trailhead. Whether you\u2019re exploring on foot or by bike, spend a while getting lost in the aspen groves until the Arizona Trail junction appears and the yellow leaves give way to green ponderosa pine needles.<\/span><\/p>\n

Alternatively, take in awe-inspiring views along Schultz Pass Road between Route 180 and Route 89A. Just reopened to the public after two years of fire damage cleanup, this road climbs to high forests, meadows and lakes filled with wildflowers in late summer and changing leaves in early fall. Stretch your legs on the Sunset Trail to Schultz Tank or pause a few miles north of the trailhead to admire a vast meadow of soon-to-disappear wildflowers.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"View<\/a>
Left: Sandy’s Canyon; Right: Kachina Trail<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Collect some passport stamps<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Want to get outside, but don\u2019t want to travel far? The <\/span>Flagstaff Trails Passport<\/span><\/a> has you covered! This mobile app helps steer locals toward lesser-known trails in and around our beautiful city by gamifying the hiking experience: Hike one trail, get a cute sticker; hike 15, get a commemorative fanny pack! Sure, the prizes are pretty swanky, but the real reward is the new views you\u2019ll discover along the way.\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Some of my personal favorites around town are Sandy\u2019s Canyon (a bit of forest, a bit of meadow, a bit of dramatic rock face), the Arboretum (stunning views of the San Francisco Peaks and occasional visits from elk) and the Karen Cooper Trail (bike all the way from downtown to the Museum of Northern Arizona). But you can\u2019t go wrong with any of the city\u2019s recommendations, because let\u2019s face it: We live in a darn beautiful place.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If you love the environment\u2014and you must, because you live in Flagstaff!\u2014then you\u2019ll enjoy the excuse to celebrate National Public Lands Day on Saturday, Sept. 28.\u00a0 Throughout the country, people celebrate this special day by visiting national parks and other public lands, volunteering at clean-ups and other preservation events and giving thanks for all the…<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":95,"featured_media":73022,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1816],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-73015","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lumberjack-lifestyle"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73015","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/95"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=73015"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73015\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/73022"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=73015"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=73015"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=73015"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}