Packing a backpack is the art of fitting as much functionality into as little space as possible, bringing along the best, lightest tools to ensure a fun, safe and memorable journey. And that’s the exact approach that Chimani has taken in creating Version 3.0 of its outdoors apps for iOS and Android, now available for free download on the iTunes AppStore, Google Play and Amazon AppStore, respectively. Continue reading “Chimani Leaps Forward with Version 3.0 for Android, iOS”→
Snow means shutdowns at the many national parks that go into hibernation for the winter, but for a select few parks the fluffy white stuff is a harbinger of action, not rest — an opportunity for visitors to slip on their skis or snowboards for some alpine adventures. Continue reading “Hit the Slopes at These National Parks This Winter”→
If your Thanksgiving feast includes turkey, cornbread, pumpkin, squash, and beer, you’re eating a pretty similar meal to that enjoyed during the first celebratory meal shared by the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag tribe in 1621. Visitors to Plimoth Plantation, a living-history museum near the original site of the Plymouth Colony, can still enjoy a traditional meal on Thanksgiving each year, as can those who find themselves in several U.S. National Parks — including some with no obvious historical connection to the holiday.
Zion Lodge in Zion National Park, for example, throws a popular Thanksgiving feast each year — a giant buffet starring roasted free-range turkey, ham, and roast beef, winter squash, candied yams, and of course pumpkin pie for dessert. Similarly, the Skyline Lodge in Shenandoah National Park invites guests to indulge in a buffet of turkey, vegetable lasagna, baked haddock, or cider-glazed pork loin. The Furnace Creek resorts in Death Valley National Park also have special Thanksgiving menus, along with the resorts in the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, and other national parks that attract fall visitors.
Olympic National Park
As for Black Friday, swap your shopping bags for backpacks and head outdoors: admission to Olympic National Park and Mt. Rainier National Park is free on Friday, as is entry to every state park in California, Minnesota, and Oregon. The Thanksgiving sized generosity is inspired in part by REI’s wildly successful #OptOutside campaign, which encourages Americans to head outside rather than to the mall on Black Friday. All REI stores are closed on Friday, but if you live in Arizona you can get a free pass to that state’s parks by dropping by a local store between now and Wednesday.
Plimouth Plantation
If you want your Thanksgiving with a more historical flavor, head to Virginia, where Colonial Williamsburg and Colonial National Historic Park (including Jamestown and Yorktown) help celebrate the first permanent English settlement in the New World as well as the decisive battle of the American Revolution — good cause for celebration, indeed!
Admission to U.S. National Parks is free today, Nov. 11, in honor of Veteran’s Day. It’s one of just a handful of free parks days each year, and the last one of 2015.
Please take some time out of your day to thank a military veteran for their service, and use the opportunity to reflect on the sacrifices of those in uniform at one of America’s great historical sites or natural treasures, which stand among the many symbols of what our soldiers, sailors and airmen and women fight to protect each day.
Packing a backpack is the art of fitting as much functionality into as little space as possible, bringing along the best, lightest tools to ensure a fun, safe and memorable journey. And that’s the exact approach that Chimani has taken in creating Version 3.0 of its outdoors apps for iOS and Android, now available for free download on the iTunes AppStore, Google Play and Amazon AppStore, respectively. Continue reading “Chimani Leaps Forward with Version 3.0 for Android, iOS” 
There’s always a few days each year when it’s free to get into the U.S. National Parks, but 2016 is no ordinary year: it’s the centennial of the National Park Service. And all Americans (and visitors to the U.S.) can help celebrate on the 16 (!) days in 2016 when it will cost zilch to spend a day in any national park, from the tiniest (we see you, 
If your Thanksgiving feast includes turkey, cornbread, pumpkin, squash, and beer, you’re eating a pretty similar meal to that enjoyed during the first celebratory meal shared by the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag tribe in 1621. Visitors to 
