USA National Parks Trivia - Part 2 Quiz

Answer: Isle Royale NP

One of the most remote national parks is in Michigan, but you can also take a sea plane from Minnesota. The only way to get to this park is by boat or air, there are no roads or bridges. You can either camp or stay in the one hotel they have on the island. There are plenty of places to camp and if you're lucky you can get a large shelter to avoid the rain and bugs! Don't be surprised if you see a moose, there are over 2000 moose on the island, but I didn't get a glimpse of one, until I hit the seaplane. I saw one below us!

Isle Royale was named a national park on April 3, 1940 and has been the home to many visitors over the years. I was able to visit this park twice. One time I flew a seaplane from Minnesota, the second time I took a ferry from the Michigan side. Bring along a black light if you go, you can look for 'glow rocks' that are famous in Lake Superior only.

Answer: Mammoth Cave NP

I expected so much from this massive cave and was not thrilled with my first tour. They walk you through a cave that now has lights installed to help with lighting the way. They list a bunch of tours but I wanted to see the waters coming down inside the cave, but instead I witnessed a large empty room. The guide turned off his flashlight at one point and it was completely pitch black. Can you imagine this tour in years ago, with just flashlights taking you through the cave?

The park was established in 1941 and since then thousands of people have cooled themselves off under the ground. They are still looking for fingers inside the cave, where they find new routes. I would suggest a more intense lantern tour to make things a little more 'fun'.

Answer: New River Gorge NP

One of the newer parks in 1978 was this beauty in West Virginia, but it became an official national park in 2020. Now if you're interested in seeing this beautiful area and bridge, get your seasick pills out and ready to take because West Virginia has the most turns that I have ever seen. At one point I saw three signs all in the same area with different turns on them. Once you get to the visitor center you can head to the bottom and drive across a little bridge while savoring the beauty of the big bridge! The bridge is just over 3000 feet long and once a year on 'Bridge Day' in October you are allowed to jump off that bridge! No way, but the event does sound like fun, as a spectator only!

To get across the river you have two choices. One is to drive less than a minute across the new bridge or drive down over seven miles and winding down to the bottom, go across a very narrow bridge and see the rafters while taking a break, and then driving back up to the top. I highly recommend the drive down. version!

Answer: Congaree NP

I don't like to see pictures of national parks before I go. I have higher expectations and sometimes not what I expect and I'm bummed out. This time, I made the mistake and saw the beautiful boardwalk through Congaree and all the moss and the swamp land. It looked beautiful and I couldn't wait. Big mistake on my part. I headed to the park, which was established in 2003, and I took a walk out to the boardwalk and didn't see the beauty that I had expected to see.

I had friends go for the firefly viewing that they have in May and June but I was never able to get the permit needed for this event. There are not enough parking slots available so they have to issue permits for parking. My friends told me that it was just the most beautiful sight, but nothing that you can capture with a camera. I hope to see this one day and will look forward to seeing the park in another view and give it another shot! Make sure you do your homework and try to get a permit as soon as you can on the website.

Answer: Shenandoah NP

If you're on the east coast you will want to start at the northern end of Shenandoah National Park and drive over 100 miles to the southern entrance. There are numerous turnouts so you can see over the mountains! Don't stop there, keep going south on the Blue Ridge Parkway for over 400 miles, don't stop there, keep going through the Smokey Mountains.

Seriously, back to Shenandoah in Front Royal, Virginia is just a beautiful drive or you can hike in the numerous trails they have to offer. I want to say that the best time to visit is in the fall when the trees are changing colors. A beautiful sight for sure. You will see all animals including the black bear. Now a word to the wise, if you come across a black bear, you want to attack. "Black attack and Brown lay down" are the two things to remember. Extend your arms out as far as you can and growl right back. They are babies and they will run away. If you like to hike long distance, then you may want to hop on the Appalachian Trail, but make sure that you wear good bug spray. The ticks are very popular in the area and not one you want to get inside you.

The park was established in 1935 and thousands of people have walked the hundreds of miles on the numerous hiking trails. Make sure to put this one on your bucket list. One last tidbit, don't go too early in the morning. I did this and the road was covered in a dense fog and hard to see the beauty. I had to go again!

