NATIONAL PARKS FREE DAYS SEE NPS.GOV

The National Park Service (NPS) is the largest U.S. agency overseeing lands for public use and recreation. There are a various categories for properties within the NPS system ranging from being called a national park to a national recreation area, national monument, a national seashore, a national historic site, a national historic trail and even a national preserve, historical park and national memorial.

National Park Service features free admission days throughout the year. Is anything actually "free" when it belongs to "we the people", administered by our federal government? Here's are some fast facts:

Comparison of Park Lands in California

• California National Parks: 35.6 million visits | 26 national parks | Free Days | nps.gov
• California State Parks: 60 million visits | 280 park units | 1.4 million acres | No Free Days

Cost of Admission

• National Parks: $80 annual car fee for all U.S. parks; $10 senior lifetime; military free
• California State Parks: $150 annual car fee. Excludes: Off Highway Motor Vehicular Recreation Areas, high demand Southern California Beach Parks, oversize vehicle fees, extra vehicle fees, supplemental fees, camping

National Parks Fees in California 2014

• Cabrillo National Monument $5 parking
• Death Valley National Park $20 - 7 days
• Devils Postpile National Monument $7 adult, $4 age 3-15 years
• Golden Gate Park's Muir Woods $7 age 16 years and older
• Joshua Tree National Park $15 - 7 days
• Lassen Volcanic National Park $10 - 7 days
• Lava Beds $10 - 7 days
• Pinnacles National Park $5 - 7 days
• San Francisco Maritime $5 person - 7 days, under age 16 free
• Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park $20 - 7 days
• Whiskeytown National Recreation Area $5 - 1 day
• Yosemite National Park $20 - 7 days

Always free: Channel Islands NP, Eugene O'Neill, Fort Point, John Muir, Manzanar, Mojave, Point Reyes Seashore, Presidio, Redwood NP, Santa Monica Mountains,

U.S. Park Land

• National Park Service: 274 million visits | 401 national park units | 84.6 million acres
• Bureau of Land Management: 56.9 million visits | 3,602 recreational sites | 256 million acres
• Fish and Wildlife Service: 43.7 million visits | 548 wildlife refuges | 96.2 million acres

Alcatraz Island
San Francisco, CA

Alcatraz Island offers a close-up look at the site of the first lighthouse and US built fort on the West Coast, the infamous federal penitentiary long off-limits to the public, and the 18 month occupation by Indians of All Tribes which saved the tribes. Rich in history, there is also a natural side to the Rock - gardens, tide pools, bird colonies, and bay views beyond compare.
Alcatraz Is Indian Land

National Monument
Cabrillo
San Diego, CA

Climbing out of his boat and onto shore in 1542, Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo stepped into history as the first European to set foot on what is now the West Coast of the United States. In addition to telling the story of 16th century exploration, the park is home to a wealth of cultural and natural resources. Join us and embark on your own Voyage of Discovery.
Statue Plaza at Cabrillo NM

National Historic Trail
California
Various States, CA,CO,ID,KS,MO,NE,NV,OR,UT,WY

The road to California carried over 250,000 gold-seekers and farmers to the gold fields and rich farmlands of California during the 1840s and 1850s--the greatest mass migration in American history. More than 1,000 miles of trail ruts and traces can still be seen in the vast undeveloped west--reminders of the sacrifices, struggles, and triumphs of early American travelers and settlers.
Paradise Springs Hotel near South Pass, Wyoming


National Monument
Devils Postpile
the Sierra Nevada near Mammoth Lakes, CA

Established in 1911 by presidential proclamation, Devils Postpile National Monument protects and preserves the Devils Postpile formation, the 101-foot high Rainbow Falls, and pristine mountain scenery. The formation is a rare sight in the geologic world and ranks as one of the world's finest examples of columnar basalt. Its columns tower 60 feet high and display an unusual symmetry.
Winter has arrived at Devils Postpile

