V is for Visionary - images of America

Influential groups of people in the United States saw the benefit of preserving nature for the good of the people, and with the support of President Woodrow Wilson, the National Park Service was created in 1916.

The first designated national park in the world was Yellowstone.
Visionary?
Indeed it was!

Thanks to this vision and the acknowledged benefits of National Parks, nearly 100 countries around the world have followed suite.

That's something to be justifiably proud of.

According an article below, "Last year, almost two hundred seventy-five million people visited the national park system in the United States" (my bold) That's an extraordinary number of both locals and people from all parts of the world.

Why do they come? Scenery has to be high on the list, photography, painting, bushwalking, exploring, recharging their "batteries" or simply to relax and be.

The idea of the National Parks is to "conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and the wild life therein and to provide for the enjoyment of the same in such manner and by such means as will leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations." (my bold)

Unfortunately this is proving more difficult than anticipated back in 1916. (see N is for Noxious, and O is for Oil). Not only as a result of the naturally occurring changing climate, but man made influences are having a detrimental affect as well.

How plants, animals and humans adapt to these changes remains to be seen.



There's some history about the National Parks in the US
here, here and here.
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J is for Joshua trees - images of America

These interesting tree shaped plants were in flower when we visited.  The story is that they were named by Mormon settlers, and being steeped in stories from the bible, they named them after Joshua holding his arms up in prayer.

They have a strange beauty and I imagine on a moonlit night some could look very like a tall person, looming out of the darkness.

Watching me running around trying to get my phone high enough above my head to get a photo of the flowers must have been amusing for any onlookers! I really needed a ladder or telephoto lens (I wonder if they'll eventually make them for phones?)

Thankfully there weren't many people around, which is probably just as well as I'd decided to take the plunge and try driving through the Mojave Reserve. My logic went that it would be relatively safe - there were few animals around, and plants can be reliably trusted to stay where they are and not take it into their heads and run across the road!

We survived! The hire car survived! I managed to park on the side of the road in a very respectable manner. The big challenge was driving into a town ... with stoplights ... and daydreaming pedestrians with skittish children ... and needing to turn a corner - thank goodness there weren't any roundabouts!

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