Answer: Cuyanoga Valley NP

This fun national park is located in the Midwest. It has plenty to offer including a wonderful fruit and vegetable stands, Szalay's has everything from salsa to homemade jam and so much more. Bring some cash, they don't take a debit card!

The park was named a national park in 2000 and you'll keep so busy during your stay. You can hop aboard a train and see the area by rail. A fun ride where you don't have to drive, just enjoy the view. Another stop would be to the Everett Covered Bridge. There's something about an old covered bridge that intrigues me, but this one was destroyed and rebuilt in the 1900s.

My favorite thing about this park is the Ledges Trail. I was not expecting the beautiful green lush moss on the rocks and on the trail. This was definitely my favorite hike, but you can see a beautiful waterfall on the Brandywine trail too. Nice, but ledges beat it out in my books.

Answer: Acadia NP

If you haven't seen the fall colors in Acadia National Park then you are missing out on life itself. The colors are absolutely breathtaking, green, yellow, red and orange. The park was established in 1919 and thrilling people for over 100 years with its beauty. There are so many things to see and do in the park. If hiking is your thing, you can hike to the top of Cadillac Mountain. If you want, you can also drive to the top. The Beehive hike was one of my favorites. It has fun metal ladders to make things a little more exciting as you make your way to the top and view out over the beautiful mass of fall colors. If the water is your thing, you can also walk along the coast and see the ships coming in from the Atlantic Ocean.

The park is located just by the city of Bar Harbor. Now most people would pronounce it 'bar' like 'tar', but not on the east coast. You need to pronounce it like 'BA HA BA'. You can find all sorts of fun shirts with sheep saying, "baaaaa haaaaa baaaaa". Lastly, don't hesitate to eat a full lobster straight from the waters there. If you're a local you can drop five cages in the water and wait for your lobsters to come to you for dinner. Make sure you have the right size because if they are too small or too big, back in the water they go.

Answer: Theodore Roosevelt NP

When I lived in North Dakota they would have billboard signs that would say, "Mountains under construction", because it's a relatively flat state, but what you can find a lot of is bison! All over the national park. One thing you want to make sure of is that you wear tick repellent, because when you have bison, you're sure to have ticks and thousands! I was unaware of this when I stood out in a field of yellow flowers, but that night I had them all over me and my bed. Not a fun way to wake up!

The park was established in 1978 and not a lot to do in this area other than drive around and see the wildlife and small hills. There are two parts of this park, a north and south end. I saw most of the bison on the northern part but the southern part is just as beautiful and had plenty of prairie dogs in the area.

Answer: Hot Springs NP

If you go to Hot Springs they will tell you that they are the first official national park, but if you go to Yellowstone National Park they will tell you that THEY are the first national park. Both are correct, in a way. Hot Springs NP became an official national park in 1921 but they were made a national reserve land in 1832. Yellowstone became a park in 1872. As you may know or not know, many parks start off as reserved land and some become national parks later, so which date is the real one?

Hot Springs is famous for its bath houses. People would come from everywhere to get a bath, sauna, massage and enjoy the national springs in this little town in Arkansas. As you walk along the Main Street you will see eight bathhouses lined up along the 'bathhouse row' as they call it. You can take a tour of some of them and use some of them for services even to this day. The Hale Bathhouse is the oldest one that was built in 1892. This is now Hotel Hale with rooms as much as $400 a night. This is one national park you don't want to miss.

Answer: Gateway Arch NP

The arch is located right on the Mississippi River and just on the other side is Illinois. The arch was finished being constructed in 1965 but wasn't opened to the public until 1967. It's just about 630 feet tall. It was listed as a historic place in 1987 but finally made a national park in 2018.

I've been to the Arch twice. Once when I was a child in about 1970; we took the small elevator car to the top to look over the city and Mississippi River. The second was 2020 during covid. The elevator was closed and the area was like a morgue. No one around or messing up my pictures. It was nice to see such a beautiful structure with no masses of people around. I enjoyed the visitor center, which had just reopened to the public and saw the virtual camera at the top of the arch, but wasn't quite the same. One day I'm hoping to make it back again to see the top!