National Historic Site
Eugene O'Neill
Danville, CA

America's only Nobel Prize winning playwright, Eugene O'Neill, chose to live in Northern California at the climax of his writing career. Isolated from the world and within the walls of his home, O'Neill wrote his final and most memorable plays; The Iceman Cometh, Long Day's Journey Into Night, and A Moon for the Misbegotten. Reservations are required to visit this site.
Eugene O'Neill in his Tao House study in 1941 - Yale Beinecke Library Photo

National Historic Site
Fort Point
Presidio of San Francisco, CA

From its vantage point overlooking the spectacular Golden Gate, Fort Point protected San Francisco harbor from Confederate & foreign attack during & after the U.S. Civil War. Its beautifully arched casemates display the art of the master brick mason from the Civil War period.
Fort Point National Historic Site is located at the south anchorage of the Golden Gate Bridge.

Golden Gate National Recreation Area
San Francisco, CA

Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA) chronicles two hundred years of history, from the Native American culture, the Spanish Empire frontier and the Mexican Republic, to maritime history, the California Gold Rush, the evolution of American coastal fortifications, and the growth of urban San Francisco.
Travel decal of Diamond Head mountain on Oahu, Hawai'i.

John Muir National Historic Site
Martinez, CA

John Muir was many things, inventor, immigrant, botanist, glaciologist, writer, co-founder of the Sierra Club, fruit rancher. But it was John Muir's love of nature, and the preservation of it, that we can thank him for today. Muir convinced President Teddy Roosevelt to protect Yosemite (including Yosemite Valley), Sequoia, Grand Canyon and Mt. Rainier as National Parks.
John Muir's desk in his Scribble Den.

Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail
Nogales, AZ to San Francisco, CA, AZ,CA

"Everyone mount up!" This became a familiar call from Spanish Captain Juan Bautista de Anza. In 1776, as Americans fought for their independence in the East, Anza led almost 300 people over 1200 miles to settle Alta California. It was the first overland route established to connect New Spain with San Francisco. Walk in their footsteps from Nogales, Arizona to San Francisco, California.
Los Angeles River mural representing the Anza expedition

Lava Beds National Monument
Tulelake, CA

Lava Beds National Monument is a land of turmoil, both geological and historical. Over the last half-million years, volcanic eruptions on the Medicine Lake shield volcano have created a rugged landscape dotted with diverse volcanic features. More than 700 caves, Native American rock art sites, historic battlefields and campsites, and a high desert wilderness experience await you!
Blue Grotto cave, Lava Beds National Monument

Manzanar National Historic Site
Independence, CA

In 1942, the United States government ordered more than 110,000 men, women, and children to leave their homes and detained them in remote, military-style camps. Manzanar War Relocation Center was one of ten camps where Japanese American citizens and resident Japanese aliens were interned during World War II.
Cemetery Monument with snow covered sierra

Mojave National Preserve
Southern California between I-15 and I-40; headquarters in Barstow, CA

Singing sand dunes, volcanic cinder cones, Joshua tree forests, and carpets of wildflowers are all found at this 1.6 million acre park. A visit to its canyons, mountains and mesas will reveal long-abandoned mines, homesteads, and rock-walled military outposts. Located between Los Angeles and Las Vegas, Mojave provides serenity and solitude from major metropolitan areas.
photo of sunset

Muir Woods National Monument
Mill Valley, CA

On Jan. 9, 1908, Pres. Theodore Roosevelt signed legislation establishing Muir Woods National Monument. William and Elizabeth Kent had donated the woods to save the trees, and asked that it be named after John Muir. Upon learning of its dedication, Mr. Muir declared, "This is the best tree-lovers monument that could possibly be found in all the forests of the world." more...
Muir Woods has many accessible trails with views of the redwood forest.

Old Spanish National Historic Trail
AZ,CA,CO,NV,NM,UT

Take a journey across the Southwest on the Old Spanish National Historic Trail between Santa Fe and Los Angeles for history, culture, and scenic beauty.
A muddy Virgin River flows past red rock cliffs in Arizona.

