This Saturday, Sept. 23, will mark the 30th celebration of National Public Lands Day, when adventurers may enter any national park for free. True to Southern Utah University’s nickname as “The University of Parks,” the Mighty Five national parks are all under six hours away, so taking advantage of this free admission is a great chance to explore southern Utah’s great outdoors.
National Public Lands Day is generally the largest single-day volunteer effort in the country. Some of those projects come with a nice incentive to get involved: a fee-free day coupon, essentially a get-into-a-national-park-for-free card, to use in the future.
“Established in 1994 and held annually on the fourth Saturday in September … National Public Lands Day is organized annually and led by the National Environmental Education Foundation in partnership with the National Park Service and other federal agencies,” states the official National Parks Service website.
National Public Lands Day is a time for people to come together to celebrate the great outdoors, whether that’s an enormous national park like Canyonlands or the small Main Street Park located right here in Cedar City. Anyone can be part of this celebration by bringing awareness to the parks and other public lands by posting about it on social media and tagging #NPLD. Public lands allow us to escape the hustle and bustle of daily life, a safe way to explore the outdoors, and even the chance to admire the beauty of the natural world, so take a moment to step outside and appreciate it.
Story by: Kaylee Condie
outdoors@suunews.net
Photos by: Lily Brunson
