By Going.com
In 2024, 331.9 million people visited US national parks. That included the official parks that you know and love (looking at you, Yellowstone and Yosemite), but it also included visitors to national forests, seashores, monuments, wildlife refuges, historic sites, conservation areas, and more, all of which are public lands that fall under the National Park Service, or NPS.
With visitor numbers like that, it’s paramount that our parks have a system in place so that trails stay maintained, streams are clean, and visitor centers are staffed to assist with the flow of traffic.
Thanks to some 138,000 volunteers per year that’s possible. And would you believe it if we told you it’s super easy to get out there and devote a bit of your time to the greatest outdoors that the US has to offer?
Not only do you feel the satisfaction of being a steward of our national parks, volunteering also typically grants you free access to the parks and sites—not an easy feat when we’re talking about the Grand Canyons, Zions, and Great Smoky Mountains of the world. Win, win.
Here are a few ways you can get involved in our national parks.
For more information on how you can leave no trace and help out our national parks in the process, follow the individual pages for your favorite national parks or Instagram accounts including @leavenotraceorg, @recreate.responsibly, @nationalparkservice.
Image Credit: Wirestock/Freepik