Pinnacles National Monument
Paicines, CA

Rising out of the chaparral-covered Gabilan Mountains, east of central California's Salinas Valley, are the spectacular remains of an ancient volcano. Massive monoliths, spires, sheer-walled canyons and talus passages define millions of years of erosion, faulting and tectonic plate movement.
The High Peaks

Point Reyes National Seashore
Point Reyes, CA

From its thunderous ocean breakers crashing against rocky headlands and expansive sand beaches to its open grasslands, brushy hillsides and forested ridges, Point Reyes offers visitors over 1000 species of plants and animals to discover. Home to several cultures over thousands of years, the Seashore preserves a tapestry of stories and interactions of people. Point Reyes awaits your exploration.

Pony Express National Historic Trail
Various States, CA,CO,KS,MO,NE,NV,UT,WY

The Pony Express NHT was used by young men on fast horses to carry the nation's mail from Missouri to California in the unprecedented time of only ten days. The relay system became the nation's most direct and practical means of east-west communications before the telegraph, and it played a vital role in aligning California with the Union in the years just before the Civil War.
Historians disagree whether Cold Springs station in western Nevada served as a home station or a relay station for the Pony Express.

Port Chicago Naval Magazine National Memorial
Concord Naval Weapons Station, CA

On the evening of July 17, 1944, residents in the San Francisco east bay area were jolted awake by a massive explosion that cracked windows and lit up the night sky. At Port Chicago Naval Magazine, 320 men were instantly killed when the munitions ships they were loading with ammunition for the Pacific theatre troops blew up. Reservations are required to visit this site.
Wharf loading operations at Port Chicago in the 1940's - Navy Photo

Presidio of San Francisco
San Francisco, CA

For 218 years, the Presidio served as an army post for three nations. World and local events, from military campaigns to the rise of aviation, from World Fairs to earthquakes, left their mark. Come enjoy the history and beauty of the Presidio. Explore centuries of architecture. Reflect in a national cemetery. Walk through an historic airfield, forests, or to beaches, and admire spectacular vistas.
Flowers at Crissy Field


Rosie the Riveter WWII Home Front National Historical Park
Richmond , CA

Rosie the Riveter/World War II Home Front National Historical Park, located in the wartime boomtown of Richmond, California, preserves and interprets the stories and places of our nation's home front response to World War II.
World War II Kaiser Shipyard Workers, Richmond California

San Francisco Maritime Museum National Historical Park
San Francisco, CA

Stand on the stern of Balclutha, face west to feel the fresh wind blowing in from the Pacific Ocean. Located in the Fisherman's Wharf neighborhood, San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park offers the sights, sounds, smells and stories of Pacific Coast maritime history.
Sailors aloft furling a sail on a square rigged ship.

Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area
Thousand Oaks, CA

Spring is upon us and a new season brings new life back to the Santa Monica Mountains. Cool rains and sunshine revitalize our hills as they become green once again and lay the foundation for wildflowers to return. Explore this unique place. Plus, you can always find something to do and plan your visit by learning more...
Photo: Circle X Ranch provides mountain and ocean views from the highest points in the Santa Monica Mountains.

Whiskeytown National Recreation Area
Whiskeytown, CA

Located 8 miles west of Redding, Whiskeytown National Recreation Area is geographically situated at the juncture of the Klamath Mountain Range and the northern edge of the Central Valley, making it home to a diverse collection of animal and plant life. The park provides outdoor enthusiasts with excellent opportunities for water recreation, hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding, and camping.
Whiskeytown Lake with clouds reflecting in the lake

National Monument
World War II Valor in the Pacific
Honolulu, HI,AK,CA

Spanning nearly all of the Pacific Ocean, World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument preserves and interprets the stories and key events in the Pacific Theater leading up to the U.S. entering World War II, its impacts on the mainland, through to the Peace Treaty in Tokyo Bay, Japan ending the war.
USS Arizona Memorial - Ship in Review