American Field Trip
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Blog Latest Posts National Parks Project 417 417 NPS Sites Homeschool Video Blog Posts by State Blog Posts By Country About About Us FAQ Sponsors Contact Shop What's New Shop FAQ Joshua Tree Saguaro
American Field Trip
This land is your land. This land is my land.
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David BowmanSeptember 11, 2018Comment

Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

David BowmanSeptember 11, 2018Comment
Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park
David BowmanAugust 27, 2018Alaska, National Park1 Comment

Glacier Bay National Park

David BowmanAugust 27, 2018Alaska, National Park1 Comment
Glacier Bay National Park
David BowmanAugust 11, 2018Utah, National Park1 Comment

Capitol Reef National Park

David BowmanAugust 11, 2018Utah, National Park1 Comment
Capitol Reef National Park
David BowmanAugust 11, 2018Colorado, National Park1 Comment

Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park

David BowmanAugust 11, 2018Colorado, National Park1 Comment
Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
David BowmanAugust 08, 2018Comment

Mesa Verde National Park

David BowmanAugust 08, 2018Comment
Mesa Verde National Park
David BowmanAugust 02, 2018OhioComment

10 Things to Love About Columbus, Ohio

David BowmanAugust 02, 2018OhioComment
10 Things to Love About Columbus, Ohio
David BowmanAugust 01, 2018Colorado, National ParkComment

Great Sand Dunes National Park

David BowmanAugust 01, 2018Colorado, National ParkComment
Great Sand Dunes National Park
David BowmanJuly 18, 2018Advice1 Comment

How Our Family of 4 Travelled and Camped for 2 Months In 6 Countries with Only Carry-Ons

David BowmanJuly 18, 2018Advice1 Comment
How Our Family of 4 Travelled and Camped for 2 Months In 6 Countries with Only Carry-Ons
David BowmanJuly 18, 2018Comment

Rocky Mountain National Park

David BowmanJuly 18, 2018Comment
Rocky Mountain National Park
David BowmanJuly 15, 2018Utah, National ParkComment

Bryce Canyon National Park

David BowmanJuly 15, 2018Utah, National ParkComment
Bryce Canyon National Park
David BowmanJuly 06, 20181 Comment

Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks

David BowmanJuly 06, 20181 Comment
Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks
David BowmanJune 30, 20184 Comments

A Minimal List of Useful Gear for Traveling with Kids

David BowmanJune 30, 20184 Comments
A Minimal List of Useful Gear for Traveling with Kids
David BowmanJune 30, 20183 Comments

Yosemite National Park

David BowmanJune 30, 20183 Comments
Yosemite National Park
David BowmanJune 12, 20183 Comments

Pinnacles National Park

David BowmanJune 12, 20183 Comments
Pinnacles National Park
David BowmanJune 06, 20182 Comments

Channel Islands National Park

David BowmanJune 06, 20182 Comments
Channel Islands National Park
David BowmanJune 01, 2018Comment

Panama City Beach, Florida

David BowmanJune 01, 2018Comment
Panama City Beach, Florida
David BowmanMay 21, 20181 Comment

A Complete Guide to Visiting American Samoa

David BowmanMay 21, 20181 Comment
A Complete Guide to Visiting American Samoa
David BowmanMay 21, 20182 Comments

National Park of American Samoa

David BowmanMay 21, 20182 Comments
National Park of American Samoa
David BowmanMay 20, 2018Comment

5 Don't-Miss Spots in Samoa, Plus 3 Don't-Miss Experiences

David BowmanMay 20, 2018Comment
5 Don't-Miss Spots in Samoa, Plus 3 Don't-Miss Experiences
David BowmanMay 17, 2018Comment

If You Visit Samoa, You Should Stay in a Fale—Here's Why!

David BowmanMay 17, 2018Comment
If You Visit Samoa, You Should Stay in a Fale—Here's Why!
David BowmanMay 09, 20181 Comment

3 Weeks in New Zealand—An Itinerary

David BowmanMay 09, 20181 Comment
3 Weeks in New Zealand—An Itinerary
David BowmanMay 09, 2018Comment

A Few Hot Tips for Hot Water Beach, New Zealand

David BowmanMay 09, 2018Comment
A Few Hot Tips for Hot Water Beach, New Zealand
David BowmanMay 07, 20181 Comment

10 Favorite Spots in Australia

David BowmanMay 07, 20181 Comment
10 Favorite Spots in Australia
David BowmanMay 04, 20181 Comment

One Love-Filled Week in the Philippines

David BowmanMay 04, 20181 Comment
One Love-Filled Week in the Philippines

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National park 58/59: Gates of the Arctic. When we set this crazy goal to visit all the national parks, we had no idea how we’d actually make it to some of them. I remember early on in our trip, just before we went to Alaska the first time, I was trying to figure out how we’d get into some of the fly-in parks (more to the point, how we’d afford it) and I was in tears, realizing that maybe there was no way we could make this work. We didn’t quit, though sometimes we thought that would have been smarter 😅, but there were a lot of times when we had to take things one step at a time, with no idea how any of it would work out. Which is exactly how life always is anyway. The main feeling we’ve come away with is humble confidence (oxymoronic as that may sound) because we realized that even if we hadn’t found a way to get to some of these places, we learned and grew SO MUCH in the attempt. It would have been worth it, even if we hadn’t finished, to try.
Since we’ve gotten back from the Arctic, we’ve talked to several people who thought of it as a completely desolate wasteland. One guy told us that his dad went to northern Alaska and said it was basically a field of gravel—nothing to see. But though it’s not always obvious, the Arctic is really teeming with life—it’s a crucial habitat for hundreds of species, especially birds that spend their summers in the north before migrating to North and South America, Asia and all over the Pacific. The birds that fill our woods at home with song are fed by the Arctic. Caribou fill the tundra of the North Slope and are a hugely elemental part of the food chain that extends from Alaska down through the Americas. When we mess with one part of that chain it may seem inconsequential, but the effects ripple—we may be surprised to find, some years from now, that a plant or animal that seemed unimportant was actually a vital part of a vital ecosystem we humans depend on. I’m humbled, I guess is what I’m saying, in the face of the complexity of life, and I think we should be awfully careful when we consider development to also consider how much we depend on a stable environment to sustain us. @keen @keen.kids #sponsored
We don’t often get pictures of our whole family together. But when we do, at least 3 out of 4 of us look derpy 😂.
Nothing gives my kids more confidence and pure joy than the freedom to play outside. They become the most empowered and in control versions of themselves—they can determinedly tackle a tough climb up a boulder or gently handle a ladybug, shrug off scrapes and falls, encourage each other to try hard things, unabashedly articulate a need for help. They can be silent, trying not to scare away a sunning lizard, or they can be gleefully noisy, shouting to hear their voices echo in a canyon. I don’t mean to suggest that our time outside is without whining, bickering, boredom or tears. But more than at any other time, I see the seeds of who they’ll become in these moments, when there are no schedules or expectations, when they can take turns over and over jumping from a boulder and feeling, for a split second, that they can fly. @keen.kids @keen #ad